Denmark Dreamin’

The title of this blog is inspired by the famous song California Dreamin' even though this post is not about missing a sunny place. Instead, it concerns the myth of an actual nation where everything seems to be flawless. We always end up talking about Denmark when I have conversations with friends about what is … Continue reading Denmark Dreamin’

Visiting monuments or going to clubs?

In 2019, I posted about how I believed Italian schools needed to adapt, including the teaching style.History was one of the subjects I thought about. To cut a long story short, I hoped for a methodology that would focus on comprehending historical processes in order to understand the modern world rather than on the tedious … Continue reading Visiting monuments or going to clubs?

Can we afford this?

Last week, I visited St. Mark's Basilica in Venice at night. Needless to say, the magnificence of this church and the surrounding buildings is further amplified by the artificial lighting that pierces the darkness. The photos speak for themselves, and one could make a post out of them alone. I must confess, however, that as … Continue reading Can we afford this?

The UN Sustainable Development Goals and Socialism 2.0

Recently, I had the chance to talk with some friends about the seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) promoted by the United Nations. Specifically, we focused on the society portrayed by these goals. The scope they cover is really huge. Despite the meaning of the acronym, the goals do not deal with environmental protection only. In … Continue reading The UN Sustainable Development Goals and Socialism 2.0

There are no races, but our brains are still “racist”!

As is known, Albert Einstein left Germany and emigrated to the USA in 1933. I read somewhere that, right after arriving in America, he had to fill in a questionnaire like any other immigrant. One of the questions read “What is your race?” It is said that he answered “human.” Even though he was not … Continue reading There are no races, but our brains are still “racist”!

Workless Society

Preamble I took the opportunity of this post to play around with AI-driven automatic translation tools. Therefore, two different English versions of this blog are available. In summary, I followed this process: First, I wrote the post in EnglishThen I rewrote it in ItalianI automatically translated the Italian text into EnglishBefore publication, I reviewed both … Continue reading Workless Society

Covid-19 Lessons

Never waste a good crisis.Winston Churchill Six months after the first official covid 19 case in Italy, this is how Venice looked like: Venice, October 2020, a few weeks before the Covid-19 second wave explosion It is weird and unsettling to see the famous Piazza San Marco (St. Mark’s Square) almost deserted, a place that … Continue reading Covid-19 Lessons

Living the Cozy, Comfortable Decline of Europe

How distant it seems the time when the Italian Renaissance maestros set the standards by which any artist would have been measured since then. When the French revolutionaries established the principles on which modern republics and liberal democracies are rooted. When the British built enduring physical and cultural infrastructures all over the lands of their … Continue reading Living the Cozy, Comfortable Decline of Europe

I Don’t Belong Here

CreepRadioheadWhen you were here before...But I'm a creep, I'm a weirdo,What the hell am I doing here?I don't belong here.I don't belong here.Source: LyricFindSongwriters: Mike Hazlewood / Albert Hammond / Colin Greenwood / Jonathan Greenwood / Edward O'Brien / Philip Selway / Thomas YorkeCreep lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc, BMG Rights Management Creep is … Continue reading I Don’t Belong Here

Translating Stephen King and the American Imagination

The title of this post is the same of the workshop that I attended recently. It was organized by the same foundation that arranges the pordenonelegge.it literary festival, which I talked about here. This annual workshop is conceived by Laura Pagliara, a professional translator who collaborates with the foundation. It mainly targets aspiring translators and … Continue reading Translating Stephen King and the American Imagination