Festa della Liberazione

Today in Italy we celebrate the “Festa della Liberazione”, the 67th anniversary of the liberation of Italy from fascism and Nazi German occupation. A national holiday in Italy, this day will be marked by both commemoration and celebration – from solemn ceremonies of remembrance to parades, speeches and open air concerts in Italian piazzas. The biggest ceremony is held in Milan, the site some of the fiercest fighting, and of the grotesque public display of Mussolini’s body in the days that followed. However, despite the numerous events planned to mark the occasion at national and local level, the ‘festa della liberazione’ has never been a straightforward day of celebration for all Italians.


The date marks the end of almost two years of ferocious civil war and foreign occupation in Italy, as the collapse of fascism turned the country into a battleground between the Allies, advancing upwards from Sicily, and the Nazi Germans who occupied Italy in September 1943 to prop up Mussolini’s dying regime. While Rome was liberated by the Allies in June 1944, the tug of war continued in northern and central Italy for almost another year. Numerous groups of resistance fighters, la Resistenza, dominated by the Italian communists, were formed in the occupied areas, and the German and fascist position was gradually weakened by guerrilla warfare, in preparation for the long awaited Allied surge. Finally, 25 April 1945 was decided on as the Italian ‘D-Day’. A mass popular uprising was to take place across the northern Italy, to prepare the ground for the Allies. Mass strikes paralysed the industrial cities of Milan and Turin, destroying what little authority the fascists still retained, and days of street fighting forced the Germans into retreat. Many towns and cities were already out of German and fascist hands by the time the Allies arrived to ‘liberate’ them.

Especially in Northern Italy we are very proud of our Resistance fighters who fought against the Italian fascists and the German nazists all through WWII, although many of our towns and villages paid with fire and blood the price of hiding and supporting the “partigiani”. Today is a day of remembrance in Italy, let’s pray that the past will never come to haunt us again.

Happy Birthday!

Happy birthday to my dear mummy, to Her Majesty the Queen and to my capital city, Rome. Yes, I really mean the city of Rome.


According to legend, on 21st April 753 B.C. Romulus, who was then to become the first King of Rome, drew the 'sacred furrow' on the Palatine hill, which was the first step towards the founding of the Eternal City. The anniversary came into vogue with the Risorgimento. Then it became a national holiday with fascism and was abolished in 1945. The celebration was renewed in 1994 with all its ceremonies. This weekend Rome will hold several festivals, concerts, and special events this weekend. Historical societies put on gladiator displays and performances in and around the forum area. There's usually a spectacular fireworks display by the Tiber River.

The story of Romulus, his twin brother Remus, and the founding of the city is one of the most familiar legends about ancient Rome. The basic legend about how Romulus came to be the first king of Rome begins with the god Mars impregnating a Vestal Virgin named Rhea Silvia, daughter of the rightful, but deposed king.

After the birth of Mars' sons Romulus and Remus, the king orders them to be left to die in the Tiber River. When the basket in which the twins were placed washes up on shore, a ‘lupa’ (wolf) suckles them and a woodpecker named Picus feeds them until the shepherd Faustulus finds the twins and brings them into his home.

When they grow up, Romulus and Remus restore the throne of Alba Longa to its rightful ruler, their maternal grandfather, and set out to found their own city.

Sibling rivalry leads Romulus to slay his brother and become the first king and founder of the city of Rome.

15th April 1912 2.20am

The Convergence of the Twain
Thomas Hardy (1912)

(Lines on the loss of the "Titanic")

I
In a solitude of the sea
Deep from human vanity,

And the Pride of Life that planned her,

stilly couches she.

II
Steel chambers, late the pyres

Of her salamandrine fires,

Cold currents thrid,

and turn to rhythmic tidal lyres.

III
Over the mirrors meant

To glass the opulent

The sea-worm crawls --

grotesque, slimed, dumb, indifferent.

IV
Jewels in joy designed

To ravish the sensuous mind

Lie lightless,

all their sparkles bleared and black and blind.

V
Dim moon-eyed fishes near

Gaze at the gilded gear

And query: "What does this vaingloriousness down here?". . .

VI
Well: while was fashioning

This creature of cleaving wing,

The Immanent Will that stirs and urges everything

VII
Prepared a sinister mate

For her -- so gaily great --

A Shape of Ice, for the time fat and dissociate.

VIII
And as the smart ship grew

In stature, grace, and hue

In shadowy silent distance grew the Iceberg too.

IX
Alien they seemed to be:

No mortal eye could see

The intimate welding of their later history.

X
Or sign that they were bent

By paths coincident

On being anon twin halves of one August event,

XI

Till the Spinner of the Years

Said "Now!"

And each one hears,

And consummation comes, and jars two hemispheres.

A Touch of Royalty

Fifteen thousand people packed into York city centre for a hugely successful Maundy Thursday visit by the Queen last Thursday 5th April. Accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh and Princess Beatrice of York on her first official engagement in the city, she was cheered by huge crowds at Micklegate Bar, the Minster, Mansion House and the Museum Gardens.

After arriving at York railway station, the royal party was taken to Micklegate and then travelled further to the Minster, where thousands of people (me among them), many waving Union Flags and carrying flowers for the Queen, gathered in the sunshine to see the royal party.

A massive cheer greeted their arrival before the Queen went on to present Maundy money to 172 elderly people - pensioners nominated for the honour for their service to the church and community.

A massive cheer greeted their arrival before the Queen went on to present Maundy money to 172 elderly people - pensioners nominated for the honour for their service to the church and community.

The Royals then posed on the steps of the Great West Door alongside the Queen’s Yeoman, the Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, the Dean of York and flower children.
Following a reception in the Deanery, the party went on to the Mansion House for a civic lunch. The visit ended at the Yorkshire Museum where a new exhibition marks the 800th anniversary of York being granted a Royal Charter by King John.

(From York Press)

Altogether Her Majesty was in York no longer than 5 hours (she arrived by train and took off by helicopter!) and a few people complained that all of this was a waste of money and effort, especially because allegedly she did not devote enough time to parade (and talk) in front of the public. But I’m glad she came, she brought much happiness to the city, which makes a change from seeing loads of misery around in this very difficult climate. Also this much awaited event will have brought much needed cash to the city, as I presume most of the 15,000 visitors will have had lunch or tea and spent some cash in the shops while here.

Happy Easter ...late wishes!

I hope you all are having a happy Easter time. Sorry I haven't been posting for a while but that does not mean I haven't been thinking of you. All the best!

The Woman In Black

Yesterday night I attended a special preview of The Woman In Black followed by a Q & A session with the film's director, James Watkins. The Woman in Black is a tale based on the classic ghost story written by Susan Hill and starring Daniel Radcliffe as Arthur Kipps, a lawyer who is forced to leave his young son and travel to a remote village to attend to the affairs of the deceased owner of Eel Marsh House. The house stands at the end of a causeway, wrapped in fog and mystery, but it is not until Arthur glimpse a woman dressed all in black that a creeping sense of unease begins to take hold of him, a feeling deepened by the reluctance of the locals to speak of the woman in black and her terrible purpose. I cannot reveal more about the plot without spoiling the view.

I had a great night watching a very good film that I recommend to anyone. I have always wanted to see the play which has been running on stage in London for over 23 years, but I have never found the time (and the tickets!) to go. Now the film, adapted for the big screen by Jane Goldman, scares the mind without the gore. You are constantly waiting for the next jump out of your seat moment, but you cannot predict when it's coming. Daniel Radcliff is excellent as the lead and proves that there still acting life for him after Harry Potter. I think it is a great British film, made with a limited budget but still beautifully produced with an unsettling atmosphere and exquisite period details.

This preview was part of the VW See Film Differently campaign to sponsor independent cinemas across the UK. We were also treated to free drinks and popcorn and we also found a free copy of Susan Hill's book on every seat. York was chosen as The Woman In Black’s preview venue not only because of its reputation of the most haunted city in England - if not in Europe - but also because Susan Hill was born in Scarborough, Yorkshire and where the play was shown for the first time.

The film opens nationwide in the UK next Friday 10th February.

The Blackbird's Days

According to an Italian tradition that goes way back, 29th, 30th and 31st January are supposed to be the three coldest days of winter and they are called 'the blackbird's days' (i giorni della merla). They were - and still are - so cold that a ‘merla’ (a blackbird female), which in the past – as legend has it - used to have white feathers, was so cold and worried about his young chicks that could not find any better solution to warm up than going to land on a warm chimney.

They stayed there for three days, because the frost prevented them even to fly. Then fortunately February arrived. Pale as you like, but the sun was able to restore life and hope. The ‘merla’ and her chicks were then able to stretch, re-open their wings and fly away. The three days on the chimney, however, had produced a profound change in their plumage as it became black with soot, black without going back.From that day onwards all blackbirds were born black…

Keep warm!

HMD 2012

Every year on 27 January, the world marks Holocaust Memorial Day (HMD). This day provides an opportunity for everyone to learn lessons from the Holocaust, Nazi persecution and subsequent genocides and apply them to the present day to create a safer, better future. On HMD we share the memory of the millions who have been murdered in the Holocaust and subsequent genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur in order to challenge hatred and persecution all over the world. On Holocaust Memorial Day 2012, people across the world will be choosing to make their voice heard by taking inspiration from the past and challenging the language of hatred, carefully considering how to use our voice and telling others how we feel in a way that does not harm or offend, whether speaking, online or in writing.

First they came for the Communists

And I did not speak out

Because I was not a Communist

Then they came for the Socialists

And I did not speak out

Because I was not a Socialist

Then they came for the trade unionists

And I did not speak out

Because I was not a trade unionist

Then they came for the Jews

And I did not speak out

Because I was not a Jew

Then they came for me

And there was no one left

To speak out for me

(Pastor Martin Niemoller)

Stop the RBS bonuses!

Dear friends across the UK,

In days incompetent Royal Bank of Scotland bosses want to pay themselves astronomical bonuses from our taxes! But we can stop these fat cats swallowing more cream.

Despite losing the bank £750 million in the last six months, RBS executives are spending a fortune lobbying the government and now want to get another £500m in bonuses! It’s a scandal at a time when cuts are biting all of us. But George Osborne heads up the body that will negotiate the deal. If we raise a massive public stink, the Chancellor could be shamed into rejecting RBS’s outrageous claim.

We don’t have long to stop this offensive corporate greed - RBS executives meet on Wednesday. Let's deliver a deafening 100,000 strong petition to Osborne to force a drastic cap on RBS bonuses and ban the use of our money to lobby the government.Click here to stop the great fat-cat rip-off, and then share this with everyone

http://www.avaaz.org/en/stop_rbs_bonuses_a/?vl

RBS’s crash in 2008 shook the global economy, and the British taxpayer had to step in with £45bn to buy most of the bank. Since then RBS’s management have sold off the best bits of the bank, sacked around 20,000 people, and refused to boost lending to embattled businesses. The share price has plummeted, and British taxpayers are currently £23bn out of pocket.

Shockingly, RBS’s arrogant executives still want to award themselves “performance” bonuses. It’s incredible, but the chief executive wants a repeat of the £6.8m he took in 2011, and the head of the investment banking division wants to cash in share options for over £5m.

Yesterday Cameron made vague promises about tackling unfair rewards, yet claims his hands are tied on RBS. The truth is that over 80% of the bank is owned by the British taxpayer through a company whose board reports straight to Chancellor Osborne. Let’s remind him that he is accountable to us, not the greedy gamblers at RBS.

(Petition and text from the avaaz.gov website)

Shocking!

(Image from repubblica.it)

I'm back...but I don't know for how long...

Happy New Year to you all! For some unknown reasons I cannot access my comments today or comment myself on my comments…Never mind. I haven’t been here for quite a long time. For the ones who care, I apologize. My Christmas time was not particularly eventful. I was rather upset because my parents did not come over to us and even more upset because I did not go to Italy. Never again. At least at Christmas, I want to be with the people I love, not here in the U.K. watching a dire Christmas TV. With the exception of Dowton Abbey, of course. And after that, the work started to pile up and the end of year’s accounts glooming. That's why I'm here today. Rather rambling about nothing and trying to get over a so-called writer's block than finishing my end of year's accounts!

I’ve just mentioned ‘writer’s block’ but I don’t know why. I’m not a writer and I’m not really blocked, I just don’t know what to write anymore. I'm not particularly witty (and I'm not fishing for compliments by the way!) like many of the fellow bloggers I usually read. Who on earth could be interested in my book or film reviews? You can read much more interesting (and better written) ones on the Net or in the hundreds of magazines and newspapers around…I could not host a photo blog, as my only means of taking photos is a medieval (brick) camera phone…Yes, I’m a mother but I’ve got enough problems with my kids without wanting to share them with my fellow mummy bloggers! Who wants to be reminded of what’s wrong with a spotty teenager after all!

Not to mention my fashion sense. Although I like clothes etc. thinking about my very imminent tax bill kills any temptation of going shopping (not even tackling the sales) and my already depleted wardrobe is constantly raided by my almost-teenage daughter. (FYI, I'm not that little, it's my daughter who's very tall!) What else is then left to me to write about? Just rambling and I’ve already done too much of it today. That’s why I might or I might not come back here. We’ll see. Ciaoooo!