Mixing It Oud

Last year when I was in Palermo, my cousin Silvana and I came across a shop in the historic center filled with various instruments. It wasn’t a music store… maybe a tailor shop? Anyway, the gentleman proprietor played mandolin for us. I took pictures of him  and of all of the instruments I could. This…

They are Prickly

In the early fall, Sicilians enjoy the tuna, or fruit, of the cultivated “ficudinnia” in Sicilian, or “fico d’india” in Italian. We call them prickly pears. In the early fall, Sicilians enjoy the tuna, or fruit, of the cultivated “ficudinnia” in Sicilian, or “fico d’india” in Italian. We call them prickly pears. “Prickly” is a…