Berlusconi Meets a Vicious Statuette

President Berlusconi's encounter with a Duomo statuette yesterday evening was quite violent. While at a Popolo della Libertà (his political party's) rally, a member of the public in Milan's Piazza Duomo threw the souvenir at him. It hit his face causing a gash on his lip, breaking some teeth and hurting his nose. For the Financial Times article and video, click here. He has been in the San Raffaele hospital in Milan for 24 hours already and his next doctor's check up will be announced at 10 a.m. tomorrow. At the moment he is mostly tired and shocked, according to reports.

This said, violence is horrible.

I can't believe this is organized terrorism, as some people are stating. The assailant, Massimo Tartaglia, has been taken to a hospital clinic inside of a Milan prison for psychological testing and interviewing. He supposedly has a history of being mentally imbalanced. Tartaglia has declared to authorities that he acted alone.

Honestly, I can believe that even a sane person would want to hit Mr. Berlusconi up-side the head with his idea of governing the country in many aspects. But that's not the point.

Needless to say, this has caused a political uproar in the country.

But it also sounds like a joke if you tell the story: What happens to the premier when he's signing autographs? He gets hit by a figurine.

Yes, in the US, the secret service would probably not let the president get so close to the public. But isn't it Berlusconi who loves to be in the middle of his adoring public as often as possible? He's not just a politician. He's a celebrity over here.

I would like to just say for the record that I know an Italian citizen who withstood violence of the kind several years ago. He was attacked by a man who ended up biting him in the face which bled just as much, if not more, and required 6 stitches to repair the damage done to his cheek. Unlike Mr. Berlusconi who has his man behind bars immediately, this person saw the police actually arrive on the scene over 1 hour after the attack and waited 5 years for the trial to come to court. This is how the justice system works for "normal" people. Will Italy's president wait as long? Of course not.

Meanwhile, under the recent law that was passed just weeks ago, all trials that don't get tried within 2 years will be absolved automatically. So this means this common man's case would never have gotten to court. The current Italian system is slow for many and mostly bureaucratic reasons but let's allow people to see their day in court, please.

I wonder how truly shaken up Berlusconi is today.

Friday's False Friend

confidence v. confidenza

Confidence is when you feel very good about a situation. Confidenza means sharing intimate thoughts with someone. Translate with fiducia when searching for the proper Italian word.

Eng) We have confidence that the system will change soon.

It) Noi abbiamo la fiducia che il sistema cambierà presto.

Baking Birthday Cookies

So today's my birthday and it's a national holiday in Italy: the Immacolata. I love the idea of never having to report to work on my birthday. (Of course this is one of the main reasons I decided to settle here, right?)

When I lived in the US as a child, my birthday was one of the most stressful days of the year. Not only did I have to attend school, but I also had to do homework, go to church to please my grandmother who was a devout Irish Catholic (where holy days require going to Mass) and have a birthday party, at least with family. I would end up exhausted from it all!

Fast forward. Now I am an adult and live in a country that is officially Catholic so the holy day dedicated to the Virgin Mary means: NO SCHOOL OR WORK.

Although it's raining and generally pretty miserable today, on this particular December 8th, I have decided to cheer myself up with a session of cooking chocolate chip cookies. I haven't eaten them in over 2 years. I'll use the chips brought by an American friend during her last trip to visit me. I will gorge on the cookies when they are baked today. Then I will take the rest to work tomorrow for my belated birthday celebration with colleagues.

In this country, as the "birthday girl", I have to offer something to others. It's basically the reverse of American tradition where everyone is supposed to do nice things for you. In this Italian case, I will bring cookies and a bottle of prosecco to open at the 11 o'clock school-day break. This is the tradition where I work. Either something sweet (pastries) or salty (pizzette, tramezzini) or both are offered and a brindisi is made together at that early hour.

I like to have the Italian colleagues taste American flavors. One year I took brownies, for example. Another year I took zucchini bread, flavored with cinnamon, an uncommon spice in Italian desserts.

No cake. Yes, cookies. Happy Birthday to me!

Cookies baked:

Bomarzo: Park of Monsters

"Tu ch'entri qua con mente parte a parte et dimmi poi se tante meraviglie sien fatte per inganno o pur per arte."

These cryptic words are inscribed into the rock that makes up the statues and monuments in Bomarzo's Park of Monsters in the province of Viterbo, 90 km north of Rome. I came to this park most recently 4 years ago on a foggy December afternoon to revisit Prince Pier Francesco (a.k.a. Vicino) Orsini's mysterious park, which he originally called the Sacro Bosco (Sacred Wood) at its construction in the 16th century.

The prince dedicated the park, a Mannerist labrinth of monsters, exotic animals, mythical characters, monsters and bizarre buildings, to his deceased wife, Giulia Farnese. The architect Pirro Ligorio, who also was commissioned by the Vatican at the time, elaborated the plans for Orsini's park that walks its visitors through a "wild" woods where enormous mounds of Tartufo rock jut out in the shape of elephants, dragons, lions, giant turtles, temples, Pegasus, Orcus, Neptune, Hercules, Sirens and Sphinxes.

Is it art? Is it a mystery? Is it a park? Is it a graveyard? Is it mythical? Is it real? Some of these questions have been pondered by writers and artists who have visited Bomarzo over the centuries.

The park was abandoned after Prince Orsini's death in 1585 and was not revived until this past century by the couple, Giancarlo and Tina Severi Bettini. They are buried in the temple, with perhaps, the remains of the beloved Giulia.

No one can exactly explain the precise reasons for the collection of characters and pathway through the wood.

With that winter fog I witnessed in 2005, the mystery felt alive even 4 centuries after its creation.

You walk into a leaning house which plays with your perception of reality and construction. You start to get confused about direction and gravity as the doorways and floors tilt and the proportions become too small compared to the size of your human body.

Monsters glare at you beyond their mossy stare and frozen movement. The sun struggles to reach the ground under the blanket of foliage in the dense wood, considered a park. It is wild yet has been controlled by a human's handiwork. This is not your traditional English or even Italian Renaissance garden. Everything is exaggerated in Orsini's natural oasis, built as a monument to death.

The man was rich and depressed. He commissioned a grotesque work to be made of rock and trees. Inscriptions provoke the visit as he moves through the space:

"Voi che pel mondo gite errando vaghi di veder meraviglie alte et stupende venite qua, dove son faccie horrende, elefanti, leoni, orchi et draghi."

"Sol per sfogare il core"

I highly recommend this bizarre park of monstrosities. It's a unique experience into the past, sublime, mysterious and dark world of a former prince.

For more information, go to Bomarzo's website.

Dragon with Lions




Hercules and Cacus



Pegasus Fountain



Temple and tomb



Leaning House



Me inside of Orcus' mouth

Friday's False Friend

gross v. grosso

Gross, in our language, means 1. total or exclusive of deductions 2. glaringly obvious or 3. crude. However grosso, in Italian, means "big" so use 1. lordo 2. ovvio or 3. volgare when translating the word from English.

An example of definition 3:

Eng) Little boys like gross things and especially like to embarrass their female classmates with them.

It) Piaciono le cose volgari agli ragazzini e a loro piace sopratutto mettere in imbarazzo le loro compagne di classe con esse.

Thanksgiving 3 Days Later

After 6 years of not celebrating, I sat down to a Thanksgiving meal today, 3 days after the American holiday. Since I live in Italy and found myself working 10 hours at a fair on the actual festivity, the relaxed meal had to wait until Sunday, but it was worth it. We had our feast in the company of 4 Americans, a Venetian, a Paduan, a Roman and a Romanian. Wine and food abounded. There was turkey, cranberry sauce (homemade and can variety), sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, string beans, stuffing, pumpkin pie and tiramisù.

We stuffed ourselves into a small apartment and then proceeded to stuff our stomachs with the American traditions. We joked over the food and Italian wine. It was a great company of foreigners. Coffee and cognac finished off the meal. It was a very satisfactory experience.

Compliments to the chefs and good work on the part of those who found the difficult ingredients such as cranberries!

Baci a tutti! Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Ski Slopes Open for Business

It's not even December yet and the ski slopes in the Cortina area have already been open for about 3 weeks. It's the beginning of what should be a very long and snowy winter in the Dolomites this year. For a look at the Faloria's slopes, click here.

Down in the Padana valley, at my house, preparations are under way for the winter season. This involves listing what needs to be bought like new gloves, ski poles and thermos, sharpening the crampons' points, practicing safety knot combinations and reading about interesting snowshoe and alpine skiing trails.

This is a picture of one mountain view from Monte Pore, which we climbed last season. We are looking forwarding to more of the same.