A lone shop open on the Ferragosto (August 15) national holiday in Pian di Scò received a visit from two English-speaking men who wanted to buy bread right before closure. The owner, Paolo Filippini, had put aside the last loaf for his family; after a moment of hesitation, he cut it in half and gave it, free of charge to the foreign visitors.
On August 19, a limousine-size car pulled up displaying the U.S. flag pulled up in front of the shop.
One of the men — who happened to be the American ambassador to the Vatican — had decided to return to buy bistecca alla fiorentina (Florentine-style steak) and other items. Vacationing in the area (the Casentino mountains in the province of Arezzo), he was struck by Filippini’s generosity and decided to repay in kind.
To read more in Italian, visit Florence’s La Repubblica news site.
