Culture

Spiaggia libera o stabilimento? This is the eternal question of Italy’s sea vacanzieri.  Spiaggia libera, which means, literally, “free beach,” is open to everyone, but has no services, besides an outdoor shower and public toilets. Stabilimenti, on the other hand, offer full services …

It is the longest river in Italy and it gives the name to one of its richest areas, the Pianura Padana,  but the Po, especially for the people who live along its banks, from Piemonte to Emilia Romagna, it’s much more than that. It’s …

When we think about the quintessential Renaissance artist, thoughts – quite rightly – go almost immediately to Leonardo or Michelangelo, and only those with a passion for and some knowledge of art history would mention Benvenuto Cellini. But the Florentine goldsmith is …

It isn’t common to notice how much our language changes through time because, often, change is subtle and takes place through many years. When you think of it, Italians introduced English terms in their everyday language almost without noticing and the same …

Love it or hate it Milan is, with Rome, the most important city in the country. For many, it is the real capital of Italy, because it is its main economic and commercial center. Milan is also, needless to say, the trendiest city …

The Etruscans are widely considered the first great cultural and military power in the peninsula. They had a developed society, good technological knowledge, a complex language, and a complex spiritual system. Their refined aesthetics were powerful enough to influence their most famous …

In truth, it isn’t really their birthday we celebrate this August, but the 50th anniversary of their discovery. Since that day – it was the 16th of August 1972 – the Bronzi di Riace, perhaps the most famous classical statues in Italy, …

Superstitious or not, don’t we all like to tip the odds in our favor with a little sprinkle of good luck – especially these days? Every culture has its go-to list of good luck enhancers, but when it comes to Italian …

Don’t ask an Italian to read subtitles at the movies: we just don’t do that! Lazy cinema-goers could not be bothered to do it through a foreign film as everyone else in the world does, and in fact, they don’t even need …

Italy is a country where cheese is king. So much so, we kind of fight with our cousins, the French, to decide who loves cheese more. Truth is, both countries do. Cheese is more than something you use to add flavor to …