The idea of having a bridge connecting Sicily to mainland Italy has been around for a while. And we really do mean a while. Apparently the Romans were the first to pitch the idea thousands of years ago, suggesting that a bridge of boats and barrels could be a way of linking Italy’s ‘foot’ to its ‘ball’.  Over the next several thousand years, a brid...

When Lisa DeNatale set out to obtain Italian citizenship based on her Sicilian lineage, things got complicated fast. Non-Italians can obtain citizenship if an ancestor was born in Italy, even one as far back as great-great-grandparents. DeNatale's paternal grandparents, for instance, were born in Sicily and came over to the U.S. in the early 1900s....

During a cold autumn, nostalgia brings to mind the long days of a scorching Catania, animated by the frenzy of the Fera ‘o Luni market. For centuries, the bustling rhythms of the Sicilian city have been enlivened every morning by a wave of folklore and food that festively adorns Piazza Carlo Alberto. Much loved by the Catanese, the market has alway...

Jews in Sicily celebrated traditional Sabbath services for the first time in 500 years last month when Rabbi Shmuel Herzfeld of Washington, D.C. delivered a Torah to the newly established synagogue in Catania. Having been expelled from Spanish territory, which then included Sicily and southern Italy, by Queen Isabella of Castile and King Ferdinand...

UNICO (Unity, Neighborliness, Integrity, Charity, and Opportunity) is celebrating 100 years in 2022, and We the Italians wants to celebrate with all our Unicans friends. This is why we are happy to welcome a past President of UNICO National, Mr. Paul Alongi, who will help us know more about this historical family of Italian Americans that has been...

Sometimes in life, we have occasions to pause and take stock of the good we can do in the world around us. For this week’s guest, it was two particular occasions (when she received TWO double lung transplants at University of South Florida-Tampa General Hospital) that inspired her to say “Grazie” to both the hospital that saved her life and the anc...

Want to avoid the hustle and bustle of tourists in Rome, Milan, Venice, and Florence? Or maybe you’ve already seen those cities, and are looking for something new? Well here are some of my favorite small towns for you to live out your Italian dream.  1. Bergamo If you’re looking for a dreamy getaway, check out Bergamo! Bergamo is located north-east...

Sicily is a land of flavors, myths, legends and stories, of folk beliefs and sayings that tell an anecdote or reveal the intrinsic character of its inhabitants. From this millenary culture come sweets and first courses, fragrances and flavors that still remain known and hidden treasures, testimony to the worlds and thousand faces of Sicily. Fruits...

You're to be forgiven if you've confused the new season of HBO's "The White Lotus" for a multi-episode advertisement for Sicily. The Italian island – specifically the area in and around the fabled eastern town of Taormina – plays a leading role in Mike White's self-described "vacations gone wrong" series, taking the baton from the Hawaiian island o...

Sicilian-American singer Michela Musolino has been internationally lauded for her unique ability to reimagine Sicilian folk and roots music, alchemized with renowned American musical genres, to mirror the history and movement of people and their musical traditions from the Old World to the New.Now, the  Italian South meets the American South in the...