Culture

Underground tunnels, burial sites, places of worship, hiding spaces. Catacombs have been all that throughout their history. Many cities – the older the better, of course – have some sort of underground networks of passages and chambers, some more famous …

Pizzoccheri are a traditional dish from Valtellina, a mountainous region between northern Lombardia and Switzerland. The dish has ancient origins, with some believing that the Romans already knew them, as we will see.  The recipe is quite simple: a dough made …

Medicine in Rome was at once incredibly different and incredibly close to what it is today. Different, of course, because of what 2,000 years of discoveries and research gave us; but similar, because some of our ancestors’ intuitions – which …

Baci Perugina must be the best-known Italian chocolate in the world: with their silver wrapping covered in blue stars, they look like a precious stone and they are pretty enough to be gifted just like that, on their own and …

If you think about it, Verona, one of our most beautiful cities, has been made world-famous by a Briton. And certainly not a random one: William Shakespeare. The Bard – this is what the residents of the land of Albion …

Arrivederci to another Natale…and buongiorno to what might be the sweetest month of the year. February, of course – that month that is overwrought with red hearts, flowers, sentimental cards, and perhaps the star of the show: chocolate! Italy produces …

I’ve been to Florence on several occasions, even though I haven’t in years – note to self: it’s time to pay a visit soon. There is so much to see and learn in this city: art lovers, historians, and foodies …

Fora Febraro che marso xé qua, people from Veneto say: “Let’s get rid of February, March is here!” The funny expression is also synonymous with a popular tradition in the region, called the Fora Febraro, rooted in the very history …

Banks: we all use them but have we ever thought about when and how they were created? History tells us that the earliest forms of banking – or something close to it – were practiced by the Assyrians and the …

Just like us, our ancestors, the Ancient Romans, liked to follow trends. After the conquest of Egypt, in 31 BC, it became popular – at least among the wealthy – to get buried … in pyramids. We know that, at …