Welcome to the new blog and to my adventures in Verona. If you have been following since my Roman days then thanks for making the trip over to my new home. If you are new, feel free to check out the about me page or browse through the archives . I have transferred all my old posts (but not the comments-blast!) so you will have plenty to catch up on!
So you may be wondering about the title: Too Tall For Italy? Well, since I have been here (almost 2 years!) I have noticed that I am slowly becoming more Italian-like day by day:
- Not going out in public with sweatpants: Check!
- Being concerned about digestion: Check!
- Becoming obsessed with great food and wine: Check!
- Speaking Italian: Getting there!
- Taking even the slightest interest in football: Check!
Even with these accomplishments, I am still distinctly foreign and very American. But how do they know?! From what I have gathered from the Italians around me is that nothing screams “I am foreign!!!” more than my height! Apparently it’s a dead giveaway. No need for me to open my big mouth, just being a whole head taller than most men does the trick. And shopping? Yeah right! All the pants are capris and all the shoes could possibly have fit me when I was in elementary school. My husband? He had to get “special shoes” with lifts on our wedding day so he could two inches shorter than me- a vast improvement (I was wearing flats). But it was nice to almost look directly into his eyes on that special day. He has declined to incorporate those shoes into his daily wardrobe, however. So, I have been officially declared too tall for Italy, but at least the view is nice from up here!
Hello down there!
Hey Jessica, great to have you back and I like the new site and name. Love the ‘Hello down there’ piccie LOL!
Hope you’re settling into Verona well.
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Jessica Reply:
September 22nd, 2008 at 4:05 am
Hi Sarah! Glad you like it! I am settling in wonderfully!
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Hey tall girl are you loving Verona yet? Great new look and name, I’ll change my links soon, I promise.
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Jessica Reply:
September 22nd, 2008 at 4:06 am
Hey Amanda! Yes I am officially smitten with Verona
I will link to you as well!
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You mean to say there are very few tall Italian men?! I always pictured Italians as the last nationality to be labelled height challenged! Thanks for your nice comment on my blog, by the way. I should be writing again within a few days hopefully!
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Jessica Reply:
September 21st, 2008 at 2:33 pm
Hi Heather! Love your blog btw! I saved it to my google reader and will link to you shortly. Ciao!
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Yay!!! Finally a new blog! I love your new layout! How did you make it so cool?
How tall are you? I’m looking forward to read your new adventures in Verona. Don’t forget to check out my blog!
Bluefishs last blog post..Wedding remix
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Jessica Reply:
September 22nd, 2008 at 4:07 am
Hey! I am glad you like it! I have been reading your blog…no worries
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Glad to see you back! Love the new blog.
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Jessica Reply:
September 22nd, 2008 at 4:07 am
Thanks!!!
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Great you are blogging again!
I have the same problem as you, luckily I don’t wear high heels very often. I sometimes feel like a giant around Italians!
Last time I bought a pair of shoes in Italy I could feel the inner reaction of the salesgirl when I told her my size. (which is actually a quite normal size in Belgium)
Hopefully Verona is treating you well!
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Jessica Reply:
September 22nd, 2008 at 4:08 am
Yes I NEVER where heels anymore, not only the height issue but the cobblestone problem-lol!
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Your new website is amazing! Can’t wait to hear about the Verona tales.
Leanne in Italys last blog post..Love affair turned sour
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Jessica Reply:
September 22nd, 2008 at 4:50 am
Hey Leanne!!! Thanks!
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So happy you are back and your new site is gorgeous! I will change my link to you ASAP.
Enjoy Verona…
Anns last blog post..Dining Out and About (London): Books for Cooks
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Jessica Reply:
September 22nd, 2008 at 4:54 am
Thanks Ann! I will link to you as well! Congrats on your move to Paris!
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Love the new place! Glad you tweeted this or I may never have found you…that’s my lifeline now you know
I had no idea you were so tall; I, on the other hand, finally feel like I fit in here in southern Italy with all my five feet and two inches (I’m even taller than some men!)
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Hey Michelle! Do you use a reader? That has definitely made blog reading easier for me! Yes I am a giant, really hard to blend in anywhere in this country-lol
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Hey there! glad to see you back.
how tall are you?
i’m 5′8″ and definitely feel like i’m a towering giant when I’m there!
Eryn’s last blog post..Napoletana Ugly Dog is Famous!
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I love the new title! Don’t forget what they say, altezza è meta bellezza, so there can be a positive side to being tall here!
KC’s last blog post..Babes at the beach
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glad to see you are back. funny title, great new home and great new layout! baci
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Wow- love the new layout! Glad you like Verona.
How tall are you? I’m 5′10″ or 5′11″ (I seem to fluctuate a bit) in my stockinged feet so I’m also way too tall for Italy. It’s funny that no one outside Italy realises how short Italians are. They don’t have a reputation for being vertically challenged but they are.
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love the new look =) I am glad yall are settled in and look forward to reading about your Veronese adventures. though I’ve only been there once, verona is one of my favorite cities.
stacy’s last blog post..2 Days in a Life…
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I love the new site. It looks great. Sean and I really enjoy reading it. I Laughed really hard when I read about how you feel about being tall. Now I know how your bother feels seems how he towers over me. I’m really short but then again I’m Italian.
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hey ! It’s Karla I love the site (just like everyone else!) I am in the process of moving mine AGAIN but its proving to be a mess. Hope to talk to you soon!
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Great job, babe!
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My Jessica,
How did that happen?!! When you were born you were as long as you were wide!!! The Docs predicted you at 5′3″. OK, my thoughts on “Too Tall for Italy!” After reading about your very entertaining experiences of life and height in Italy, I would have to say being “too tall for Italy” has it’s advantages. For instance, #1 All your friends will come to count on you to let them know when a root job is needed. All they will see from their view is the ends of your hair, which are always dyed! Your clothes will last longer too, ’cause no one will be able to borrow them. #2 Potential injuries will be avoided from not having to dig out that stepstool, not to mention having to climb on it to reach for something. This is also a real time saver.#3 Oh, and all that Italian pasta will actually have a place to go besides sideways! #4 Now you will truly be able to understand how Dorothy on the Wizard of Oz felt as she skipped joyfully down that yellow brick road with the munchkins following her! (have you ever noticed that tall people usually seem to lead the way? Hum? Maybe that is because we have longer legs and can see above the crowd!) #5 And, last but not least, people will always look up to you, even when they don’t want to! PS: Just curious..are the toilets short over there too?!! Love Ya, Your tall Mom (in the armpit of America, Spokane, Wa!!)
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Ali Baba Reply:
October 22nd, 2008 at 11:29 pm
HA!!!
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Glad to see you back blogging. Great new blog name! I am looking forward to reading about life in Verona.
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I am also thinking of making the move to beautiful Italy. I had a relationship similar to what you had where I spent lots of time travelling to Italy and planning on moving there, but mine didn’t end in marriage with the Italian. I’m sure there’s lots of other nice Italians over there.
lol! I’m still wanting to move there though. The longest I stayed was 5 months total. Did you speak any Italian at all when you decided to make the move or only very little? I’m studying it now but I’m not fluent by any means. I can read written Italian quite well and understand it if spoken slowly. 
Also, what work did you find there? Is it difficult to find work as someone who doesn’t speak perfect Italian? Just curious. I know making the move is difficult and I love your blog and you’ve inspired me to actually believe that my dream of living in Italy is possible. Congrats on making your dream come true and on your marriage. 
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DUDE! Love the new layout, it is absolutely fantastic!!
But you know, “Model-Tall.”
I didn’t really notice you and D’s height difference when you were here, odd. But you have to admit, you’re pretty tall for the States, too
I love your pictures!!! Post more of them. When are you coming to visit again? Soon I hope!!!!!!
ALI
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I am just now getting over to your new site and I just love it! Beautiful! Congratulations on the successful switch
Oh! and I get called tall down here at only 5′5″ - but I have very good posture (compared to most girls here who slouch so much), and combine that with my 4″-inch heeled Tango shoes, the men tend to get a little surprised when I stand up to dance with them.
Tina´s last blog post..Villas - contrasts
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Oh my God! I don’t know how tall you are but I am six feet and love to wear heels. I live in Tuscany and have caused quite a stir in various places. Not to mention that my newborn is twice the size and length of most Italian babies. We are definitely some tall people. I stopped blogging because no one was reading, so……I’ll blogroll yours.
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How tall are you?
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fab Reply:
December 12th, 2008 at 6:04 pm
Im sorry to say that you must be mistaken. i myself am siciliano and am nearly 6′3. there are lots of tall italians, naming just a few american-italians so you will know such as fed castellucio (furio giunta in the sopranos), james gandolfini, jovanotti ( italian singer) , monica belluci who is 5′9 thats pretty tall for a woman and andrea bocelli is just under 6′2. how tall are you? u must be very tall to call italians short. you don’t list your height anywhere which is strange considering the name, so i think you’re using italians as a scape goat to accentuate how tall you are. i agree many of the older generation are smaller due to war malnutrition but as you seem pretty young as this generation i would have thought you thought italians average height.
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Jessica Reply:
December 13th, 2008 at 3:28 am
I don’t see how I am mistaken, I live in Italy and I am significantly taller than about 90% of the people around me at all times. I am not the only one who thinks this or makes comments about it either. Monica Bellucci is 5′7 (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000899/bio) but even if she were 5′9 I would still be taller than her. I never said I was the tallest person in Italy or taller than James Gandolfini. I’m not using anyone as a scapegoat for anything. I never said Italians were short, I said I was tall. It’s sad that you are unable to see humor in anything. I guess I have to spell it out: being “too tall” in Italy goes beyond height, it’s just one of several ways I stand out as a foreigner here. Hope that clears it up for you.
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fabian Reply:
December 14th, 2008 at 1:09 am
may i ask how tall exactly you are, to clarify things up. isee humour in this site but i don’t like italians being labelled short as it is incorrect. if being too tall really doesn’t mean just height what else does it mean, that you are better than italians in some other way?
Jessica Reply:
December 14th, 2008 at 10:18 am
Ok this is just stupid now. If I was “better” than Italians why would I marry one? Please stop commenting here unless you have something of relevance to say.