WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 3 | 6:00 P.M. ET - Registration fee: $25. Register Here. Italians have always been masters of reinvention. Join Carla Gambescia in her fascinating exploration of post-WWII Italy when the Bel Paese arose like a phoenix from the ashes and devastation, transforming itself from the face of Il Duce to the land of La Dolce Vita. You'll discover how "Brand Italy" came to conquer the world through its creativity, passion and excellence in the realms of film, fashion and design and gastronomy and viticulture.

Carla Gambescia is the author of La Dolce Vita University: An Unconventional Guide to Italian Culture from A to Z, Silver Prize winner of "Best Travel Book of the Year" awarded by the North American Travel Journalists Association (the greatly expanded 2nd edition, with over 60 additional essays and 125 pages of new content is now available).

A regular lecturer on topics of Italian cultural interest, Carla has written about and toured every region of Italy on foot or by bicycle and curates the photoblog Postcards from the Boot. Carla conceived and co-led the Giro del Gelato bicycle tour winner of OUTSIDE Magazine's "Best Trip in Western Europe," and, for a decade, owned and operated Via Vanti! Restaurant & Gelateria in Mount Kisco, NY.