Welcome to Saturday Spotlight, our newest weekly feature on The italyMONDO! Blog. Here we will shine the spotlight on those who share our deep love of Italy and passion for the Italian culture. Over the past few months the Italian blogging community has warmly welcomed us into their ranks. Through this weekly feature, we look forward to spotlighting many of the friendly and interesting bloggers living and writing from Italy or around the world, as well as expatriates who have chosen to call Italy home. We also look forward to introducing you to great businesses both here in Italy and around the globe that promote the appreciation of the Italian culture in all of its forms—from family-run bed and breakfasts, agriturismi and restaurants to Italian language schools and various online boutiques

So start your weekend out with a healthy shot of Italian culture with our weekly Saturday Spotlights, and be sure to return next Saturday as we shine the Spotlight another fellow Italophile!

Leanne, Peter and Laura in Sorrento

I recently had the pleasure of enjoying a sunny afternoon at one of the many cafés surrounding Sorrento’s busy Piazza Tasso chatting with Leanne, a cheerful Australian expat who has been living in Italy since 2006, and italyMONDO! blogger Laura Thayer. Leanne is also a blogger, maintaining the popular blog From Australia to Italy. Through her blog she has taken her readers along on her journey working in Rome, Taormina, Sicily and, most recently, Sorrento. Born in Melbourne, Australia, Leanne comes from a large Italian-Australian family with roots in both Calabria and Puglia. When I met up with Leanne (and her bel ragazzo!) in Sorrento she regaled us with her family stories, her experiences living and working in some of Italy’s most famous spots and her decision to return to the country her family left behind.

Leanne first visited Italy in 2002 and immediately felt that something inside her changed the moment she set foot in Rome. After spending a month traveling around Italy, including visiting the small town in southern Italy where her family had come from, she realized why she felt so at home here. Growing up in an Italian-Australian family, she often felt like she stood out for her expressiveness and what her friends described as her “tendency to be loud.” (Any other Italian can relate, right?) During her first visit to her grandparents’ hometown in Puglia, it hit her – the people were just like her! This sense of belonging inspired her to pursue a job that would allow her to follow her dream of living in Italy. Along the way she met her bel ragazzo, and the rest of the story you can read about by diving into the archives of From Australia to Italy. ;-)

Leanne is just the type of person I really enjoy meeting, since I love hearing stories of how rediscovering your family roots in Italy can be such a life-changing experience. Of course it is not only Italian Americans that can experience the joy of uncovering their Italian heritage. Italians have emigrated all over the world, including Australia, Canada, South America and throughout Europe. In fact, Italians form one of Australia’s biggest ethnic groups. As Leanne shared stories about growing up in Melbourne, I was reminded of the countless similarities to growing up as an Italian American—the big families, the wonderful home cooking, the big Italian meals and, above all, the strong sense of community. It is these similarities that bind us as a community, and the reason why I called the company italyMONDO!(Mondo meaning World).

Leanne is just the type of person I really enjoy meeting, since I love hearing stories of how rediscovering your family roots in Italy can be such a life-changing experience.

Leanne could write a book (and hopefully will someday!) about her family and their journeys from southern Italy to Australia. She describes herself with the fun saying: “Half Calabrese + Half Pugliese = 100% Australian. You do the math, but that’s me.” Leanne’s maternal side of the family comes from the village of San Marco in Lamis, northeast of Foggia in the region of Puglia. Her father’s side of the family comes from the small village of Policastrello, a frazione (hamlet) of San Donato di Ninea. (Policastrello is so small, in fact, that she couldn’t find it on her first visit to Italy!) In 1956, Leanne’s grandparents decided to leave Policastrello to attempt to give their eight children a chance of a better life in Australia. Her father was 14 years old at the time, and set off for a new beginning in Australia, not returning to Italy again for 52 years. Since moving to Italy, Leanne has been back to visit both Policastrello and San Marco in Lamis, each time discovering a little piece of her family’s heritage in Italy.

While Leanne has just left for a vacation back home in sunny Australia (It’s summer there, you know!), be sure to follow her blog From Australia to Italy to follow along on her adventures. Tante grazie to Leanne (and her bel ragazzo, of course) for sharing her family stories and enthusiasm and love for Italy. I’ll be looking forward to the next time!