Thursday, April 4, 2013

Made In Italy

There is one surefire answer that I have when people asks me what it is that I love so much about Italy, and that has been and will be, simply, "the details."

Without a doubt, Italians have an eye for detail and it is not always readily apparent, but the more time the you are able to spend in Italy, the more that you will see that this is true.

One very simple example is something that I just experienced this last time that I was in Italy. Having a coffee on the Piazza Maggiore, a very tourist thing to do, but when I travel, I balance being a full-blown tourist with the more aloof traveler, as you get to know the city both ways. So, sitting at the cafe, admiring the San Petrino Cathedral, which even normally is half-girth with its development, is now surrounded by scaffolding, with a silk-screen façade of the half-façade of the church. A bit surreal, but nothing for Italy.

But, what was most interesting to me was the coffee service that my friend had. Normally, for Italians, a coffee is a swift shot of espresso (not eXpresso), which literally means "pushed through" or pressed through. You then sift a bit of sugar in and nonchalantly stir with a small spoon that said sugar in and then throw it back like a shot of Tequila or something and then move on.

But, all other nationalities like to order a "slower" coffee, one that takes more than a few sips.

So, to accommodate that, the actual saucer of the coffee cup has been modified, a detail I have only ever seen in Italy, and it makes sense. Italians pay attention to detail at its minutiae.

The saucer is elongated and the depression for the cup is off-center. How brilliant is that? So, on the side, you can put your small spoon, and a package of sugar to off-set the balance of the off-set cup of coffee.

Truly, though this seems a trifle, this it Italy in a nutshell. If it is "made in Italy" I guarantee there has been endless discussions about balance, perspective, appearance and function. What never ceases to amaze me about Italy is the combination of form and function.


1 comment:

Mmepapillon said...

Awesome observation, makes me think of the French and their views on coffee cups and saucers or sometimes the lack thereof!