As someone who grew up without religion in a California beach town, I was intrigued when I moved to Italy by the length of the Christmas season and I was confused by some of the festivals. I learned that the season starts on December 8, with the Festival of the Immaculate Conception, and ends on January 6 with Epiphany. I assumed the conception being referred to was the one
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House Hunters Episode Prompts a Move to Lucca
I am pleased to add this interview to my Taking the Plunge series Why did this family move from the US to Lucca? Where do you come from and when did you first have a connection with Italy in your life? I was born in the Philippines but have spent most of my life in Southern California. My first connection to Italy was food. For as long as I can remember, Spaghetti al Ragu has
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The Integration Agreement: What your questura may not be telling you
Even if the questura fails to tell you about it: You're supposed to sign up for the Integration Agreement This all started in 2012 but often the questura forgets to inform foreigners of this agreement. Thus many foreigners are either unaware of it, or unsure if they fall into the category of people who are supposed to sign it. Become a subscriber to my Substack to
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The Best Local Piazza in Florence (And it’s Organic Market)
Piazza Santo Spirito: Come here to hang out in the best local piazza in Florence. This piazza is in the Oltrarno which means “across the Arno” (the other side of the river from civic and religious centers where the cathedral and town hall are.) If you feel overwhelmed by the crowds on the main side of the river, come over to the Oltrarno and hang out in Piazza Santo
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Your Residency and Exiting Italy
Does it affect your Italian residency to leave Italy for a period of time? Yes, it can affect your Italian residency to go back to your country of origin for a period of time. The permesso needs to be renewed yearly for a period of five years at which time you can request permanent residency. However, there's an important stipulation. Become a subscriber to my
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Why I Risked Everything to Buy an Apartment in Florence
A personal essay Not long ago I woke up and was fifty years old, with more than half my life already lived. Divorced, and without kids, essentially alone, I decided to follow my lifelong dream of living in Italy, but to do so, I had to “dare greatly” as Dr. Brené Brown calls it. I’d been in love with the city of Florence since age nineteen when I backpacked around
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Tuscany off the beaten path: The Svizzera Pesciatina
Google the Svizzera Pesciatina and not much will show up. These small stone villages are in the hills above Pescia, and I'd not heard of them until I started living in Lucca. My recent visit to them sure felt like Tuscany off the beaten path. Pescia, a simple tow east of Lucca, suffered quite a bit of damage in World War II, and it's not on the tourist track. Above Pescia,
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What you don’t know about Italian rental properties
Are you thinking of moving to Italy and renting a house/apartment? Are you wondering if your house in Italy will be just like the peach colored villa under a warm Tuscan sun you saw in a movie? After the popularity of my post on the challenges of buying property in Italy, I decided to write this post about Italian rental properties, aimed at advising people what to expect
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Post #3 What to do after receiving the Permesso
The Road to Italian Citizenship is Long It is long even when you have Italian grandparents, and when you don't have that, or EU citizenship, the road is ten-years long. I'm five months into my ten-year process and here's how it's stacking up: I received my coveted permesso di soggiorno (permit to stay) in June about a month after I applied. Unfortunately, on June
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Post #1 Preparing for the Permesso
How to get a "Permit to Stay" in Italy For non EU citizens: You need a visa first. You apply for that at the Italian Consulate in your jurisdiction in your home country. See the website for the consulate in your jurisdiction for more info.Upon arrival in Italy apply for a permit to stay. (permesso di soggiorno)Within 20 days of receiving the permit, go to the Anagrafe
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The Cost of Moving to Italy
Moving Abroad (again) A year and nine months ago I moved from Qatar back to the United States. I came back exhausted. I was exhausted from the dust storms, the lack of fresh air and the tension of going to battle on Qatar's roads, and the rigidity of a culture I wasn't use to. I could have used years of being back home. It's so easy in Santa Cruz. Living at my
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