Presentations: Day 2

Patricia's presentation reminded me of some of my memories from growing up in Bloomfield. When my family first arrived, the town was almost entirely second or third-generation Italians (affectionately referred to as "guidos"). And I'll never forget how I was consistently told that I pronounced every Italian food item incorrectly. It turns out, years later, that much of their knowledge of their "mother tongue" was suspect...probably because they didn't actually speak Italian. Maybe they just liked saying things differently, like it created some sort of solidarity in their culture. Or maybe it was a natural change to the dialect. Anyway, her presentation was excellent. I was amazed at how many lexical items that are in full bloom here in the US are nowhere to be found in much of Italy. Her explanation of the plurality of the pastas, with the one exception of lasagna, was particularly interesting, as was the information about the true/original definitions of pepperoni and paninis.

Hernan did a wonderful job of presenting. His project really dialed in on the phenomenon of one word being used to describe many possible recipes. I liked how he talked about every country's version of curry, and did a remarkable job tracing the origins and how it moved from one place to another. I'm still surprised at the many variations, and plan on trying all of them. It also reminded me how I'm often told that with certain commercial products, the recipe will change from country to country. Many people have remarked that the Guinness beer in Ireland and Jamaica are markedly different from that sold within the US.