Giulia Franceschini

When we think of glass and crystal in Italy, thoughts immediately go to Venice, and rightly so. However, we shouldn’t discount another important tradition, that of Tuscany. In fact, Florence was known for its glass and crystal production already during the Renaissance, when glassmakers …

Coral is a mesmerizing material: it is alive, it belongs to the sea and, just like everything that comes from water – like pearls, sea shells, and Venus, the goddess of Beauty and Love – it has something ancestral and magical. …

Younger Gen-Xers (no, I don’t like the “old millennials” label) – and every generation before – remember the thrill of walking with mille lire in their hand to buy five pacchetti di figurine, or the comfort that same walk would give when it …

For us Italians, it is a familiar melody and we all know its lyrics. Many of us learned it in elementary school, along with the first lines of our national anthem. But the rest of the world, probably, only got …

Our beautiful country has a lot to offer for both nature and art lovers. But how could we forget history? Italy has been at the heart of European and Mediterranean history for centuries and its historical relevance cannot be discounted. …

Superheroes are ubiquitous in today’s world: they are everywhere, from comics to movie franchises, from commercials to video games. Children dress up like them, adults enjoy watching or reading about their struggle to defeat evil and let good triumph.  The American …

There are two countries within Italy. One, the Vatican, is the smallest sovereign state in the world. The other, San Marino, is the most ancient Republic still extant. There is something very magical about San Marino, a place which I had …

Ah! The Costiera Amalfitana! The beautiful Amalfi and the charming Positano, but also Ravello and the historical wealth of Pompeii. And then, out there, just a stone-throw away from the coast, there are its islands: Ischia, Procida, Ventotene, Ponza, and Capri, …

The Colosseum is a symbol of Rome and Italy, with which everyone is familiar, even those who’ve never visited us. It is majestic and grandiose, as its name suggests, but also reassuring in a way: just like an old friend or a …

The Abbey of Montecassino is a symbol of spirituality, history, and resilience. The patron Saint of Europe and father of Western Monasticism Benedict of Norcia founded the abbey in 529 AD. He had reached the hills of Montecassino from Subiaco, on foot, with other …