Newsletter

Ciao amici,   I hope everyone is staying warm and enjoying this year’s winter Olympics in Milan. The breathtaking views of the Alps and chic city shots have been making me hungry for one of Milan’s signature dishes: il risotto alla milanese (risotto with saffron).   This cozy rice porridge starts with butter as Milan is in continental Italy, far north of the olive groves used to make olive oil. While cooking the Carnaroli rice in broth, a pinch of saffron is added, bringing s

Ciao amici, I hope 2026 is treating you well so far.   I have been busy gathering knowledge and experience from my recent trip to Sicily in preparation for my next class at Astor Center: Wines of Sicily on January 27th. I'm very excited to share the history, culture and wines of this special island.   If you are in the New York area, I hope you can make it! Here is a promo code for Immerse Italy subscribers that you can apply at checkout: SICILY20 . We only have six tickets l

Ciao amici, This past weekend brought over a foot of snow and freezing temps to New York. I dislike being cold, but thinking positively, I feel more excited about the Winter Olympics in Northern Italy! I always prefer the winter over summer Olympics because the games are more adventurous.   Which popular winter sport do like the most? Figure Skating: Patinaggio artistico Ice Hockey: Hockey sul ghiaccio Snowboarding: Snowboard Ski Jumping: Salto dal trampolino Speed Skating: P

Ciao amici, I hope that everyone had a nice Christmas!   The end of the year is always a good time to look back at our accomplishments and examine where we want to grow.   As 2025 comes to an end, I’m not only looking back at this year, but at the past five years in my role as a leader in Italian language and culture. While the language itself never changes, I have learned to lean in to my students’ learning styles and intuitively adapt the delivery of my knowledge, creating

Ciao amici, I hope everyone’s holiday season is going smoothly so far, we just have a few days left before Christmas! If you’ve ever been to Italy around Christmastime, you will notice that every piazza, church and home has a nativity scene set up. Big or small, the nativity scene ( Il presepe  in Italian) is a fundamental decoration because unlike Christmas trees or Santa Claus, it originated in Italy.   The first nativity scenes were painted on the walls of catacombs by ear

Ciao amici, I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving holiday. I skipped Turkey Day this year as I have been in Italy for the past week and half.   My journey started in Catania, Sicily where I walked along the seaside, went wine tasting and wandered around this ancient city. I then spent a couple nights in a village between Florence and Bologna where I got some fresh mountain air. After that, I spent a few nights in Florence catching up with friends and riding a bike all over