A Culture Clash in Bolzano, Italy
Christmas in Bolzano (Bozen) and the Dolomiti
I have been wanting to go to the Dolomites since I found out that we were moving to Italy. The impressive mountain range hugs the northeast of Italy, bordering Austria. When we spontaneously booked a trip to Bolzano for Christmas to ski, I was excited to experience the magic of the mountains and the Italian “north”. The train goes directly to Bolzano from Napoli! We didn’t even have to drive.
Culture
I had heard that people in Bolzano and the surrounding region of South Tyrol speak both Italian and German. I was amazed at how both of those cultures collide. There are bread shops that serve giant salty pretzels alongside delicate Italian biscotti. You can order both spaetzel noodles as well as moon shaped pastas. The fact that everyone is bilingual and these two groups live peacefully together really fascinated me, and I wanted to know more.
I learned that South Tyrol is actually semi-autonomous from the rest of Italy. South Tyrol was part of the Austro-Hungarian empire until 1919, when it was annexed to Italy after World War I. As you can imagine, German speakers who suddenly became part of Italy faced a lot of challenges and discrimination, as well as the possible erasure of their culture. In the following years, the region faced very difficult decisions about identity and home. To protect the identity of its citizens, South Tyrol fought to become autonomous, with the first autonomy statutes in place in 1948. Several variations of that law and lots of conflict later, South Tyrol is now mostly autonomous in its laws, education system, government and policies. It’s one of the most prosperous areas of Italy (the regions is allowed to keep about 90% of the taxes they collect).
One night we met up with a friend who is a native German speaker from Bolzano. We got drinks at the Christmas market with his friends and everyone was nice enough to speak in English for us. When I was waiting to get a drink, someone starting speaking to me in German. After I gave him a blank stare he immediately switched to Italian, where we spoke a bit until I told him I was American and we switched to English. This means people my age speak three or four languages completely fluently. This really blows my mind, how people can operate so quickly in both languages. The bus drivers, the baristas, the shop keepers - everyone we met was happy to accommodate to whatever language we spoke.
My ski instructor even spoke the local language of Ladino. This is moreso spoken in the mountain areas of Val Gardena and Val Badia, but he told me that in the Ladin school system everyone learns three languages: Ladino, Italian, and German. He also told me that he loves having a language that no one else can understand.
Coffee and a Pastry
Bolzano has the best of both worlds: Austrian cake and Italian pastry. We had the good fortune of being in Bolzano on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Christmas Eve, everything closed by noon or one o’clock, and friends and family took to the streets in the afternoon. There were a few bars open with stands outside serving drinks and snacks. We had an amazing glass of Prosecco outside and watched the liveliness unfurl around us. We were offered some free Panettone with our Prosecco. The panettone I knew of in the states is more like fruit cake. This couldn’t be more different - it’s light and fluffy and can be served plain or with different fillings. My favorite is with chocolate chips and dried figs inside. It’s normally served with powered sugar drizzled on top. After our drink we went dancing at a nearby hotel with a DJ! There is really nothing I love more than a day party. By dinnertime everyone would be home with their families, but it was fun to have an afternoon dance with the locals.
Adventure
We got a week long bus pass in Bolzano and used it to take the bus to a new mountain in the Dolomites. We want to two towns in Val Gardena, Santa Christina and Ortisei, as well as Obereggen. It was so easy! The buses are like luxury tour buses and they come very frequently.
Pulling up to the Ortisei town center as the sun was beginning to rise, our nervous and excited energy got us straight to the ski rental place. Within a few minutes we had our gear and walked right next door to the first big lift. Adrenaline pumped through my veins as we climbed higher and higher about the city. I am only a beginner skier, so as the town became smaller I got more and more nervous. Finally, we arrived at the top to a total white out. We were encapsulated in a blanket of winter wonderland. The first day, I took a private lesson, which was much more economical to do in Italy than in the US. My teacher told me how wrong I’ve been skiing and slowly corrected me on the bunny slopes. By the end, the snow had cleared and I was left with a gorgeous view of the mountains. I started to feel more confident as I went down the mountain with ease instead of fear. All of the gear and effort is always worth it for that one moment of pure bliss.
Also, the food we ate while skiing hit the damn spot. No more sad hot dogs and Miller Lite in the Poconos, we were eating delicious meals perched on little huttes on the side of the mountain. One day we had a giant plate of steaming hot lasagna, another day spinach ravioli with parmesan. When your aching bones are dying for sustenance there is nothing better than a bowl of carbs to fill you up.
Have you ever been to a place where two cultures and systems collide? What was it like? Back when my parents were growing up, my mom lived in New Jersey and dad in Pennsylvania. The rules for drinking alcohol were different, so my parents could drink legally in NJ at the age of 18 but not in PA. Another example is when I lived in Verdun, France, which is part of Lorraine. My neighbors in Alsace celebrated a lot of German holidays despite being part of France, given their history!
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This week has been an exciting one in Italy:
While everyone in the US was talking about Taylor Swift and the Superbowl performers, Italians were talking about the Festival di Sanremo which concluded in the early hours of Saturday morning. One of my favorite pop singers, Angelina Mango, beat out local artist Neapolitan artist Geolier and will be representing Italy at the Eurovision contest.
Carnevale concluded on Martedi Grasso, or fat Tuesday. All weekend long kids dressed up in costumes and paraded around the city!
San Valentino, or Valentine’s Day, was on Wednesday. My friend Valentina celebrated her onomastico, or her Saint’s Day as well. Your onomastico is celebrated like a birthday in Italy. My partner gave me a Neapolitan journal for Christmas and every day has the corresponding saint’s day documented.
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Source: “Autonomy Experience.” Autonomy Experience Südtirol, 13 Dec. 2023, www.autonomyexperience.org/en/home-english/.
My husband, who is Austrian (I am American) and I spent a week last fall on the north end of Lake Garda, which was absolutely gorgeous. From there, we drove straight through South Tyrol on our way to Vienna. It was really fun to see how Austrian the area felt to me: the houses, the delicious food, and the clean streets. In particular, the calm, polite traffic was such a relief and contrast to the absolutely insane traffic we had previously experienced along the Ligurian Coast!
This summer, when I was sweltering in the heat and humidity of Florence, my painting instructor told me to take a trip to the Dolomites. I wasn’t able to take her up on her idea but I’ll ask you a few questions instead. How cold was it up there in the far north? How warm is it in the summer? Did you find a good sized English speaking community. Did the population living there seem older or younger? Are there forests or just bare mountains? What cultural traduit did you experience that you would like to expand upon. Looking forward to your reply.