This 2023 Italian summer newsletter is dedicated to the woman who nurtured my love for Italy and taught me the importance of always being true to oneself. Marie, I love you and cherish you always.
I've lived a life that's full
I traveled each and every highway
And more, much more than this
I did it my way
- ‘My Way’ Frank Sinatra
I know summer has arrived in Italy when I can smell the trees. Gosh, that sounds like the beginning of a really bad horror film. But, it’s true! The pini domestici - those odd-looking umbrella-shaped Italian stone pine trees - shed more needles, releasing this earthy aroma that will never leave my childhood chamber of senses.
All trees aside, the Italian summer has arrived and so has my newsletter!
Italian summer is many things. And one of them is HOT. Now, I’m not talking Jude Law in a speedo kind of hot (scroll down for reference) - I mean sandal melting into the sidewalk hot. It’s a true story, just ask my friend Julie.
Fortunately, this summer is nothing like 2022’s thank god (where the days were casually around 38 degrees C or 101 degrees F in JUNE…) It’s just regular, sit in front of the fan for hours hot.*
This means I could write this newsletter successfully without heat exhaustion… and multiple pharmacy runs for more Polase (remember last summer’s Polase spritz or cocktail? Iconic.)
*Update: Since publishing this post, Italy’s major heatwave hit. So, now it is as hot as last summer…or hotter…
So, here’s my ode to summer 2023 and to summers past - filled with things that made me fall in love with Italian summers since I was a kiddo, from the sea to pasta to gelato. Plus, a super sexy summer playlist.
An Ode to Italian Beach Style (and Speedos, of course)
If I learned anything from Italian beaches, it’s confidence and style. This didn’t mean being fancy (although some ladies did go all out for the beach). It meant wearing bikinis into well into your 80s, with shoulders back, hands on the hips, and a head held high. Perhaps, while eating gelato or smoking a cigarette.
This confidence goes for the men too. There is no six-pack requirement when it comes to speedos (or those boxer-like swimsuits). For some cultures, this could seem quite out there. But, it’s 100 percent beach casual. Every one of them carries the confidence of Jude Law entering heaven as the Young Pope.
This effortless style defined Italian summers for me. It wasn’t only the beach, but the way everyone moved through the day. From a leisurely early morning coffee before the beach to the flowy linen evening outfits, accessorized with shiny things (from sparkly sandals to leather bracelets), everything just flowed…like the smoke from a mother’s cigarette as the kids ate gelato and ran around sugar-powered in the piazza. There was no rush, except to be at those beach chairs early.
This was southern Lazio after all, where you find the best convergence of Romans and Neapolitans spending their summers. And, honestly, I couldn’t tell you who was more stylish. Or, tan.
Sidenote: I will never forget the bop of 2001/2002 summer in Italy.
I broke my shy spell in Sabaudia. As an only child and the only Italian American girl at the beach, I was naturally stubborn. Marie - who was like my third grandmother - didn’t suggest, it but forced me to go to the kids club. I still remember her grabbing my hand and dragging me along the beach chairs. Because of her, I created foundational memories I’ll never forget, like playing nascondino (Italian hide-and-seek) until midnight to having my first kiss.
*2023 Summer Style tip*
Today - the style is still there, though it’s changed. If you’re visiting Italy this year, be sure to bring your Yankees, LA Dodgers, or any mainstream baseball cap. It’s all the rage with the kids these days, especially the Yanks. You’ll fit right in.
ITALIAN SUMMER SECRET: LIVE THE LETTINO LIFE
Italian beach bars are the best. I call it living the lettino life because it’s the definition of chill or the Italian saying la dolce far niente - ‘art of doing nothing’.
Here are reasons why Italian beach bars are
Laying on a sunbed all day? Sign me up.
The blessed convenience of a sunbed to lay on at the beach is fabulous. You lay there, perhaps with a glass of wine or gelato in hand from the beach bar. And, everything, I mean everything is alright.
*Quick language lesson: lettino is a sunbed in Italian. Lettini is the plural. A beach bar is a stabilimento balneare, or stabilimento for short.*
Two tips:
Book ahead if you can, particularly if it’s a weekend, or if you’re in a particularly touristy area, like Positano. In some sleepier towns, you can just show up early and be fine.
You typically pay per chair and for an umbrella. The prices will vary depending on the day and which row you want to be in (aka how close you want to be to the water).
Beach bars are the best place to eat, period
Secrets out, because who wants to be sweating their bum off eating in the city in the summer? Not I.
Italian beach bars are godsent, little pieces of heaven on earth. Some of the best things I’ve eaten in the summer were from a tiny kitchen in a beach bar. I will never forget the taste of the tonno e pomodoro sandwich I’d eat religiously in Sabaudia (somehow successfully without mercury poisoning.) Or, the crisp pizzetta. And, the vongole? Don’t get me started.
PRO TIP: GET A CREMA DI CAFFE INSTEAD OF A COFFEE TO COOL OFF! Crema di caffè is essentially a Wendy’s Frosty, but million times better and espresso flavored.
finally, a little love letter to beach bar gelato…
Artisanal, fancy gelato is great and all. But, I’m telling you nothing beats one of the commercial gelati displayed on the metal boards at the bar. Cucciolone MAXI, Magnum Classico, Cornetto, Caffe Zero… it’s hard to go wrong (although I find the new Magnum flavors too sweet).
I still remember how I’d wander barefoot to order a Magnum Classico before playing cards with my friends. That’s the thing about beach bars - they teach you independence and confidence from such a young age. I ordered my own gelato and occasionally cheated people to win in cards. I was 5 going on 45, apparently.
If you’re curious to learn about Italian beach bar food, and living the lettino life, you can check out the piece I wrote for Italy edit here!
The Sluttiest Italian Summer Food: VONGOLE
Plus other slutti Italian summer foods I love most
Spaghetti alle vongole is poetry. No exaggeration here - a plate of skillfully made spaghetti with clams sings to your soul in a way that no other summer dish can. It strikes you with its simplicity - the sweetness of the clams, the saltiness of their juices, and the kick of good olive oil create a magical elixir that only gets better with each bite of absolutely al dente pasta. Add in a crisp glass of white wine and a sea view, and I’d be fine dying right there on the spot.
My dramatics aside, vongole veraci are the clams you want. They are a sweeter, slightly juicier clam than the regular guys (like lupini or arselle). Actually, wild veraci are more difficult to find these summer days due to demand. It’s always best to ask. Cuz sadly people do lie.
MELONE! (and other frutti)
Prosciutto e melone is illegally good. It’s the epitome of sweet and salty combos. And, you know how good Italian summer melon tastes, you get it.
The melone estivo, or summer melon is essentially cantaloupe, but better. It’s smaller, with distinct green lines on its exterior. Inside, it has a deeper orange flesh that is sweeter and juicier. With a piece of salty prosciutto, your tastebuds just lose it. Add some mozzarella di bufala and it’s over. You’ve entered heaven.
Of course, there are other fantastic fruits to savor in Italy. Apricots are the best way to start your morning (the doc in the Lizzie Mcguire movie had a point.) I also love peaches (especially in white wine as served on the Amalfi coast).
Moving into the ‘oh that’s actually a fruit?’ category, we have zucchine and pomodorini / cherry tomatoes that have an unearthly natural sweetness, especially those grown in volcanic areas.
ZUPPA DI COZZE: THE SCARPETTA OF DREAMS
Dipping a hunk of bread into a giant pot of mussels is my preferred sport. It’s the best scarpetta I can ever dream of. Not only do you get to slurp up plump Mediterranean mussels, but then you get the broth! On good bread (I prefer cafone)! It’s life-changing.
Can’t get to the sea? Der Belli in Trastevere makes killer cozze.
YOU SAY PRIMO BAGNO, I SAY PRIMO MISTO
Fried fish is otherworldly in Italy. Fritto misto or frittura di pesce is the best starter or second course (yes, it’s common to eat a giant plate of fried fish after pasta.) The good spots make the batter so light and crisp. Plus, you get such a variety of seafood - calamari, shrimps, prawns, local small fishes (like merluzzo)… just to name a few. Just don’t forget a good squeeze of lemon.
2023 SUMMER PLAYLIST DROP!
Young Italians are obsessed, I mean OBSESSED with Italodisco these days. Don’t get me wrong - I love Italodisco. But, if you want a real ‘hot girl Italian summer’ - enjoy this playlist, mixed with groovy hits from decades past. It’s sexy, chaotic, and as smooth as a spritz at sunset.
GRAND FINALE: PRIMO BAGNO
Non-Italian speakers don’t be confused - this has nothing to do with the bathroom.
Primo bagno is the first swim of the season! Mine was in Vico Equense at a little local beach on the first weekend of June. Where was yours?!
Love to hear about all your Italian summer thoughts and summer adventures! As always, until my next newsletter filled with slutti food & bev antics.
Xx,
Victoria
For what is a man, what has he got?
If not himself then he has naught
To say the things that he truly feels
And not the words of someone who kneels
Let the record show I took all the blows and did it my way
- ‘My Way’ Frank Sinatra
Love this!! What is do to be a kid again spending the whole summer with my mom and her we friends by the beach and my biggest concern was what gelato I was going to have! Bravi VC ❤️