L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2024 www.italoamericano.org 10 L'Italo-Americano V isitors to Italy's E m i l i a - R o m a g n a region typically v i s i t M o d e n a , home of the famous balsamic v i n e g a r ; o r P a r m a , t h e source of the prized prosciut- to and parmigiano-reggiano cheese; or Bologna, a famed "culinary capital" of Italy. But these are big cities by our standards. These foods a r e r e a d i l y a v a i l a b l e throughout the region, and venturing out into the coun- tryside can lead to wonderful discoveries, both historical and culinary. One of our favorite places to visit in this area, in the middle of what used to be called the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza, is the little town of Busseto. It sits at one end of the vast Po River plains, one of the agricultur- al breadbaskets of Italy. This a r e a i s a l s o , n o t a b l y , t h e b i r t h p l a c e o f c o m p o s e r Giuseppe Verdi. Porticoed walkways into the town along the Via Roma offer shaded comfort past Busseto's shops, apartments, g r o c e r s , a n d b a r s . A t t h e heart of the centro sits Caffè Centrale, a local café whol- ly dedicated to opera: on the walls hang a huge collection of signed, framed head-shots of opera stars past and pre- sent. The interior of the bar i s m o r e h i g h l y d e c o r a t e d than most: velvet-covered chairs, mahogany inlaid ceil- ings, chandeliers, and mar- ble tabletops. The place is frequented by locals – at cer- tain hours, local men arrive t o c l a i m a c o u p l e o f t h e tables for their daily card games. O u t s i d e i n t h e m a i n square, the bar's opera fixa- t i o n i s r e a d i l y a p p a r e n t : Piazza Giuseppe Verdi is dominated by a huge statue of the famous composer in f r o n t o f t h e i m p o s i n g T e a t r o V e r d i , a f o r m e r fortress that dates back as far as the 10th century. The actual theater is housed in the castle structure, and is i t s e l f s u r p r i s i n g l y s m a l l (about 300 seats) but very lavishly decorated. All the wood is carved to look like hanging beads or painted to look like marble. It is easy to s e e w h y t h e s o c i a l i t e s o f Verdi's time regarded Busse- to's exclusive opera world w i t h s u c h h i g h e s t e e m – everyone who came to the p e r f o r m a n c e s h e r e m u s t h a v e f e l t l i k e t h e y w e r e steeped in the height of lux- ury (a fun fact: Verdi himself didn't think much of this t h e a t e r ; h e e v e n s o l d h i s o w n b o x s e a t s t o d e m o n - strate his disdain for it). Just around the corner f r o m t h e C a f f è i s o n e o f Verdi's (and our) favorite eateries – Salsamenteria Baratta, a total throwback in time. There are no plates, f o r k s , o r g l a s s e s ; g u e s t s d r i n k w i n e o u t o f s m a l l ceramic bowls, which is tra- ditional in this area. There's no real menu: instead, the staff delivers a huge, huge p l a t e o f t h e b e s t l o c a l l y - sourced meats and cheeses, p l u s t h e i r h o m e m a d e s a u c e s , t o b e e a t e n w i t h c h u n k s o f t h e i r d e l i c i o u s bread. An original score of the composer Verdi is on display in the front, along with a piano he played on; opera music serenades you a s y o u e a t . V e r d i h i m s e l f used to come here, to eat and to buy local foodstuffs for himself and his friends. V e r d i w a s b o r n n o t i n Busseto but just a few kilo- meters away, in the tiny vil- lage of Le Roncole (now referred to as Roncole Verdi – b e c a u s e , f a m e ) . H e i s famously (perhaps spurious- ly) quoted as saying, "I am and always will be a peasant (paesano) from Roncole." Verdi's childhood home is open for tours as a museum, where visitors can see the v e r y h u m b l e r o o t s f r o m w h i c h t h i s m u s i c a l i c o n sprang. His father was the keeper of a crossroads inn a n d g e n e r a l s t o r e h e r e , much of which is still intact. Down the street is the town's 1 1 t h - c e n t u r y C h i e s a d i San Michele Arcangelo, the church where Verdi was baptized – the same bap- tismal font is still there and is still used to this day. The country we now know as Italy only became Italy as a r e s u l t o f t h e R i s o r g i - mento — the tumultuous period of Italian unification in the 19th century. Previ- ously, the peninsula was an assortment of monarchies and city-states controlling various regions. Verdi and his music played an impor- tant part in the unification: s e v e r a l o f h i s o p e r a s h a d not-too-subtle political over- tones, favoring democracy over the abuse of power that came with monarchy and oligarchy. Since the country w a s u n i f i e d d u r i n g t h e height of Verdi's fame, his music became the quintes- sential national music of the Italian people. Because of those pre-uni- fication city-states, this area is full of castles – many still intact and open for visitors. One such, at the center of t h e n e a r b y s m a l l t o w n o f F o n t a n e l l a t o , i s o n e o f very few moated castles in Italy; others dot the hillsides in the surrounding hills. A scenic trip to stroll through a few of these historical sites goes a long way to walking off all of the great food you'll eat here! About the authors: Zene- ba & Matt moved from the U.S. to Italy in 2019, where they live and work as per- forming musicians. They a r e a l s o a u t h o r s o f f o u r a w a r d - w i n n i n g t r a v e l guidebooks (including one for Emilia-Romagna) and a memoir about their move to I t a l y . A s L i t t l e R o a d s Europe, they craft itiner- aries for travelers to visit s m a l l t o w n s a n d e n j o y a u t h e n t i c e x p e r i e n c e s i n MATT & ZENEBA WALKER Food and Opera in the "Land of Verdi" Matt inside the Teatro Verdi in Busseto (Photo courtesy of Matt and Zeneba Walker) Tray of salumi and cheeses at Salsamenteria Baratta (Photo courtesy of Matt and Zeneba Walker) ALL AROUND ITALY TRAVEL TIPS DESTINATIONS ACTIVITIES

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