Volare! The Vespa Scooter makes a comeback in the South Sound
"Sembre una vespa!" ("It looks like a wasp!") That's what Enrico Paggio said about the new motor scooter his family company built after World War 2. The Vespa scooter has come to symbolize Italian elegance, fun, and romance. Who can forget Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn scooting around Rome in "Roman Holiday?" That was 1953, but the Vespa has b...
This Venetian-Inspired Stretch Of Shops In Nevada Offers The Perfect Way To Spend An Afternoon
When you’re craving a European escape, rest assured that you don’t have to dig out your passport and hop on a plane. Nevada is home to its very own little slice of Italy hiding among the bright lights of the Las Vegas Strip. The Grand Canal Shoppes at The Venetian is a premier shopping experience that’ll make you feel as if you’ve been transported...
Fiat New 500 at the Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2022
The Italian icon in its two versions, New 500 3+1 and the New (500)RED , is on display in the Electrification Zone, one of the four on the Stellantis stand @ CES. CES® 2022, January 5th to 8th, is the world’s pre-eminent technology event and the ideal setting to showcase Stellantis’ capabilities today and preview the future of advanced electrificat...
Leonardo to build new US photonics fab
The US subsidiary of Italian electronics giant Leonardo is building a $100m semiconductor laser fabrication plant in Arizona. Leonardo Electronics US Inc. (LEI) has purchased 12 acres in Oro Valley, north of Tucson, and is planning the construction of a state-of-the-art semiconductor laser manufacturing facility. LEI has been present in the Tucson...
Henry Suzzallo and the Crown Jewel of the UW Campus
When visitors arrive on the Seattle campus of the University of Washington, they are greeted by a stunning Gothic masterpiece that dwarfs many of the surrounding buildings — Suzzallo Library. Gaze upwards and notice the library’s 18 terra cotta figures, sitting in niches along the facade. The sculptures depict individuals who made significant contr...
Rosaia Brothers floral business bloomed in Seattle for 80 years
Whether creating elaborate window displays, winning awards at flower shows, or helping launch the Italian Commercial Club a century ago, the Rosaia Brothers – Palmiro, Felix and George – brought energy, determination and, above all, a sense of beauty to their adopted city. The three brothers arrived in Seattle in 1906 and began laying the groundwor...
Famed Venetian glass artist’s work now displayed on Bainbridge
Heads up Bainbridge Islanders, famed Italian glass artist Lino Tagliapietra’s work is on display and available for purchase at a local small art studio run by his grandson, Jacopo Vecchiato. The showroom is an extension of the Seattle gallery Lino Tagliapietra Inc, of which Vecchiato has been president for nine years. Currently, space is only open...
Celebrating 100 episodes of ‘Your Last Meal’ with three 100-year-old women
At 100 years old, Seattle’s Eleanor Owen lives on her own in her big, old house. She drives, she’s not on a single medication, and she’s sharp, with an enviable memory. Her 100th birthday was in January and because of the quarantine, like so many others, she had to have her party over Zoom. “I have 300 birthday cards, if not more, that I haven’t op...
The Right Place at the Right Time: Portland Got a Gucci Store, Baby!!!
Last Friday, my 20-year-old heater stopped working, under duress from a historic snowstorm that ripped through Portland. On Monday morning, I woke up shivering, confused as to why my electric space heater had shut off overnight—and then I realized my power was out. The power returned Tuesday evening, and I sent a triumphant text to my coworkers. “I...
ElectraMeccanica to showcase electric vehicle at La Encantada
Italian electric vehicle company ElectraMeccanica is opening a display in the main courtyard of La Encantada mall to show off their unique (and very European) vehicle, the SOLO. While not a complete store, the new location allows for shoppers to check out the vehicles and place reservations for test drives. The display is slated to open Monday, Mar...
A visit to Arcosanti, the reimagined city
Arcosanti has been called an “experimental city,” “an “urban laboratory,” a “caravanserai.” Seventy miles north of Phoenix, the 25-acre compound, built on a 4,060-acre land preserve, rises from the desert like a mirage. The project was the brainchild of “visionary” Paolo Soleri (1919-2013). Arcology — a concept combining architecture and ecology —...
A farm-to-restaurant business that takes an all-in-the-family approach
Raised in Spokane as part of an Italian-Greek family, Jackie Cross had grown up embracing both her cultural heritage as well as the lush agricultural traditions of eastern Washington. Her mother was an avid gardener and her grandparents instilled in her a love and appreciation for the outdoors and the inimitable value of home-grown herbs and vegeta...
