Join our Caffe' Letterario for a discussion of another Italian favorite: Tiziano Terzani's memoirs, "A Fortune-Teller Told Me: Earthbound Travels in the Far East."

“An utterly charming and engaging travel book that offers vivid portraits of unusual corners of Asia, told by a skilled raconteur whose eyes were open wide.” — Los Angeles Times Book Review

Warned by a Hong Kong fortune-teller not to risk flying for an entire year, Tiziano Terzani—a vastly experienced Asia correspondent—took what he called “the first step into an unknown world. . . . It turned out to be one of the most extraordinary years I have ever spent: I was marked for death, and instead I was reborn.”

Traveling by foot, boat, bus, car, and train, he visited Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, China, Mongolia, Japan, Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia. Geography expanded under his feet. He consulted soothsayers, sorcerers, and shamans and received much advice—some wise, some otherwise—about his future. With time to think, he learned to understand, respect, and fear for older ways of life and beliefs now threatened by the crasser forms of Western modernity. He rediscovered a place he had been reporting on for decades. And reinvigorated himself in the process.

Author: Born in Florence, Tiziano Terzani studied law at the prestigious Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies in Pisa. After graduating, he worked for Olivetti and a business trip to Japan changed his life. He moved to New York to study at Columbia University at the School of International and Public Affairs, with a specialization on Chinese language and culture. He later became a prominent journalist and writer who covered Asia for Italian and German newspapers between the 1970s and the early 2000s.

Location: In person in Honolulu. Registered guests will receive an email with address prior to the event. You must have read the book to participate, grazie :-).

RSVP: A week prior to program.

Note: The Friends of Italy Society of Hawaii is not responsible for any liability, cost, and damages which could arise from the programs; and does not provide any refunds, except if it cannot deliver the program, for instance in the case of insufficient enrollment.

Questions: Email us at info@friendsofitalyhawaii.org.