italy
-
With Us
Huge old echo-y churches are all around. In the historic districts in the heart of Italian cities, where cars are virtually banned, you walk into dim sanctuaries that hold you in a silent awe. There’s some kind of awesome mystery… Continue reading
-
Portichi di Bologna
Bologna feels old, older than Florence. A mere 37-minute train ride from the touristy Florence, Bologna had its heyday a couple of centuries before the Renaissance. But arriving in Bologna from the U.S. late yesterday, we are swept up by… Continue reading
-
Sorrow at Urbino’s Sugar Café
Let’s meet at the Sugar Café. Buongiorno, Giovanni. . . . Buongiorno, my friend. If Giovanni Garbugli was at his café when you arrived, he might be the waiter who brought out your order of coffee, pastries, and salami, with… Continue reading
-
Lost in Translation
As Americans, we are twice-removed from how it feels to be in a European country. Our political consciousness is shaped by a two-party system (now more emotionally tribal than conservative-liberal) and elections set on two- and four-year cycles, rather than… Continue reading
-
Lessons for us today, from Italians
I love old books lining bookshelves. The collection in the North Carolina home of a couple of friends held classics of Machiavelli scholarship. I gently pulled out, like sneaking a square of chocolate fudge, a vellum-bound volume. Carol Darr, the… Continue reading
-
Putting on the Ritz
Here’s a cultural contrast between a pretty Sunday in Italy and one in the United States. It’s based, unfairly, on my own unscientific impressions. In Italy, I was lucky to be on the faculty of a one-month program for five… Continue reading
An American journalist heads for Italy to see his country changing from afar. 