L'Italo-Americano

italoamericano-digital-2-23-2023

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2023 www.italoamericano.org L'Italo-Americano 2 W e o f t e n consider it something external to u s , b u t w e ' r e w r o n g . " L a n d s c a p e " doesn't simply mean what we see outside our window, nor the horizon above the sea in a holiday photo. It isn't only the o u t l i n e o f o u r m o u n t a i n s a g a i n s t t h e s k y , t h e p a r k w h e r e w e j o g o n S u n d a y mornings, the little potted plants we grow on our win- dowsill. A landscape can be part of us because we are part of it. Our identity is rooted in the habitat where we live because we absorb its moods, flavors, and characteristics. We may not notice it, but we can sense its warmth, we con- nect with its light and its sunsets. We keep in our memory the place where we spent our childhood, where we gave our first kiss, or where we used to sing, carefree and happy, on long-gone summer nights. We remember what was around us: the atmosphere, the feeling left behind by humidity or excessive heat, the cold of snow, and frozen hands at the skating rink. Or the rustle of autumnal leaves that painted The landscape in our hearts, or when the horizon is part of who we are From the Editor with a thousand colors fields and woods. Places that become part of our identity through memo- ries and senses: the chirping that wakes us up in the morn- ing; squirrels running fast across a field; the gurgling of fountains or the rhythmical beating of the rain against a window. But also the roaring of cars speeding in the street and that of trains on the metro's rails. Sounds that stay with us, to the point we miss them when they are not there and we can't fall asleep without them. It is incredible, but a scent can bring us back in time to a hug, to a cake just out of the oven, to a passing glance on a rowdy school bus. We don't need much. We're on the train and we see trees and buildings quickly passing by, like threads hanging from messy colors, and lost feelings and emotions return, mak- ing us part of the whole again, bringing us back to "a life- time ago," all within cities that never stop. This is to say that we are deeply and intimately connected to the "out- side," even when we aren't aware of it: very often, the out- side world is an element that helps us connect with our inner self, our thoughts, our memories, our most personal and hidden feelings. Throughout its history, Italy has been often described as a garden, a gorgeous succession of uniquely beautiful land- scapes, so it's not surprising that UNESCO pays so much attention to our natural, artistic, architectural, historical, and social heritage. Italy's multi-faceted and varied land- scape is a priceless patrimony, the epitome of a deeper meaning that even touch-and-go visitors can grasp and experience, if traveling is more than mere snaps on a smart- phone. Because Italy is a series of invaluable memories: that corner of sea surrounded by colorful homes in Le Cinque Terre; the scent of lemons on the Costiera Amalfi- tana; the shiny and smooth paving of the Via Appia running silent and mysterious under the luscious heads of maritime pines. But also the watery sparkle of Venice's canals and the milky grey of Langhe's morning fog. Or the brown, ochre, and yellow of the Crete Senesi and the intense green of olive trees and oak woods below Assisi and Perugia, without for- getting Positano's breathtaking cliffs, Vieste's sea stacks, bright against a blue sea, the black sands of Maratea, and the thin line of smoke rising from Mount Etna. Images that'll create memories of our tricolored tour. They'll become part of us and be with us like indelible postcards, one hundred times more meaningful than a photo on our phone. We truly can't avoid thinking about how deeply a place can mark us. We can't imagine Sardinians living without the winds typical of their island, and people from Trentino without snow on their mountains in the winter. We can't think about Neapolitans being happy without their Mount Vesuvius guarding the bay, or Milanese people without their winter rain. Even Romans wouldn't feel comfortable without their chaotic traffic on the raccordo anulare. For the same reasons, San Franciscans love the fog embracing their Golden Gate Bridge and their Bay even during the summer, and Angelenos will always consider the grey ribbons of their streets running along the blue of the ocean as their own. They are places for the soul, and they do exist. They are part of us more than we are aware of. But we only need to get away for a while and change our horizon, to immediate- ly understand we carry them inside and they are part of us. Simone Schiavinato, Editor Simone Schiavinato NEWS & FEATURES TOP STORIES PEOPLE EVENTS P.O.BOX 6528, ALTADENA, CA 91003 Member of FUSIE (Federazione Unitaria Stampa Italianaall'Estero), COGITO L'Italo-Americano 610 West Foothill Blvd. Unit D, Monrovia, CA 91016 - Tel.: (626) 359-7715 PLEASE SEND CORRESPONDENCE TO P.O. BOX 6528, ALTADENA, CA 91003 www.italoamericano.org L'Italo-Americano Newspaper (a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization), www.italoamericano.org, is the largest and longest-running Italian newspaper in America, not to mention the cultural and news resource for all things Italian in the US. A bilingual newspaper which repre- sents an historical landmark for the Italian American Communities in the West Coast and throughout the US. L'Italo-Americano benefits from subsidies by the Italian Government, Memberships and Donations intended to support and not interrupt a mission that began in 1908 to preserve and promote the Italian language and culture in the USA Periodicals postage paid at Monrovia, California 91016, and additional mailing offices. PUBLISHER Robert Barbera Grande Ufficiale EDITOR IN CHIEF Simone Schiavinato ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGER Patrick Abbate EDITORIAL COORDINATOR Barbara Minafra COPY EDITOR Francesca Bezzone LOS ANGELES CONTRIBUTOR Silvia Giudici SAN FRANCISCO CONTRIBUTORS Catherine Accardi Serena Perfetto SEATTLE CONTRIBUTOR Rita Cipalla CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Mariella Radaelli, Francesca Bezzone, Luca Ferrari, Stefano Carnevali, Paula Reynolds, Nicoletta Curradi, Generoso D'Agnese, Fabrizio Del Bimbo, Maria Gloria, Chuck Pecoraro, Anthony Di Renzo Serena Perfetto, Kenneth Scambray, Chiara D'Alessio © 2020 L'Italo-Americano Membership: One year $59 - Single copy $2.25 POSTMASTER: Send address changes to L'Italo Americano PO Box 6528 Altadena, CA 91003 P.O.BOX 6528, ALTADENA, CA 91003

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