As an Italian-Briton I myself can help answer this question in some detail. I was born and raised in the UK, however I am a third generation Italian. My mum was born in the UK however my gran came over when she was young as well. One thing that I always wonder is how did my family manage to keep all it's roots. Well for starters, My gran, mum and myself all live under the same roof. Thanks to that I can speak fluent Italian, even more so than my mum can which you'd think would be odd. However I think the main thing is keeping contacts with family in the old country, also friends of you can.

When Tony went to Italy, he and the guys all looked like tourists and didn't seem really Italian at all. The different between somebody like Tony and myself, is that I go there every year and I have friends over there that I've known since I was a child. To feel like a real Italian you have to integrate with it's society, it's not all about the wine, Pizza and mountains. Once you realize this, you think more like an Italian and trust me, most Italians don't think the way people make it out to be.