Think Outside the Boot

This page is not meant to be serious, but only to give you another perspective on Italy through a bunch of foreigners’ eyes that is different from mafia, spaghetti and pizza. Enjoy!

Name: John Dobson

Age: 28

Nationality: American

Occupation:  Education

Best English tongue twister:

The sixth sick sheik’s sixth sheep’s sick.

What is the greatest advantage of living in Italy?

I am the envy of all my friends and family.  I love having people envious of me.

What is, in your opinion, the biggest problem in this country?

Despite the very hospitable attitude I think there is an underlying sense of selfishness.  I think we see this manifest itself in the copious amounts of litter on the street.  One might say it is just teenagers and troubled youths, but when you see the more mature generation throwing things to the ground without even batting an eye, I think it becomes clear that everybody feels the same.  Apart the litter there is the question of parking on the sidewalk or in restricted zones.  I understand that there isn’t adequate parking for all the cars, but it is extraordinarily rude and self centred to leave your car on the sidewalk and block all those that aren’t using a car.  The third point I see which screams self centeredness is anytime there are groups of people waiting in ‘lines’.  The rest of the world all laughs at the idea that Italians don’t have the capacity to form lines but after living here for 4 years it becomes really really frustrating.

How would you solve it?

This one I don’t know if it can be solved-

If you had only one question to ask the Prime minister of this country, Silvio Berlusconi, what would it be?

How are your teeth?

Give only one Italian dish you would not even dare eating.

Obviously nothing.

What’s your favourite word in Italian and why?

Not a word but more of a phrase…. brutta figura.  Probably I like it because it basically just describes me perfectly.

And your favourite Italian accessory?

Scarfs when it is 85 degrees outside and anything purple.  Especially purple shoes for men (never okay).

Name: Alison Caulfield

Age: 30-something!

Nationality: British

Occupation: English teacher/translator/amateur tour guide

Why did you decide to move to Italy?

I wanted to learn Italian and discover the country.  I arrived in Sardinia by chance, following a job offer.

What would be your number one advice to a person who wants to move to Italy?

Learn Italian before you go.  It’s rude not to!  It also means you’ll actually experience the country, culture and be able to have fascinating conversations with all the lovely people.

Also: don’t be a fussy eater – eat absolutely everything you’re offered, or otherwise you’ll miss out on some of the world’s best food. My personal favourites have been various parts of a piglet, roasted offal, tiny snails and sea urchins. Yummmmm!!!

What is/was the most difficult thing to adapt to?

Nothing really. It’s all felt very much like home and the place I’m meant to be.

I’ve happily adadpted to mentioning people you know whenever you go to buy something or seek a service. (It can make all the difference!)

Maybe I’ll never totally adapt to the humidity in summer – we don’t have that in the UK.  I just sweat constantly in summer, yuk!

Best thing has been the amazing food and drink. I’ve certainly had no problems adapting to that.

Do you agree in the stereotype that says that all Italian men are macho?

Not at all!  Most of them are way to attached to their mother’s apron strings to be macho – only kidding!  Guys from many other countries have a lot to learn from the Italians when it comes to romance and sweeping a girl off her feet.  There are some good cooks out there too – always a good way to my heart!

I think the good old traditional manners, such as opening the door for you and letting you walk in first are lovely and have been lost in many other countries.  I don’t think it’s sexist or macho; it’s polite and respectful.

If you had to choose between getting married to an Italian man or an English man, which one would you choose and why?

Hmmmm, I think it’s better to enjoy life day by day and go with the flow. But if I had to choose, I’d say a Sardinian man : )  They’re good guys, very respectful, dark and (generally) handsome…although there aren’t many in the tall, dark and handsome category – so flat shoes are a must!  But I must say, I’m not so keen on the ones who are likely spend more time or money on clothes and looking good than you do, and also the ones who shave their chest hair in the summer to go to the beach. Not my cup of tea!

In my general opinion, a lot of British guys can be slobs who prefer to watch football and drink beer down the pub with their friends/mates/pals (depending which part of the UK you’re in). And I’m sorry, but shaved heads when you’ve got hair is just lazy!  We want good quality eye-candy, and there’s plenty of that in Italy.

Favourite word in Italian (please translate)?

Porcheddu…well, that’s actually Sardinian.  Roast suckling pig – my favourite!!!

My unanswered question:

In living history, has any Sardinian person actually died from a cool current of air??????

My plea:

Please, please, please, keep the window open – fresh air is good for you!!!!!!!!!!  (Especially when it’s boiling hot outside and a nice breeze is blowing). Whenever we’re ill in the UK, we’re always told – “you need to get some fresh air, it’s good for you”!!!  It won’t kill you. OK?!?!?!

Name: Arriana Criscione

Age: 25

Nationality: American/ Italian

Occupation: Soccer Player, Footballer, Giocatrice (whichever you prefer to use)

Where do you live in Italy?

Sassari

Favourite football (soccer) player?

Cannavaro

If you had one word to describe Sardinia, what would it be?

Different

Pros and cons of living here:

Pros: FOOD is really yummy, the beach, the town is really safe and easy to get around

Cons: The distance from my family, everything closes on Sundays, difficult to find flights on and off the island, nothing starts until late at night

What do you miss the most about your home country?

My family, my dogs and my friends

What’s the most annoying question people ask you?

Calcio Femminile?  As in, you play for a women’s soccer team?

Is Italy as fashionable as people think?

I think when people think of Italian fashion they think of the major cities, like Rome and Milan. Sassari is not one of those major cities, and thus their fashion sense is not what most would consider great.

Favourite clothing accessory Italian girls wear?  And your least favourite?

I’m not sure I have a favourite. I like their scarves and beanies but that’s not something that is only Italian. However the whole color matching idea really bothers me. Just because you pick a color and then proceed to wear every article of clothing and accessory that is that color does not mean it matches.

Is there any connection between Italians and the way they play soccer?

Yes. For me, there is a direct correlation between how the Italians react to their national sport and how they react to society. Soccer or “calcio” as it is called here, is the common man’s sport. Anyone with a makeshift ball and an area to make a goal can ignite their dreams to be the next Roberto Baggio. However, while the sport promotes dreaming it is also a reflection of what is bad in Italy. The players always argue with the referee never accepting his decision on the field. Similarly, when an Italian is questioned by an authority figure, whether it be a police officer or a teacher, most Italians have a tendency to argue and claim it is not their fault. Nothing is an Italian’s fault it is always the other guy. Just like in soccer there was no foul or it was the other players fault. Everything that happens to an Italian is over dramatized whether it be a little problem or a huge problem it is always something that everyone needs to know about. And they will know because one, the person will tell everyone and two, they will have to yell it so everyone will hear. When an Italian player thinks he/she has been fouled similar to the response on the field they feel it necessary to scream and flail themselves in a dramatic fashion to prove the severity of what has happened even if the case when nothing has happened.

Camera shy

Name: Sean Cook

Nationality: American

Age: No comment

Occupation: Language School Owner

Years in Italy: No comment

Why did you move to Italy?

I’d been to Italy and loved the language and people. When I graduated from college, I was just going to spend a year in Florence and study Italian.

What is it about you that will never be Italian?

It’s difficult to say with utter certainty. I find myself worrying about my digestion from time to time or I surprise myself fretting that I’ll catch cold from a draft on the back of my neck and I say, “Hey, what’s going on here?”

Italians tend to view problems – political, personal, psychological ones – as intractable and complicated, relishing in the discussion of labyrinthine minutia. But then so do New Yorkers.

I’ve asked myself this question over and over and have tried out lots of different answers. I used to think of special American qualities, such as “practicality”, “entrepreneurialism”, “can-do attitude”, “sloppy dressing”, but over the years (a-hem), I’ve met plenty of sloppily-dressed entrepreneurial, can-do, practical-minded Italians.

One of the quintessential attributes of Italianità is lack of national patriotism, or lack of national pride in their political history. An Italian’s heart does not swell with pride when he ponders the unification of Italy or the glories of Fascist scholastic reform or even the Partisan resistance to Fascism. The very recounting of this story is so riddled with contrasting interpretations, “ifs” and “buts” that the unambiguous patriotic glorification of its history has never been possible.

My heart swells when I see the American flag and all that it represents.

That, cari miei, will never change.

What Italian traits and American traits do you want your children to grow up with?

Ideally, the best of both worlds. Tried and true Yankee optimism combined with a touch of the world-weary Italian pazienza to keep them plodding along when all seems lost.

What drives you crazy about Italians?

Line-cutting.

What was the biggest culture shock when you moved here?

Line-cutting.

What’s the funniest situation you have ever been in since you moved here?

When I inadvertently jumped to the front of the line at Vespucci Airport and an American tourist read me the riot act. I swear to God I didn’t see the line! Very embarrassing.

What do you normally bring back from the United States when you go on vacation?

Maple syrup, spice packs for Mexican food, back issues of the Atlantic monthly, 40 pounds of Barnes & Nobles, renewed optimism.

      

Nome: Zornitsa Mumdzhieva   

Nazionalità: Bulgara

Età: 33 anni

Professione: Farmacista

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