The Ice-Cream Makers (39 page)

• ‘Cradle' by Ida Gerhardt, translation by Laura Vroomen. Poem appears in Gerhardt,
Collected Poems
, Athenaeum–Polak & Van Gennep, Amsterdam, 1980.

• ‘Shinto' by Jorge Luis Borges, translation by Hoyt Rogers, in
Selected Poems
(edited by Alexander Coleman), Viking, New York, 1999, p. 457.

• ‘Solitude' by Galsan Tschinag, translation (from the Dutch) by Laura Vroomen.

• ‘When I return from Holland I'll give you Lego …' by Boris Ryzhy, translation (from the Dutch) by Laura Vroomen.

Acknowledgements

I'm greatly indebted to the Olivo family of ice-cream parlour Venezia in Rotterdam. They spoke to me at length about their family history, invariably over an ice-cream, milkshake, or espresso. Likewise, they welcomed me in Venas di Cadore, where I was introduced to members of their extended family and other ice-cream makers who provided me with invaluable information.

I'm extremely grateful to Bas Kwakman, director of the Poetry International Festival in Rotterdam. Over the course of several conversations he told me extensively about his work and travels. He also showed me his collection of drawings of hotel rooms. I really appreciate his openness.

I would like to thank Dorine de Vos for the wonderful and peaceful spot (‘the servant's room') where I was able to write this book, not to mention the many espressos she made me.

The following sources have been of greater or lesser importance:

Bovenkerk, Frank et al.,
Italiaans ijs
.
De opmerkelijke historie van de Italiaanse ijsbereiders in Nederland
(
Italian Ice-cream: the remarkable history of Italian ice-cream makers in the Netherlands
), Boom, Meppel/Amsterdam, 1983.

David, Elizabeth,
Harvest of the Cold Months: the social history of ice and ices
, Michael Joseph, London, 1994.

Oltheten, Harry,
Elio Talamini
.
Entrepeneur en visionair
(
Elio Talamini: entrepreneur and visionary
), Fortis Age, Deventer, 2005.

Reinders, Pim,
Een Coupe Speciaal. De wereldgeschiedenis van het consumptie-ijs
(
The Scoop: a world history of gelato
), L.J. Veen, Amsterdam/Antwerpen, 1999.

About the Author

Title Page

Copyright Page

How My Father Lost His Heart to a Hammer-thrower Weighing Eighty-three Kilos

The Discovery of Ice-cream by My Great-Grandfather in 1881

Why Giuseppe Talamini Fled to the New World

‘The Spirit That Creates One Object'

How My Father Sang the National Anthem with a Bag of Onions on His Head

The Fraudster Marco Polo and the Invention of the Ice-Cream Cone

The Snow of Yesteryear

In Amsterdam

Like Sophia Loren's Buttocks

My Brother's Wedding and My Father's Songbird

Jacuzzis and Ironing Boards

My Brother's Seed

What's a Couple of Seconds?

The Night My Brother Made Grappa Ice and I Fathered My Nephew

‘A Soft, Feathery Breath'

In Venezia's Kitchen

A Beginning, an End

List of Cited Poems

Acknowledgements