Italians – The Forever Romantics on Valentine’s Day and Always

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Joanne Natale Spigonardo

February 1, 2024

We all know that Italians are passionate, romantic, and loving in all aspects of their culture, whether it is with food, literature, music, wine, film, art, relationships, fashion and really in everything. Adding the Italian component usually makes life more dramatic, embellished, defined and bright. There is no such thing as an understated Italian. We are up front and personal, and I’m proud of this. The Italian patina of life is at its most vivid every day.

Let’s talk about romance in Italy in honor of St. Valentine’s Day. Romance in Italy is the appreciation of a soft breeze in a fragrant vineyard in Tuscany enjoying a glass of wine with a life long life partner or a new person of interest.  It is a walk along the Ponte Vecchio, the Tiber River, the Grand Canal or the beach in Positano or in Cinque Terre. It is a scrumptious meal in Trastevere, or a gourmet homecooked masterpiece in your own kitchen. Romance among Italians embraces every aspect of life. The melody of romance is in every aria of Italian opera, it is in the brindisi of La Traviata, and in the deep empathy of La Boheme. Romance is part of the Italian DNA, but interpreted differently and individually.

Fashion in Italy is also romantic because it embraces spectacular materials, like silk, pure wool, and the finest leather products. It is romantic because there is a story behind each piece of clothing. It is the history of the designers and the famous fashion houses. To me Italian fashion is pure art and every item is a creative spectrum of beauty. 

Italian films exemplify passions unspoken, and passions embraced. My favorite film of all time is La Dolce Vita, and I also love La Grande Bellezza – both films speak about all the fabulous nuances of Rome, its night life, its day life, its wealth of emotion and sometimes its poverty of spirit – but the films are always romantic, deep, and real. The actors are five dimensional – if there is such a thing – the most interesting to me are Rudolph Valentino, Marcelo Mastroianni, Sophia Loren and Anna Magnani.

Just a brief note on literature – I greatly celebrate the epic romantic authors and poets of Italy, which to me are Boccaccio, Petrarch, Leopardi, Pirandello and others – and the romantic novels of all novels is I Promessi Sposi by Manzoni – the famous Betrothed. Take a month or two to read at least one of these famous and romantic Italian authors.

Hope you have a wonderful Valentine’s Day with a fabulous Italian Romantic of your own.

About the Author:

Joanne Spigonardo has many years of experience in travel to Italy, Italian art, music, literature, film, history, wine, and cuisine. She is a lover of nature and beauty.  She is an advocate for Italian immigrant women, and the author of White Widow, which is available on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/White-Widow-Joanne-Natale-Spigonardo/dp/B085DT65DB.  For more information about Joanne please visit her Lin

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Joanne Spigonardo Business Development Consultant Specializing in Sustainability, Higher Education, Career Management, and Public Relations In her former roles, Joanne served as Senior Associate Director at the Initiative for Global Environmental Leadership (IGEL) at Wharton. Joanne was also part of the Communications Office. She held positions as business manager of the Wharton Seminars for Business Journalists and for the Wharton Alumni Magazine. Joanne also served as the media relations coordinator. When with Alitalia Airlines, Joanne worked as a sales representative. Joanne graduated from The University of Pennsylvania with a BA and later graduated from the Wharton Aresty Institute of Executive Education. She has a strong background in development, management, marketing, and Italian language and culture. As a Wharton Mentor, she coached new employees on professional development, and is active in Penn’s Grievance panels. Joanne was on the board of governors for the University Club. Joanne is chair of the Delaware County Penn Alumni Interview Program and oversees alumni volunteers. As an alum of Penn and Wharton, and also a parent of two Penn graduates, she is a strong advocate in promoting Penn. At Wharton IGEL, Joanne had been in partnership with GreenBiz, Sustainable Brands, the Ethical Corporation, Pira Packaging International, Public Relations Society of America, the Green Sports Alliance, World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia, the Italian Consulate, the Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, the Sonoma County Winegrowers Association, and the Nature Conservancy, as well as, many other NGO and government offices. She has brokered hundreds of corporate relationships for Wharton. Joanne is the author of her book, White Widow, published on Kindle and Amazon. The book is a fictional novel about 19th-20th Century Italian immigrants. https://www.amazon.com/White-Widow-Joanne-Natale-Spigonardo/dp/B085DT65DB

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