Buon Natale e Felice Anno Nuovo!

Buongiorno a tutti. I hope that you are all looking forward to Christmas and are almost finished your preparations! For this special Christmas blog I would love to share with you some interesting Sicilian Christmas images that I have come across recently.

This first photo was taken in the town of Viagrande, around 20 km from Catania. It features the balcony decorations of Giuseppe Sorbello, a local Fiat 500 enthusiast who loves his car collection so much that he has incorporated them into his Christmas! This is truly a 'Sicilian style' Christmas!

 

 

The second image is following on from last month's blog post about Christmas Nativities and is actually of an underwater Nativity Scene in the depths of the Tyrrhenian Sea close to Mondello.

 

 

This amazing spectacle by Giuseppe Benardo is the result of a collaboration with the local Sea Club, Rotary Club and Theatre 'del Sole' and will be underwater until the 6th January 2013. This Nativity Scene will also be visible at night thanks to a beautiful light installation which lights up the entire sea bed for all to see.

 

Sicilian cart made of chocolate - Cioccolart Sicily

For the chocolate lovers out there, you will be pleased to hear that there will also be a festival in Taormina dedicated to the art of chocolate! The second edition of the Cioccolato Sicily festival will take place at the 'Chiesa del Carmine' from the 20th December until the 6th January and features a beautiful exhibition of chocolate sculptures. There will even be tasting sessions, Christmas markets and a competition for the best chocolate cake!

 

Christmas in Palermo 2012





So, as you can see, there are many wonderful things to visit around the island of Sicily throughout the Christmas period. From the more traditional Nativity scenes of Caltagirone as mentioned in November's blog, to the 'not-so-traditional' aspects as shown here.

 

I wish you all a very Merry Christmas wherever you are in the world and a very healthy and happy new year. Thank you so much for your continued support thoughout 2012 - it has been a pleasure, as always, to receive your wonderful stories and photos and I hope that you will keep them coming throughout 2013.

 

Buon Natale!

 

Debra Santangelo

www.sicilianconnections.com

 

P.S. If you enjoy reading my blog please become a follower by registering at the Google 'Join this site' icon on the right of the blog page. Grazie mille!!

 

 

Sicilian Pride and Passion Across the World!

Buona sera amici! We are now into October which, in the USA, is celebrated as 'National Italian Heritage Month'. Throughout America there will be numerous celebrations highlighting the sense of pride and loyalty felt towards Italy by the many immigrants who left the peninsula long ago.

Between the years of 1861 and 1965, almost 25 million Italians left the peninsula in search of a new life. This is considered to be the biggest mass migration of contemporary times and, in Sicily, was partly due to the drop in economy and over-population experienced after the unification of Italy.

In 1906 alone, 100,000 Sicilians emigrated to the United States of America and in 1920, 87 percent of Sicilian immigrants were still headed for the US. Other countries with a significant number of Sicilian immigrants were Venezuela, Brasil, Mexico, Canada, Australia and other countries throughout Europe. Some of the main cities in America where Sicilians settled were New York, Boston, Chicago and San Francisco and these immigrants tended to reside together in groups depending on the area that they came from. For example, in New Orleans there was a district called ‘Little Palermo’.

 

 

 

These Sicilians were so passionate about their homeland that they took many of their traditions and values with them. They believed in these customs so much that many aspects of Sicilian life have become an intrinsic part of communities worldwide and are still very much in evidence today. Throughout the year there are festivals across the world to celebrate different Sicilian traditions. The island’s way of life is echoed daily in neighbourhoods worldwide through their cuisine, language and culture, such as the music listened to or the plays seen at the theatre.

 

 

 

An example of a tradition which has been taken to America is the ‘Festa di Santa Rosalia’ in Brooklyn which is dedicated to the Patron Saint of Palermo. This annual festival originally took place in the first Italian parish in Brooklyn, the Sacred Hearts and St. Stephens Church in Carroll Gardens, and has since been moved to the community of Bensonhurst. The procession originally involved followers walking barefoot through the streets of the neighbourhood to show their devotion to the Saint.

 

Every year Italian-American merchants set up stalls at the various festivals around the country selling Sicilian specialities such as ‘cannoli’, zeppole’ and ‘arancini’ and entire communities come together to celebrate their heritage and tell stories about their ancestry. It is viewed as a real honour to belong to such a loyal and devoted community and it is this devotion that will ensure that the respect for ‘u paese vecchiu’, or the old country, will stay strong long into the future.

 

 

 

I created Sicilian Connections because over the years I have met many people of Sicilian origin that, for various reasons, have emigrated and live in different locations worldwide, but the passion that they feel for their homeland has remained strong. It was my aim to create a community where Sicilians could come together and share their wonderful stories of the island and memories of their ancestors and, thanks to the pride and devotion of our Sicilian Connections friends worldwide, this is now a reality.

 

 

A presto,

 

Debra

www.sicilianconnections.com

 

P.S. If you enjoy reading my blog please become a follower by registering at the Google 'Join this site' icon on the right of the page. Grazie mille for your support!!

Sicilian Pride and Passion across the World!

I was inspired to create the Sicilian Connections website because over the years I have met many people of Sicilian origin who, for various reasons, have emigrated and live in different locations worldwide, but the passion that they feel for their homeland has remained strong. It was my aim to create a community where Sicilians could come together and share their wonderful stories of the island and memories of their ancestors and, thanks to the constant support of our Sicilian Connections friends worldwide, this is now a reality. Therefore, as October is officially National Italian American Heritage month, it seemed the ideal time to dedicate my blog to the pride and passion of Sicilian immigrants in America and throughout the world.

Between the years of 1861 and 1965, almost 25 million Italians left the peninsula in search of a new life. This is considered to be the biggest mass migration of contemporary times and, in Sicily, was partly due to the drop in economy and over-population experienced after the unification of Italy. In 1906 alone, 100,000 Sicilians emigrated to the United States of America and in 1920, 87 percent of Sicilian immigrants were still headed for the US. Other countries with a significant number of Sicilian immigrants were Venezuela, Brasil, Mexico, Canada, Australia and countries throughout Europe. Among the main cities in America where Sicilians settled were New York, New Orleans, Boston, Chicago and San Francisco and these immigrants tended to reside together in groups depending on the area that they came from. For example, in New Orleans there was a district called 'Little Palermo'.

These Sicilians were so passionate about their homeland that they took their traditions and values with them and believed in them so much that these aspects of Sicilian life have become an intrinsic part of communities worldwide and are still very much in evidence today. Throughout the year there are festivals across the world to celebrate different Sicilian traditions. The island's way of life is echoed daily in neighbourhoods worldwide through their cuisine, language and culture, such as the music listened to or the plays seen at the theatre.

It is viewed as a real honour to belong to such a loyal and devoted community and it is this devotion that will ensure that the respect for 'u paese vecchiu', or the old country, will stay strong long into the future.

Don't forget to keep sharing your favourite memories and stories with us!

A presto,

Debra :-)
www.sicilianconnections.com