Waking Up in Italy
I wondered what it would be like. I'm talking about waking up in Italy after making the most life-altering choice and change of my [...]
Make this Magnificent Italian Seaside Villa Yours!
Parting with it is no easy task for us! This four-level villa in Imperia, Italy, has been heavenly. We’ve woken every day to magnificent [...]
“Quanto le devo?” Is an Essential Italian Phrase!
I advise you to commit this important way of asking, "How much do I owe?" in Italian to memory. By using "Quanto le devo?" you [...]
Make Your Italian Driver’s License Studies Easier.
My face looked something like this when I first cracked open the Italian driver's manual. I'd just picked it up from my Scuola Guida [...]
Choose Your Italian Driver Instructor Carefully!
I wish I had. Just to clarify, I'm talking about the practical driving instructor in this post. The theoretical instructor is also of supreme importance, [...]
Living with an Open Focus
This has been an important, ongoing shift for me. And it’s one that has been accelerated during my big life change of moving to [...]
Finding the Right Balance in Italy.
I’m talking about the sweet spot between romanticism and practicality. Many people coming to live in Italy are swept away by the former while [...]
Italy’s 2023 Sanremo Music Festival Crowns a New Winner
If you're coming to live in Italy, you'd best acquaint yourself with this legendary event. It's sacrilege if you don't. The annual Sanremo Music [...]
I’m Dreaming of Summer in Italy
I'm ready to be warm again. And I'm ready not to be calculating and donning layers. I love living in shorts and tee shirts, [...]
Ten Years in Italy, Ten Takeaways
Yes, I’ve reached a milestone. And looking back, I’ve learned tons. Much of it, I anticipated. But there’s a fair amount that I didn’t. [...]
How to Say “Stuck Up” in Italian
I love this Italian idiom, which is used to refer to a snobbish person. Italians have a knack for going one step further with colorful [...]
When Not Speaking Italian Becomes a Problem
I am here to tell you, from personal experience, WHY having at least an intermediate command of Italian is essential. Speaking Italian isn’t just [...]
When You Speak Italian, Show Respect
Don't get too familiar with people, at least initially… Over familiarity is perhaps the biggest mistake that I witness English speakers making when they [...]
An Extraordinary Lunch in St. Emilion, France
Le Bis is forever etched in my culinary memory banks.Finding the right words to do justice to this recent dining experience (this past Saturday), is [...]
Introducing My New Painting, “Splash!”
This is the fourth in my water series. And the momentum seems to be growing. In fact, I’m well underway with my fifth, and other [...]
Introducing Customized Italian Lessons with Simone!
Here's a golden opportunity to learn Italian one-on-one with an excellent native speaker! I'm constantly advising people who want to spend substantial time [...]
Introducing “Going with the Flow”
This latest oil painting is still drying on its easel. And I am contemplating the next subject in this theme that has taken hold of [...]
Introducing “Ripple Effect”
Painting feels like my truest, most expansive space. And painting water-themed subjects, as I'm doing with my current water series, seems to take me deeper [...]