Once a year between August 24th and August 26th, the city of Lecce celebrates la festa di Sant’Oronzo, the feast of the city’s founding Saint. This celebration literally shuts the city down, and allows its members, and any tourists that get caught up in the mix, to enjoy the festivities, including music, food and dozens of booths set up in the historic center. During the months prior to the festa, strapping local men can be seen assembling huge light sculptures throughout the streets, stringing them down the main drags where everyone takes their passeggiata, or stroll, in the early evening hours. These lights are then used to illuminate the city and create a whimsical atmosphere, especially in Piazza Sant’Oronzo where most of the... Show more

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year from everyone here at ItalianPod101.com! We're grateful to have listeners just like you, and we're eagerly waiting for the upcoming year to learn Italian together! And when the New Year comes around, be sure to make a resolution to study Italian with ItalianPod101.com! Have a healthy and happy holiday season. From the ItalianPod101.com team!

Once a year between August 24th and August 26th, the city of Lecce celebrates la festa di Sant’Oronzo, the feast of the city’s founding Saint. This celebration literally shuts the city down, and allows its members, and any tourists that get caught up in the mix, to enjoy the festivities, including music, food and dozens of booths set up in the historic center. During the months prior to the festa, strapping local men can be seen assembling huge light sculptures throughout the streets, stringing them down the main drags where everyone takes their passeggiata, or stroll, in the early evening hours. These lights are then used to illuminate the city and create a whimsical atmosphere, especially in Piazza Sant’Oronzo where most of the concerts... Show more

Marco hated the beach near his family’s summer home. He claimed that Torre Chianca, the beaches name, was schifo, loosely translated as “gross”, so when he took me there as one of our first outings as a couple, I didn’t know what to expect. Growing up in California I had seen my share of beautiful beaches, but I had also experienced those riddled with cigarette butts and covered in seaweed and sand flies, so I readied myself for the worst. When we arrived we stepped from his tiny green Fiat, which he parked for free only feet from the sand, onto a pristine white sand beach, with calm and clear water, a far cry from the freezing and choppy waves I was used to in Santa Cruz. Marco had grown up on this beach, running around all summer with... Show more

For Katie’s 22nd birthday, she had organized a dinner with a blend of Italians and Americans alike, which included the newest au pairs from the states and their smitten Italian boyfriends. My own ragazzo, or boyfriend, Marco was there and we had a great time chattering in both languages, speaking of wine, parties and life, while making the most noise this little pizzeria had ever seen. We ordered calamari fritti, pizza with spicy salami, known as diavola, and of course, French fries. After four carafes of red wine and enough French fries to clog an artery, we headed over to Le Dolci Crepes, a creperia just down the street from Piazza Sant’Oronzo. This was Katie’s favorite crepe place in all of Lecce, and there were plenty to choose from.... Show more

In order to pay my rent while I stayed in Lecce, I began working for a restaurant close to Porta San Biagio called Sapori di Grecia, which sold Greek food, obviously. This meant Gyros, Moussakas and Baklavas. During the summer there was a modest cobblestone outdoor dining area which I, along with the other female workers, (as only women worked there as servers), set up and took down each night. With a beautiful flowering vine inching along wires strung over the eating area, it was a lovely spot to have a quick bite and escape from the overwhelming heat. Since my Italian was still a bit shaky, I was asked to run food out to the tables, and prepare the salads and appetizers for the restaurant. Having worked in a kitchen before, I found this... Show more

Katie, Marco and I were stuffed into his tiny green Fiat, blasting Jamiriquoi as we sped along the dark roads towards the sea, to a club called Buenaventura. This club was where all of the local kids from Lecce would end up every Saturday night, dancing and drinking until the sun came up. Situated on the beach, Buenaventura greeted its guests with a long wooden plank leading to the main dance area and the two bars where you could get the Italian versions of your favorite American cocktails. `Sex on the Beach` was our personal favorite, and as we sipped from the tiny plastic cups we grooved to a blend of classic rock, soul, alternative and punk, thanks to Tobia, the resident DJ. When you wanted a break from dancing there were dozens of... Show more

My best mate Katie and I were sitting down at one of the nicest restaurants in Lecce, situated at the heart of its historic center. With the warm summer weather, we had requested a table outside, and were soon seated near the entrance of Torre di Merlino, menus in hand, already scanning their wine selections. It was a bittersweet meal, as I was planning on leaving Lecce soon and heading to New York, my tourist visa was almost expired, and I was also out of funds. We picked this place because their outside seating area was always filled with beautiful locals, dining on lobster and sipping on their third bottle of Salento wine. After ordering a bottle for ourselves, and an appetizer of grilled portabello, on top of buffalo mozzarella,... Show more

It is 1:30pm in the afternoon in Lecce and the temperature has reached the ungodly extreme of 38 degrees Celsius (roughly 100 Fahrenheit), it is accompanied by the kind of humidity usually associated with the deep south of Louisiana. All of Lecce is at home, lying in their beds with a fan propped close to their faces as they sleep away the afternoon’s most intense hours of sunshine. As for myself, this is the Lecce that I find most enjoyable, a sleeping city, where I could roam the streets alone, seeing only a stray tourist in search of an open farmacia, not knowing that for 3 to 4 hours in the afternoon, all of the local shopkeepers leave their businesses, lock the doors, and go home for a leisurely lunch and a little nap, before heading... Show more

Allison and I, along with a half dozen of our American friends from the Summer Abroad Program, had finally found the party for Bruco, or caterpillar, one of the Contrade (neighborhoods) competing in this year’s Palio in Siena. We had big plans to partake of the cheap wine and beer, dancing and general merriment that surrounds this type of festa. We stuck out like sore thumbs with our loud behavior and strange dance moves, but the Italians adored our outgoing spirits and would let us play along in the festivity, which they take so seriously. This historic event has been a staple during the summer months for over 700 years, stopping only during the era of the Plague when three fourths of Siena’s population passed away from the... Show more