30 things.

In celebration of my 30th birthday, I thought I would share with you 30 things you may or may not know about me. 
Here it goes: 

1. My full name is Giuseppina. But for as long as I can remember, I've gone by Pina.  Giuseppina is just way too hard to digest and pronounce! Yay to keeping it simple 🙂 
2. I don't have a middle name because my mom thought my first name was long enough to begin with (see a trend here?)
3. I'm an only child. Although many people that have met me say they never would've thought I was an only child. I'll take that as a compliment?
4. I was born and raised in the Lower Mainland (Vancouver). I'm one of the rare ones apparently 😛
5. The first language I learned to speak was Italian. Even though I lived in Vancouver, I learned English when I started going to preschool.
6. My parents are both Italian - both from Lazio. My mom is from Sperlonga, Latina and dad from Pofi, Frosinone. 
7. When I was younger, I traveled to Italy every summer to spend the summer with my grandparents. My fondest childhood memories are those that were made in Italy. 
8. My favorite city ever is Rome. I've traveled to most major European cities but Rome takes the cake.
9. I lived in Milan for 6 months for a exchange semester and that's how I got to explore Europe. 
10. My favorite move is Johnny Stecchino (I've yet to visit Palermo though!)
11. I've had the same group of friends since elementary school. None of us ever moved from Vancouver, so that made it a lot easier to stay close. 
12. In university I majored in Business and minored in French. 
13. I am engaged and getting married this summer! 
14. I met Ben, my fiancé 12 years ago in Whistler. We've been together for 7 🙂 
15. We're moving to the Mount Pleasant/Main Street area of Vancouver when we get married and I'm so excited for it!
16. The first thing I ever cooked - I was about 13 years old and made oven roasted potatoes with olive oil and rosemary. I still make that dish to this day! 
17. The second thing I ever made was a simple pasta dish of penne with tomato sauce and fresh basil. One of my favorite dishes ever. 
18. I started this blog as a creative outlet. In my 9-5 marketing job, I was doing a lot of copywriting but experiencing writer's block quite often. I hoped that by starting this blog, I would become more uninhibited when it came to writing.
19. The goal of the blog was to share all things Italian with you - recipes, travel, traditions etc. While this is still true, I find that I've made a shift towards sharing bits of my life with you. And since Italian culture is such a big part of who I am, this still comes through in the blog, but maybe not as directly as I had initially imagined 🙂
20. While I still experience writer's block from time to time, this blog has also helped me uncover a passion for photography, specifically food photos and food styling. Check out my Instagram page to see what I mean 🙂 
21. My drink of choice is a glass of red. I prefer the bold, robust flavours of a cab sav or malbec. 
22. I only drink white wine and rosé in the summer time and will only drink white in the winter if I'm eating fish. 
23. I feel better and more organized if I have a to-do list written out. Something about crossing off items as you finish them is so satisfying (or is that just me?)
24. I love Italian music - Vasco Rossi, Ligabue, Lucio Battisti, Negramaro, Jovanotti, 883, Alessandra Amoroso, Articolo 31...the list goes on
25. Favorite pizza? Classic margherita - but it has to have fresh basil
26. My home away from home is my mom's hometown of Sperlonga. There's just something so magical about this place that I need to go back once every few years (it would be more frequent if I could) or else something just doesn't feel right. Plus my grandparents live there and it's important to spend as much time with them as I can. 
27. My favorite gelato flavours are pistacchio and nocciola (please don't ask me to pick between the two)
28. I have a secret appreciation for indie music. I used to be more in tune with the scene a few years ago, but I still listen to the likes of Local Natives and Lord Huron. 
29. My coffee of choice is espresso. Even though I drink a cup of drip everyday because I find it gives me the jolt I need. 
30. My 29th year has been one of the best yet - getting settled in my career, getting engaged, travelling to Italy...I'm excited to see what 30 has in store!