INTRO TO THE FABULOUS CURATOR & CONTENT CREATOR:
Jasmine grew up a second-generation Canadian on the Western part of Canada in Edmonton, Alberta (shown in photo above). She is a self-proclaimed city girl with a country soul. A true romantic, she is an avid cook and wine drinker. Jasmine studied Italian (and Russian, and Spanish and promptly forgot all but the former) and Pharmacy at the University of Alberta and thoroughly enjoyed her community pharmacy practice after graduating in 2013. She was a practicing pharmacist for just more than one year prior to packing her bags for Italy (read up on the reason why under The Backstory) where she now resides indefinitely.
Fortunately (or unfortunately) seduced by Europe and wanderlust when she was eighteen, from the moment she stitched a small Canadian flag onto a backpack. Jasmine has been blessed to travel extensively and her favourite worldly moments include eating half'-a-dozen Portuguese custard tarts in one sitting at Pastéis de Belém in Lisbon, singing Aerosmith under the Eiffel tower (there may or may not have been some €5 wine involved), dancing in gay bars with bouncy floors in Beijing, learning to drink
vodka straight on the Trans-Siberian railway, and bungee-jumping on the border of Tibet and Nepal.
Jasmine is currently a blogger, freelance writer, and works as an English tutor to children and consultant to businesses. In her spare time, she reads, paints and stomps around Italy in cowboy boots and sundresses. Scroll down for pictures that I didn't pose for and for some advice as to where to start reading if you're new here!
IF YOU'RE NEW HERE...
Well how lovely of you to drop by! No matter how you ended up on this little blog of mine, I'm glad you're here, please feel free to stay awhile or stay forever. Here's a list of the most popular posts...perhaps they would be a good place to start:
1. How to Snag (and Keep) an Italian Man
What you'll read in this post:
Be a good cook: Take note that "good" is very relative and a "good" cook in North American terms will probably not suffice in Italy. You cannot use anything pre-made here except perhaps Giovanni Rana lasagna (because my future mother-in-law says it's good). Your future Italian relatives would expect a homemade five-course meal MINIMUM so if you can't take that kind of heat...get outta the kitchen girl.
2. Asians and Italians…The Perfect Cross-Cultural Cocktail?
What you'll read in this post:
Asian-Americans work well with Italians because we come from similar backgrounds that focus heavily on the two things most important things in life: FOOD and FAMILY. Most nationalities claim to emphasize similar values, but maybe not to the extent of Asians and Italians. We get really intense with this stuff.
3. The Unofficial, Community-Curated, Comprehensive List of Italophiles
What you'll read in this post:
This morning I started a project to create a user-driven compilation of all the best Italophile Instagram accounts to follow, the only criteria were that those included love Italy and/or Italian as much as yours truly. We did it “chain-reaction” style in order to get the widest reach and the most diversity in contributions so anyone who was added was then asked to add their own favorite “Italophile” to the ever-growing list. It's easy to find a "blog roll call" or a list of recommended blogs to follow these days, but I have yet to come across a community-curated list of Instagram accounts. The best part about this list is that all the featured accounts have essentially been "hand-picked" by YOU AND ME, mutual lovers of Italy and all things Italian.
4. A Short Rant on Customer Service in Italy
What you'll read in this post:
I mean, it's a general well-known fact that customer service in Italy is laughable- from being transferred from person to person on the phone and finally being hung up on to having someone make me wait while they take an Instagram of their morning coffee- I've experienced it all. I really would have pulled a Samantha (remember that iconic "dirty martini, dirty bastard" scene in Sex and the City?!) on that girl taking a photo if not for the fact that she was sitting behind a pane of protective glass. More often than not, people in the customer service in industry in Italy act like they are serving a life sentence while at work, as if they never asked to be doing that job and someone is coercing them into it. I'm sure sometimes that's the case, so I'll let those people off the hook.
5. The Double Standard Between Italian Street Harassment and American
What you'll read in this post:
I am complimented all the time by the Italians, whether it’s a colleague or someone on the street. Do I like it? Yes. Does that make me an anti-feminist or pitch me against Tess in some way or against all the other women that don't appreciate the attention? I have absolutely no idea, but I hope the answer is no.
6. The Differences Between Dating an Italian and a Canadian: Commentary by a Canadian in Italy [Bilingual Post]
What you'll read in this post:
This is the first of two bilingual posts where I will attempt to reiterate how all the stereotypes you’ve been fed about Italians and Canadians are true. This post is supposed to be comedic, but only in order to use comedy as an excuse to hide just how true it all really is. I’ve enlisted the help of an Italian in Canada to give you the other side of things, hers will be the second post in this series.
7. Why We Love Italian Boys
What you'll read in this post:
SELF-EXPLANATORY.
8. Annoying Things Non-Canadians Say About Canada
What you'll read in this post:
It’s consistently said that travel is the cure to ignorance and I understand that travel, especially across the Atlantic, is not economically feasible for everyone. But inform yourselves the old-fashioned way. Ask questions, read books or at least scroll through Google images of different countries. Do all of this before telling me how relieved I must be to be “out of the cold” and living in a “real city”. I live in Bergamo, it’s 115,223 people. Remember Edmonton’s number? 932,546. I think it’s safe to say that I was living in a real city before as well.
9. LOVE STORIES by Questa Dolce Vita: Maddie & Gio
What you'll read in this post:
This is the first international love story in the blog's LOVE STORIES Series.
I was also completely taken aback by how direct Gio was with his feelings. This was a combination of having less-than-perfect English (which forces one to be direct) and him being Italian. I remember getting a text from him one night asking me what I was doing that evening. I wrote back saying something like, "I am tired, so I am just going to watch a movie. I will see you tomorrow because I am sure you want to be out enjoying the city with the others!" and he wrote back saying, "No, I want to be with you. You are the only one I care about here, I will come watch a movie with you."
10. The Appeal of Italian Men
What you'll read in this post:
Okay, this is the blog post that everyone wants. So grab your prosecco and pull up a chair, let’s discuss the global appeal of Italian men. Let’s start off with the superficial basics. If you have any taste in men at all, it’s almost impossible to deny the classically revered features of the Italians- the strong noses (here there is a fine balance required, let’s be honest), the even stronger jawlines, the thick eyelashes that look better than mine with two layers of falsies…just the eyes in general. Sometimes I think that the Romans invented bedroom eyes.
OTHER POSTS TO "DARE UN'OCCHIATA" (TO TAKE A LOOK AT) FOR STARTERS:
If you're here because you're curious about Italian men and relationships and/or are dating one:
What Do Italian Men Married to Non-Italian Women Have in Common?
Why Are There So Many American Girls with Italian Boys?
Can Men and Women Be Friends? Here's How My Italian Colleagues Responded
Dating Diversity: Italy vs. Canada (and North America)
Cross-Cultural Dating: My First Jaw-Drop Moment with an Italian
Italian Men: The Unofficial Guide for Wives and Girlfriends
How to Date an Italian Man or Woman (From The Iceberg Project)
If you're here because you're learning Italian because of the aforementioned Italian man:
The Relationship Between Loving Someone and the Language You Love With
How to Fight and Make Love in Two Languages
A Day in the Life: Someone Who Will Learn Italian versus Someone Who Won't
An Open Letter to Native Speakers of the Language I'm Learning
The English Stare and Getting "Englished" Living Abroad and How To Deal
What I'm Really Thinking While Speaking Italian as a Second Language
Taking Risks in Language Learning
Language Burnout
The Gift of Language: Italian and Beyond
The Neverending Story of Learning Italian
Living in Italy, Speaking in English
Parli Italiano?
How to Keep Learning Italian in Italy
My Biggest Language-Related Pet Peeve: When Locals Switch to English
If you're here because you're thinking of moving or have moved to Italy because of you-know-what:
Italian Wedding Checklist
An Ordinary Life with An Extraordinary Backdrop
A Typical Weekend in Italy Through Photos
What John Moretti and I Love About Italy...
Yes, Some of Us Need Italy.
Random Everyday Things That Annoy Me in Italy
The Most Difficult Thing You’ll Face as an Expat: Having a Sick Family Member Back Home
Daily Things I Never Did Before Moving to Italy
If you're here because you're a Canadian in Italy or a prospective one:
Hypothetical Italian Teenagers Won't Have Varsity Jackets or Homecomings
My Canadian Identity Abroad in Italy: The Conundrum
14 Canadian Habits I Lost After Moving to Italy
FIVE Ways I've Become More ITALIAN in Canada
A Tale of Two Cities: Bergamo and Edmonton
applying for a Working Holiday visa: a guide for young and reckless Canadians
If you're here because you're Asian or a visible-minority and you want to know what it's like to live in Italy:
Two Sides of the Italy Coin
Hardships of the Non-White Expat in Italy
Musings on Being Racially Ambiguous in Italy