Italy Elevates Baltimore's Italian Consulate

While we were having fun at the Maserati Dealership looking at the fine Italian sports cars, enjoying spectacular Italian cooking, and listening to live Italian Operatic performances at the Festa della Repubblica Italiana (Laura melted when Elio Scaccio sang Bixio's "Mamma"), the gracious host Dr. Francesco Luigi Legaluppi was quietly receiving a promotion. 

If you can believe what you read in The Examiner:

On May 31, 2009 on the occasion of the Italian National Holiday Celebration hosted by the Italian Consul in Baltimore at Maserati of Baltimore,  H.E. Giovanni Castellaneta, Ambassador of Italy to the United States announced that the Italian Government has decided to elevate the current Italian Consulate in Baltimore to Consulate General to be effective pursuant to formal acceptance by the United States Government. His Excellency further announced that the current Consul in Baltimore, The Honorable [Hon.] Francesco Luigi Legaluppi has been designated to head the new office as its Consul General.

I read: "Italy elevates the current (honorary) Italian Consulate in Baltimore to Consulate General".  So I haven't checked with anyone who knows, but I think this means that Baltimore's is no longer an "honorary" Consulate under the Philadephia Consulate General, but is rather a Consulate General itself.  By my count, there were only 10 Italian Consulate Generals in the US prior to this change (I didn't count the Embassy in Washington).

Francesco is Laura's Sister's Husband's Brother, but you probably knew that ;)  Laura's sister Crystal, her husband Marco, his brother Francesco...

Pictures from the Festa are in the previous post.  I wear the Italian Flag lapel pin in honor of the occasion.



Elio's MySpace, if you're curious.  It has nice audio clips, but not Mamma...