Cibo – Phoenix, Arizona
Inasmuch as they’re both Romance languages, there are a lot of similarities between Spanish and Italian. Because Spanish was my first language, if spoken slowly enough I can probably understand thirty-percent of what is spoken in Italian. Alas, not all Spanish and Italian terms are lexical cognates. That is, they don’t have the same etymology or derivation. For example, the Italian term “mangia” means “eat up” (naturally, it’s one of my favorite Italian words) while perhaps its closest Spanish equivalent is “come.” Another Italian culinary term every self-respecting gastronome recognizes is “cibo” which translates in English to “food.” In Italy, life revolves around the preparation and enjoyment of good food (cibo buono). Hmm, maybe I should have been born…