Chi sono?

Me & little Trevor in Tuscany

Benvenuti!  

I first came to Italy when I was 4 months old.  Back then, that meant 17 hrs cooped up in planes with my three siblings, all under the age of five.  Once I got there, I slept in a dresser drawer.

I returned when I was six, and aside from my daily diet of Nutella on awesome Abruzzese bread, I can recall the magnificence of Pompeii & Paestum.  I also distinctly remember roads without guardrails along cliff sides in the Alps, getting the runs from the drinking water served us on the Brenta river, the debris floating in the Venice lagoon which included a black & white dog, butt raised in the air.  Six of us were stuffed in a FIAT 500 with no air-conditioning in the sweltering summer sun including my great aunt who wouldn't let us roll down a window for fear of the dreaded draft.  After the sound & light show in the ruins, my fate was sealed:  I vowed to return to this perfect place of pandemonium one day to live.

I've been working with Italy for 27 years, the last 20 of them based in Italy.  And while I finally got an air-conditioned car sometime around 1997, I still think that Italy could use a few more creature comforts and a crash course in Marketing 101, starting with customer service.  

This is my blog to poke fun and prod Italy into the 21st century, hopefully leaving the worst of modern life like lap dancing and pub crawls out of it - but I'm afraid I may be too late.

As the saying goes, Rome wasn't built in a Day.

Con tanto affetto,

Francesca Maggi

My dog Trevor is featured:
The dog with a Frequent Flyer card!

Drop me a line!  [my dog's name] 220 @ gmail.com  

For more fun facts & musings from yours truly just click on these titles below:

Expat Interview-Don't get Burnt by the Tuscan Sun!



Internations Expat - Top Blogger Interview

BlogExpat.com interview (from NYC to Rome)

My favorite Italian things by Ombelico.de

Francesa Maggi, Unveiled!  InRomeNow interview with my alter ego

My Top 5 Picks of Italian Flicks