On buoni propositi for the new year
I have been a list maker since I was a child and have dutifully written down my New Year’s resolutions, or buoni propositi per l’anno nuovo as we say in Italian, for as long as I can recall. When drawing up these lists, I am always extremely hard on myself, focusing on the negative, wanting […]
Ask Fosca’s Holiday Shopping Guide
The arrival of the holiday season has inspired me to put together a shopping and gift giving guide that I hope will prove useful to you all year round. Read on for my top picks for Clothing, Jewelry & Accessories, Kids & Family, Food & Wine, Learning, Experiences, Escapes, Self and Home. Enjoy! Clothing, Jewelry & […]
Day 2, Panzano ➡Greve ➡San Polo ➡ Radda in Chianti
Let the games begin After we had finished shooting our day one intros, we ate dinner at a nearby restaurant with members of the production team and crew and spent the night at Rosso del Chianti, Marina Cecchini’s charming b&b in the heart of Panzano. I am an early riser and had gotten up at […]
A Name, a Destiny?
A rose by any other name I have always hated my first name, positively loathed it. Growing up in the 80s, all I wanted to be was a Melissa, a Jennifer, or a Lisa (like my sister). I wanted to be able to buy personalized useless trinkets and souvenirs with my name on them like […]
Day 1, Panzano in Chianti
Road to nowhere The 40-minute drive to Panzano in Chianti soothed my worries and agitation like a mystical balm. As the urban chaos gave way to the soft green hills of the Chianti, I was one of very few drivers on the road. I felt the tension leave my body, my shoulders eased as did […]
What being on Italian Reality TV taught me about myself
Casting Call This is the first in a series of entries I’ll be writing about my recent experience being cast as a local expert in a new reality tv show that spotlights four of Italy’s most beautiful and beloved locales: Taormina, Lago di Garda, Napoli and the Chianti (my episode), and features three contestants’ proposals […]
September, full of promise
A typical Italian high schooler’s stack of books. Dictionaries not pictured. Back to School, il rientro/ritorno a scuola First things first, back to school happens later here in Italy than in the majority of US States. While I write this, Florence is fairly empty, there is little traffic, and people are definitely still at […]
Croce e delizia, a blessing and a curse: On chosen exile, place and home
Road Trip! “Expatriates voluntarily live in an alien country, usually for personal or social reasons. Hemingway and Fitzgerald were not forced to live in France. Expatriates may share in the solitude and estrangement of exile, but they do not suffer under its rigid proscriptions.” Edward W. Said, Reflections on Exile I have been back in the […]
Tennis Lessons & Tennis’s Lessons
Italian tennis champion, Jasmine Paolini, celebrates a recent victory Pickleball fans, do not despair! As I told a few pickleball enthusiasts in an online discussion group who were convinced that the sport had not yet made its way across the Atlantic, if you are planning on coming to Italy, you will be able to play […]
Rocking the Cradle of the Renaissance
Music, especially live music, is a big passion of mine, so when June comes around and I smell summer in the air, all I can think about are concerts and festivals. Italy is synonymous with music and the country hosts some of the best music festivals, artists, and concerts in the world year round. Anyone […]