Posts under Culture

Lucca Comics 2009

Posted by Serena
Nov
15
2009

It’s not everyday that you can stroll along the historic walls of Lucca and encounter Spiderman! But if you happened to be there over the weekend of 29th of October to the 1st of November you would have seen not only Spiderman but just about every other hero or villain portrayed in all the most popular fumetti (comic strips), cartoni animati (cartoons), and video giochi (video games), plus many others that you’ve probably never heard of, I certainly hadn’t!

Lucca comics is a celebration of fantasy that, over the course of 43 years, has grown from humble beginnings to become the largest festival of its kind in Europe. Just to give you an idea, this year’s show attracted roughly 140,000 visitors, a fairly large percentage of whom arrived in costume. By chance we happened to be in Lucca that weekend, and what really amazed us, apart from the quantity of participants, was the incredible quality of the costumes, masks, and ‘posing’. These were obviously very dedicated fans who had put a huge amount of time, care, and thought into how they presented themselves, but hey, siamo Italiani, no!

Click on the images below to see larger versions

At the same time there was nothing overbearing about the crowd, who were mainly in their late teens and early twenties, in fact the overall impression was of people having a great time whilst sharing their passion with other fans of the genre and the general public alike. Just walking through the crowd and stopping to admire the diverse characters you couldn’t help but feel a smile creep across your face.

One of the things that really pleased me, was seeing so many people participating in something very contemporary. Most tourist only know and see Italy as Europe biggest open air museum, and yes, we are very proud of our heritage, but life here didn’t end in the middle ages. Italy like everywhere else is a country that is still growing and evolving, there should be room for the new alongside the old, providing, of course, that it is done with that special ‘Italian touch’.

If you would like to know more about Lucca Comics then I suggest that you start with these two web sites: http://www.luccacomicsandgames.com/ and http://lucca09.luccacomicsandgames.com/ If you are planning an autumn break to Toscana next year I would definitely recommend a visit to Lucca Comics 2010. As they say ‘Be there, or be square’!

 
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Facciamo San Martino

Posted by Serena
Nov
12
2009

Wednesday 11th of November was la festa di San Martino, a date which has particular significance for the contadini (farm laborers, or peasants) as it brings to a close the agricultural year.

Fare San Martino

‘Fare S.Martino’ (literally: to do S.Martino), an expression used in the vast agricultural plains of the Pianura Padana, means both to traslocarsi or trasferirsi (to move house), and to change one’s place of work. The expression goes back to the time when a significant part of the population of the pianura worked as braccianti (farm hands, or laborers). The farm laborer’s annual contract expired at the beginning of November, and if the contract wasn’t renewed by the proprietario terriero (landowner) for the following year, the  bracciante had to find work elsewhere. This entailed moving himself, his family, and all their possessions to una nuova dimora (a new dwelling place, or residence). The date chosen for il trasloco (the move) was traditionally the 11th November, la festa di S.Martino, and there was a very practical, climatic reason for selecting that date: l’estate di San Martino. 

‘L’estate di San Martino, tre giorni e un pocolino’ – detto popolare. (‘S.Martino’s Summer, three days and a little bit’ – popular saying)

L’estate di San Martino is the name given to a short period following the first really cold weather during the late autumn, in which, if we are lucky, we have a brief reprieve, and things warm up again for several days. I have to say, looking out of the window at the snow capped mountains which occasionally emerge from gloomy grey clouds, that quest’anno sembra che sia poco probabile (this year it seems very unlikely!) Ma chissà! (but who knows).

One well known usage of the expression ‘fare San Martino’ took place during Italy’s second war of independence in 1859. At the great battle of San Martino (a small town located in Northern Italy), King Vittorio Emanuele II famously resorted to dialect when he desperately tried to rally his struggling troops with the phrase: ‘Fioeui, o i piuma San Martin o i auti an fa fé San Martin a nui!’ which in Italian means ‘Ragazzi, o prendiamo San Martino o gli altri ci fanno fare San Martino a noi!’ (Lads, either we take San Martino or the others will make us ‘fare San Martino’ i.e. will throw us out!)

This year however, the expression ‘fare S.Martino’ has particular significance for us because we are in the middle of the grueling process of moving my elderly parents from their palazzo (block of flats) in the suburbs of Lucca to an appartamento near where we live so that they are closer to us and we can help to give them a better quality of life, però, devo dire che è un lavoro snervante!  (however, I have to say that it’s an exhausting job!). Oh well, in order to reward ourselves we can always follow yet another old tradition that takes place at this time of year, il primo assaggio del vino novello, che solitamente viene abbinato alle prime castagne (the first tasting of the new wine, which is usually accompanied with the first chestnuts). This tradition is celebrated in a famous poem by Giosuè Carducci (1835 – 1907) which we all had to learn at school:

San Martino

La nebbia a gl’irti colli
piovigginando sale,
e sotto il maestrale
urla e biancheggia il mar;

Ma per le vie del borgo
dal ribollir de’ tini
va l’aspro odor de i vini
l’anime a rallegrar.

Gira su’ ceppi accesi
lo spiedo scoppiettando:
sta il cacciator fischiando
su l’uscio a rimirar

tra le rossastre nubi
stormi d’uccelli neri,
com’esuli pensieri,
nel vespero migrar.

 

The drizzling fog
climbs the rugged hills,
and beneath the mistral
the sea howls and foams;

but in the village streets
from the seething vats
the pungent smell of wine goes forth
to cheer the souls.

On fiery logs the spit
turns and crackles;
the hunter stands whistling
and from his door watches

amongst reddish clouds
the black flocks of birds,
like forlorn thoughts,
at dusk migrate.

 
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Omaggio ad Alda Merini, poetessa

Posted by Serena
Nov
6
2009

On Saturday 31st October I heard the sad news that la poetessa (the female poet) Alda Merini had died from cancer, aged 78. I only discovered her poems a couple of years ago, and I was immediately taken by their delicate sensitivity. Through her poetry, Merini describes her inner torment, longing for love, and mysticism.

Alda Merini was born in Milano on the 21st of March 1931. She started writing poetry at an early age, and when she was 19 two of her poems were included in the Antologia della poesia italiana 1909-1949 (Anthology of Italian Poetry 1909-1949) edited by Spagnoletti. Alda Merini published the first of several books of her verses in 1953, however in 1961 she was taken into psychiatric care due to mental health problems and did not publish any more work for over 20 years. Finally in 1984 she published La Terra Santa, in which she describes her experience of being in the psychiatric hospital, and frequent references to this experience reappear in her later work. Despite being a troubled soul, Alda Merini never lost her sense of irony and irreverent wit, and in 2004, for the occasion of her seventy-third birthday, she asked for a “hot man”. Her friends duly organized  a visit from the male stripper Ghibly.

Merini won many Italian literary awards and was twice nominated for the Nobel Prize, firstly by the Académie Francaise in 1996, and then in 2001 by P.E.N. Italia. A selection of her works have been translated into English by the American poet Susan Stewart in “Love Lessons: Selected Poems of Alda Merini”, published earlier this year by Princeton University Press.

I’ve chosen a self-portrait poem to share with you entitled Alda Merini taken from the collection Vuoto d’amore (Void of Love), published in 1991. Here it is below with my own translation into English.

 

Alda Merini

 

Amai teneramente dei dolcissimi amanti

senza che essi sapessero mai nulla.

E su questi intessei tele di ragno

e fui preda della mia stessa materia.

In me l’anima c’era della meretrice

della santa della sanguinaria e dell’ipocrita.

Molti diedero al mio modo di vivere un nome

e fui soltanto un’isterica.

 

I tenderly loved some very sweet lovers / without them ever knowing anything. / And over them I weaved spider’s webs / and I was prey to my own material. / In me there was the soul of the prostitute / of the saint of the bloodthirsty and of the hypocrite. / Many gave a name to my way of living / and I was simply a hysterical person.

 

Grazie Alda!

 
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Domina L’Angolo Cucina

Posted by Serena
Oct
25
2009

It seems that the good old Italian kitchen, quel locale per antonomasia (that quintessential room) which was once the traditional focal point of the home, is slowly but surely being ousted by l’angolo cucina (the corner kitchen). In Italy the kitchen once represented il focolare e il cuore della casa (the hearth, and the heart of the house), and for many, particularly those who live in the older houses in rural areas, it still does. In our village, for example, to be invited into someone’s home is synonymous with being invited into their kitchen, where we inevitably end up sitting a fare due chiacchiere (chatting), a bere un caffè (drinking a coffee), o forse un bicchiere di vino (or maybe a glass of wine). In the winter particularly, little groups of neighbors will gather at each others houses and sit around la stufa (the stove) or il forno a legna (the wood fired oven) in the kitchen, passing the time of day.

Here in Lunigiana we also have il gradile (more commonly known as il seccatoio), a small building in which le castagne (the chestnuts) would be dried ready for grinding into farina di castagne (chestnut flour). Il gradile was also once used as a primitive kitchen, with an open fire in the middle of the room over which, supported by un paio di alari (a pair of firedogs), was placed il testo (a heavy iron skillet). This was the preferred method for cooking such traditional recipes as la pattona, la torta d’erbe, and il testarolo. These days the use of il gradile as a kitchen is increasingly rare, but we have been lucky enough to sample these dishes cooked in the traditional manner and I can testify, non c’è paragone! (there’s nothing like it!)

However, whether we like it or not, social trends change, and with the migration of young people to larger towns and cities, where they tend to live in un appartamento (an apartment) as a much smaller family unit, the kitchen seems to have lost its relevance.  A recent survey of 30,000 newly constructed habitations shows that the presence of a separate room for the preparation of food is becoming increasingly rare. In northern Italy for example, only 9% of bilocali (two room apartments) have a separate kitchen. The figure goes up to 10% for central Italy, and even in the more traditional south barely reaches 12%. Trilocali (three room apartments) don’t fare much better, with only roughly a quarter possessing una cucina tradizionale (a traditional kitchen). Only when we look at quadrilocale (four room apartments) and larger does the presence of a kitchen reach 70%.

In Italy, when we talk about the number of rooms an apartment has we do not usually include the locali di sevizio (service rooms, such as the kitchen, bathroom, or storage room), therefore an apartment described as a bilocale may in reality consist of more than two rooms. However, for the majority of people these days, the use of an angolo cucina incorporated into il soggiorno (the living room) is more efficient and allows the creation of a smaller, more economical apartment which serves the same function as the traditional home.

Another factor which has no doubt contributed to the decline of the kitchen is the change in our eating habits. Whereas in the past the family would riunirsi (get together) around the kitchen table three times a day it seems that these days us Italians like to eat out much more frequently. A recent survey has shown that 80% of Italians regularly eat meals outside the home, and of these 44%  do so at least once a day!

 
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Firmato Diaz

Posted by Serena
Oct
19
2009

Here in Italy, as in many other parts of the world, it has long been fashionable to name one’s offspring after famous, or inspirational people. Once upon a time we Italians didn’t really have much choice about our first name, because the church decreed that it should be a ‘Christian name’ in the most literal sense. For females the most common one of course would be Maria, after La Madonna. My ‘Christian’ name for example is Maria Serena, my cousins are Maria Pia and Anna Maria, and I once had a friend with the wonderful name of Maria Etrusca (Etruscan Mary), oh how I envied her! In fact not so long ago in Italy our onomastico (name-day) was seen as more important than our compleanno (birthday), and people would receive gifts on the former rather than the latter.

Every day is a Saint’s Day. Today for example is Santa Laura, so if we see our friend Laura Vescovi later on it will be quite normal to wish her auguri (best wishes). Tomorrow will be ‘Santa Irene’, so anyone named Irene will celebrate her onomastico tommorrow.

All this leads me to a rather interesting and unusual first name: Firmato, and to discover its origins we need to travel back to the end of La Prima Guerra Mondiale (The First World War).

Armando Vittorio Diaz was the famous general and chief of general staff who in 1918 recovered what was left of the badly mauled Italian army and led them to victory against the Austrians. At the conclusion of the Battle of Vittorio Veneto, which ended WWI in Italy, Diaz issued, as a final address to the Army and the Nation, Il Bollettino della Vittoria (The Victory Bulletin). The Bollettino was probably written by General Siciliani, spokesperson for the General Staff.

Here are the final two paragraphs of the Bollettino della Vittoria: (You can find the complete text and a translation into English here).

 

L’Esercito Austro-Ungarico è annientato: esso ha subito perdite gravissime nell’accanita resistenza dei primi giorni e nell’inseguimento ha perdute quantità ingentissime di materiale di ogni sorta e pressoché per intero i suoi magazzini e i depositi. Ha lasciato finora nelle nostre mani circa trecento mila prigionieri con interi stati maggiori e non meno di cinque mila cannoni.

I resti di quello che fu uno dei più potenti eserciti del mondo risalgono in disordine e senza speranza le valli, che avevano disceso con orgogliosa sicurezza.

Firmato Diaz

 

Note the signature at the end of the Victory Address: ‘Firmato Diaz’, meaning ‘signed Diaz’. In the waves of patriotism following the Italian victory the entire Bollettino della Vittoria was frequently memorized by school children, always ending with those proud words ‘Firmato Diaz’. Many uneducated contadini (peasants) were very taken by the sound of those closing words, and erroneously believing Firmato to be  Diaz’s first name baptized their newborn sons Firmato (Signed).

Do you know anyone with an unusual name? Please share it with us in the comments section below.

 
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