If you get my newsletter, you saw that I mentioned July is a big month for me.
A big reason why is it marks my 10th anniversary of arriving in Italy. And 10 years that I’ve had this blog.
If you look at my archives, though, you’ll see that they only go back to sometime in 2005, but in reality there are a few more years of posts which I wrote upon my departure to Italy. Back then, even though WordPress was only 2 months old at that time (Happy 10th to you, too!), and Blogger was a few years old and was gaining popularity, blogging wasn’t super popular, so I just hand-coded the HTML for my website, and simulated a blog. I put my latest post up top and broke my archive pages into months. The site lived first on a subdomain of sararosso.com, then blog.sararosso.com, and then I moved it here to Ms. Adventures in Italy.
At first it was just a way for me to stay in contact with my family and friends. There was no Facebook, no Twitter, no Instagram (all things I use now) and since I rarely had an internet connection, it was email or nothing. I would find an internet cafe and just say what happened that day instead of a mass email, and post a few photos if I could. Then I started getting more visitors as I started settling into life here and sharing some of the delicious things I was eating, beautiful things I was seeing, and observations about being in a different culture. Traffic grew, and I moved those earlier posts to private since they were a bit of out snyc with the rest of the site’s content.
Back then, I don’t think I ever thought I would still be in Italy 10 years later (that’s me in the picture, in 2003). Or that I would still enjoy publishing on this site. Both things are still incredibly true today. And I feel lucky to have had a great 10 years of memories, experiences, and people reading and sharing their own experiences with me. I’ve met some really great people through blogging, and especially here in Italy. So I feel like I’m celebrating two anniversaries, really, and I’m happy that my site has always been with me through these interesting times.
So this July is special. And I’m going to stretch out the celebration all month. I hope you’ll want to hang out with me!
Here’s what I have planned this month:
- Ask Me Anything: Italy edition – July 10th. No holds barred – if you’ve been holding back your Italy questions, this will be your time! I’ll be answering questions all day long in the comments of the post I’ll publish that day.
- Unseen Italy moments. Holy extensive photo archives which I haven’t published yet! I’m going to dig deep and share a few things I haven’t had the chance yet to share.
- My Bucket List for Italy. Some of my own remaining bucket items, but some essential & quick lists for you which will help with any upcoming trips :)
- Looking back. Some posts you might have missed, some which need updates…it will be fun looking back.
- 10th Anniversary Giveaway – July 18th. I haven’t done a giveaway in quite a while, and what better time than now? Watch this site on July 18th for information on that.
Anything you’d like me to post about? I can’t be sure I’ll have time for everything, but it never hurts to ask! And remember that I’ll be answering your food-travel-culture-curiosity questions about Italy on July 10th.
You won’t want to miss anything, so make sure you follow me on Twitter, become a fan on Facebook, and sign up to receive posts via email. And don’t forget to sign up for my newsletter – I’ll have a special treat just for them as well.
And a special note – if you’re reading me today in Google Reader – it’s shutting down today, July 1st! You should migrate over to another service. I like Feedly but others have mentioned Blog Lovin’ and The Old Reader as alternatives, and you can always sign up to receive Ms. Adventures in Italy posts via email.
I would love to see a current list of Italian music. I think you used to publish a list on your blog a while back. :-) Thanks!
Happy anniversary! Congratulations. I’ll be celebrating with you all month and reading! :)
@Carol – Thanks! :)
@Rose – great idea – and it’s summer so there’s plenty of fun music :)
Happy Anniversary! I can’t believe it has been ten years. It is nearly five years since I’ve been to Italy and I really miss it.
@Gil – sounds like it’s time for another visit :)
Congratulations! I’ve also been here for ten years now and am rather amazed if I think back to how it all was so many years ago! My dream of publishing a book has come true and now I have a second one coming out – I think I have used the time here to work hard and am massively pleased with that. And I’ve had lots of fun as well! I just wanted to ask you, Any Regrets? Ciao Catherine
@Catherine – that needs its own post ;)
You inspire!
Any chance of an Eye on Italy revival?
@Laura – hopefully! It’s something I’ve wanted to revive for a while but I’ve looking for a way to do it so that the post-production (usually hours and hours) is much less so that every episode is faster to get online :) Maybe even a video version instead :)
how very exciting! look forward to seeing these posts.
@Jaime – thanks!
I’m looking forward to your month of celebrations!
@Aleta – Thanks!
Sara, just wanted to wish you a happy “anniversary”. I totally enjoy your posts, and I know it must be difficult to keep your blog going as busy as you are with work and life. Thanks for all the cool photos, recipes, and travel experiences.
-Dale
@Dale – much appreciated :) I’m glad you’re enjoying them.
Happy Anniversary Sara!! Looking forward to your upcoming posts and to catching up on the ones I have missed.
-Tammy
@Tammy – Thank you so much!
It would be really interesting if you could share some of your thoughts about Italy as a newcomer based on your old posts and how your thoughts or feelings have changed after 10 years.
@Lindsay – thanks for the suggestion! That’s a good one.
I would like to know about how to order half portions (mainly the pasta dishes) when in Italy. We always have more courses in our meals but hate leaving, wasting, half that pasta.
@Maureen – that’s a good question for the Ask Me Anything post I’ll be doing on the 10th!
It would be great if you could join forces with other Italian/American writers and expand your subject. The problem with even the greatest of blogs is that it remains too centrist. We are not islands. Otherwise, I think you have a fascinating life.
@Dominic – Interesting feedback. How exactly would you expand my subject? I think the great thing about personal websites is each author can dictate the scope of that site, and I think the themes of food & travel (with an underlying theme of curiosity) are pretty universal, even if the experiences are being told in the 1st person.
Woot! Happy Anniversary, cara,
Looking forward to celebrating with you!
@Arlene – Thanks girl!
I just found your site today. How/why did you end up moving to Italy? I am attempting to do the same thing. I’m returning to Italy for vacation with friends in 2014 and I’m not sure if I will be buying a one way or round trip ticket. I would be doing this totally alone. No family, no friends. I currently live in Las Vegas. Since my husband & I divorced earlier this year, there is nothing left for me here. Any direction you could give me would be much appreciated.
Kimmie. I am in the same boat as you. Contemplating on moving to Italy. I don’t know anyone there but I am ready for a change.
I just came back from Rome a few days ago and have always had a love for Italy. I think it’s time to make a move.
Thanks for your site MsAdventures, I will be visiting it on a regular basis.