Category Archives: Inspiration

Buon Anno 2023

05 Thursday Jan 2023

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Buon Anno a tutti i lettori di ‘Un po’ di pepe’, vicini e lontani!  Spero che 2023 porta buona salute e gioia a voi e ai vostri cari.  Happy New Year readers of  ‘Un po’ di pepe’, near and far.  I hope 2023 brings good health and joy to you and your loved ones!

I usually write a Buon Anno / year in review post on New Year’s Eve , looking back at the blog year.  I am late in writing this one, since we celebrated my parents’ 60th wedding anniversary on Dec 27th and I posted some of their wedding photos in Diamond Anniversary. I also slipped and took a tumble down the stairs 3 weeks ago and have been moving at a slow pace. Guess I should stop practicing the Wednesday/Mercoledi dance!

2022 was the year I wrote the least amount of posts.  Mannaggia!  Post pandemic creative block was partly responsible, and I was also away a lot.  I attempted to make up for 3 years of not travelling, and did quite an epic job of it.  Read all about my travels in Post Pandemic Travel Postcard.

WordPress keeps end of year stats which I love to share because they are so interesting.* In 2022, Un po’ di pepe had almost 14,000 views from over 100 different countries!  I wish I could visit all of of them!  The top posts of 2022 are listed here, in case you missed any of them.  All of the links included in red!  Based on the number of views, the top posts of 2020 are:

#10 Beat the heat-Surviving Summer in Roma This post is based on my many years of travelling to Roma in the heat of summer.  It was published while I was in Santorini in June. 6 weeks later, I was in Roma, having to take all of my own advice! The recommendations are specific to Roma, but the information is useful for travel anywhere in Mediterranean Europe during the summer. 


#9is a tie 9a Hairstyling in Ancient Roma I am sooooo beyond thrilled to see this 2017 post on the top 10 list for the first time!  It needed some love. Join me as I study ancient hairstyling practices by looking at Classical sculptures and paintings. Most of the research was done at Palazzo Massimo.  Yeah for archeology nerds! 

Exquisite mummy portrait in encaustic wax on wood panel, Hawara, Middle Egypt, 120 AD. Photo National Museum of Scotland

#9b Polignano a Mare In this 2016 post about the stunning clifftop town on the coast of Puglia, read about my probable encounter with the mysterious ‘stair poet’  and learn what infraditi are.  In June I was back in Polignano!

#8 The Last Medici As an art history nerd, this 2020 post was my personal thanks to Anna Maria Luisa De’ Medici (AMLDM) the last of the Medici family, for leaving Firenze and the world her family’s legacy of art treasures.  If you have been to the Uffizi or Palazzo Pitti, you will know what I mean.  I was thrilled to see it on the list again! It  comes up #5 in google search for the topic!

#7 Grano Arso a Pugliese gastronomic tradition that honours the resilience of our contadini ancestors. Grano arso is also the subject of my first non- diabetes related publication! There is not a lot written in English on grano arso, which explains why this 2015 post comes up 6th on Google search and this post is in my top 10 every year.

#6 La Grande Cacata  Wow-or should I say merda! I couldn’t believe this 2018 post where I attempt to be an art critic was one of my top 10.  If you need a good laugh, my scathing review of a bruttissima monumental excremental sculpture in Piazza della Signoria in Firenze should do the job.  #5 In my kitchen in Puglia 2022 My summer cucina and the amazing barrel-vaulted stone ceiling were sorely missed during the pandemic! Check out the photo of Mamma cleaning octopi at the kitchen sink. This post was written as part of the ‘In my kitchen’ worldwide blog linkup hosted monthly by Sherry’s Pickings.

#4 Matrimonio in Puglia In June I went to a wonderful family wedding in Puglia, which included an 1100 year old church, a dress made by a 91 year old Nonna and dancing under the olive trees. Auguri Federica e Antonio!

#3 Napoli Street Art I absolutely love Napoli a perfect place for self-expression since the last few thousand years.  Join me on a graffiti/street art tour in the Centro Storico. This 2020 post comes up 5th in Google search. I went to Napoli again, so stay tuned for more posts and even more street art.Madonna con la Pistola Banksy Napoli street art

#2 L’Arte sa Nuotare  made my top list again! During a 2019 trip to Firenze with my nipotina Viaggio con Isabella we were on constant lookout for street art by Blub, the talented artist who plunges famous works of art underwater. This post also comes up 2nd on Google search!  Spread the Blub love- read about more Blub in Blub a Napoli.Putto Raffaello Firenze street art Blub#1 Italiano per Ristoranti-How to Pronounce your Restaurant Menu, this handy Italian menu pronunciation guide has been #1 every year except one.  In a google search for ‘Italian pronunciation guide restaurant’ and ‘Italian menu pronunciation’ it comes out as the top suggestion! Molto cool! This post is available as a 6 page downloadable PDF via a link at the end of the post and. I would still like to expand and turn it into an ebook someday. Speriamo! If any of you have experience publishing ebooks and can give me some advice, let me know! 

Bruschetta (broo.SKET.tah)

For 2023 my goals are simple….lots of travel-although not as much as last year- less stress, more exercise, more art and writing! 

I would love to hear which post you liked best, and what you would like to read more about in 2023 on Un po’ di pepe?  Let me know in the comments.  Looking forward to writing more cose interresanti /interesting stuff in 2023. I have a long list of posts to write based on 2022 travels.  Next month, I also plan to do a writeup on this year’s Festival di Sanremo as I did last year.  

Vi auguro un 2023 piena di gioia e buona salute!  Ciao, Cristina

Check out Italian Christmas Vocabulary for help understanding my seasonal greetings,

*Note…WordPress’ method of collecting stats is odd.  The newest post counts as a ‘Home page’ view until the next one is published and this does affect the results, especially for those of us that do not post often.

Giornata della Donna~Mariya Prymachenko

08 Tuesday Mar 2022

Posted by in Art, Inspiration

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Auguri per la Festa della Donna! Today is la Giornata Internazionale della Donna or International Women’s Day-originally known as International Working Women’s Day. There is no one specific organization or event behind International Women’s Day, but it is celebrated in many countries around the world. It is a day to recognize the achievements of women and a call to action towards gender equality.  More about la festa della donna is in this post.

On International Women’s Day, I like to write about the accomplishments of outstanding women. This year, I have appropriately chosen to share Mariya Prymachenko (1909-1997) with you.  Mariya was a Ukrainian folk art painter and embroidery artist from a peasant family in the village of Bolotnya, about 30km away from Chernobyl.  A self-taught artist, Mariya only went to school for 4 years, then developed polio.  She had several surgeries in Kyiv so that she could stand on her own.  There she also met her partner Vasyl in who was killed in WW2 before they had a chance to marry.  Their son Fedir and his 2 sons Petro and Ivan Prymachenko were/are also artists.

650 of Mariya’s works are in the collection of the National Folk and Decorative Arts Museum in Kyiv.  Mariya’s primitive or ‘naive’ style paintings are bold, colourful and expressive, inspired by Ukrainian folk traditions, the natural environment, and fairy-tales. Pablo Picasso said of her ‘I bow down before the artistic miracle of this brilliant Ukrainian‘-and I do not think he was generous with his compliments!

My first exposure to the 2 paintings pictured here ‘A dove has spread her wings and asks for peace'(1982) and ‘Our army, our protectors'(1972) was on Zöe’s post. In light of the unprovoked aggression on the Ukraine from Russia, I found the imagery and the titles of these paintings extremely moving.

Last week the Ivankiv Historical and Local Museum housing 25 of Mariya’s works was burned in the Russian aggression.  It was thought that the works were lost, but according to her grand-daughter Anastasia Prymachenko, local residents ran in and were able to save 10 of Mariya’s paintings. Hopefully the injustice and aggression taking place in the Ukraine will soon come to an end.

Ciao, Cristina

100 years of Insulin

14 Sunday Nov 2021

Posted by in Canada, Inspiration

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Imagine a hospital ward full of quasi-comatose, emaciated children wasting away of ketoacidosis….and watching them slowly come back to life one by one.  That is what happened 100 years ago, after the discovery of insulin.  Today is World Diabetes Day, and this year we celebrate 100 years since the discovery of insulin.  Before injected insulin was available, Type 1 diabetes was a death sentence.  Death could be delayed for at the very most 2 years, with a very strict starvation diet.  The discovery of insulin is one of the most significant events in the field of medicine.

Sir Frederick Banting graduated as a surgeon from the University of Toronto in 1916 and immediately left for England with the Canadian Army Medical Corp.  Returning from the war with a shrapnel injury to the right arm and a case of PTSD, he did a 1 year surgical internship at the Hospital for Sick Children (aka Sick Kids) in Toronto, and then set up a private practice in London Ontario.  He was seeing few patients, and took a side job as an instructor at Western University Medical School to make ends meet.  

On October 20, 1920, he was preparing for a lecture on the pancreas by reading an article which concluded that a hormone secreted into the blood by the islets of Langerhans controlled glucose metabolism.  Banting saw the potential for isolating an extract related to diabetes from the pancreas and wrote it in his notebook October 30, 1920.  He was put in touch with Professor John Macleod, an expert on carbohydrate metabolism.  Despite the fact that 400 previous attempts to treat diabetes in animals with pancreatic extract had failed when tried on humans, Dr Macleod agreed to supervise him.  In May 1921, Banting went to Toronto to begin his research, joined by an undergraduate summer student assistant, Charles Best.  Best had the necessary lab skills for the project, since most of Banting’s experience was as a battlefield surgeon.  

In August 1921, their extract ‘isletin’ (later called insulin) decreased glucose and improved the overall condition of Marjorie, a dog with diabetes.  Macleod provided additional labs resources so the results could be reproduced.  In December, James Collip, a biochemist with an interest in hormones, was recruited to help purify the pancreatic extract.  He came up with an extraction process that made it pure enough to try on humans. Banting Best and Marjorie

On January 11, 2022 13 year old Leonard Thompson was the first human injected with the insulin extracted from pig pancreas.  It caused an abscess and an allergic reaction.  11 days later he was injected again, with the extract further purified by Collip and it worked!  Leonard Thompson lived 14 more years with insulin, and died of pneumonia at age 27.  Watch this amazing ‘Canadian Heritage Minute’ video:

March 1922, there was a 3 month shortage of insulin, as supply was not able to keep up with demand.  June 1922, in an effort to mass produce insulin in a cost effective way, the University of Toronto partnered with Eli Lilly.  Lilly was able to ship their pork insulin, called Iletin to Toronto by July, allowing Dr Banting and team to take on more patients.  In November 1922 Danish company Novo Nordisk also began to produce insulin known as Toronto.  

Most ‘newsworthy’ of Banting’s early insulin patients was Elizabeth Hughes, daughter of the US Secretary of State.  She followed the ‘starvation diet’ strictly for 3 years and was taken to Toronto at age 14.  In 1996, a collection of letters she wrote to her mother from August to November 1922 was donated to the University of Toronto. Elizabeth wrote to her mother about injecting 5cc of insulin ‘We only have a 2cc syringe.  After the first 2cc, the nurse unscrews the syringe from the needle, which is left sticking into  me, fills it again and injects 2cc more, then the same again with the final cc.  The process takes about 20 minutes, my hip feels as if it would burst, my leg is numb, then in an hour I would hardly know anything had been given.’*  She went on to graduate from University, got married, had 3 children and lived a very full life!**

I had the opportunity to attend a wonderful lecture by the late Michael Bliss during a Diabetes Canada conference in Toronto October 2011 for the 90th anniversary of insulin. He was a historian and author of the book ‘The Discovery of Insulin’.  In 1979, while writing the book, Dr Bliss contacted Elizabeth’s husband to find out when his wife had died and find out about her later life.  She wrote back to him herself saying she was alive and in good health 58 years after first receiving insulin!  

In August 1923, Banting was featured on the cover of TIME magazine. August 1923 cover of Time Magazine. Dr Frederick Banting

October 25, 1925, the Nobel Prize for Medicine and Physiology was awarded to Banting and Macleod for the discovery of insulin. Banting shared his prize with Best and Macleod with Collip. Frederick Banting remains the youngest recipient and the only Canadian to receive a Nobel Prize in this category.***  Since insulin is a life-sustaining treatment and they wanted it to be accessible to anyone who needed it, Banting, Best and Collip sold the patent for $1 each. Banting claimed that insulin belonged to the world, not to him.  I do not think they would be too impressed to know that in 2021, there are parts of the world that do not have access to insulin, and for many it is not affordable!  

This post may seem rather ‘off topic’ for my blog.  Those of you who only know me virtually may not know that in my ‘day job’ I am a pediatric diabetes  educator, so posting this today was important for me.  Huge advances in insulin manufacturing and delivery have been made in the last 100 years, and although insulin is a life-sustaining treatment, and still the only treatment for Type 1 diabetes, it is not a cure.  Hopefully in the not so distant future, this century’s Frederick Banting will finally discover a cure!  

Happy World Diabetes Day, Cristina

Canada Post Stamp commemorating the discovery of insulin

*Bliss, Michael The Discovery of Insulin.  Toronto:  McClelland and Stewart Limited, 1982.

**FYI – glass syringes had to be sterilized.  Needles were reused multiple times and required sharpening.  This was the standard for over 30 years.  In 1954 a disposable glass syringe was designed for the Polio vaccine and it was used for insulin delivery as well.  Disposable 1cc syringes finally became available in 1969

***Frederick Banting received a lifetime endowment to continue medical research, and also was a well respected landscape painter.  His paintings are on display at Banting House in London, Ontario.  He died in Feb 1941 at age 50 in a plane crash while serving in WW2.

‘Glory enough for all’ Canadian TV Docudrama

Photos from Library Archives Canada and Banting House National Historic Site

Stamp-Canada Post April 2021

 

Reflections from a COVID immunizer

21 Saturday Aug 2021

Posted by in Canada, Inspiration

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SyringesMany of you readers have probably noticed that my blog has been neglected since April. This is mainly because I have been working a few days a week on the Covid immunization team with the local health department. I thought I it was important for me to do my part for the cause. I also thought it might be nice to actually have the opportunity to talk to live humans. British Columbia is doing well-84% of the population 12 years of age or older has had one vaccine, and 75% have had both doses. These stats are amazing-so the clinics are reducing capacity as the number of fully vaxxed people increases. My temporary extra job will be coming to an end soon.

The experience has been overwhelmingly positive. What a pleasure to work with people who are mostly positive, appreciative, respectful and relieved, …..I don’t think I ran into a single grumpy person! Many were anxious, confused and uncertain, even still hesitant and afraid-but not grumpy! What a nice change. I was continually thanked for my service and I also thanked everyone for showing up!

I worked at several different clinic locations in Vancouver, and also Whistler, but my most frequent location was the Vancouver Convention Centre ‘under the sails’ at Canada Place.  Here is the venue, the lineup and the view from my lunch break.

Vancouver Convention CenterMy first day at the convention center we had 3500 vaccine appointments booked in 10 hours.  In June, the number of appointments was increased to 5000 per day! It was crazy busy, but ran like a well-oiled machine.

Working as an immunizer involves much more than just giving the vaccine. It also involves explaining how the vaccine works, potential side effects and obtaining consent, answering all sorts of questions, assessing allergies, needle anxiety and anxiety in general, monitoring in the aftercare area for 15 minutes, delivering vaccines to immunizers’ tables and often even drawing up vaccines. Drawing up the vaccines is stressful as every last drop needs to be squeezed out of a vial so that the remainder left in 3 vials can be combined to make 1 extra dose! No wastage, but talk about pressure! My first day, there were 3500 appointments booked. Anyone who has previously fainted, felt faint with a vaccine or is really anxious is taken to the First-aid area so they can have their vaccine laying down. Some people are still unsure and confused when they arrive at their appointment and they need more time and reassurance. Canada Place

A surprising number of people booked their appts on their birthdays so they could extra celebrate. They tried to make it fun. Families and roommates showed up together, sometimes in costume or dressed in a theme colour! I loved when young adults brought along their 12 to 18 year old siblings.  Stickers where available on the way out. 

VCH Covid vaccine stickers
You can imagine the interesting responses from people during or after their immunizations. I kept track of them in a sort of ‘covid immunizer journal’ on my phone, and am including my favourites here. Details have been altered, removed and in some cases combined, to protect identity.

The Convention Centre is right in downtown Vancouver. I was amazed at the vast amount of intricately tattooed arms that were presented to me. These often required extra thought re landmarking and placement. It is totally OK to give an injection on a tattooed area, but I tried to avoid doing nasty things like stabbing angels and kittens in the eyeball! I enjoyed asking about the significance of tattooed images because I find this information fascinating, and it also served as a good distraction technique. I had some requests to give the vaccine into a particular tattoo, usually a religious or medical image. I saw a few Plague Doctor tattoos, which are considered ‘dark and edgy’ according to the internet. Plague Doctors treated victims of the Bubonic Plague. They wore big black hats, long black coats, and bird masks with large beaks. The beaks were filled with herbs and spices to mask the stench of death and disease. The large beak also prevented getting too close to the ill person. I suppose this was the 16 th century version of PPE and physical distancing?

As the eligible age to get vaccinated decreased, the amount of anxiety and needle anxiety seemed to increase-even among the tattooed. I tried to be empathetic, but since I know tattooing is painful, I found myself quite often wondering ‘were you unconscious when you got those tattoos?’. Several did lightheartedly comment that they were so drunk or high that they didn’t remember a thing!  Travel was my favourite distraction topic. Many of my vaccinees had travel plans, either for real, or in their minds. It is amazing how animated and relaxed one can get while describing a potential vacation.

I was jokingly asked questions like ‘Did you just give me 3G or the microchip?’ and ‘Do you have a magnet I can use to check?’  Some of the more enthusiastic responses include: ‘I can feel the freedom coursing through my veins!’ ‘It feels like I just got my wallet and keys back after being in jail’ ‘Now I can go lick door handles’…my response- ‘Please don’t!’.
One of my most enthusiastic reactions was from a university student-probably a research scientist. She had her eyes closed and an orgasmic look on her face while she took deep breaths and said she was imagining all of the science, research and hard work that was going into her body at that very moment. For some, getting the vaccine was actually anticlimactic….’I endured 15 months of hell for that?’

We had either Pfizer or Moderna vaccine on any given day, depending on the available supply. People often wanted to know which vaccine they would be getting. The most interesting presentation of this question was ‘So, what’s in your candy dish?’  The cutest presentation of this question-which I was asked several times-was ‘Will I be getting the Madonna vaccine?’ I really wanted to respond ‘We only have Lady Gaga on the menu today’, but I don’t think any of them realized what they had asked.Moderna vaccine and syringes

In the aftercare area, it was obvious who had seen the TikTok video on how to move your arms and body to decrease vaccine side effects! FYI this does not help at all, but does no harm and some of the moves made me laugh.

A lovely 80ish year old woman expressed her happiness to be getting her second dose as she had ‘been through this all before’. She told me about surviving the Polio epidemic in the early 1950’s and how some of her classmates were not as fortunate.  They did not get the new Polio vaccine because their parents were distrustful and afraid. Now Polio is almost eradicated. She hopes everyone will listen to the science! 

Trust Science not Morons
My cousin sent me this amusing text wondering if I was still giving vaccinations. It was altered by autocorrect! I actually like their  version better! 

Text from Maria
I hope you enjoyed reading my Covid immunization diary notes. I also hope that where you live, vaccines are available and accessible to all. Please get out and get yours ASAP! Remember…..follow the science! As our Provincial Health Officer likes to say ‘Be safe, be calm, be kind’.

VCH vaccine signCiao and stay safe, Cristina

Recent Successes for Italia

26 Monday Jul 2021

Posted by in Inspiration, Italia

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The pandemic is not over yet, but things are looking up. Italia was hit early and hard by COVID 19. In 2020, the world became emotional watching videos from all over the country of Italians singing in solidarity from their balconies and windows. This turned into discouragement and low morale as things worsened. Besides mass vaccination campaigns and the reopening of more activities, recent successes are boosting morale across the country. Italia is back in sport, music and even outer space!

The Azzurri -the Italian national team-have won 4 times, but did not even qualify in the 2018 World Cup.  Now the team has had no losses in 34 games.  The last time they lost was September 2018 to Portugal 1-0 in the Nations League. 

Unless you have been self-isolating without electricity, you know that on July 11th at Wembley Stadium, the Azzurri beat England to win the European Cup for the first time since 1968.  The Azzurri played well throughout the tournament, so fans were hopeful.  It was not an easy win-taking 30 minutes extra time and then going to shootouts.  The game was anxiety inducing and could have gone either way.  I was sad to see the English team immediately take off their medals!  They played well and should have been better sports and role models.  Federico Chiesa asking Siri to ‘chiama mamma’ cheered me up again.  The Azzurri will be trying to earn a 5th star at the World Cup in Qatar in November 2022. 

Also on July 11th, 25 year old Matteo Berrettini was the first Italian to be in a Wimbledon final, playing Novak Djokovic. He did not win, but it is not all about winning. Berrettini is the first Italian man to win a Grand Slam since 1976.

May 22nd in Rotterdam, Festival San Remo winners, Italian Glam-rockers Måneskin won the Eurovision Song Contest with ‘Zitti e buoni’ thanks to a massive public vote. This was Italia’s third win-the others being in 1964 and 1990. 

Eurovision 2021 was the largest in-person event since the Pandemic started-until Euro Cup, I believe.  The contest is huge in Europe with 39 countries participating, but hardly known at all in North America.  Måneskin is made up of singer Damiano David, bassist Victoria De Angelis, guitarist Thomas Raggi and drummer Ethan Torchio, aged 21-22.  They met in school in Roma and were finalists in the 2017 X-Factor Italia.

Zitti e buoni literally means ‘quiet and good’, but in this context means ‘shut up and behave’.  It was written by the band members.  The lyrics are brilliant.  They are about being yourself and not conforming or worrying about gossip.  Read more about the lyrics here.

So young and so talented!  Below is a video of their winning performance at Festival San Remo in February, complete with a full orchestra. 

The winning country hosts the following year, so the 66th Eurovision Song Contest in May 2022 will be in Italia. 17 cities have put in a bid and the winner should be announced by the end of August.

Last, but definitely not least we have ‘AstroSam’. Italia’s first woman in space, Samantha Cristoforetti will be the first European woman to command the International Space Station.

Last week the ‘Visit Italy’ marketing campaign at the Brussels International Airport went viral. The billboard reads ‘I migliori psicologi consigliano l’Italia dopo una pandemia‘ -The best psychologists recommend Italia for the post pandemic blues!

Auguri Azzurri, Matteo, Måneskin and AstroSam! Also visit Italia, but don’t all go at once! Ciao, Cristina

Photos from: my TV screen, Matteo Berrettini and Måneskin’s Instagram accounts @matberrettini, @måneskinofficial

Buon Anno 2021

07 Thursday Jan 2021

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Buon Anno a tutti i lettori di ‘Un po’ di pepe’, vicini e lontani!  Spero che 2021 porta buona salute e gioia a voi e ai vostri cari.  Happy New Year readers of  ‘Un po’ di pepe’, near and far.  I hope 2021 brings good health and joy to you and your loved ones!

I usually write a Buon Anno post on New Year’s Day, looking back at the blog year.  I am late in writing this one, since I wrote an end of year post Reflecting on 2020, summing up and bidding good riddance to 2020-although I was not that polite in my sendoff!

WordPress keeps end of year stats which I love to share because they are so interesting.*  In 2020, Un po’ di pepe had over 14,000 views from over 100 different countries!  I wish I could visit all of of them!  The top posts of 2020 are listed here, in case you missed any of them.  Lots of links included!  Based on the number of views, the top posts of 2020 are:

#10 Viaggio con Isabella A summary of a trip to Italia with my super-photogenic energetic travel buddy, my nipotina* Isabella.  Since travel is still not possible, enjoy a virtual trip with us!Piazza della Repubblica selfie
#9  Limoncello Because the pandemic caused a hand-sanitizer shortage, I was able to get some grain alcohol.  When life gives you lemons……This post includes instructions and photos of the process to make limoncello at home.Limoncello steeping

#8 Cinquecento Love In May I published an article/photo essay about my lifelong obsession with the huggable Fiat 500 in a special print edition of Accenti Magazine.  This post links to the full online article.Fiat Cinquecento wedding car

#7 The recipe for Olive oil Limoncello Cake was inspired by an art retreat at Casa Berti near Lucca, surrounded by 900 olive trees, freshly pressed olive oil and limoncello.Olive oil limoncello cake

#6 Napoli  Street  Art I just love Napoli a perfect place for self-expression for the last few thousand years.  Join me on a graffiti/street art tour in the Centro Storico.volto di Sophia Loren Napoli street art

#5 I was happy to see La Trinità di Masaccio on this list yet again! When I first published this art history lesson, it had about 30 views, but I discovered that it comes up as the 1st listing in a google search! This explains the steady trickle of views. I also suspect that it is on some sort of a reading list for art history classes in the US, because I have noticed a lot of views referred from the course websites of Santa Monica College and a high school in Pittsburgh! How cool is that?  Didn’t I say the stats were fascinating?

My quick sketches of the vanishing point, perspective lines and triangular composition. The colour image is my entry ticket from 2004!

#4  I am so super thrilled that L’Arte sa Nuotare  made my top list again! During my trip with my nipotina** Isabella we were on constant lookout for street art by Blub, the talented artist who plunges famous works of art underwater. This post also comes up 4th on a google search.  Spread the Blub love- read about more Blub in Blub a Napoli.Blub street art Firenze

#3 The Last Medici As an art history nerd, this post was my personal thanks to Anna Maria Luisa De’ Medici (AMLDM) the last of the Medici family, for leaving the world her family’s legacy of art treasures.  I was thrilled to see it get some love!

#2 Italiano per Ristoranti-How to Pronounce your Restaurant Menu, this handy Italian menu pronunciation guide has been #1 every year until now.  In a google search for ‘Italian pronunciation guide restaurant’ and ‘Italian menu pronunciation’ it comes out as the top suggestion! Molto cool! This post is available as a 6 page downloadable PDF via a link on the post.  Someday, I plan to expand and turn it into an ebook. Speriamo!

Bruschetta (broo.SKET.tah)

#1 For the first time ever a different post is #1.  I wish I had not had to write this post,  but I am glad I did.  COVID 19-Andra tutto bene was my top post for 2020.  A lot has been written since, but I wrote this early into the pandemic, after overhearing too many people saying that it was all a hoax and more people die from the seasonal flu.  As a health professional, I felt I needed to provide some education as a public service. I followed it with another post COVID 19-Insieme ce la faremo.

For 2021 my goals are simple….lots of travel-if we are able, less stress, more exercise, more art and writing!

I would love to hear which post you liked best, and what you would like to read more about in 2021 on Un po’ di pepe?  Let me know in the comments.  Looking forward to writing more cose interresanti /interesting stuff in 2021.

Vi auguro un 2021 piena di gioia e buona salute!  Ciao, Cristina

*Note…WordPress’ method of collecting stats is odd.  The newest post counts as a ‘Home page’ view until the next one is published and I am not sure how much this changes the results.

**Nipote or nipotina means both niece and granddaughter in Italiano.  In this case, it means niece.

Reflecting on 2020

30 Wednesday Dec 2020

Posted by in Blogging, Inspiration

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5 masks hanging on a clotheslineAddio 2020!  Is that too polite? How about vai via 2020?  Via al inferno 2020?  Vaffanculo 2020 may be the most appropriate send off to this year that most of us would like to forget.  COVID 19 has affected life for everyone.  Even in my weirdest dreams, I never imagined plague and pestilence in the form of a planetary health crisis during my lifetime…..yet here we are.

My word of the year is sottosopra (sot•toh•SOH•prah)…..upside down.  I doubt I am alone feeling like an extra in a bad science fiction movie, where everything in the world is upside down. Kisses and hugs spread disease, lounging on the couch binge watching Netflix is responsible adult behaviour, NOT visiting family is a sign of love, and losers are the ones who DO go out on New Year’s Eve!Personal Protective Equipment

The loss of life, paralysis of the world economy, and mental health effects of this pandemic have been devastating.  It has been more stressful than most of us are willing to admit.  Each of us copes differently with the confusion, fear and stress of quarantine, distancing, and finding distraction from all things 2020.  Some of us are madly productive, and others slow right down.  As long as our activities help us cope and we follow local guidelines to help everyone stay safe, it does not really matter.

This has been a time for many of us to reflect about what is important, especially so in this quieter of Christmas seasons.  There are not many positive things to discuss during a global pandemic.  Even so, I have felt humbled by the outpouring of kindness, humanity and creativity that has come out of this terrible situation and speak to the resilience of the human spirit.  Just a few of my favourite examples include:

  • The adaptability and creativity of businesses, workplaces, schools and social groups, offering their services differently and online.  I have been doing zoom yoga 3-4 times a week! Many of these practices will likely continue in some form when the world is no longer sottosopra!
  • The world becoming emotional watching videos of neighbourhoods throughout Italia singing in solidarity from their balconies and windows.  This uplifting show of unity and community support spread positivity around the world.
  • Collective rounds of applause and banging of pots for frontline health care workers.  As a healthcare worker, I thank you all for your enthusiasm! This video ‘A Violin flies over Cremona’ of Lena Yokoyama playing Ennio Morricone for health care workers on the roof of the hospital in Cremona makes me cry.  The full 15 minute documentary, with English voice over by my amica Anna Ambrosini is available here 
  • Pandemic street art!  A creative response to the pandemic, often with a dose of humour.  I wrote about street art for International Nurses Day and have another post planned soon.John Doh street art
  • Volunteers helping the elderly with groceries and errands, sewing masks, donating blood and many other wonderful things.
  • Nerdy science geeks are finally cool!
  • The elementary school near home had to cancel their Christmas concert.  They walked around and sang in front of the homes of the older and housebound neighbours instead.  Singing with their antlers and little masks on-they were adorable.  My parents were so thrilled, as was 98 year old Pasquale across the street.
  • The extra effort to spread Christmas cheer this year with outdoor decorations and lights.   Tree lots here sold out the in first week and many stores almost sold out of seasonal stuff by mid-December.  My lights and decorations always help me get through the cold, wet, dark, depressing days of winter, so I have really appreciated this.


    2020     was consistent…ha fatto schifo dall’inizio fino alla fine! It sucked from beginning to end!

    Please remember the global Christmas message of goodwill towards everyone.  We are all facing challenges that are not visible.  Do not assume you know what others are going through. As our Chief Medical Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says ‘Be safe, be calm, be kind’.

    Il Bacio TV Boy Pandemic street art

    Wishing all readers of Un po’ di pepe a safe, healthy, happy, better New Year, where the world is not upside down!

    Tanti auguri a tutti i lettori di Un po’ di pepe per un migliore Anno Nuovo piena di gioia, salute e sicurezza, dove il mondo non è sottosopra5 masks hanging on a clothesline

     Forza!  Hang in there everyone!

     Virtual baci e abbracci, Cristina

    Street art images from the artist’s instagram:

  • No need to shit yourself @johndohart
  • Trust Science, not Morons, Mike Dellaria @dellarious
  • Il Bacio @TVBoy

Street Art for International Nurses Day

12 Tuesday May 2020

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Angeli Custodi TV Boy Street Art Guardian AngelsMay 12th is International Nurses Day.  Since 1965, it has been a day to mark the contributions that nurses make to society.  May 12th was chosen because it is the anniversary of the birth of Florence Nightingale.

The theme for International Nurses Day 2020 is A voice to lead:  Nursing the world to heal. A fitting theme for this (so far) sucky pandemic year.

I would like to take this opportunity to recognize my fellow nurses and also doctors, first responders, lab and radiology techs, respiratory techs (Yes, especially the RT’s!), housekeeping staff, delivery drivers, mail carriers, everyone in the food distribution chain, and all other essential workers.  Sending much love and gratitude to you all!

Super Nurse street art by FAKEStreet artists have also been showing the love.  ‘Super Nurse’ is a stencil art mural by Dutch urban artist FAKE.  The artist is offering the image as a free downloadable PDF with a customizable background from his website Highonspraypaint to share with healthcare professionals, give as a gift, or put up in the workplace. Super nurse FAKE street art downloadable PDF

‘We can do it/ce la faremo‘ is Sicilian street artist TVBoy’s health care professional image released for italian labour day, May 1 as a ‘tribute to all health workers who have not spared themselves in these months and worked with courage and dedication, as always, even if we have only realized now the importance they have in our lives’.  I like to call her Rosie because she is posing like the WWII poster of Rosie the Riveter!We can do it TV Boy street art

The cover image Guardian Angels/Angeli Custodi, is also by TV Boy, aka Salvatore Benintende.  TVBoy and Banksy were also featured in the post Napoli Street Art.Banksy Game Changer Sock Monkey Super Nurse

Banksy’s newest work ‘Game Changer’ is a beautiful image.  A child ditches his makebelieve superhero action figures to play with a real one….Sock Monkey Super Nurse to the rescue!  He has donated the work to  Southhampton Hospital to be auctioned off to raise funds for health services. Banksy Sock monkey super nurse close up

Happy Nurses Day everyone!  Please share the love and kindness.

Images from the artists’ instagram accounts @iamfake, @banksy, @tvboy.

Ciao, Cristina

Buon Anno 2020

01 Wednesday Jan 2020

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Un po' di pepe instagram top 9Buon Anno a tutti i lettori di ‘Un po’ di pepe’, vicini e lontani!  Spero che 2020 porta buona salute e gioia a voi e ai vostri cari.

Happy New Year readers of  ‘Un po’ di pepe’, near and far.  I hope 2020 brings good health and joy to you and your loved ones!

It is the end of another decade!  WordPress keeps end of year stats which I love to share because they are so interesting.*  In 2019, Un po’ di pepe had over 12,000 views from 112 different countries!  I wish I could visit all of of them!  The top posts of 2019 are listed here, in case you missed any of them.  4 of the most viewed posts were published in 2019, and 4 were written as part of blogging linkups. I also discovered that the 5 most viewed posts all come out as top suggestions in google searches.  Molto cool!  Several book reviews post were published, and they can be found under the category ‘Libri’.

Based on the number of views, the top posts of 2019 are:

#9 Cristo si è fermato a Eboli.  This post from January is a book review of an Italian classic-one of my favourite books, Christ Stopped at Eboli.  I recommend everyone read it before visiting I Sassi di Matera.

#8 My recipe for Olive Oil Limoncello Cake was inspired by an art retreat at Casa Berti near Lucca, while surrounded by olive trees, freshly pressed olive oil and limoncello. It received increase exposure as a link on a new post Olio d’oliva in November and on Mamma Prada’s newsletter.Olive oil limoncello cake

#7 I have been to 14 out of the 20 regioni-regions of Italia, and love them all, but my favourite, of course is Puglia. Puglia-La Mia Regione Preferita lists my top reasons to love Puglia.Porto, San Domino, Isole Tremiti, Puglia

#6 Palazzo Massimo alle Terme is one of my favourite museums in Roma. This 2017 post comes up 10th in a google search and was the inspiration for another posts that hardly anyone read- Hairstyling in Ancient Roma. Have you been to Palazzo Massimo?

#5 In My Kitchen in Puglia  This post about my summer cucina and the amazing barrel-vaulted stone ceiling was written as part of the ‘In  my  kitchen’ worldwide blog linkup hosted monthly by Sherry’s Pickings. 

#4 I was surprised to see La Trinità di Masaccio on this list again!  Yipee!  When I first published this art history lesson, it had about 30 views, but I just discovered that it comes up as the 4th listing in a google search! This explains the small but steady trickle of views.

My quick sketches of the vanishing point, perspective lines and triangular composition. The colour image is my entry ticket from 2004!

#3 Polignano a Mare In this 2016 post about the stunning clifftop town on the coast of Puglia, read about my probable encounter with the mysterious ‘stair poet’  and learn what infraditi are.

#2-The number 2 spot is a tie! In second spot once again is 2015’s Grano Arso about a Pugliese gastronomic tradition that honours the resilience of our contadini ancestors.  In 2017 I did a reading on grano arso at the Association of Italian Canadian Writers Conference, which was published- Grano Arso in print.   My first publication that is not about diabetes! There is not a lot written on grano arso in English, which explains why the post comes up 5th on google search.Italian Canadiana Vol 32 2018 Grano Arso Cristina Pepe www.unpodipepe.ca

#2a  I am so super thrilled that L’Arte sa Nuotare not only made my top list but  tied for #2! In May I was in Firenze with my nipotina** Isabella.  We had a fabulous time and were on constant lookout for street art by Blub, the talented artist who plunges famous works of art underwater. This post also comes up as the 3rd  listing on a google search.  Spread the Blub love- more Blub in Blub a Napoli.Blub street art Firenze

#1 Italiano per Ristoranti-How to Pronounce your Restaurant Menu, this handy Italian menu pronunciation guide is once again the top post, by a longshot.  If you google ‘Italian pronunciation guide restaurant’ it comes out as the top suggestion! “Italian menu pronunciation’ comes in at #6 on the google listing.  This 2014 post was updated in 2016 and is available as a 6 page downloadable PDF via a link on the post.  Someday, I plan to expand and turn it into an ebook. Speriamo!

Bruschetta (broo.SKET.tah)

For 2020 my goals are simple….less stress, more exercise, more art and writing!

I would love to hear which post you liked best, and what you would like to read more about in 2020 on Un po’ di pepe?  Let me know in the comments.  Looking forward to writing more cose interresanti /interesting stuff in 2020.

Vi auguro un 2020 piena di gioia e buona salute!  Ciao, CristinaUn po' di pepe instagram top 9

*Note…WordPress’ method of collecting stats is odd.  The newest post counts as a ‘Home page’ view until the next one is published and I am not sure how much this changes the results.

**Nipote or nipotina means both niece and granddaughter in Italiano.  In this case, it means niece.

-detail of Lucania ’61 mural by Carlo Levi in Palazzo Lanfranchi, Matera from Wikimedia Commons

Bloghiversario #5!

25 Thursday Apr 2019

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Caspita, il tempo volo!  Oggi Un po’ di pepe compie 5 anni/Today Un po’ di pepe turns 5! It is hard to believe it has already been 5 years since starting this blog.  Where did the time go?  If feels like just yesterday I had trouble coming up with a blog name. This has been an amazing, rewarding experience and I have ‘met’ so many virtual friends and even reconnected with old ones.

There have been some big life changes recently.  The biggest one is that I left my permanent job and switched to working freelance.  Now I can say I am una libera professionista.  That has a nice ring to it.  I will be working less and my schedule will be much more flexible. No longer will I have to request time off one year in advance!  In theory, this means more time for writing and making art.  So far, all I have done is housecleaning, gardenwork and powerwashing, but those need to be done too!

Posts have increased from an average of 2 per month to 3 lately.  Hopefully this will continue!  A change in layout and a gallery page will be coming soon. Hopefully you are Caravaggio fans, because I wrote 4 posts recently and there will be more! A few blog collaborations are in the works too.

In other news… I will be going on a short trip to Firenze with my nipotina soon.  We will do a lot of research for future posts. My first non work related publication came out recently.  Read about it here.  There are 2 more publications coming out soon; a contribution to the Canadian Wine Anthology and a short story in the AICW Padula 2016 Conference Anthology.

La Terrazza degli Uffizi

In the last year, I have participated in 2 blogging linkup groups. ‘In my kitchen’ (IMK) hosted by Sherry posted in September and April.  My next one will be from my Pugliese kitchen this summer.  7 post were linked to the monthly ‘Dolce Vita Bloggers’  (DVB) group hosted by Jasmine, Kelly and Kristie .  These have been some of my most viewed posts, especially Aria Pericolosa.  In May, the DVB theme is ‘Favourite region of Italy’. Although I have been to 14 out of the 20 regions it should not be too difficult to guess which one I will write about!

This month’s DVB theme is ‘Favourite season in Italy’ but the timing was too close to Easter and this bloghiversary post for me to participate.  I definitely have a favourite season, and will write about it in the future.  A question I am often asked is ‘When is the best time to visit Italia?’.  Well, the answer is …anytime you are able to go!  There is no time that is not good to visit, you just need to know that each season will give a very different travel experience and even a different selection of food.  It’s all good!

Today is also La Festa della Liberazione d’Italia, the anniversary of the liberation of Italia from Fascist occupation in 1945.  It has been a national holiday since 1946.  Viva la libertà!

Grazie to all of you for taking the time to read, comment, send messages and especially for giving me an excuse to research and write about things that interest me!  If you have any suggestions for posts or just want to say ‘ciao‘, leave me a comment.

Grazie mille a tutti i lettori di ‘Un po’ di pepe’ per leggere e darmi una scusa per scrivere di cose che mi piacciono.  Lasciami un messaggio se hai un idea per un post o semplicemente per dire ‘ciao’.  Un abbraccio, Cristina