I have been to the area around Vicenza. They all usually over dress in restaurants and coffee bars.
American-accented Italian? They probably thought you were Italian-American. The northern Italians look down on Italian-Americans as peasants from Southern Italy who left the south for America. The northern Italians believe the north is paradise and who in their right mind in the north would even think of emigrating.
They have a point. ;-)
If they keep standing up to Islam they have my undying love.
There was a great thing from the UK Daily Mail on FR yesterday from the Daily mail a serialized small bit of Mario Puzo new book on the Godfather and the story behind it. He recounted a story how Frank Sinatra was pissed that Puzo had the Johnny Fontaine character in the book and movie that was supposedly Sinatra. At restaurant Sinatra heaped abuse on Puzo. Puzo said it was humiliating because an northern Italian was insulting and southern Italian and the southern Italian (Puzo) walked away. I never knew Sinatra was a northern Italian.
Don't think so. My Italian isn't good enough for that.
Besides, blond hair, hazel green eyes, most of the Northern Italians thought that I was one of them, as shopkeepers routinely addressed me in Italian before I ever opened my mouth.
I recall slipping outside the hotel for a cigarette in Milan, and listening to an entire monologue from a little Italian lady walking her dog, on how here dog was such a pain as he just wouldn't poop on command. She had no idea that I only understood about every fourth word & I didn't have the heart to tell her!
The northern Italians believe the north is paradise and who in their right mind in the north would even think of emigrating. They have a point. ;-)
Absolutely agree. Love the Lakes, Milan and Bologna -- if not for my aversion to snow, would move to Bologna in a heartbeat.
There was a great thing from the UK Daily Mail on FR yesterday from the Daily mail a serialized small bit of Mario Puzo new book on the Godfather and the story behind it. He recounted a story how Frank Sinatra was pissed that Puzo had the Johnny Fontaine character in the book and movie that was supposedly Sinatra. At restaurant Sinatra heaped abuse on Puzo. Puzo said it was humiliating because an northern Italian was insulting and southern Italian and the southern Italian (Puzo) walked away. I never knew Sinatra was a northern Italian.
Great story! Didn't know that I either, but after you said it, I found this article According to this, Sinatra's mother was from near Genoa and his dad was from Sicily. Of course this article also refers to Sinatra's mother as "a midwife" and Wiki says that she was an "illegal abortionist", so who knows?.
As an aside, when my husband was a kid, he used to shovel snow for Sinatra's parents. Said that they were very nice people.
As for the people of Padua, a few years back they go really tired of all the crime and drugs coming from one section of town where Muslims lived, and walled it off. I laughed at the time and thought, good for you!
Old Blue Eyes!