Our Story
Passaggi d’Italia grew from a shared belief that travel can be a form of understanding.
For many years, Carla Simonini and Chandra Harris have studied the history, cultures, and landscapes of Italy as scholars and teachers. Through their research and travels they came to see how deeply place, memory, and everyday traditions shape Italian life — from the foods grown in volcanic soil to the mountain towns that sent generations of emigrants across the Atlantic.
Passaggi d’Italia was created to share that perspective with travelers who want to experience Italy more thoughtfully. Rather than rushing through famous landmarks, these journeys focus on the places where history and daily life intersect: small towns, working farms, local festivals, and landscapes that still carry the stories of the past.
Traveling in small groups, guests are invited to experience Italy not simply as visitors, but as attentive observers and participants in the living traditions of the regions we explore.
Meet Your Guides
Carla Simonini, Co-Founder
As co-founder of Passaggi d’Italia, I come to this work as someone who has spent a lifetime helping people understand Italy through its language, culture, history, and lived experience.
As a professor, my work was always outward-facing and community-centered. I designed courses and programs that moved learning beyond the classroom, most notably an immersive summer program in Cefalù, Sicily, where history and language were encountered on foot and in conversation along ancient streets and in open-air markets.
While accompanying my students, I became increasingly focused on building trust with people and places, seeing how historical events shape everyday life, and noticing how the past endures in food, customs, and local craft. This sharpened my attention to the questions thoughtful travelers care about most: what authenticity looks like beyond postcard images, how connection grows through shared time and meals, and how history and daily life give places their character.
Today, I bring that same approach to a new audience. Through Passaggi d’Italia, I apply the principles of experiential learning to cultural travel, guiding guests who want to understand not just what they’re seeing, but why it matters and how it connects to the people who call these places home, and to ourselves.
- Ph.D. in Italian & Italian American Studies from Brown University (2006)
- Associate Professor of Italian at Youngstown State University (2010-2018)
- Editor-in-Chief of Italian Americana (2016-2024)
- Founding Director & Endowed Associate Professor in Italian American Studies at Loyola University Chicago (2018-2024)
Chandra Harris, Co-Founder
As co-founder of Passaggi d’Italia, I come to this work as someone who has spent a lifetime helping people understand Italy through its language, culture, history, and lived experience.
As a professor, my work was always outward-facing and community-centered. I designed courses and programs that moved learning beyond the classroom, most notably an immersive summer program in Cefalù, Sicily, where history and language were encountered on foot and in conversation along ancient streets and in open-air markets.
While accompanying students across Italy, I became increasingly focused on what deepens understanding, building trust with people and places, seeing how historical events shape everyday life, and noticing how the past endures in food, customs, and local craft. These experiences sharpened my attention to the questions thoughtful travelers care about most, what authenticity looks like beyond postcard images, how connection grows through shared time and meals, and how history and daily life give places their particular character.
Today, I bring that same approach to a different audience. Through Passaggi d’Italia, I apply the principles of experiential learning to cultural travel, guiding guests who want to understand not just what they are seeing, but why it matters and how it connects to the people who call these places home, and to ourselves.
- Ph.D. in Italian & Italian American Studies from Brown University (2006)
- Associate Professor of Italian at Youngstown State University (2010-2018)
- Editor-in-Chief of Italian Americana (2016-2024)
- Founding Director & Endowed Associate Professor in Italian American Studies at Loyola University Chicago (2018-2024)
