A trip to the Italian Embassy in Canberra on March 8 (International Women's Day) was enjoyed by 22 of the Cowra Evening CWA members.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Members enjoyed a coffee morning tea at the Italian Cultural Centre offered by the Committee of Italians Abroad and were addressed by the President, Franco Barilaro who explained the role of the Cultural Centre in Canberra.
Members were welcomed by Italian Embassy Cultural Attache, Valentina Biguzzi and listened to a fascinating talk by Professor Gabriella Quadraccia about the Dante Alighieri Society, which is named after a 13th Century Italian poet.
Gabriella also spoke about the history of Italian immigration to Australia.
Before leaving we had a group photo holding our single yellow rose gifted by our hosts.
Our hosts then escorted our cars to the Embassy where we were greeted at the front door by Ambassador Paolo Crudele and his wife, Sara.
His Excellency spoke about the importance of International Women's Day and the Country Women's Association. Gabriella Quadruccia guided us around the reception area that was filled with art works in the forms of tapestry, painting, sculpture, woodwork metalwork, historic furniture items, Etruscan pottery and the original of the "Map of the World, 1448-1453" by Fra Mauro.
A sumptuous lunch including lasagne and gnocchi capped off this memorable day.
Two of the Canberra hosts, Valentina Biguzzi and Gabriella Quadruccia were then the special guests at the Festival of International Understanding Dinner hosted by this branch at Club Cowra on March 27.
This featured both the Australian and Italian National Anthems being sung, with four of our members leading the singing of the Italian anthem.
Other special guests were Festival Co-ordinator, Lisa Flanagan and four of the Youth Ambassadors.
Lisa Flanagan introduced Tobie Hubber, Imogen McCormick, Laura Price and Addison Skinner who each gave a short speech about their fundraising efforts and their visit to the Italian Embassy in Canberra.
Gabriella Quadruccia spoke about the Mediterranean diet which originated in the Campagna region of Italy, south of Naples.
The key foods were olive oil, bread wine, fish and legumes which were local to the environment. Animal products are used sparingly for the same reason. Pork and eggs are not part of their diet. Today the Campagna region has 400 organic farms.
Anyone wanting to know more about the CWA Evening Branch monthly meetings can contact President Kaye Kilby at 0414805090.
