La vita italiana

It is difficult to say exactly when vigilia d’Ognissanti or Halloween first took hold in Italy.  This spooky day seems to have floated into existence like a ghost, almost without notice.  Some sources say that it was around the 1990s …

As if the reputation of Poveglia Island were not terrifying enough to satisfy anyone’s taste for the macabre, in 1922 government authorities had managed to add to the island’s ominous character and reputation by building an asylum for the mentally …

To make a story good, you need to set its background straight.    So, think of Venice. Not that of today, of course, but rather that of the 18th century: then, la Serenissima had been enjoying her role of European …

Now that Dan Brown’s Inferno has exploded onto the big screen, you may be wondering what you’re in for. Personally I enjoyed it, and for one reason in particular. The spell-binding presence of a true celebrity, the Palazzo Vecchio in …

Fifty years ago rain, mud and sorrow descended on two of Italy’s most loved historic cities, Florence and Venice. At the height of the floods waters rose to 6.7m in parts of Florence and inundated over 75% of Venice, leaving …

The drive in, a milkshake, James Dean wearing his jeans: is there anything more quintessentially “americana” than this? As pleasant as it may be, we don’t need to take a trip down memory lane to realize how intertwined with American …

Italy, a country well-known for its beauty, hides undiscovered neighborhoods far from the typical touristic routes. In Emilia Romagna, the region surrounded by Lombardy, Veneto and Tuscany, there are places that are so surreal and beautiful that when you first …

Of the many islands surrounding Venice, there is one located to the south, quite close to the shoreline of Lido. It is the island of Poveglia, referred to by some as “the island of terror.” Venetians prefer not to discuss …

Murano glassmakers created Gallileo’s first telescope lenses. They decorated the palaces of Europe with their breathtaking chandeliers and glittering mirrors. And their glassblowing still draws thousands of visitors each year to the Venetian lagoon. But away from the blistering hot …

Between 1820 and 1992 over five and a half million Italians left their homes to make new lives in the United States of America. They were following in the footsteps of early European explorers. And whilst the journeys weren’t always …