So how do you really think of us?

For an American moving to Florence, Italy at the end of their high school career, one would think this would be a tough transition for most. Not for 21 year old marketing director of Flying Dutchman Productions, Stefano Minoli. It has been a learning experience, realizing the vast difference between the two cultures he has now firsthand experienced. Minoli, a native of Rowayton, Connecticut split his time between there and New York City, New York for fourteen years of his life. After moving to Florence to attend law school, he understood what Italians thought of American tourists. “This is a difficult question to answer because I don’t tend to generalize any particular group of people. If I had to, I suppose I would classify Americans as ignorant, war hungry, and obese,” said Minoli. Since he considers himself both an American and an Italian, it is surprising to hear how harshly the Italian people view us. Though Minoli, once being an American citizen himself, has a heart and backtracks by saying, “Naturally, with MANY exceptions; I repeat, I hate generalizing.” Coming from an expat, he is able to distance himself with his European fashion sense. Dressed to kill, Minoli describes typical American garb as “clothes that fit terribly, baseball caps, white socks, clunky new balances, way too many colors, flip-flops from February to November, camera around their neck, city map in hand.” Do we all really dress like this? If so, get me to the mall!