Weekly Dose of Italian Culture #14
Welcome to the 14th edition of Weekly Dose of Italian Culture!
Italian Movie of the Week
La vita davanti a sé (The Life Ahead, 2020) is a touching drama featuring legendary Neapolitan actress Sophia Loren as Madame Rosa, a Holocaust survivor with a daycare business who decided to take in an immigrant boy (Momo, short for Mohammed) who robbed her. The main theme is the transformative power of love and compassion.
Set in Bari, La vita davanti a sé delves into the struggles of marginalized individuals, including immigrants and the elderly, and portrays how such unlikely bonds can offer hope and redemption.
Italian Song of the Week
This week’s Italian song is the classic Senza Parole (Without Words) by Vasco Rossi. Decades later, Vasco remains one of the most popular Italian rock musicians.
Famous Italian of the Week
Moana Pozzi (1961 - 1994) was a famous Italian pornographic actress and politician. Known simply as Moana, she was so well-known in Italy that when Disney released the movie Moana (more than 20 years after her death,) the title had to be changed to Oceania in Italy. Beyond potential jokes, keeping the original name posed a significant risk of exposing children to inappropriate content while searching for material related to the Disney movie.
Italian City of the Week
This week’s Italian city is the beautiful Bari. As the capital of the Puglia (Apulia) region, Bari remained off the radar for most tourists for decades. However, in recent years, it has experienced a resurgence in popularity, thanks to social media, with more travelers venturing to discover this beautiful city and its incredible culinary delights.
A historic port city on the Adriatic Sea, Bari is renowned for its charming old town, Bari Vecchia, with narrow winding streets and ancient churches like the Basilica of Saint Nicholas. The city offers a vibrant atmosphere with seaside promenades, bustling markets, and a rich cultural scene. Bari serves as a gateway to the stunning landscapes of Puglia.
Italian Landmark of the Week
If you’re ever in Bari province, you owe it to yourself to visit the Trulli of Alberobello. These unique, cone-shaped stone houses date back to the 14th century and are recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Originally built to be temporary, cost-effective, and easy to dismantle to evade feudal taxes, Trulli have transformed over the centuries into a major tourist attraction. Today, they are highly sought after and can command steep prices, with some selling for more than 500,000 euros.
Geography Fact of the Week
Italy is divided into 7,904 comuni (municipalities) across 107 provinces and 20 regions. The smallest comune by population is Pedesina, located in the province of Sondrio, with only 34 inhabitants.
The largest comune is Rome, with a population of approximately 2.8 million. (The metropolitan city has many more, at 4.4 million.)
The median number of inhabitants for comuni in Italy is approximately 2,343. This small median value indicates that half of the comuni have populations below this number, reflecting the prevalence of small towns and villages throughout the country.
History Fact of the Week
On the night of November 2, 1975, Pier Paolo Pasolini, one of Italy’s most brilliant and controversial filmmakers, writers, and intellectuals, was brutally murdered at Ostia beach, near Rome. He was found beaten and run over with his own car.
A young man, Pino Pelosi, initially confessed to the killing, claiming it was the result of a fight. But years later, he changed his story, hinting at a possible conspiracy tied to Pasolini’s outspoken political views and investigations into corruption.
Pasolini’s murder remains a mystery to this day, with many believing it was the silencing of a powerful voice that dared to challenge the status quo.
Italian Dish of the Week
It is traditional in Italy to eat Zampone e lenticchie for Capodanno (New Year’s Eve). This classic dish consists of zampone (a stuffed pig’s foot/trotter filled with seasoned ground pork) and a side of stewed lentils. Eating lenticchie (lentils) is said to bring wealth, as their coin-like shape symbolizes prosperity for the coming year. This belief can come in handy when trying to convince children to eat the lentils and not just the meat! :)
Italian Proverb of the Week
Chi fa l'amore a Capodanno, fa l'amore tutto l’anno.
(Whoever makes love on New Year's Eve, makes love all year long.)
Italian Custom of the Week
In Italy, there is the concept of the tredicesima and even the quattordicesima (13th and 14th monthly payments). Essentially, in December, employees receive an extra month's salary to help cover the many expenses associated with Christmas. If you're lucky, your employer might also provide a quattordicesima, an additional month's salary, often paid around Easter.
If you understand some Italian, you might enjoy this humorous clip by Checco Zalone about the tredicesima. It’s a lighthearted take on how Italians embrace this Christmas’ time “blessing”.
I hope you enjoyed this 14th edition of Weekly Dose of Italian Culture.
Buon Anno! (Happy New Year!)