Being Italian

If you are a full blooded Italian or even part Italian, you might relate to some of the things that I wrote in this article. I am part Italian but I am much closer to my Italian family and have shared meals, spent holidays and a lot of time with them, so I've come up with some Italian foods, phrases and words that I've picked up over the years.

First is the food. Almost everyone I know loves Italian food. From the sauce, or gravy, to pasta and chicken parmesan. Italian restaurants make good business. Although after eating homemade Italian food throughout my life, some of the Italian chain restaurants just don't seem that appetizing to me. They seem to lack the ingredients or seasonings that I get from tasting my family's home cooked meals.

When I am out at a restaurant and ordering food, it's hard sometimes to remember to pronounce the food the American way so that the waiter/waitress understands what I'm saying. I am so used to saying "scuddole soup" instead of escarole. Sometimes Italians have different ways of saying things, like 'managot' for manicotti and 'gavadeel' for cavatelli. I have to remember that I'm at a restaurant and not at home.

A couple other foods that are differently pronounced by Italians, including my own Italian family are ricotta, which is pronounced 'rigot' and pasta e fagioli, which is 'pasta fazool'. Most of my non Italian friends do not know about this cheese with the weird name, that closely resembles parmesan cheese but is so much better. It is lucatelli or as my mother says "lugatel'. I never knew that lucatelli cheese had a c in it. I always thought it was spelled lugatel until a few years ago, when my best friend, who is Italian, had lucatelli in her fridge and asked me if I wanted some. I saw the label on the plastic bag and it was written as lucatelli cheese.

My Italian family grew up very close to each other. Each moved into houses about 30 feet from each other. Talk about close knit family. My grandmother, who is a full blooded Italian, tells me that family is very important to Italians. Food is the second important thing because it brings the families together. I know when I visit my Italian relatives that I will be eating a lot of food.

I must say I love Italian music. I especially enjoy listening to the sounds of Frank Sinatra, Lou Mante, Jerry Vale, Perry Como, Dean Martin and Tony Bennett. I am quite young but I enjoy this type of music just like any other song I listen to on the radio today. I also enjoy some of the Italian fun songs, such as, Dominick the Donkey, Peppino the Italian Mouse and the Tarantella. "An Evening in Roma" may just be my favorite Italian song.

Most Italians are Catholic. My family still goes to church every week. We've all had our picture taken next to the virgin Mary statue when we were younger. I noticed Italians like statues and crosses. I've also learned that when making the sign of the cross you kiss your thumb on your right hand instead of folding them together when you say amen.

Hand gestures are very common with Italians. They use hand gestures to express themselves more when they are speaking. My mother is always using her hands when she talks. She basically speaks with her hands. We get a good laugh watching her explain something. The hands are always moving so it's sometimes hard to concentrate on what she is really saying because the hands are doing most of the talking.

Italian culture is different from other cultures in America. I feel that the Italian culture is primarily based on family, food and loving life. Being Italian is one thing I am happy to be.