Burnt by the Tuscan Sun

Ferrero's NO NUTELLA DAY: This May 25th!

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Sun, 19 May 2013 20:07:00 +0000

When I was growing up in the food-friendly, marketing savvy USA, field trips weren't always made to cultural sites [although, the Henry Ford Museum & The Stratford Festival were part of the programming, as was a concert in Chicago of - Engelbert Humperdinck no less -- it was the height of Motown, bordering on Bob Segar's Rock&Roll & Patty Smith, so you can imagine how thrilled a bunch of teens were about that choice of venue...] Some of my earliest memories were class trips taken to Detroit's Wonderbread Factory, the Vernor's Ginger Ale factory and even to Stroh's Brewery where we were served up helpings of ice cream, not beer (although the adults could imbibe - even those on the job!) Companies made sure we were given copious helpings of whatever it was they happened to be making that day. And it worked. We were hooked (and anyone who knows me will know that I will walk to all ends of the earth for a cool glass of ginger ale, which one can find in Italy, if you just put your mind to it).
So I was somewhat surprised when, on the World Nutella Day facebook page, two fellow bloggers & Nutella aficionados had posted this picture of their factory visit along with this caption below:

Guess where we are? Ferrero's factory in Alba, Italy.

Unfortunately, it's not open to the public--no Nutella tasting on site!

Anyone who follows my blog will know that one of my favorite mantras of Life in Italy is that the entire country needs a crash course in Marketing101. Here we have one of the most successful companies on Planet Earth, and...no kiddie visits, no free samples, no glorious Benvenuti! from the likes of Guglielmo Wonka. If I were a marketing consultant, I would send the entire staff on a field trip over to Hershey, Pennsylvania--rollercoaster park and all--but then again, given their global success, perhaps Ferrero really doesn't need the hassle.

Well, this became quite true when founders of the (unpaid) no. 1 Fan Club and probably most successful food fan club at that, having proudly established a worldwide phenomenon of World Nutella Day, were given 30 days to cease & desist. Basically, seal it up like a heavy glass jar and, leave our brand alone, Grazie (or no Grazie as the case may be).

I cannot, for the life of me, get my head around what a short-sighted and unbelievably stupid move this has been for one great conglomerate. You want to shut down people who freely profess their love of your product, and all the while for free? To do what? Give it to an ad agency who will charge you millions to produce the same warm fuzzies? If this is not a case of sour grapes, I don't know what is.

It reminded me of the guy who made incredibly sturdy and recyclable furniture out of Fedex boxes. He, too, was told in no uncertain terms to box it up. A smart marketing exec over at UPS immediately offered him as many cartons as he'd like to keep production going strong. Lego™, in an effort to protect their brand, just allowed the Rest of the World to dilute it by forcing them to call the Lego's, 'Bricks'.

But World Nutella Day is not a moniker, like Kleenex™ or Xerox™. It's an event. Did I mention a 'free' one at that? And one that no one involved was making any money out of, besides? Simply put, it was a fun-filled, deliciously chocolately experience. So you shut them down 'cuz it's too popular?

It's no wonder I'm not a beer drinker. Not given the samples when we were youngsters, I never got truly hooked (save for during my college years, which I can't truly comment on, because I don't remember a thing). As for Nutella™, once you come out of your sugar-induced stupor, perhaps you can tell us what's really behind all this. In the meantime, I can't wait to see you in Business School marketing textbooks as a case history on 'what went wrong' - right up there with the change of recipe of Classic Coke, or Perrier's botched response to the chemical scare back in the 1980s.

In the meantime, for all you Nutella Lovers out there, I propose a boycott. And, to help you along, here's a wonderful little recipe on how to make your very own chocolate spread delight. You can even freeze it in ice cube trays and make your very own little ~~Lego Blocks~~ errr...Not Nutella Bricks.

http://www.edamam.com/recipe/homemade-nutella-recipe-a646122aef54636bbe135d5f689bc488/nutella

Picture from http://thekotykreport.blogspot.it/2012/05/nutella-lawsuit-nonsense.html

Kept Under Wraps

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Sun, 12 May 2013 11:00:00 +0000

We’ve been experiencing a cool spring, with temperatures this week barely creeping over the ‘60s. But to judge by the kids going to and from the school yards, well, you’d think that the ice age was upon us. Those kids are so wrapped up, they look like mini-replicas of the Michelin Man.
Here in Rome, you can always spot the foreigners a mile away. In November and March, the Germans run around in their shorts and sandals (with socks). The Americans, not much better (they even wear shorts on the plane, while I'm seated, fretfully wrapped up in three blankets under my winter coat, scarf and hat). My sister’s kids, on a chilly April day were running around Cortona as if they were on the beach in August. Needless to say, I had on a hat, coat and scarf.
They actually stopped traffic.
People thought they must be misguided street urchins, and I spent the day fearful someone would call the authorities to pick them up off the streets & rush them into foster care. Upon seeing I somehow spoke the natives' tongue, however, it opened up a whole slew of comments -- mostly on how cold the kids must be (they weren't). One mother (and I am not making this up), whose child was actually wearing a hooded parka, leggings and mittens, ushered her kid away from the playground as fast as his thunder thighs could take him, as if the very idea of liberty might be contagious. The little boy took one last desperate look at these alien children, footloose and fancy free, as he waddled away in his winter wraps, probably into a heated vehicle.
But, what I can’t figure out is that while le mamme are deathly afraid of their kids ‘catching cold’, they’re even more paranoid about kids' sweating – and ultimately caving in from an attack of consumption. In what is seriously a case of mass denial, the mammas look on fondly at their little rosy-faced bundles of joy (bundle being the operative word here). Except it's not the cool air which gives them their cherub-like appearance, but the fact that they are actually roasting underneath their handknit sweaters & down coats. Alas, they're protected by the ubiquitous undershirts, right out of a 1940s neorealism flick. Probably coated with the Italian version of Vick's Vapor Rub besides.
And so it seems, even with the arrival of new generations of mammas & bambini, it is still the calendar which dictates the dress code. And that explains why you’ll only find crazy foreigners seated in the outdoor cafès on a sunny December day.

Guess who lives in Italy?

Italy's Taxis-What's Wrong with this Picture?

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 20:51:00 +0000

I know there's a joke in there somewhere...about how you can spot a tourist on the streets of Italy. In the old days, it was the awful way they dressed, but now everyone has co-opted the ridiculously casual-everyday-look. The elderly still stick out like sore thumbs, usually due to their dove white skin vis-a-vis Italy's elderly, who are more likely soaking up the rays at their beach house. Men with socks in their sandals are still a dead giveaway. Living in Rome, the tourists are, of course, the ones on pretty much every street corner looking with some bewilderment at their maps. So, aside from those, how else can you tell the tourists? Ah yes...they are the ones on every street waving their arms frantically...at the sea of white taxis whizzing by them.
That's because, in Italy, like in many other countries, you have to call a cab by name. Or, you need to head over to the spots where the taxis are beached and catch your cab. They're easy to spot, because there are dozens upon dozens of these white elephants lounging as if they have just had their mid-day snack in the Bush. A few blocks away, dozens of people are busying themselves waving their arms as if trying to keep away a swarm of bees.
There are plenty of sites dealing with the dilemma of taking taxis in Italy, and I've listed some tips in the Caveat Emptor section on my Travel Tips Page on my official blog. Rome was recently voted the worst place in Europe for getting ripped off by taxis, but generally, that has not been my experience. And besides...it would seem that Naples wasn't in the running, or most people just don't bother with the Naples taxis in the first place - which is a very good thing. As for the Roman taxi drivers, they're way nicer than those chip-on-the-shoulder Milanese ones but then again, the Milanese never ever refuse a doggie passenger. In that business capital of Italy, they know a customer when they see one.


Picture from http://www.mollicone.it Italian Taxis wait for a fare

But what to this day still never ceases to amaze me is the standstill of the Roman cabbies. They site the cost of gas, which I can understand, although they pay less than the rest of us. It's also by law that they can only pick up at the cab stands, so there is that to contend with as well. But, every time I see them amassed there, swapping stories, reading newspapers, while the vast majority would rather hop in a cab than wait upwards of 30 mins for their bus ride, it just makes me wince.

Picture from http://www.vostrisoldi.it
New York City cabbies - always on the move

With the tough economic situation in Italy, the taxis continue to plead poverty while protesting to up the cost of a ride. My Econ 101 Professor taught me that they needed to lower the price to attract the passengers. I don't know how one could ever break the literal standstill of Italy's taxis without suffering politically, but just once -- I would love to take the whole cabbie union on a field trip to New York City. Heck, we don't even have to go that far. Barcelona or Màlaga would do. Finally, they could see firsthand what a dynamic day they could be having in their aerodynamic vehicles, whisking people here, there and everywhere--instead of using their time to catch up on the news instead.
And just think--tourists would love it because then, not only would they no longer need to wave their arms in the feeble attempt to catch a cabbie's attention, they'd finally blend right in with everyone else on the sidewalk.

Who is stealing the great statues of Italy?

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 20:23:00 +0000

Which could be the title of a fabulous upcoming film. It seems that the economic crisis has brought out the worst in people, and now those nefarious thieves have set their sights on statues and churches (that is, if you believe the papers) --They have always had their sights on statues and churches, just check out the number of headless statues there are around town (or in the world's top museums, for that matter.) A stunning Raphael now in the Galleria Borghese was made when another scene was purloined from the church who had commissioned it.
In any case, there seems to be a lot of heists these days - this jury's still out on whether it's that they're just getting reported more, or if it's something to be truly worried about. [Although, given how hard it is to actually sell a piece of fine art on the open market, you might want to pull off an amazing heist right out of Hollywood like the recent one in which the thieves overturned a truck, stopped a truck filled with money, setting off smokebombs - and escaping by helicopter with millions].
So, here's a quick rundown on statue stealing in just the first few months of 2013 -- But, if you are to judge by what they've taken, actually, thieves need a quick course in Art History 101:

ROME - The beheading of one of Rome's 'Talking Statues' was probably an attempt to silence our Magistrate or Abbot Luigi. He held fort in a small garden next to the centrally located (and busy) Basilica of Sant'Andrea delle Valle. He was even fenced in of late due to restoration works. But, why the confusion of identity? Because he had already lost his head a few other times in the past. The one they took was a 1800s copy (not of original head) and probably not worth so much either.
In Lipari, an island off the coast of Sicily, someone had the audacity to take the Madonna Addolorata's earrings, pin and ampules from the Church of Santa Margherita. While valuable, they left other, more valuable pieces behind. One man was quoted as hoping his Saint is a punitive one at that.
In Varese, it was all the gold off the Madonna of the Rosary and in Crema in the north, they made off with her rosary, ex voto, and rings.
In Brindisi, they took off with the Madonna Addolorata's crown and her knife - but turns out, these were made in shiny bronze. Her golden ornaments are sewed onto her robes and were left behind.
- While I don't condone any of this, my favorite caper was from this statue here, in Latina. Not being a Madonna, what do you think they made off with? The bronze spectacles.
Another commented dryly..."Who knows what they'll use them for - though I know what I'd use them for... "

Italian Art History-A comic look as it goes up in smoke

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 12:42:00 +0000

I just completed the Vanity Fair Hollywood Issue, which given its sheer density, is probably why I haven't posted in awhile...In it, was a beautiful portrait of the life of many movie greats, including Sophia Loren. Although I was familiar with most of what was written (clearly VFs valiant attempt to educate the Generation Xers and uninitiated), I was surprised to learn that she started out working for Sogno, a popular publisher of photo-novels comic strips, a sort of print soap opera series, or what the Italians call, fumetti. I often relish in the Italian language and its magnificent array of words to convey ideas, and this term didn't fail to please: What we in English refer to as the 'bubbles' where the words appear, actually look like puffs of smoke = fumo. Thus, fumetti.

They also are commonly called vignette while in English, we call them cartoons. If you go to Wikipedia, you will see black on white, the demotion of the lovely cartoons over the course of the centuries. I was bemused by the preparatory sketches for the huge tapestries hanging in the Palazzo Doria in Genova (Genoa) when I first laid eyes on them. I was told these carbon drawings on basically packing paper were called cartoons. If it weren't for the artist's ability, it did remind me of a 4th grade class project, when we'd all crowd on the floor in order to make a huge battle scene on brown paper stretching across the room. Although the figures are crowded in much the same way as I recall my classmates and I drawing, clearly Michelangelo knew what he was doing with this preparatory sketch for a chapel fresco in the Vatican. Picture from:
http://diversirobi.weebly.com/galleria-nazcapodimonte.html

I can't find in my search for the etymology of cartoons how we took such a leap from the gorgeous preparatory sketches of masterworks to the annals of Peanuts in the space of just 500 years or so, give or take a century or two. But I'm sure it had much to do with the carbon pencil sketches used, and the points to make sure the perspective would work on a chapel ceiling as well as in a 1 inch square drawing. To think that when Mr. Walt Disney showed up in Hollywood with his simple mouse drawings under his arm, he was just following in the footsteps of his multi-talented artistic forebears, like Raphael and Leonardo. No wonder Americans treat a visit to Disneyland like the holy place that is the Sistine Chapel.
In any case, we have now compliments of The New Yorker, come full circle. We live in a time where we laud the creative geniuses giving us the comics of the day [I myself am a huge fan of Italian satirical cartoonists, even dedicating an entire blog page to my wonderful book illustrator, Gianfalco]. On their pages they combine the talented artist with the tongue-in-cheek cartoonist, check out the tribute to (and by) the inimitable Ed Fisher, who recently passed away. His vignette perfectly sums up the devolution - or, evolution, depending how you look at it - of the humble cartoon:

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/cartoonists/2013/04/in-memoriam-ed-fisher.html

** Check out the live links throughout the entry above, in the colored areas

Train Travel in Italy: Riding back in time

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 21:27:00 +0000

I recently took the cool, cozy GoldenPass Classic train up into the Swiss Alps. It was superb. The huge (clean) windows, the 1940s dining car, the scenery...It was a blissful trip into the past while riding up into the clouds. Anyone who has followed my blog or read my tweets knows that I love to hate the Italian train company. So much so, I’m expecting defamation papers being served at any moment. And while they still have a way to go before they understand that web design is actually a profession, and not something you leave to your lover’s young son, I had a few laughs swapping stories with a cousin of mine over how far we have truly come in terms of train transport.

[Let me make a disclaimer upfront: America absolutely sucks when it comes to train travel, their collective thrust of Amtrack under a Greyhound bus is both a disgrace and a tragedy from which we perhaps will never recover. So, by comparison, any country that can take you from a small town to a major metropolis in almost no time at all, and fairly inexpensively at that, is by my standards making magic. It’s just that I travel often to Switzerland. And when I come back to Italy, I almost always feel well, not like Dorothy returning from Oz, but a bit more like the Wicked Witch who got the house dropped upon her].

My cousin and I were reminiscing about our trips from Milano down south, just 20 years or so ago, by train. Sure, they cost a fraction of today’s prices, but we would be situated in cattle class. Going home for the holidays meant standing in a crowded entranceway with a dozen or more other people, three-quarters smokers, or sitting on your luggage while all the other smokers on board made their way into your crawl space to cop a smoke when they didn’t just light up in the carriages themselves. Hundreds more per train car were crowded in the aisles, again sitting atop of luggage, or on little collapsible seats. When a conductor or the beverage cart had to pass, it was like whack-a-mole with seats and bodies popping up and down, luggage moved aside; as if we were participating in a musical chair marathon, only that there were no chairs to sit down upon.

And that was because the compartments, made for six, when they didn’t carry entire families and luggage filled with every sort of amenity and gift imaginable, carried two people -- stretched across the seats as if a couple of bizarre modern-day emperors on cushiony litters. If you dared knock and ask them to make room, they would hiss that they had reserved those seats [if they were polite]. And in actual fact, they had.

TrenItalia - (then known as Ferrovie dello Stato - one of the many names their website still defaults to although no one on God’s green earth can actually type ‘Ferrovie’ let alone search it on Google) would allow people to reserve a zillion places, even though they only purchased one ticket. The conductor refused to intervene in the skirmishes emanating along the 20 odd cars. So there you were, standing all night long on an 11 hr train trip just to get to Rome for the holidays.

Salerno further south was a 15 hr ordeal that not even sardines are put through on their way into their proverbial cans and I’ve since deleted from my memory banks all recollection of the heinous trips taken from Milan to Sicily in a combination of trains and all-night ferry boats, no cabins available for the ill-prepared. [Although I must admit, the inconvenience made for a wonderful adventure usually having to do with long animated conversations, singing on deck, and brief flirtations--sleep is overrated anyway.]

On the bright side, you could take a train from the tiniest little town to pretty much anywhere on earth. And sometimes, you still can. Although that prospect found you, like Spike, waiting for some sign of movement that wasn't a freight train passing at full speed in the middle of nowhere, your sights planted firmly on the horizon in the hopes that one might just show up before nightfall.

In short, today's three hour sprint - even with the standard delays - from Milan to Rome is a joyful breeze. It almost makes you forget that you arrived sweaty up to the tracks due to lack of working escalators, or without a wallet given the pickpockets loitering behind you at the ticket machines. But with their imposed ‘no standing room policy’ at least once aboard you’ll be sure to get a seat.

You can find many more train insights on the TRAVEL TIPS section of my blog
and for a rundown of the EUROSTAR experience Click Here
Rome's Airport Train Odyssey Here
and my quick review of the spanking new cool kid on the block, ItaloTreno

Goodbye and Good Luck - An Italian Journalist Bids Farewell to Italy

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Sun, 17 Mar 2013 21:10:00 +0000

I came across this heartfelt 'exit interview' posted by a freelance reporter who decided to write a farewell letter to Italy. With each and every day, people---young, talented, and more importantly, with a burning desire to 'do something' with their lives; prove themselves or just make a buck are moving out of their beloved Italy and on to greener pastures. One that's ripe with opportunities, and more importantly, paychecks. Sadly, her story could be about any profession.
You can find her original post in Italian here: http://11onair.com/2013/03/10/goodbye-italy-im-a-freelance/

Twenty years rising through the ranks, because you never finish attempting the peak in a world of notepads and tape recorders. Twenty years in which you come to the realization that each day that passes your condition is ever more aggrieved.  Because journalism is a disease that gets worse with time, that corrodes your soul, that doesn’t let you sleep at night.  

When the Libyan crisis hit, I tossed and turned for hours. Unable to get any shut-eye, I had to just get up and go. In the name of that passion that burns inside--that makes you feel that every piece of news you don’t go and see for yourself is a lost piece of print.

       
I left for Tunisia to follow the Libyan conflict from a different perspective. There, I became specialized in Defense and Armed Forces, touring from one theater of war to another, often reporting alongside dyed-in-the-wool reporters.  I found out firsthand that I had what it took: “A purebred on whom no one would ever have placed a bet,” reiterated a good friend and war correspondent-the first colleague to ever have faith in me.  I found myself on the front page while at the front. For 50 euro an article, even from Afghanistan, even from worse places.  Or free.  Because some papers just couldn’t even pay that.  Because it’s come to this; between the newspaper crisis and a ‘system’ run by huge interests that they don’t dare to break.

I’m nearly 40 years old and a freelancer. At times I was kept on low-paid forced leave, followed by unpaid unemployment.  When I do get paid, I get paid after 6 months.  This part I’ve never even mentioned, but I believe it’s the right thing to do, especially as a monition to young people venturing forth to start a career as a journalist.  But also for those who believe that journalists are ugly, mean-spirited and ultra-paid; for those who see reporters as someone who sits at a desk and writes stories thanks to the news agencies.  I for one have always gotten my butt off my chair and gone off to touch things with my very own hand, to verify what was happening.  I’ve suffered, I’ve sweat blood for my job, am I’m still here, despite everything.

My lexicon now serves to report that after so many years, I’ve decided to take the only option open to me: emigration.  Because in Italy, there’s the economic crisis, because politicians sue you regularly for libel [I myself have two open lawsuits, one with Gianfranco Fini (former President of the House of Reps) and Enrico Rossi--maybe they’ll be so thrilled to see their names here that they’ll sue me again]; because in Italy, only the mediocre get ahead, or the ones with 'recommendations' from high up, or those who ‘report’ without ever leaving their desks, or, as I’ve seen awhile back, reporters like those from Corriere della Sera who arrive accompanied by chauffeured limousine, or those who like to think of themselves as A-list reporters just because they’re officially hired or others from the 'privileged class' because their salaries get them invited to every single opening or event, while we poor freelancers only make the cut every so often and even then, we still must pay our own fares.

As of today, I say Basta! (Enough already!) and I’ve decided to emigrate.  I’ll keep reporting and writing in English, seeing that no one wants Italian from me.  Because writing in Italian no longer pays the bills.  So, “Goodbye and Good Luck.” This, for all of you who are true journalists, to those who suffer yet never give up, to those who write for their life’s purpose.   

To everyone else, I say, change jobs.  Or follow my lead.  Because Italy is buona - but only for its pasta.

- Chiara Giannini 

Wow! Genova's New Science Center uses its Brain

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 09:28:00 +0000

This last week I attended the inauguration* of a new, awesome attraction in Italy in a place that already brings millions of visitors to wind their tiny medieval streets: Wow! Genova's Science Expo Center a place where kids of all ages can explore their world. The opening took place in a gorgeous refab warehouse in the Porto Antico [Ancient Port], just a meatball's throw from the terrific Aquarium. Revamped years ago, the Porto Antico now includes other fun venues including a new museum, MuMa, a pirate ship & submarine, an outdoor ice rink and even a spanking new Eataly.
Due south, along the same coast and in the same week, we all bore witness to the devastating fire that reduced the Naples Science Center [Città di Scienza] to ashes. I often remark that Italy is nothing if not a country of contradictions; These two events revealed just how brutal two sides of the same coin can actually be. Both committees knew full-well that a science center can inspire, thrill or even challenge people of all ages [like me trying to figure out how actually to see the 3D optical illusions at Brain]. The burning down of Naples, like the burning of Venice's La Fenice opera house or the bombing of San Giovanni Basilica in Rome is as tragic as the Taliban's taking out those Buddhas of Bamiyan.

- Picture from La Stampa.it -

But stepping off the expansive promenade of the old port of Genova and into the Wow! complex, reminded me just what it is that the politicians in Italy have long forgotten: The extent of the talent and unbridled potential of so many of its citizens, the brains, capacity and audacity of so many, and how incredible things would be in Italy, if the feudal lords would just get their greasy palms, hand-outs and abject mediocrity out of the way. It can be done: just take a look at Italy's fashion houses from Armani to Benetton, to Ferraro, Illy Caffè or Luxottica that are the envy of the world. These companies prove that when Italians are left to their own devices without the interference of the political class, well, Wow!
Come to think of it, almost every struggling company from Alitalia, FIAT, to the big utilities & defense contractors, from the Post Office to the plethora of City "services", even the oldest bank in the world, Monte dei Paschi, once the personal piggy bank of the Medicis (and we've seen all the politicians thereafter), are all bastions of political patronage, payoffs and nepotism in the extreme. Political hacks consider these and smaller off-shoots for their own personal festivities where one plays a backwards musical chairs--the chairs just keep getting added; not for hard-working, honest employees, but for an army of unqualified yes-men (and they're all men), lovers, relatives and incapable friends. Filling up fake companies and real ones in exchange for votes, inexperienced mediocre cretins pretend to do managerial jobs while the guys at the top siphon the public funds. The higher up you go, the more place holders (prestanomi) you'll find. Million euro stipends are the order of the day, to keep the palms greased and the currency pushed into envelopes. Middle managers and workers barely eke out a living with their meagre pay--and it is only thanks to them (and the legions of slave workers) that keeps the company afloat at all.
Back in Genova, I had originally pitched the idea for a science center to an astute businessman. He in turn, cobbled together more private business people to consider the concept. We went to the Port Authority to check out the space. It was perfect. A contract could be signed. The only delay was when the City, finding themselves slightly sidelined, lobbied a few faux regulations their way--the equivalent of making sure they had stables for unicorns handy, just in case one turns up. Once again, instead of rejoicing the new tenants of a half-abandoned building, new life and new money for the City coffers, the civil servants did what they could to first foil the deal. Thankfully, they have seen the light.
It reminded me of the building of The Venetian hotel in Las Vegas. Multi-billionaire Adelson showed up in Merano with bucketfuls of cash and took back home marble specialists, architects, even buying up an exclusive textile company so his hotel would have a real Venetian feel in their fabrics. Venice Mayor Cacciari was apoplectic. How could this rich, obnoxious American just come here and buy up our artisans? And not ask for our blessing first? How could he refuse to pay homage first with the Doge himself? He tried suing Adelson for patent infringement of the image of Venice. He was made a laughing stock when the Mayor of Paris, darting across the Atlantic to the opening of Paris Paris for the ribbon cutting, chimed in that it was an honor to see the Eiffel Tower recreated in Sin City. And we all know what the Parisians think of Americans. Adelson laughed all the way to the bank.
Regardless, from that first meeting in August 2011, the Science Center was opened in record time, by anyone's standards. Wow! had gone into high speed, awarding contracts to capable architects, graphics firms, ad agencies, technicians and suppliers of every color. Compare this with the re-opening of the State Museum, the Borghese Gallery in the '90s. Fourteen years under "restoration" under various Ministers until Walter Veltroni, then Minister of Culture said, Basta! He picked a date and it opened to the public to great acclaim. Ahhh...you say...but he is a politician! So effective was he, his party threw him out.
Wow! opened like clockwork--and opening up with it, jobs to a group of exceptional young people, all college graduates, each and every one oozing passion for science from every pore. Families, school kids, the city itself will all reap the benefits of our work there. And who knows? Perhaps one day one child will become the next Rita Levi-Montalcini or Marisa Bellisario. The surrounding attractions will benefit as well, as will the gorgeous palaces, museums, and other cultural events that Genova offers on a regular basis. It is no accident that Genova was voted European Capital of Culture back in 2004.
As I like to quip, having long ago co-opted someone's piquant quote, Italy works despite its government, not because of it. If we could only get the politicians to keep their noses (and their grubby hands) out of private enterprise, we could truly light this country on fire.

* [Full disclosure-I represent the opening exhibition and I refuse to refer to Genoa, Turin & Milan as cities in Italy-and have a hard time using Florence as well].

A Horse of a Different Color

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 16:20:00 +0000

The lastest craze driven by the media to make us all crazy is the “scandal” of - gasp! Horrors of horrors! - finding horsemeat in pretty much every meat and meat-related item in and around Europe. You would think they found, oh, I don’t know lead in baby and pet food from China. I am a horse aficionado, I (try, at least to) ride them, and on my palette of palatable plates, horse meat is right up there alongside cow tongue, tripe and on most occasions, Thumper (except when hiking in the Alps and served with polenta). So, the question on everyone's lips, if not in their mouths is, “Where’s the beef?!”

I thought the media-driven fear fomenting the public outcry was sort of strange in a place (and by this I mean all of Europe, east, west, and central) that regularly offers up horse meat on menus and in the meat aisle of your local grocers. I am assuming that people were upset to learn about horses in their stew for a number of reasons, foremost being the labeling. I imagine it’s because many people, like me, just don’t fancy equine meat as something they feel like sending into their digestive tracts unwittingly and on a daily basis. If they are going to consume it, they want to know upfront that it is the side of a nice stallion they were sinking their teeth into. Like Martini&Rossi, people who regularly nosh on Nellie have to ask for it by name, starting with Whoa!

The greater scandal as I see it has everything to do with the food processors, who seem - if you are to trust the reporters - to assume the Lipizzan stance: frozen in mid-prance and caught totally by surprise.

As cute & innocent as it looks, I don’t buy it for a minute. A collective - “Whoops! How could such a thing have happened?” As if their in-house butcher can’t tell the difference between a cow carcass and a horse one when they offload them at the factory. Not to mention that State officials routinely run tests on all manner of food products -- We are lead to believe that there was a sudden overrun of horses so processors decided to cull the stocks and use them for meat filler? In the last week or so? I don’t think so. Like a pedophile or philanderer, if they’ve been caught this once generally means they’ve been at it for a whole heckuva lot longer.

In the very least, if this stinky spate of horseshit makes for better labeling, then great. I, for one, only hope that people stop their steeple-chase of purchasing pre-fab sauces, meatballs, ragù and other processed products that they just don’t need in their kitchens. Unless, of course, they need to feed an army of people as hungry as horses.

*many live links in text above

Apocalypto, Italian Style

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 20:04:00 +0000

As Mario Monti started embarking on his reform program and austerity measures last year, everyone from the left and from the right in Parliament were turning apoplectic, as was the general populace, I might add. He said it meant that he must be doing something right. And I for one agreed.

Italy's elections may have left it a country divided (this time, in three equal parts, Left / Right / and the 'NO' Party), but they proved they could unite all of Italy -- It seems everyone is totally upset over their horse barely stumbling over the finish line. And commentators the world over are making dire pronouncements over the 'grande apocalypse' toward which this election outcome seems to be careening recklessly.

In my humble opinion (and with my self-confessed low knowledge of Italian parliamentary procedure), I think overall, this election result is a good thing. "Italy is ungovernable" - "Italy in gridlock"...and so on. Really? The U.S. system practically counts on having one party in one place, with another in charge of Congress and the Senate. And we know what happens when one party runs all three branches of government ~~[...two wars, torture, the Patriot act...are on my radar.]~~ Back in Italy, do analysts really believe that a Berlusconi win heralding in a(nother) rubber-stamp Parliament alà Mussolini is better for the country? Here are a few more of my thoughts on the subject:

Italy has been moving ever so closely to a two-party system. They are now down to three. If only the USA could be so fortunate.
Maybe if they know their party might not have enough influence, politicians may actually now be forced to show up for the votes. And, instead of horse trading along party lines, what if...politicians actually represented their constituents and now voted with their brains (It would be a stretch to ask them to vote with their hearts) - Naturally, their pocketbooks (like the U.S. system of legalized bribery, lobbying) will never be out of the picture.
Since the two predominant parties failed in their majority, maybe they should try picking up a few pointers from the party of NO and start employing real reforms: Halving their salaries, removing perks, halving the number of parliamentarians, taking the criminals out of parliament (which is why Beppe Grillo did not run himself-he has a manslaughter indictment against him) and the removal of pensions for all government reps until they actually reach retirement age (starting with those in arrears, say to 1979).
If Berlusconi had a clear win, he'd get his 'Get out of Jail Card' as his first act in office. He wants to pay back the IMU Tax and employ other reckless measures including another building amnesty - which would wreak havoc on the economy, just as the rest of his ad personam laws do. Do people really think Italy's in a better place when one party takes all? (and, in the case of media magnate Berlusconi and his cronies...there's more truth to that phrase than ever before).
If Bersani had won, although being somewhat of a reformer, we'd see no reforms and people getting jobs right, left and center even in places where there is no work. Is that going to breathe life into Italy's economy? (Although one could make the case for government spending to lift the economy out of recession...)
If Grillo's M5S Party gets the Big Win, of course, then his party is going by the seat-of-the-pants -- with no agenda to speak of [Here's a thoughtful review of his 20 main points]. I disagree, however, that a Grillo win is the "downfall of democracy" as Bersani put it. Really? People making their voices heard is the very definition of democracy.
And thankfully, we still have 77 yr old Silvio in our house to laugh at, now with his hottie 'fiancè' extra brought in for photo opps - 50 years his junior - on his arm (when he's not holding Bunga Bunga parties, I presume). Because if I had to spend the next few years looking at his miserable protégé, Alfano, my eyes would start to bleed.

I am not the first one to say this, and certainly not the last: But Italy has always worked DESPITE it's governments, not because of them. You may recall 60 governments in as almost as many years. This is due to the hard work, dedication, enterprising mentality, and of course, tax paying by the majority of honest Italians. Too bad they are not the ones running the country.

- Keep Calm AND Pack Your Bags -

Berlusconi: Buying Votes with Public Money

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 21:31:00 +0000

Prof. Mario Monti, our current Technocrat Prime Minister (he’s an Economist of sorts with a background at Goldman Sachs) and candidate for high office recently said of Berlusconi’s litany of promises to all and sundry, “Berlusconi is buying votes with Italians’ money.” Famous last words.

This election season, Berlusconi, giving a(nother) nod to those who practice corruption as a way of life and in consideration of his mafia friends in the cement industry, said if re-elected, that he would allow yet another amnesty for illegal building. Every time he does this, thousands - thousands - of buildings pop up in every part of Italy virtually overnight, terraces are built atop of buildings, houses expanded, all illegally in wait for an eventual amnesty and forgiveness. Once you’ve built the quick & dirty building, people forget that they must have plumbing, roads to get there, garbage pickup and a host of city services not always provided so readily, and that includes street signs and post office delivery. Not to mention the long fights with neighbors whose view to the sea or to the castle in the distance you've just blocked.

Not enough for our convicted briber and public propagator of prostitution (including his govt hacks) and underage sex, he then took the brazen measure of telling Italians that he would revoke the unpopular (but totally necessary) IMU-Property Tax, which Berlusconi had done away with -- thus depriving the State and Cities of much-needed income.

Our slippery Silvio then slipped millions of families a facsimile check out to all homes in districts where he was not a shoe-in, and duping the millions of households who don’t follow politics or read newspapers into seeing that he’s already set in motion the downfall of the nasty IMU.

Click here for full letter from Panorama magazine

It was one thing to promise to take away future taxes on housing. It’s wholly another story to return monies from 2012 that helped keep Italy - and the Italians, they often forget - out of the muck that has engulfed Greece. The opposition is incensed by this latest tactic. But I haven't seen many discuss the defamation laws governing comparative adverts. In Italy, you're pretty much not allowed to say bad things about the competition, and his letter goes all out against the rest of the crowd. Once again, All Hail Silvio, who, in three terms and 20 yrs in politics, only bettered the lives of his henchmen, whores and personal lawyers, and perhaps his ex-wife Veronica, by leaving.

You can say what you will about our crafty politician, but he certainly knows - as the Italians say, ‘his chickens’. Too bad, if his countrymen vote with their (illegally begot) pocketbooks, it is their goose that will be cooked.

Italy's Automobile Museums

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Sun, 17 Feb 2013 19:52:00 +0000

Maybe it's because I'm a Detroiter, well, okay, most likely because I'm a Detroiter, I love cars. I love looking at them, eyeballing the interiors while driving down the road, wondering who's made what, comparing designs, checking out the glow they give off when parked under a streetlamp, you name it. And so, coming to Italy where they know a thing or two about fast cars, well, you know Italians love cars too (as well as their motorcycles). In fact, in the old days, the faster your car could go, the faster you were allowed to go on the roads. Now, those nasty cameras have spoiled all the fun, but it seems there's a whole culture of I-Spy going on, where people know where the cameras are and which cameras are working, so they can put the pedal to the metal between photo opps.
In Italy, you'll find a number of wonderful collections of old cars and carriages, items left behind from one collector or another, and they're always nice to look at. Just down the via Ardeatina in Rome is a whimsical collection of carriages of all sorts, making for a fun outing here, too. Most of these collections are by appointment only, but once you're in the doors, you're in for a real treat. But lately, people are starting to take their car museums a bit more seriously. Heck - even Volkswagon's Skoda over in the Czech Republic just got such a gorgeous makeover, it definitely means a return visit is in store quite soon.
So, here's my short list of fine automobile museums:

Torino (Turin) Speaking of makeovers, this museum just got one and it's in the heart of car-making country - in fact, it's accessible right near the city center. They rotate exhibits of about 170 cars and are trying now to make it worth your while. And, true to keeping with Italian form of double naming everything, it's called Museo dell'Automobile - Carlo Biscaretti di Ruffia Turin, but I think you're safe to look for automobile museum. Torino also hosts a Central Archives to FIAT and I believe some cars are displayed there, but I am not sure if they've been moved to the refurbished museum. Centro Storico Fiat - Via Chiabrera 20, Torino

Just outside Torino in Cambiano is the home of slick designer of all things automotive, Pininfarina. They, too, have an impressive museum highlighting a rotating number of their 40 designer hits. While I think they lack a quality control person when it comes to train design, we're good to go because they don't sport a Eurostar train there as well. But, I wish they would. Then, the designers can sort of try them out before forcing the rest of us to sit for hours in their seats. But I digress. I've yet to see the museum, but it's definitely on my list.

Going to Milan, the Museum of Science (second name: Leonard Da Vinci) has an eclectic mix of trains, planes and automobiles, I think even a submarine. No rhyme, no reason, but they're fun to look at. And, speaking of fast cars, it's just outside Milan where the Formula1 racetrack is in Monza. Just at the door to Milan in Arese is the overlooked but totally worthwhile factory of Alfa Romeo (who knew?!). Again, double-named Automobilismo Storico Alfa Romeo - Museo Centro Direzionale it boasts the entire historic panoply of Alfas. If you go there, someone's bound to know about it. The City now wants to make sure people are aware of such a historic place right in their midst.

Traveling further east to Verona, a businessman left a fabulous collection of all kinds of things which the family has turned into a tidy little museum. At the Museo Nicolis you'll find cars, motorcycles, bicycles, buses, commercial vehicles, aircraft, heck, even tanks! http://www.museonicolis.com Not far from there in nearby Vicenza is a collection of oldies but goodies at the Museo dell'automobile Luigi Bonfanti.

If you still haven't gotten your fill of cars in the industrial (and industrialist) north, head toward Trieste. Just outside of Gorizia, you'll find a collection of a very brand loyal Ford Dealer. He even rebuilt the facade of the factor that made Fords in Trieste. And in his pantheon, you'll find a 1908 Model T along with cars and motorcycles. Museo Ford Gratton, Farra d 'lsonzo (Gorizia).

But now it's time to set our sights south: to Formula1 territory.

from San Marino's Maranello Rosso Collection

Ferrari likes to say they're located in Modena, but they're located wayyyyy outside Modena, in Maranello. It's a long drive, but worth it. You can even see them testing cars on their track there. http://museo@ferrari.com
Head towards Bologna and you'll come across a spanking assortment of Lamborghinis. It's actually located inside their factor, but once inside, you'll be treated to some rare cars. Here, instead of naming the museum twice, it's hard to tell, but it looks like there are actually two of them: Lamborghini Museum in Sant'Agata Bolognese (BO) http://www.museolamborghini.com and the Ferruccio Lamborghini Museum in Dosso (Ferrara) which shows off his personal collection of vehicles, from famous sportscars to even a tractor http://www.lamborghinicalor.it

Not to be left out, over in Modena is the collection of Maserati Museo d'Auto e Moto d'epoca Umberto Panini, and at the Museo Stanguellini, many race cars that carried their name.

And finally, another cool collection of Ferraris over in San Marino again, by a dealership. Called, humbly, the Maranello Rosso Collection it has a lot to meet the eye with its Ferrari collection, Abarth collection and Congress Center.

You can usually find the antiques cars in many a town throughout the country, so, no matter what your speed, there's always something for everyone!

most names and places in color above are live links

Berlusconi's Indecent Proposal

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 20:28:00 +0000


*Ill-matched Lovers* by Quentin Massys

Back in the 16th century, it was a fairly common theme in art to portray the lascivious old man trying to cop a feel off a young, fair maiden. And, I think it's probably fair to say it was a case of art most certainly imitating life. So it should come to no surprise that even in our day, it's still a familiar tale, told in movies, on the streets, in offices round the globe. But what has happened over the centuries is, the revolting act can not only take place, but become fully expected and even promoted in modern "civil" society [I'm thinking Woody Allen, Morgan Freeman, Luciano Pavarotti, Jack Nicholson, Pippo Baudo, Flavio Briatore...]. In fact, over in Hollywood, if you were clocking it, the age gap (or the expanse) between the (un)sexy stars with guts and their hottie maidens is growing by generations, movie by movie [just compare The Great Gatsby or Summer of '42 with As Good as it Gets or Hannibal]. Women may be blinded by the sparkle of stacks of coins, but 9 times out of 10, unless you're a call girl (and even then), there's a significant Ewwwww factor in place.
So when Berlusconi, our Prime Lecher, ogled the young woman up on stage this campaign season, people just smiled, giving him the right to be as vulgar as possible; the next day, he'd just say he was 'kidding around'. Unfortunately, for me and most of Italy, it was no laughing matter.

Here, Silvio asks the presenter from Green Power if she comes. Not good enough, he asks her how often she comes. And then asks what the temporal distance is from one to another, finally asking her to turn around again so he can check her out. In his defense, naturally, it's because he "appreciates women and shows them respect". But a journalist from La Repubblica got it right when he put black on white what all the rest of us want to see, instead of applause, smiles and laughter:

"It's going around the web, hence round the world, the nth video trash of the King of Trash, Silvio Berlusconi. This time, he delivers a flurry of indecent barbs to one unlucky employee; only to be met with enthusiastic applause and gaffaws. Of course, it's nothing new nor heretofore unseen. But each time, we're left speechless by the seeming acquiescence of the victim; this time in the form of a young woman who, questioned about her orgasms, smiles happily as if the dirty old man who's put her on the spot was instead a gentlemen presenting her a bouquet of roses.

Just once, publicly, I'd like to see someone (feminine, to be exact) say, "How dare you - you pig!" A typical line that one uses with strangers on the street. The spell would finally be broken, the indecent remarks would return to be considered improper, the grunts left as grunts.

I must confess that I don't understand why no one (esp no woman) can seem to find the time, the flair, the dignity to remove herself from this miserable status of being a decorative, even unpaid, part of this spectacle."

As for the 'victim' in all of this, she is reported to have said later that she was not in the least embarrassed, and was "honored" and actually enjoyed the playful repartee'. So much for a morality tale.

A Night at the Opera: Digital Age

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Sun, 10 Feb 2013 17:18:00 +0000

I went to hear Atom in Rome - a full night of lyrics, images, light shows and sounds of Pink Floyd Legend. Held at the Vatican's concert hall, Auditorium Conciliazione, it was a spectacular spettacolo, a night to remember. The concert hall offers an eclectic mix of events, from symphony orchestras, to blues and more, all in all, it is a wonderful place. That is, until the lights go down and then it proves to be anything but conciliatory. For more than a few people, with an obvious disregard for copyright law, this signals that it's time to hold up their phones and iPads and start filming away. You can find the results (and enjoy the bits) on a youtube nearest you. [here's one clip, but believe me, there are many]. Luckily for other patrons, the camera is usually held up in front of the bootlegger's face, and they're usually the ones that miss out on the show itself, intent to view it through a miniscule lens.
Alas, not so for cellphone users. I can't count how many performances, movies, lectures, and special events I have attended (worldwide) in which the lights go down and the phones come out. Unless you're 'live tweeting' - and then should occupy another spot, I've got news for you: There's a reason the lights go out. It creates atmosphere, allows viewers to focus on what's on stage or up on the screen, lets you immerse yourself in the experience. And when it comes to Pink Floyd's Comfortably Numb (and I'm not even a real rocker), trust me, it can be wholly immersive. It's what producers, directors, film editors and countless others spend millions on trying to get you to do.
So, you settle into your seat and little beams of white light shine right in your face. I remember the old days when those lights would be emanating from the long flashlights of smartly dressed ushers. Even in movie theaters back in the day, they'd show you to your seat; helping you get there without tripping in the dark, shining a grateful ray of light on the spot where you were to sit your bum straight down. All done discreetly and preferably during pauses, so as to not disturb the other onlookers any further for your already inopportune casualness when it comes to showtime. The last time I went to the movies, a guy standing next to my seat decided he needed to check his text messages on average every three minutes throughout the entire length of the film (you do the math). I didn't pipe up though repeatedly shocked out of my 'suspension of critical judgment' via a bright light did nothing for my suspension. It was akin to watching a movie and every so often being hit with the loud and garish music of commercials. It's why we fork over 10 bucks to see a movie in the first place - uninterrupted, save for the evil intervallo-intermission still upheld in some of the less hospitable movie houses around town. I didn't stop and ask the patron if he was a Doctor on call, but I vowed never to sit tight-lipped about this invasion of my personal viewing experience again.
So there I was, happily enjoying this amazing concert in all its guitar glory, when the woman in front of me, who had been nervously gripping an eerily lit device through most of the concert as if it were a drip keeping her alive, decided she would put it to good use and start texting to the tunes emanating off the stage. I let her text. But one song, now two later, it was turning into a conversation and she and her husband were corroborating on the story to tap out letter by letter. A tap on the shoulder, asking if she could please turn off her phone. Her response? Ignore shoulder tap and keep on tapping the keys. A few minutes more, I tried again. Emphatically, I said Turn it off or go outside. Only after completing her message did she deign to close the phone, its blue light faintly lighting up her palm reminiscent of ET trying to phone home.
Come intermission, it was time - not for the apology, but for the counter-insurgency. Pointing to others who now wielded their phones with a fervor (Look at me, look at me, I am utterly reachable!! Even at the theatre!), she told me she was in her right to do as she so pleased. Yes, I agreed. It's intermission. That's what it's for. Text to your delight! Not satisfied, she then regaled me with the fact that she had two children. Seeing me non-plussed, she then went on to say that She was texting people to tell them not to disturb her since she was at the theater. I pondered for what reason that was, exactly, she didn't want to be disturbed. I offered that in order to let people know I am unavailable, I just switch off my phone. I'm not disturbed nor is anyone sitting within a 6 foot radius of me. Finally, said husband butt in with his own take on the situation: Why don't you just concentrate on the stage instead of people's cellphones?! My sentiments exactly.
I read recently about a start-up that has invented a sort of Phonekerchief. To be handed to patrons when they enter a restaurant. Once wrapped around your device, it renders it impervious to calls -- allowing you to focus on - oh, I don't know, having a real time conversation with the person you're with? But then again, it will only work if it's being employed. And most people can't break their addiction of being accessible 24/7 long enough for a seafood appetizer let alone a steak dinner and dessert.
All I can say is, bring back the little old ladies with flashlights. And usher the cellphone users out of the theater.

Itching to cook Italian?

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Sun, 03 Feb 2013 20:15:00 +0000

It may be our mild winter, or, seeing that the plant grows in areas of 'rich soil' (read: compost heaps), suddenly almost every tree in Rome is sprouting beneath it, luscious green patches of Italian poison ivy: The Stinging Nettle plant - or, Roman Nettle as it was commonly known in Britain back in the day [the Brits like it so much, they've even installed a Be Nice to Nettles Week. Why the rich soil? I'm fairly certain it's due to dog poop, if you really want the scoop (or the non-scooped version). But, leave it to the wily Romans to make lemonade out of green lemons. There are entire recipe and diet categories featuring the nasty plant; not one of them telling you how to go about picking your nettles without breaking out in hives.
Not one to be outwitted by this Zero carbon footprint plant, I just need to don a thick pair of gloves and even thicker-soled boots to wade into the dog poop in order to (perhaps) get my nettles. But why bother? It is a wonderful food.
I was first introduced to a nettle risotto (risotto all'ortica) by amazing culinary expert and owner of Rome's Beehive Hotel. I have been intrigued ever since. And if I can just figure out how to get the plants that are above the average dog wiener height, I figure I'm good to go.

So, pick your nettles and feast on risotto, gnocchi or an even better omelette - it'll make your day. Here's a terrific simple recipe (just 20 mins to make!) for risotto, compliments of Cooking Mama at Vivere&Mangiare a Km '0'

step-by-step pics on their website

Recipe in Italian: 50gr di riso carnaroli a testa, 1 spicchio di aglio, due belle manciate di foglie d'ortica, burro, vino bianco, brodo vegetale, grana padano grattugiato, trito di pepe nero.

Procedo così: davvero veloce, in meno di 20 minuti si fa tutto! Staccate le foglie dai gambi e lavatele accuratamente. Asciugate le foglie e tritatele con la mezzaluna, unitamente ad uno spicchio di aglio. In una padella antiaderente, faccio sciogliere una noce di burro, quindi unisco il trito di ortica e aglio. Cuocio per qualche minuto, poi sfumo con il vino bianco. Aggiungo il riso, faccio tostare, mescolo bene, quindi sfumo nuovamente con il vino bianco. A questo punto aggiungo abbondante brodo vegetale e lascio cuocere (per i tempi, tenete conto della tipologia di riso che state usando). Al termine della cottura, cospargo con abbondante grana padano grattugiato ed un giro di pepe nero macinato al momento.

RICE CARNAROLI 50g / person - 1 garlic clove - 2 hearty handfuls of nettle leaves - butter - white wine - veggie broth - grana padano cheese & black pepper.

Wash leaves & dry / dice up well w/garlic clove / fry up quickly with pad of butter / Add white wine / Add rice & toast it in pan, mixing well and adding more white wine as you go. Add broth & cook til rice is done (depending on type you use) / Add pepper & grana padano cheese to serve.

Note: When it comes to the above recipe, I like the part of making sure they're very clean prior to use. Any suggestions?

For more on nettles try LiveStrong: http://www.livestrong.com/article/355248-nutrition-in-nettle/

What does an Italian Groundhog look like?

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 09:35:00 +0000

A blackbird.

Turns out, while Americans wait and see if a groundhog will see its shadow, the Italians have their own mother nature equivalent. I giorni della merla - The blackbird's days which fall on the last three days of January and indicating the coldest days of winter. And although weathermen report that there are (often) days much colder, and with this year's record high temps, the legend has stuck.

But leave it to the Italians and their gift for gab and you'll find that the legend has now morphed into a number of different tales, to be recalled by future generations, depending on your point of view. So, pick your tale:

I. During a very cold winter in Milan's Porta Nuova (I like this, my old stomping grounds)...a family of white birds took refuge in a courtyard of a palazzo. The father could not find food due to the cover of fallen snow. It kept right on snowing, so the father bird decided to fly out of the snowstorm looking for food. Before he left, he settled the mother & three baby birds near a smokestack for warmth. Able to return only after the storm had passed (3 days), he found his family black with soot. The sun came out in February, marking the end of winter, but by then even the papa bird had turned black and from then on, blackbirds were born.

II. ...It was so cold that the family - unable to even flap their wings - perched its nest atop the smokestack. Finally, after three days they could fly away - but by that time the white birds had turned black, and from that point on, the blackbird came to be.

III. This version becomes more dark (in tutti sensi): The papa bird left his family inside the chimney, and went out to search for food. Upon his return, finding his mate all black, he didn't recognize her and left. She died of hunger.

IV. Two young blackbirds return to the hometown of the young female in order to marry, situated beyond the Po River. Afterwards, once they left for home, back over the river, it got to be too late and too cold. So they spent two days more nearby with relatives. On the third day, their next attempt, it was so cold that the male died -- and that's why today you can still hear the lament of the female along the Po river each end of January.

One astute blogger reported the actual temperature indications. In fact, they found that:

The average temperature of the three days in question is 3.6 degrees celsius, while the average of all of January is 2.8 degrees. At nearly 1 degree more, it "proves" that legends and tall tales are just that, indeed.

Nonetheless, be sure to throw an extra blanket on your bed just to be sure...

The Way we Were...Italian Style

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 21:11:00 +0000

As part of my occasional series on how far we've come in Italy (from telephones to cinema chairs -- click to read posts) just in the last few decades or so, this post takes on our 'Information Age'. In our over-blogged, tumbled, stumbled and tweeted world, it's said that a person today gets more information per minute than the entire contents of the New York Times back in the day (which is not to say that the information they get is quite as valuable as it was back then.) Today, we can 'Channel Surf' hundreds of channels, with programming bursting on the screen 24/7.

But in Italy, it wasn't so long ago when we were fairly contented with just taking our pick of one of three stations. We'd have those delightful presenter-women telling us what to expect on the tube momentarily, and then, we'd simply wait for the program to begin. Wait. And wait some more. [We were blessed back then not to have adverts filling the synapses with their rowdy blathering and vacuous housewives]. So we just watched the clock. Literally.
And here's how it looked like as far back as 1986 [try and see if you can kindly refrain from checking emails / text msgs / twitter / facebook pages for the duration of the video]:

Other live links to The Way We Were above.

2012 Italy Year in Review

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Sun, 13 Jan 2013 22:05:00 +0000

I love all those year end summaries you find across every category and across every type of media. But, I'm too busy reading those, I confess I did not type up my own list. Say what you will about next in line to be 'The Sick Man of Europe' (you might call it Greece's younger sister, la Bell'Italia), 2012 was the year that Italians woke out of their apathetic stupor and started taking on the problems that confront the country, while never giving up on what they do best: Arts - Culture - Events - Hospitality. So, here it is, a short list of great things about Italy:

Colombus points the way toward a New World
- via Queen Isabella's court -

Great Art Discoveries/ One of the most charming towns (or Borghi) in Italy, Citerna got their Madonna back--a stunning work by Donatello, that had gone in for restoration. That's just one excuse to pay a visit to this wonderful Umbrian town (as if you really needed one).

While in Rome, the Carabinieri frequenting the market stalls of Porta Portese managed to return to an Art History professor 200+ works of inestimable value that were being pawned on the banks of the Tiber. Now...to figure out how a simple professor amassed such a vast collection...

Then, news came from Palermo that a dozen works from the most valuable heist in the last 10 yrs were found in an abandoned farmhouse in Sicily. They had been pilfered from the church of San Nicola of Trapani.

In Madrid, the Prado showcased a 'new' Titian painting, that resurfaced after art historians decided ~~they wanted a claim to fame~~ it was his.

And finally, the Colosseum finally got the approval for a facelift after consumer's groups looked a major gift horse - donation by successful owner of Tod's - in the mouth -- although we lost the fun decidedly un-battle worthy Centurions in the battle in the taste wars.

I spent much of this year making my own discoveries, visiting new places far and wide, from the Tagliacozzo area in the Abruzzo to 'the city that's dying' in Tuscia, Bagnoregio, to the natural reserve high atop Arezzo, to a half dozen new Tuscan towns (well, new for me), serving up age-old delights.
Women in Italy find their voice / Post-Berlusconi, Italian women have finally decided to take matters into their own hands. They're sick of being mistreated by the media, by the politicians, by the church and by companies. While Italy's (nearly all-male-run) enterprises still haven't woken up to smell the espresso--that women actually make household purchase decisions (and that includes autos) and still show us plenty of T&A in order to sell oh, say, most everything. Rome's city govt decided to pass a law that ads that denigrate women would be censored. As far as I can tell, it's been pretty well-enforced (unlike most laws - the streets of Rome are paid with good intentions).
In the Rome City Govt, women won the -stay with me here-Enforcement of the law already in place that would guarantee equal parts male/female representation. The Mayor has done his best at playing 'dodge-'em' for three years, refusing to enlist women on his cabinet, citing the Romney line of defense: He's reviewed 'File folders filled with women' but no one willing or able to join his government. Italy's Prime Minister Monti happened to find more than a few tokens for positions in his cabinet, and a woman now heads up RAI Television. Incredibly, Italians couldn't believe to see that their resumès are larger than their bust sizes.
Then, most recently, after woman after woman (1 every 3 days) is killed at the hands of a loved one or ex, even the EU joined the fray and reprimanded Italy to start figuring out a way to handle this pox on civil society. Which led the Church to chime in, with a Genovese pastor (you know, that city that loves to gush over native son Chris Colombus who discovered America with the help of noneother than the most influential woman of all time, Spanish Queen Isabella) and others stating that women are killed by 'domestic violence' because they dress too provocatively. Women have come out to protest in the thousands.
And finally, an Italian researcher was lauded for heading up the CERN Particle Accelerator breakthrough - except she's a perfect example of Italy's advancing 'Brain Drain' in which the brilliant minds of Italy are turning their attentions where they can get ahead - and get paid.

The best thing in my year was
finding Arcibaldo

More in Culture / Eataly came to Rome, sprucing up the abandoned Stazione Ostiense and bringing new life to a so-so area, that hadn't seen much action since bombs fell on it in WWII. With it, came the launch of my new heartthrob, ItaloTreno and their lawsuit win to open up the fence so people could board the train without having to run the Seal Team 6 gamut of escalators and stairs - all of which are out of service to passengers-and have been 'work in progress' for years now. Let's just say, it took a shorter amount of time to lay the track throughout the Peninsula than to fix the escalator.
In my world, instead, I launched my book (!) with book readings at Rome's Hotel 47, a monologue show at the Teatro Arciliuto, and invites to even our Camp Darby army base near Pisa - and now, tweeting! (@IrreverentItaly) Rome's luxe hostel, The Beehive, launched new initiatives from a vegan dining experience, to film nights on planetary issues of our day, to wonderful films offering a great 'how-to Italy' featuring their kids. They also hosted an Expat Writer Book fair, showcasing authors & publishers and their works around the Boot. While this winter, we were overjoyed at the annual opening of the ice rink at Castel Sant'Angelo, in summer we loved the summer nights at the castle, with the long walk along the passetto, the wall connecting the Vatican and the Castle.
Italy gained a new holiday, after the extraordinary 1 yr celebration of a united Italy (150 years ago). Each 17th of March (move over Saint Patrick, we're into Garibaldi nowadays) we'll pay our tribute to what the Lega Party (Northern League) is trying to dismantle, with wild claims of 'corruption in Rome' while their own party heads are caught with the hands in the till time and again.

http://www.gianfalco.it

Retake Rome gained more momentum as schools and citizens take on the travesty of graffiti that is ruining the 'most beautiful city on Earth'. And speaking of retaking Rome, Berlusconi finally got sentenced in one way or another, so is busy running for high office in another attempt to keep him out of jail (his 4 yr sentence in fact already being reduced to 1 yr for no apparent reason). Italy's cowardly parliament decided that jailbirds couldn't serve in government -- unless of course, they 'only' served a couple of years.
I finally got to put a human face and warm hand on my book illustrator and incomparable political satirical cartoonist extraordinaire, Gianni Falcone when we met on U.S. Election Night in Rome. And, ACRoma, not only imported U.S. soccer player Bradley, they started touring the U.S. to play 'friendly' matches and draw the American crowds, to great success. Not only did they tour, so did Jovanotti, Italian rapper - who liked it so much, he's moved to New York. Another Italian talent lost but another American gain.
You can see more of the week in / week out amazing things to see and do in Rome and that fill my world in my column Dove Sono? (in the right hand side of the official blog page).

*check out the dozens of live links throughout this post!

Branding la Befana

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Sun, 06 Jan 2013 20:17:00 +0000

Today is the celebration of the Epiphany. Or rather, it’s the day the old kitchen witch brings gifts for good kids or fills stockings with coal for the naughty ones. And traditionally, this has been the Big Day for little kids, up until not very long ago when Good St. Nick finally overtook her market share. After all, who could make it against a rosy-cheeked guy with reindeer and elves? Even though I thought La Befana might make a comeback post-Harry Potter, with her broomstick and all.

But, I think La Befana’s image issue is actually representative of a deep-seated marketing problem which besets the entire country. Sure, everyone associates Italy with beautiful things, fast cars, and Pavarotti’s voice, but luxury goods aside, the Italians still haven’t quite caught the hang of brand imaging for everything else. Think about it: Jolly ol' St. Nick? Although originally hailing from Myrna (by some sources), he became Italian and gained sainthood there after all. And yet, the guy’s gift-giving habit will forever more be associated with Laplanders and the North Pole. All because of shrewd branding by the guys who gave us Nokia, although Antonio Meucci or even Innocenzo Manzetti actually invented the telephone. Heck, even Google owes its engine to an Italian inventor.

Take our long-nosed Befana, for example:

A scary old gift-bearing witch is the figure they chose to symbolize the arrival of the Three Wise Men…and to announce that God had come forth in the body of Jesus? My friend’s son here for a visit couldn’t sleep all night – not from anticipation, but from abject fear. Those wily Olde Englishmen - the forefathers of our mass-advertising execs -- already defying the Church with their divorce decrees, caught on to this story, and rebranded her for Halloween. And now trick or treating has taken Europe by a storm.

[And dare I mention what happened to her when she reached America? Having already turned Halloween into practically a 2-month event including movies, Harry Potter book launches, yard decorations fit for MGM, haunted houses and so many costumes there’s a Dept of Halloween in China, it then took the witch, put her in the kitchen so she could stay (and they could sell her) year round.]

And those poor Sicilians steeped in tradition? They didn’t even get the scary witch and her treats to look forward to. Those kids only get 'I Morti', that night between Nov 1st and 2nd when they would be visited by dead relatives in the night. In the morning (if they hadn’t died of fright from boogeymen), they’d find scattered about the balconies or windowsills chestnuts, almonds, nuts, and dried up figs. It’s no wonder the practice never quite took off in the rest of the world despite centuries of migration to and occupation from dozens of other countries.
Branding, my dear Watsonini. Branding.

Italy has an Epiphany

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Sat, 05 Jan 2013 11:00:00 +0000

January 6th marks the day we all get to have extra holidays in Italy. That's because no one truly considers working between Christmas and New Years and not even between New Years (the Feast Day of Stephen-Santo Stefano) & the Epiphany, or La Befana - marked by the arrival of that old gift bearing kitchen witch floating by on a broomstick. Once she turns up, expect the huge post-Epiphany sales, which cause tourists and residents alike to have their own sort of Epiphany. The streets of Rome are so mobbed, even the counterfeit vendors don't have room to display their wares curbside.
In Venice, they hold the annual Regata of the Befana - From the looks of things, men can run the race dressed up as women, but still, a woman gondolier is as hard to find as a female priest. Maybe this will bring the 'ol boys club just one step closer.
And, as a little curiousity, I just read in my charming This is Venice book (by M. Sasek) - a gift from the Befana herself - that in its heyday, Venice had over 10000 gondolas roaming its canals. Now, fewer than 500 are in existence. No wonder prices are so high for a ride. Talk about diminishing returns...

Pic from Venice.nu search engine site:
http://www.venice.nu/photos/regatta-della-befana/

And click here for a fun slideshow of the Venetian event.

And, for all those who don't know what we're celebrating exactly, here's my favorite video on youtube depicting the arrival of those three kings on this day:

Buona Befana a tutti!

Away from the Manger

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Mon, 24 Dec 2012 12:00:00 +0000

It’s Christmas Eve, the night Italians often celebrate the birthing of the little baby Jesus. This event is quite significant, especially if you are to judge by their crèche or manger scenes; something we Americans can only remember with nostalgia of days of yore.

But you see, Italians are nothing if not highly literal people; especially given their long history of language, discourse and oratory, starting with Latin and Lord knows what languages even before. And so it is with their manger scenes.
When I first came to Italy, I thought all those presepe showing an old Giuseppe and his young wife looking fondly down on a heap of hay; standard issue donkey, sheep and even the Three Kings in the distance, was simply yet another indication of Italians' poor planning: someone forgot the Baby Jesus!!!

After seeing this a few more times, I thought: 'Okay, someone’s stealing the Baby Jesus!!'
But then, I finally figured it out: although this is a country in which, despite their favorite pastime being not soccer, but deciphering the meaning between the lines, someone always warns you before any sort of irony or sarcasm is forthcoming. Article after article, conversation after conversation, they warn, just like the Robot in Lost in Space: “Danger! Guglielmo Robinson! Giovanni said, with a note of irony…” Here, unless forewarned, and if no hidden meaning is there, they take the sentence for what it is fully worth.

And so, little Baby Jesus never shows up on the manger scene until the stroke of midnight. Although you’ll always find him looking more like an 18 month old, than a cone-headed newborn, bright eyed and chubby on Christmas morn. I've just discovered that those three kings, though smaller in size, to represent distance, actually creep up day by day, until January 6th (the Epiphany, for you pagans out there) when they bestow their gifts on the Baby Jesus.
What I don’t get is -- why they don’t swap then, a very pregnant Mary for a less pregnant mamma (and perhaps decidedly exhausted one due to labor pains whilst riding a donkey) the next day, too. I guess they’re not that literal after all.

Buon Natale a Tutti!

F. Maggi (decidedly not Magi, like those three wise men!)

Rome Mayor for a Day

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 19:46:00 +0000

There's a political campaign going on around Rome asking you to post and click and join some movement or another and reveal what you'd do if you were Mayor for a Day. There isn't a day that goes by in which I don't ~~think~~ obsess about that. [If only citizen's suggestions were actually put into action, well, perhaps cities would be amazing places for all concerned] So, in the spirit of the season, I thought I'd offer my wish list for my first 100 days; because I'd probably be run out of town or worse before the 101st.

Day 1 Internal Organization
- Install a Cabinet of 50% women & a woman Vice Mayor (to top off that extra 1% of which we hold the majority)
- Toss out all the "advisors" and watch my budget grow (like the City 'on-staff' Doctor who never has to report into work but still gets paid approx €5000/month for services) - and with the extra money, open nursery schools and daycare for Altzheimers patients
- Make sure everyone uses their own unreimbursed mode of travel to their offices (and just watch how fast those bus services start working like a freshly greased wheel)
- Start enforcing absenteeism and docking pay

Transportation
- Before giving TrenItalia one red penny for their abysmal train 'service', they would have to first: a) provide airport trains with space for luggage and no additional staircases inside the train b) add additional commuter trains and staff to clean them c) add an elevator to the airport track at Ostiense Station. Then, they would have to extend hours for commuter trains so people could actually use them after a night out on the town.
- Build commuter parking lots for those who might consider taking a train or bus into town
- Build a foot bridge over the Via Imperiale from the Colosseum so cars no longer have to halt every time one of 7 million tourists passes by, and another one on the Cristoforo Colombo so people can flow as easily as the cars. I might add one over at the Capitoline Hill besides.
- Make sure night buses are small and electric.
- Put ticket agents on every single city bus. Believe me, you would pay their monthly salaries in a week.

Long Term Infrastructure (which creates jobs, I might add)
Start a 'Big Dig' from the Pontina to the Cristoforo Colombo to stop the buildups at one of the most congested arteries in all of Rome.
Ask a tourist (or better yet, me) to travel around Rome and redo all the incorrect or missing signage - such as the entranceway to the Tangenziale; removing all the signs for Rome's Auditorium and putting them near the Auditorium where they might actually do some good.
Turn the abandoned buildings of the ex-Fiera di Roma into a Science Center for children and families
Actually fine and force people to remove their illegal structures in Rome at their expense or risk of jail

Cut Costs
- Police no longer used for political escorts - if you want to make sure you won't get shot up, maybe it's better to not draw so much attention to yourself in the first place with dozens of police postings, lights flashing and 8 cars before and after you.
- Police no longer traveling in three or more to a car
- Meter maids must work on their own and not in tag teams; Meter maids also employed to give fines to owners of dogs who don't clean up their crap
- Bring in night watchmen on dog duty and levy hefty fines for infractions

Increase Revenues
- Take away the dreaded 'Tourist Tax' and instead make the Rom pay for their garbage removal services and property squatting. €10/person/day to live on City property and, campers immediately towed and fined €5000 if parked on city streets.
- Advertisers and Outdoor advertising companies fined €2000 per sign that goes up and is illegal, political ads must pay for the space
- Instead of allowing new building, people will get tax breaks for picking up the abandoned ones and turning them into places of business

Improve the City
- Actually enforce all the rules & regulations that heretofore have been put in place (e.g., squeegees, prostitutes, illegal building and the like)
- Stop all tree 'pruning' and ask the Finnish Park Service (they're in the EU right?) to oversee any future cuts
- Force the private companies who cut down the trees to take away - at their expense - the hundreds of thousands of tree stumps they leave in their wake and replant them with proper, tall, magnificent trees as in the rest of the neighborhood
- Discontinue planting of nano-orange trees and replant the beautiful Roman trees that give us oxygen
- Force the paving firms to guarantee that the crosswalks will be white for at least 5 yrs and they must repaint within 24 hrs or pay a hefty fine when they magically disappear
- Allow citizens to photograph license plates of cars who nearly run them down while crossing on crosswalks and/or who are on cellphones or worse, texting - or those that double park and block crosswalks and then charge hundreds in fines
- Give tax advantages to stores and offices who don't use or turn off florescent signage at night
- Build - keep up - and enforce contiguous bike lanes throughout the city
- Provide toilet paper in every single school and start painting and improving the facilities
- Turn off the lights on the Colosseum every day a woman is murdered by her partner or ex.

Santa, Baby...are you listening?

**Items in gray have live links.

Milan Stock Exchange: A Sign of the Times

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 21:06:00 +0000

Even Milan has it's own 'Talking Statues' like in Rome*

On my recent trip to Milan, I was surprised to see this 'Temporary Installation' to modern culture erected for - two weeks only! - during the Milan Furniture Fair still standing. After all, it was mounted in September of 2010. Supposedly, City officials didn't want to host it then and yet, here it is proudly proclaiming what the world already knows. As much as I (sort of) like the statue, it's yet another provocative Fuck Off to the citizens of Milan by "artist" Maurizio Cattelan who seems to have convinced more than a few people that the city is his canvass, and to hell with you if you don't understand "art". His last cool 'bad boy' maneuver in the name of 'creative license' was hanging a bunch of life-sized children from trees around a major thoroughfare. There was such an uproar the City finally gave in and had them taken down. If he thinks he's leaving a legacy to the city of Leonardo, I'm sure Da Vinci is laughing his ass off in his grave.
The statue is well-constructed, almost appealing, and many believe the artist was flipping off the bankers at the Stock Exchange. But if you look at it closely, that hand is facing us. And this reason only is why the statue passes muster with me. I would love to see it in the center of Wall Street as a symbol for the occupy movement.
Not one to be a prude, I don't think it doesn't have to be shown. But when we're still censoring swear words on Comedy Central, an openly City-approved 'bird' is, in my humble opinion, not kosher. If I want to see Cattelan's dead children or his fuck finger, I'll pay a ticket and see it on exhibition. Forcing men, women and children to lay their eyes on his 'artwork', or forcing them to take another route on public property to me is undemocratic and unacceptable in modern society.
If you look closely at the fascist figures in relief adorning the front of Palazzo Mezzanotte (figures, I might add, that nobody can say precisely quite what they're doing), I have read that they represent the "Four Essential Elements of Modern Economy".
Leave it to Cattelan to give us the fifth.

For more views of the Milan Stock Exchange, it's article and Cattelan's work, click here.

*For Rome's Talking Statues - Earth's First Blogger - read here.

Italy Taxes: #IMU I Miss U

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Sun, 09 Dec 2012 17:59:00 +0000

This title will not have much meaning for those outside our Bell'Italia shores, but this week most of the country is paying up begrudgingly on their reinstated property tax holiday that one Silvio had brought on, to wreak economic havoc on a country in badly need of tax revenues. So, the standard property tax - that most City governments count on in order to ~~line all kinds of pockets~~ implement all kinds of services was brought back in (under Berlusconi & Tremonti, I might add) ---and no one is happy about it, except the Finance Ministry, of course. It was probably done purposely, because it's Mr. Monti who is getting the blame.
Problem is, the State govt did away with the tax. City govts were left high and dry, so they instated a new tax. Now that the old tax is reinstated (stay with me here), with a brand new name, the IMU, cities have left their new tax. So as usual, the burden is left to fall on the honest tax payers come Dec 17th.
So, I went to find information online about how to pay the IMU [which in my opinion should never have been cancelled in the first place, but this was only a swift maneuver that many an ancient emperor tried out successfully, in order to curry favor with the populus - so we can say Silvio was just following tradition].
On Twitter, I searched #IMU - and I soon realized it did not mean what I thought it did. Here's a brief compilation of pertinent tweets. You'll soon bear witness that it means a number of things to a number of people [feel free to ponder the creation of mega-piles of manure bytes filling up the bandwith only to be sorted out someday by archivists who find themselves in hell]:

We'll see if the money comes rolling in...(it has)
Miss Lavender ‏@LavenderLowe

Only time will tell... #imu

The tax man cometh...

Laurensia Vianney ‏@Lvianney

"You say?" "say something" "anything else?" #IMU

Alas...me too.

‏@joemeade35

I think about the same thing 24/7< #imu

Someone whose papà must have paid the IMU:

‏@kathersC

Now "GOD MUST HAVE SPENT A LITTLE MORE TIME ON YOU" by N'SYNC is playing. BEST. MORNING. EVER. Seriously. #imu

People will go to all ends of the earth to hide their money

Strategic Analysis ‏@Strat_Analysis

It has been announced by @ISAFmedia that an insurgent from the #IMU was arrested in Kunduz province yesterday. #Afghanistan

Clearly trying to make the best of a bad situation

Tim Williams ‏@NewKiddStatuz

Wen u have a good girl like mines... All u can do is be good nd hold tight nd love the mess out of her. #IMU

The President of a prominent Italian University telling his son to move abroad - by open letter in the papers

‏@dakotajthomas

A diet for those who want to both live and study. #finals #imu @ Iowa Memorial Union

Mr. Monti counting the spare change...
Cierra Collins ‏@cc_nichole6

Love you more! #IMU

Mr. Tremonti, former Finance Minister celebrating his creation

‏@kaitlynaliese

you can find me sprawled out on a couch nomming on a cranberry bliss bar, drinkin a salted caramel mocha & pretending to write a paper #IMU

All the rest of us, coughing up the tax.

Tesleem ‏@ife_sleem

a part of me just went away....... far away #imu

The Perfect Gift of Electronics (kids only)

noreply@blogger.com (Francesca Maggi) — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 21:03:00 +0000

A friend came to visit one holiday season a few years back and told me she met someone on the street who showed her fine camera to buy - for just 50 euro. Thinking it had been stolen, she couldn't believe her luck. She negotiated him down to 30. She insisted she had been offered a gorgeous (Canon, Olympus, fill-in-the-blank) for her bucks. She handed the money, and the next thing she knew she was the proud owner of ... an empty camera case. To this day she did not know what sleight of hand he pulled on her in order to affect the swap, but, when she showed up at my house with her empty case, she was fit to be tied. And she is Italian. I told her those ploys - in any country - are reserved for tourists...how could she have been so silly?!
In NY, 42nd street was famous for making the swap in the electronics shops and their policy was No Returns Accepted (and no credit cards). I'm not sure if this is the case today, but in the digital age, it would seem a folly given that any missteps in the face of consumers would end up on the web before you could type out Yelp!
But in this last case of camera swapping, I had heard the tale many times before, but I finally met someone who had succumbed to the wily ways of the streetwise savvy swindler. These guys aren't just small-time crooks, they're darn good actors besides. Because their elaborate thievery has them convincing their target that they know the family, the kids, and all kinds of personal details. The only thing that can trip them up, especially in a country of single children, is that they only stand a 50/50 chance when first approaching their mark to guess that the person has a son over a daughter, or a child at all. But, it's a miniscule margin of error in order to rake in hundreds on every single transaction. And besides, I'm sure they've figured out a cover story for every sort of mishap they came across. They're so smooth that they even get the prey to thank them for their trouble besides.

How I ended up with a fabulous baby gift for burgeoning photographers...

Taken all together, it looks fairly real - but the weight should
give it away immediately as a scam

This is my favorite part

Baby can play as hard as he wants at becoming the next
Man Ray... Even the lens is plastic

The elderly gentleman walked out of the Post Office (this is one of the main Points of Interest in Italy for anyone over 55 and where they usually go to collect their pensions - so they have ready cash-in-hand...). A man approaches and the conversation goes something like this:

"Oh-how are you doing? What luck! I've not been able to get ahold of your son and I have the camera he wanted!"

"You mean, Francesco? I don't know what you're talking about!"

"You see, Francesco put a downpayment on this camera (takes it out of the bag). But, he still owes me 160 euro. Perhaps you could pay me and get the money from him, instead of me trying to reach him again and again."

"I don't have that kind of money, and (growing suspicious) besides, how do I know that it's my son you're talking about?"

"Well, why don't you give him a call? If you ring him, I can tell him I have the camera, I ran into you, and then we're squared away, okay?"

Fumbling for the phone, and feeling a bit uncertain (you know, when that sixth sense we all love to ignore kicks in)

Dials the number.

Upon hearing a responce, he says, "I have your friend here who says he's got the camera for you -- you talk to him about the money, and just let me know what to do." (Incredibly, he passes the cellphone to the crook - who could just make off with it and call it a day).

Francesco, at this point, is shouting, "No, papà, it's a scam, don't do it!" But to deaf ears. That's because our Actor-Thief has now disconnected the phone and carried on his own version of a conversation in which they're squared away.

"Okay, so he says he'll pay you back the 160 euro he owes me."

"But I don't have 160 euro, just €120 or so..."

"Va bene, va bene...I'll take the 120 euro just to put this thing to rest."
"Very well. Grazie tante."

Judging from what you read in the papers, this scam is so prevalent the thieves could form their own actor's guild. But the real mystery remains, Why are the best, most efficient customer-oriented, demographically savvy, target-marketing people the scam artists? The world may never know.