Viva L’Italia! April 25, 2012

The war years in Italy were difficult – innocent people were killed by the Germans because they were believed to be helping the Partisans (see my post about this at  An Italian Tragedy), people were hungry and not sure if they would get food, and idlyllic and peaceful places full of history, art, and beauty were being destroyed.  Once the Americans came in and the Partisans triumphed, Italy began to breathe a sigh of relief.  La Festa della Liberazione, a National holiday in Italy marking the end of World War II and the fall of the Fascist government, is celebrated today, April 25th, with parades and other festivities all over Italy.  Rebuilding Italy after the War would turn out to be a significant and difficult task, but the Italians worked hard and persevered.  Even though it is not immune to the problems plaguing the rest of the world, Italy has come a long way from those horrible days during and after World War II to become the Italy that so captivates and enchants those that visit her.

Below is a song written by Partisan sympathizers and sung during the War by the Resistance.   It was sung in the underground and only became popular to the public after the War when it was introduced by some Italian student singers at Berlin’s Youth Festival in 1948.  I have to make note, here, that I am purely sharing this song as part of Italy’s history and I’m not making ANY political statement here!!!  With that said, here it is:

BELLA CIAO

Una mattina mi son svegliato O bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao Una mattina mi son svegliato Eo ho trovato l’invasor

O partigiano porta mi via O bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao O partigiano porta mi via Che mi sento di morir

E se io muoio da partigiano O bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao E se io muoio da partigiano Tu mi devi seppellir

Mi seppellire lassù in montagna O bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao Mi seppellire lassù in montagna Sotto l’ombra di un bel fiore

E le genti che passeranno O bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao E le genti che passeranno Mi diranno: “Che bel fior”

È questo il fiore del partigiano O bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao È questo il fiore del partigiano Morto per la libertà

**********************

One morning I woke up O bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao One morning I woke up And I found the invader

Oh partisan, carry me away, O bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao Oh partisan, carry me away, For I feel I’m dying

And if I die as a partisan O bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao And if I die as a partisan You have to bury me

But bury me up in the mountain O bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao, But bury me up in the mountain Under the shadow of a beautiful flower

And the people who will pass by O bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao, And the people who will pass by Will say to me: “what a beautiful flower”

This is the flower of the partisan O bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao This is the flower of the partisan Who died for freedom

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Here is a song that was sung by the Alpini – a branch of the military that patrols the mountains all around Italy.  It captures the sentiments felt during the War by those Alpini soldiers and their love of the mountains of Italy.  It is in a sort of dialect, and therefore I will try to translate it as best I can!

IL TESTAMENTO DEL CAPITANO

 El capitan de la compagnia l’è ferito stà per morir el manda a dire ai suoi Alpini perchè lo vengano a ritrovar. el manda a dire ai suoi Alpini perchè lo vengano a ritrovar.

I suoi Alpini ghè manda a dire che non han scarpe per camminar O con le scarpe o senza scarpe i miei Alpini li voglio qua. O con le scarpe o senza scarpe i miei Alpini li voglio qua.

Cosa comanda, siòr capitano, che noi adesso semo arrivà? E io comando che il mio corpo in cinque pezzi sia taglià. E io comando che il mio corpo in cinque pezzi sia taglià.

Il primo pezzo alla mia Patria secondo pezzo al Battaglion il terzo pezzo alla mia Mamma che si ricordi del suo figliol. il terzo pezzo alla mia Mamma che si ricordi del suo figliol.

Il quarto pezzo alla mia bella che si ricordi del suo primo amor. L’ultimo pezzo alle montagne che lo fioriscano di rose e fior L’ultimo pezzo alle montagne che lo fioriscano di rose e fior.

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The Captain’s Testament

The captain of the company is wounded and is dying.  He sends a message to his Alpini soldiers for them to come and visit him.

His Alpini soldiers tell him that they don’t have shoes to walk.  He says that with our without shoes, he wants them there.

What do you command, Captain sir, now that we have arrived?  I command that you cut my body up into 5 pieces.

The first piece to my Country, the second piece to my battalion, the third piece to my mother so that she may remember her son.

The fourth piece to by girlfriend so that she can remember her first love.  And the fifth piece to the mountains so that it can be covered in roses.

Attack of the Cruise Ship December 13, 2011

Courtesy of Alamy

Having experienced this sight first hand, I can say that it is very disconcerting to see this gigantic cruise ship come so close to the shores of Venice, dwarfing the old buildings.  It literally looks like a giant invading the city!

The amount of cruise ships visiting Venice has increased significantly over the last decade.  This is great for the economy of the city, bringing in more that 1.5 million tourists annually.  But the concerns for the erosion caused by the waves these giant boats create are more pressing.  There is a fear that the waves could undermine the foundations of the city, causing even more damage than is already present.

The mayor of Venice, Giorgio Orsoni, is meeting with the city’s port authority to find another site for the ships to dock.  One such place is Porto Marghera on the mainland.  Even if the boats dock at this farther off port, I don’t believe it will impact the number of tourists that will still visit the city.

I hope that they come to a decision to move the present port of Venice as an additional aid in preserving this World Heritage site.

Un Cuore Con Le Ali…and Some Deep Reflections June 14, 2011

This beautiful song by Eros Ramazzotti evokes various responses in me whenever I hear it.  The music, as always, is mesmerizing and artistically pleasing to the ear, but it’s the lyrics of this song that trigger my inner reflections.  I am instantly transported to Italy with  ci si trova in compagnia, sotto i portici del centro, alle uscite del metrò (We find each other, under the porticos of the city center, at the exits of the metro)…the old porticos of the ancient cities with the modern metro…it is so descriptive that I can easily picture myself in that same scene.

This song has a deeper message, though….it is a social commentary on Eros’ view of Italy’s youth culture back in 1985 (when the song was released).  He seems to be saying that the youth felt bored and trapped – they wanted to do so much and had desires to fly, but they weren’t capable of achieving those goals.  I’d be curious to understand why and what was holding them back…was it a stab at the government or the state of the Italian economy?  And would this song be pertinent in today’s world?  Perhaps someone from Italy can clue me in…but the song has a sad and desperate tone about it.  What do you think?

quando il cielo si fa scuro
e la notte cade giù
come intonaco dai muri
ci si trova in compagnia
sotto i portici del centro
alle uscite del metrò
per guardarci dentro
e parlare un pò…

ci hanno detto a muso duro
che per camminare soli
noi non siamo ancor maturi
e che siamo tutti uguali
ma un cuore con le ali
ce l’abbiamo solo noi
e nessuno sa
che presto volerà…

cosa si fa
cosa si fa questa sera
dove si va
dove si va fuori un’idea
prima che ci soffochi la noia…
cosa si fa, dove si va
questa sera…

per adesso si comincia
a girare la città
fino in fondo alla provincia
per i viali e per le piazze
a chiamare le ragazze
che ci aspettano di già
per vedere fuori
l’alba a colori…

che nessuno ha preparato
come il mondo che ci han dato
senza domandarci niente
è per questo che i pensieri
così grandi, così seri
ce li abbiamo anche noi
e nessuno sa
che fatica è…

fuori di te
fuori di te, fuori di testa
che gente è
che vita è e quanto ne resta
quella che vogliamo
non è questa
la carità, finta pietà
nessuno l’ha chiesta…

**********************************************************************************************************************************************

When the sky gets dark

And the night falls down

like plaster from the walls,

we find each other

under the porticos of the center

at the exits of the metro

to look within

and talk a bit…

They told us, with a stern face,

that to walk alone

we are not yet ready

and that we are all the same;

but a heart with wings

we are the only ones to have it

and nobody knows

that soon it will fly…

What are we going to do?

What are we going to do tonight?

Where are we going to go?

Where are we going to go…let’s have some ideas

before we suffocate from boredom…

What are we going to do, where are we going to go

tonight…

for now, we’ll start

by wandering the city

until the end of the province,

through the alleys and in the piazzas,

calling the girls

that have been waiting for us for a while now

to see outside the dawn and the colors…

Nobody prepared

the world that was given to us

Nobody asked us anything

and for this reason, the worries

so big, so serious

we have them, too

and no one knows

what hardship it is…

Outside of yourself,

Outside of yourself, out of your mind

What kind of people are there,

What kind of life is it and what remains

The life we want

Is not this one.

The charity, the false pity

No one asked for it….

The City Of Falling Angels June 6, 2011

Usually I read fictional novels, so when a co-worker gave me this non-fiction book to read, I was a bit skeptical. I wasn’t sure what to expect nor what the purpose of the book was. After all, the storyline read like a fictionalized story of the intrigue of Venice, complete with depictions of deceipt and mystery.

The book begins with the author’s arrival in Venice shortly after the devastating fire which burned the world-famous Venetian opera house, La Fenice.  What entails is the investigation into the fire and a determination as to whether the fire was a result of arson or pure negligence on the part of the crew working on the remodeling of the famous theater. The author interviews many members of Venetian society, and soon finds out about all the jealousies and back-stabbing going on behind the scenes. He finds that there are many who could easily be implicated, and some for good reason, into the event. Every one of these players, though, could also prove their innocence.  As a result, the true cause of the fire is never really discovered.                                           

The book is a portayal of the many facets which make up Venetian society…and the pride that the citizens of Venice have for their mysterious and beautiful city. Even though the famous opera house was burned, the aftermath of Venetian civic pride became even more evident and the personal ties involved in Venetian society was interesting to learn about.

If you are interested in a book which delves into the political and social underlyings of Venice, you will like this book. I found it mostly interesting, but I felt it moved a bit slowly and the in-depth character descriptions were a bit over-developed and long.

This book was read as part of the Italy In Book Challenge 2011.

Lucca Lives in Our Memories….and our Pocketbook!!! May 19, 2011

Last September, we were fortunate enough to visit the beautiful walled city of Lucca.  I had never been there, and since we were travelling in the vicinity, we decided to make a day of it.  Entering through the thick walls surrounding the city, we couldn’t believe our luck when we found a great parking space in a small piazza near the center of town.  We quickly glanced at the signage and pretty much figured out that we were safe in parking there.  Happy with our location, we started off on foot to explore the tiny meandering roads and the gorgeous churches and piazzas of this medieval city.  We hiked up the multitude of steps to the top of the Guinigi Torre for a fabulous view.  We admired the wonderful marble facade of the Duomo.  We stopped for a quick lunch at a local trattoria, and sipped on some of the local wine.  We just took our time and strolled through the tiny alleys that serpentine their way through the town, ending up at the gorgeous Anfiteatro Piazza.  Content with the time we spent in Lucca, and because it was getting dark and we needed to still make our way up the coast to the Cinque Terre, we headed back to the car to begin our journey north.  Lo and behold, we found a little blue note on our windshield.  It wasn’t a nice “welcome to our town” note…instead it was a “Preavviso” or a parking ticket!!!  What did we do wrong?  Looking it over, it seemed like we had parked in an authorized only parking lot!  And…they were charging us 124 Euros for this violation!!!  Yikes!!!  Hmm….I hadn’t noticed any signs stating that only authorized vehicles were allowed.  But, then again, it’s hard to figure out the parking restrictions in Italy and I could have surely misunderstood the signs.  OK, now what?  There was an envelope with the ticket, but unfortunately, since we do not have a “conto corrente” or checking account in Italy, our checks, written in US dollars, wouldn’t be very useful. And since it was late, the payment offices were closed, and there was no indication of allowing us to pay this fine by credit card.  What to do?  Well, we decided to leave and that they would eventually find us through the rental car agency and then we could settle the fine.

Months went by without hearing from them.  And then one day, we get a letter from the rental car agency saying that they were advised by the City of Lucca that we had a parking ticket.  They tacked on 30 Euros for their inconvenience in having to contact us to take care of this ticket.  And….they said that they had forwarded our information to the authorities in Lucca and that we would hear from them.  At this point, I thought I would try to call Lucca to see if we could figure out how to pay this fine.  When I contacted them, they informed me that the office I needed to speak to was only open from 9 am to 1 pm…Lucca time!  That is the middle of the night for me.  This was really becoming difficult, so again I just decided to let them contact me.  Several months went by again, and then I GOT IT!  My official statement….with a credit card payment option!  Why didn’t they have this option on the original ticket itself?  This could have been taken care of months ago.  AND…are you ready for this?  They tacked on a LATE charge (of course), so now our amount due is up to 154 Euros!  Our little afternoon in Lucca was quite expensive – to say the least!

Italian Citizenship and the Apostille May 14, 2011

What the heck is an apostille, you may be asking, and I assure you, I felt the same way before I started this whole dual citizenship process.  Well, here is my answer:  it is an official way of verifying that American documents are the real thing!!!  Birth, marriage, death certificates as well as other “official” documents require an apostille to authenticate them and the signatures that are on them.  Local documents, such as those issued by the counties, cities, and states are “apostilled” by the particular state that the documents are from.  So, in my case, all of my documents had to be “apostilled” by the California Dept. of State.  Now, this is different that the State Department – that is a federal office (the one that Hilary belongs to).  This can get very confusing when you are speaking to the Consulate office and asking for help – you need to be really careful that you are meaning the correct one!  I speak from experience

Anyway, apostilles are needed when applying for Italian citizenship – you need them on birth certificates, marriage certificates, death certificates, and in the case of Citizenship by Marriage, on police record reports issued by the Dept. of Justice.

The process of obtaining an apostille is really very simple once you have the correct documents.  The documents must be originals with the signature and the stamp of the issuing office.  These documents can be obtained from the County or City Records department for a fee.  If you are obtaining the Police record report, you must submit fingerprints to the Dept. of Justice and then request that the report include the stamp and signature of the State official (currently Kamala Harris).  Once you have the correct documents, you can mail them to the California Secretary of State….or you can just take a drive to Sacramento and present them yourself!  This was the path I took…and it was painless!  The process took about 20 minutes total!  They take your document (and a $26/document fee) and staple a pretty official looking paper to it which contains a beautiful gold seal of the Golden State!  Voila!  This part of the paper gathering trail is all done and really very simple to do!

Black Friday in Italy… March 11, 2011

…is not a good thing like our Black Friday!! In Italy, it is indicative of a day of  sciopero (strike) !!  Italy is used to strikes – someone always seems to striking for one thing or another.  Most Italians shrug their shoulders and say “ci arrangiamo” (we’ll get by and make it work). 

Tomorrow, March 11th, has been designated as a strike day for the transportation sector.  Trains, planes, busses,  metros…and even naval transportation all plan to be affected.  Even the fire department and some medical personnel are taking a break!!!  Everyone will be incrociando le braccia (folding their arms).  This strike is meant to disrupt business as employees are going to find it difficult to get to work.   What they are striking for isn’t completely clear to me, but it looks like they want to make sure that big business and government treat and pay their employees fairly! 

Even though Italians may be used to these inconveniences, major havoc can ensue in the big cities…and the poor traveler, not used to these things and who may have made arrangements or reservations, may get a bad taste in their mouths for Italy.   As I used to say to my kids when they were little:  It’s a good thing you’re cute!!!  Italy is the same….it’s a good thing it’s so beautiful that it allows forgiveness for some of its misgivings!!!

Today I will wake up and strike!!

Oh, Silvio….You Should Be Very Worried February 16, 2011

 

Sig. Berlusconi says he’s not worried about his upcoming indictment, but I think, this time, he is in for a big surprise.  Every time in the past when he has found himself in hot water for one scandal or another, he has been able to wiggle out of it.  His far-reaching influence (whether it be business or financially related) has been able to pull those all-powerful strings to get him out of trouble.  But his luck may have finally run out with this scandal! 

The problems stem from the scandal involving a Moroccan girl whom the media has nicknamed Ruby.  You can see my previous posts on Berlusconi\’s scandals and Rubygate for some history on this…but in a nutshell, he is facing two charges:  paying for sex with a minor, and using his influence to cover it up!!

Paying for sex with a prostitute is not a crime in Italy…but if that prostitute is a minor, watch out!!!  For this crime, he could get up to 5 years in prison.  But, ironically, the worst offense comes from his cover up of the scandal.  This is a severe charge, and it could actually hold more jail time for the convicted.  In reality, he will probably never serve the jail time because of his age, but his political career would be finished (along with his reputation).  His indictment will be on April 6th before three FEMALE judges.  Conan O’Brien joked last night that Berlusconi was high-fiving his lawyers telling them that “he had this one”.  I guess he thinks that he can   use his charms to woo the judges to his side (um, Silvio, have you looked in the mirror recently?  Surely your looks will not win you any prizes!!!).  In my opinion, having female judges will be a catastrophe for his case.  Females all over Italy are fed up with the Premier’s degrading view of women….and I’m sure these judges share those views!

Listening to the indictments against him

My Dual Citizenship – A Lesson in Patience July 22, 2010

A few years ago, I discovered that I could claim Italian citizenship, as well as retain my American citizenship.  You can imagine my pleasure at receiving this news!  I quickly set about gathering all the information and documents that I would need in order to prove that I truly was eligible for this great honor.  Evidently, since my parents were still Italian citizens at the time of my birth (they were naturalized a few years later), I was an Italian citizen by birth rite (or juris sanguinus).  This was wonderful news…

The decision then came of what I should do first – should I gather all the information needed prior to making an appointment with the Citizenship office at the Italian consulate in San Francisco, or should I make the appointment first and then gather all the information?  I decided to have everything in my possession first because what if they could get me in REALLY soon to present all my documents!  You can imagine my shock when I was told that I would have to wait 9 months in order for an appointment!  “Everyone wants to become an Italian citizen,” was what I was told when I called!  Yikes!  Why such a popular thing to do, I wondered.  So I began to research the benefits of holding dual citizenship (granted, I only wanted mine because I wanted to connect further with the land of my heart) .  The benefits were numerous and quite impressive.  Primarily, as an Italian citizen you also become a member of the EU.  Therefore, working in the EU becomes much easier if you hold a passport to any country that is part of the EU.  Therefore, if an American employer has an office within the EU and they are looking to transfer one of their employees to work in Europe, the one holding citizenship has an advantage because they do not have to get a work VISA for the transfer.   This was all fine and dandy, but it didn’t really affect me much because I wasn’t planning on working in Italy!  But, it did impress me for the benefit of my children – this might come in handy for them as they begin their careers.  The other benefits include free medical care and free education.  Again, these could be very beneficial for me and my family if we ever found ourselves in Italy and in need of care (or if we get the urge to take some classes at the University!)  But, for me, the most valuable benefit included the purchase of property in Italy!  Evidently, it is much easier to purchase property in Italy if you are a citizen, and the tax implications are very much reduced.   Even though, I don’t own any property YET, this is always in my dreams…therefore, now I can say that I am ready when the opportunity arises!  I subsequently also found out that you cannot purchase a car in Italy if you are not a citizen.  This seems a bit harsh and am not really sure if it is true. 

OK, so after waiting the obligatory 9 months (and the whole time worrying if I had everything in order…and not really being able to contact anyone at the consulate because they only do things via email, and even then, will not respond to any questions if they feel that the answer can be found anywhere on their website), the big day arrived.  I arrived at the beautiful ornate mansion that sits on top of a hill in Pacific Heights and waited for  my interview.  I was thrilled when I found out that I had everthing I needed!  My information would all be sent to the town in Italy that I chose as my “birthplace” and I would be OFFICIAL!  Interestingly, I could choose between my father’s birthplace and my mother’s birthplace to register as my own.  My Italian cousins think that I am truly spoiled – imagine, being able to choose your birthplace!!!  Within two weeks I received my citizenship!  And with it was the application for the passport!  Yahoo!  My very own Italian passport.  Promptly, I filled out the necessary application, took some horrid passport photos, and sent in my fee!  Again, everything arrived promptly and I was thrilled as punch.  Not too difficult, I said.

This all happened in 2008!  And now, I’ve decided to request citizenship for my daughters (which I was told was fairly simple since all the necessary documentation had already been submitted with my application).  The only things I needed were their individual documents (birth certificates, etc).  Thankfully, I find out that I would be dealing with another office at the Consulate and not the citizenship office.  This office was much more ammenable to e-mail correspondence and I could therefore get much more information about the items needed.  I was assured that all I had to do was bring the necessary documents for presentation and voila` – instant citizenship for my daugthers!  A little bit of information we forgot to discuss was that  THEY NEEDED TO BE PRESENT!!!  You can imagine my disappointment, and also frustration, when I found this out.  My daughters are away at school and work and therefore organizing a day or time to visit the consulate is going to prove to be a challenge!  We are SO close…I only hope that we will be able to finish this process soon. 

Almost my entire family will be taken care of except for my husband!  His citizenship request is a bit more complicated since he must do a couple of extra steps to insure that he is worthy of Italian citizenship – he must get clearance from both the State Police as well as the FBI!  We will now have to figure out how we go about getting these clearances since we’ve  never really had need before to contact the FBI for ANYTHING!!!