Ron always has one wish for visitors from the states: that there will be at least one takeaway from their trip that they will adopt at home. Something that captures the better part of French living. Like maybe the occasional glass of wine with lunch at home, or taking a Sunday stroll with the family, as all the French do in the countryside, or having a decadent cheese course after a meal.
We spent a week in Italy recently, also the land of the lovely lifestyle, and we nabbed a number of take-aways from the Italians, who do things with great style. I'll share my list with you today. (hmm.. most of them involve food!).
–You DO decorate your cappuchinos, don’t you? Just a little effort can bring a smile.
No mistaking it, this one is certainly Italian:
Up your apero game. These Aperol sprizers, ubiquitous in Italy, have become our summertime drink (recipe here). And they always serve them with a little treat, like ham on tiny baguette squares, with an olive on top. Easy!
Pimp your pizza. Look at those toppings!
Travel in style
The slow food movement got it’s start in Italy. Turn off your phone, eat in slow motion, and employ the art of conversation.
A 2-gelato day is a good day. A 3-gelato day is even better (especially with a friend; that's my buddy Pete below, gelato-obcessed as well).
If your are a city dweller with no garden, a pretty window will do.
Cooking simply with fresh ingredients is the way to go .
Make it fun to eat your fruit. Kids were lining up to buy these colorful concoctions. Grown-ups were too!
Fashion is everything.
In the COMMENTS: And speaking of Italy, Patricia, how is it that I've been to Parma at least 3 times and missed the antique market?? Several of our readers have romantic ties to Vernona, including Natalia and Suzanne and Anne. Paula, I agree with you, exploring France is a lifetime adventure and then some. Gregory, thanks for the link to the article on Charleston wine, I had heard about it but not read it. Kathy, de rien!
Favorite Reads: spotted on Goodreads, a series of novels set in Bordeaux by a UK expat who lived there a while, Fiona Valpy. Her latest is called Sea of Memories
10 thoughts on “Lessons from Across the Border: Living Italian Style”
Lei sta guardando come bello come mai.
Beautifully, Lynn! I agree with all of them!! So, enjoy and relax with this slow kind of day and love every minute.
My favorite Italian take-away (other than all the great wine and olive oil we bring back) is one you mentioned – cooking simply with fresh ingredients – the best ingredients, Materia Prima as they call it in Italy. I cook that way whether in Italy, France, or the US.
Thanks for all these lovely Italian memories!
Sighing while strolling through your adventures Lynn… lovely!
Three ice cream days are the best – unless you are in San Gimignano at Gelateria Dordoli, Sven times world champion. Had to try one when I first arrived, then eleven’s and of course lunch desert and rude not to enjoy one with the sunset! So who’s counting and where were you Miss Lynn?
If we weren’t smiling before,after reading today’s post,we most certainly are now!
One question though:Lynn,how in the world do you stay so trim???
Sprizters are a favorite apero in Serbia(where my belle mere and belle pere lived).
Only PS I can add to anything else is:
Thank goodness for not weighing oneself on vacation!!
Oh, what a lovely Italian blog and yes, every one of those comments makes being in Italy so beautiful, even whilst loving France and being here some of the year. We spend several month in Rome and it’s hard to love one over the other. Capuccino (has no ‘h’) decorated like that, I have never seen!!! Love the figure one. But there is a bar owned by women near us in Rome who put hearts in their macchiati for all the guys! Great blog.
You hit upon all my Italian favorites Lynn. How I long to go back to Italy & explore more. Yes, I would also know how you stay so slim. Love that white top with the skinny jeans. You’re tall, I’m a shorty & I wish I had your physique.
Perfect timing! Lovely to dream about Italy while the East Coast is suffering through this storm. My take aways are definitely the fresh ingredients, especially truffles added to anything, living with history, and cypress trees, which I have tried to add to every garden I’ve planted. The one I have in Virginia is presently wrapped in a protective coat to keep it warm and cozy through the winter. It was a very nice post to have in the winter when we need these kind of reminders of warmer days! Thanks!
Love this post!! I always want to travel to Italy. It is just such a
pain to drive there for us though! It is so different from France.
A little looser, with an iconic street style. I finally understood
Moschino after a week there! Food so much simpler. I still dream of
some plain old lentils I had there!! And who does not love that Italian
style harassment? Sorry, not sorry! A