Advice on how to live "la dolce vita"
A Day Tour Of Rome’s Ancient Bridges We often hear that all roads lead to Rome, but which side exactly? Cleaved in half by the River Tiber, the Eternal City has been eternally divided; its west bank the site of tranquil Trastevere, the imposing Janiculum Hill and the Vatican; its east bank home to …
Off the Beaten Track: The Best Things to Do in Venice Known famously and fondly as the “Floating City”, for centuries Venice functioned as the financial gateway between the East and the West. From the banks of its canals and mudflats stretched a sprawling empire whose territory spanned from Cyprus and the southern Peloponnese right …
Regions’ Greetings! Christmas Food And Festive Traditions From Around Italy With the long nights setting in, the temperatures beginning to plummet, and Christmas lights transforming towns and cities worldwide into winter wonderlands, it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas. It’ll soon be time to deck the halls and train the stomachs, especially here in …
Where to get the best aperitivo in Florence People Relaxing In a Cafe In Florence While there are some world famous Italian exports that travel well—think pasta, pizza, Pavarotti—there are others that really, inexplicably, don’t. The aperitivo slots into this second category, not because mulling over a bitter drink and some hors d’oeuvres from around …
Matera: the Must-See Miracle of Southern Italy Overview Of Matera The ancient city of Matera sits perched above the instep of the Italian boot, in the eastern extremities of the region of Basilicata. It’s a city quite unlike any other in Italy, not so much because hilltop settlements are thin on the ground—so to speak—across …
Five Lands in Two Days: Making the Most of Your Weekend in Cinque Terre Tucked away along the Ligurian Riviera, the Cinque Terre National Park continues to entice and enchant visitors with the rugged beauty of its landscapes and the natural charm of its villages. The UNESCO World Heritage site is made up of five …
Staking Out Florence’s Finest Bistecca Alla Fiorentina There’s an old Tuscan proverb that perfectly captures Florence’s culinary culture: “chi non carneggia, non festeggia”—“those who don’t eat meat don’t know how to celebrate.” Bold, red-blooded, and brash—especially at a time when vegetarianism is steadily on the up—it speaks volumes of a city in which the main …
When It Rains It Pours: Florence’s Flood Of 1966 A few months back, during a somewhat challenging week at work, an Italian colleague introduced me to one of his country’s best-loved idioms: piove sempre sul bagnato. Roughly translating as “it always rains where it’s already wet”, it represents one of the many cultural convergences between …
Where to Find the Best Gelato in Florence No trip to Italy would be complete without indulging in one of the country’s best loved culinary offerings: gelato. Shops that specialize in the stuff – gelaterie – line almost every street of the renaissance city, drawing tourists and locals alike with their mouthwatering displays of sweet, …
In the Footsteps of the Medici: Murder and Intrigue at the Heart of the Renaissance From its worn cobbled streets to its imposing medieval skyline, Florence’s historical center is steeped in history. Since its foundation in the first century B.C., the UNESCO world heritage site has played center stage to innumerable murders, affairs, intrigues and …