Making connections
Never underestimate the power of one person to make a difference, especially if that person has the vision, drive and reach of Pat Capriati. In a matter of months, Capriati was able to conjure an American-Italian Sister Cities relationship out of thin air, bringing together good people on both sides of the Atlantic who otherwise never would have me...
I moved to Italy after grinding in tech jobs at Google and TikTok. I'm now living my dream life.
In May 2023, on a regional train from Naples to Pompeii, I was reading a memoir by an American woman. She'd moved to Naples for an internship, met the love of her life, and, despite regularly indulging in ragù and sfogliatella (a sweet pastry), had somehow lost 20 pounds. Lucky her, I thought with admiration and slight envy. I, on the other hand, f...
Monteverde Celebrates Its 10th Birthday With Specials All Year
Chicago’s best restaurant (at least according to our esteemed dining writers) is turning 10 this year! Monteverde, chef Sarah Grueneberg’s love letter to all things Italian, continues to get accolades year after year, and the restaurant is doing something special to celebrate its anniversary. I sat down with Grueneberg to talk about the restaurant,...
Baltimore's Little Italy Enhances Safety with New Surveillance Network and Lighting Upgrades
To escalate safety and security within Baltimore's Little Italy, neighborhood leaders have heralded the inception of a new network of surveillance cameras. According to WMAR2 News, these cameras have been strategically mounted and linked to a centralized hub, designed to be easily accessible to local law enforcement and the community to bolster the...
The foundation of the Giovanni Treccani institute and the creation of the enciclopedia italiana
The foundation of the Giovanni Treccani Institute on February 18, 1925, marked the first step in the creation of the Enciclopedia Italiana di scienze, lettere ed arti, known as the Enciclopedia Italiana or simply La Treccani. One hundred years ago, the groundwork was laid for what would become a monumental work dedicated to Italian culture. ...
Five years ago, Italy officially entered the nightmare of Covid
Five years have passed exactly— for some, it feels like many more, for others, it feels like just yesterday. Italy had already been watching images coming from China for weeks, with deserted cities due to the lockdown, and no one imagined it could happen to us, that a pandemic could take 197,000 Italians. Life went on as usual: the Sanremo Festival...
O.C. judge sides with Italian mom in custody dispute that has transfixed a nation
Six months after an American man whisked his infant son out of Italy against the mother’s wishes and deliberately withheld the child’s whereabouts, a federal judge ruled this week that the mother can return with the child to her native Italy. The plight of the mother, 46-year-old Claudia Ciampa, has attracted widespread sympathy in Italy, as well a...
Snowboarding Next to Lava: Italy's Mt. Etna Erupts
Mt. Etna, an active stratovolcano, looms over Sicily, Italy, and recently, it's begun to erupt, producing red-hot lava. The display of seismic activity has drawn numerous visitors, including Marco Bassot, a snowboarder. Several days ago, Bassot began sharing footage of climbing and riding the erupting volcano. The snowboarder in the videos cruised...
Violinist Lucia Micarelli on Getting to the Heart of Music
Award-winning violinist Lucia Micarelli is hard to categorize, considering she’s found success as an actress, singer, and composer as well. Her latest project, ROOTS, explores diverse genres, blending them into an engaging musical experience without boundaries. She’ll bring this new show, based on a current album in progress, to San Francisco’s Pre...
A new 'elevated' Italian restaurant is opening in downtown Greenville (SC) across from Fluor Field
Though it may seem like the people behind DeMarco’s Italian restaurant have been hinting at the opening of their new eatery for a long time, they’ve been thinking about it and working on it for even longer. DeMarco’s Italian began as a conversation between Anthony Pepe and Mike and Genine Baldassarra about three years ago. They wanted to create an...
Google agrees to pay Italy $340 million to settle tax evasion investigation
Italian prosecutors on Wednesday said they are seeking to have a tax evasion investigation against Google dropped after the tech giant agreed to pay a 326 million euro ($340 million) settlement. Milan prosecutors had opened an investigation against Google for failure to pay taxes on earnings in Italy from 2015-2019. The investigation focused on rev...
Andrea Bocelli named first honoree for NIAF's 50th Anniversary Gala celebration
The National Italian American Foundation (NIAF) will commemorate its 50th Anniversary with a landmark Gala celebration on Saturday, October 18, 2025, marking its return to the historic Washington Hilton Hotel at 1919 Connecticut Avenue, NW, where the organization has hosted many of its most memorable celebrations. This black-tie event will honor di...