Reviews
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Schoenhof’s Foreign Books
Arabic, Dutch, English, French, General, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Irish, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Persian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, Yiddish, Websites, Bookstores/Libraries, Kids
Founded in 1856, Schoenhof’s claims to have the “largest collection of foreign books in North America.” As a student at Harvard, I used to shop at their main store in Harvard Square for my language and literature course materials. I…
Italian American Museum
Italian, Museums/Cultural
The Italian American Museum building, located in Little Italy in Manhattan, used to house Banca Stabile, a bank for Italian immigrants in New York City. When I visited the museum back in 2009, it had an exhibition on the bank that…
Palombo Bakery Creamery Caffe
Italian, Food and Drink
During my Italian studies, on an expedition to Arthur Avenue in the Bronx, I stopped by this establishment for a coffee break, because I thought I might get to speak or at least hear Italian. The place was bustling, extremely…
Little Italy, The Bronx
Italian, Neighborhoods
Arthur Avenue, the main strip of Little Italy in the Bronx, is beautiful and charming and worth a field trip (or multiple field trips). Take the B or D subway to Fordham Road, walk 10 minutes, and you are in a…
Ferrara
Italian, Food and Drink
When I visited this Little Italy café back in 2009, I had the most heavenly latte I can remember having in my entire life. It was also at that time the most costly latte of my life. As I drank it,…
Rizzoli Bookstore
English, French, General, Italian, Spanish, Bookstores/Libraries, Kids
This is a truly gorgeous bookstore with a wonderful selection of books—in English, Italian, Spanish, and French. There are not many stores in New York with a meaningful supply of foreign-language books. This is one, and it seems to…
Italian Cultural Institute in New York
Italian, Museums/Cultural, Classes/Conversation
Visit the Istituto Italiano di Cultura di New York for a wide range of events: film screenings, musical performances, lectures, etc. There is also a library, which as of this writing was under inventory and not available to…
Central Park
Arabic, Dutch, English, French, General, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Persian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, Yiddish, Parks, Kids
Central Park draws international visitors year round, but if you really want to hear other languages, walk around here during the three non-freezing seasons: spring, summer, and fall. Summer especially is crazy with tourists. You can hear dozens of languages.…
Älskling
Arabic, Dutch, English, French, General, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Irish, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Persian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, Shopping, Kids
Älskling, which means “darling” in Swedish, sells baby clothes online in dozens of languages. When I first encountered this product in an Upper West Side shop some years ago, I was fortunate enough to be given a tour by…