All Around Italy

For Christian Catholics, Holy Week is the most spiritually pregnant moment of the year, even more than Christmastime. But in Italy, this is a time resonant with meaning among people who don’t believe, too: Holy Week is a time of …

Chocolate eggs are stacked high in supermercati, Colomba dove cakes decorate pasticcerie windows and lambs are being made ready for the dining table. But away from the well-known traditions of an Italian Easter there are many different ways to celebrate. …

I’m not a great fan of the fantasy genre — exception made for a recently discovered love for the Harry Potter saga: yes, I know. I come about 20 years  late — but who doesn’t know about J.R.R. Tolkien? Add …

The Etruscans are one of the most fascinating pre-Roman civilizations but, puzzlingly, also one of those we know the least about: the real Etruscan mystery is that of their origin and of their language,  both  of which remain largely unknown, …

The Adriatic coast of Italy is one with many secrets, among which two sites that have been visited by angels of all stripes: some of them have hovered over the land for centuries.  Perhaps today they have finally vacated the …

Deep-rooted cultural and religious rituals are resplendent in Gravina in Puglia, an ancient town sitting timelessly beside one of the many karst ravines scoring the landscape on Puglia’s border with Basilicata. Alta Murgia national park, a protected plateau, is nearby.  …

“Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio? A nation turns its lonely eyes to you,” Simon and Garfunkel sang in their 1960s song Mrs. Robinson.  Baseball legend Joe DiMaggio was a cultural icon in the ’50s and ’60s, a time when …

Though ancient, the aerie of Ferrazzano has survived unspoiled into the 21st century. The medieval village of Samnite origin also gave birth to actor Robert De Niro’s great grandparents, Giovanni Di Niro and Angelina Mercurio, who left in search of their US …

Sardinia, cradle of history and special traditions, holds within also plenty of culinary secrets. Let’s ideally travel to the west of the island. We are in the enchanting area of Marmilla, a small region at the very edges of the …

Our readers may remember we did tackle the subject before: there are homes for sale in Italy for just 1 euro. Mind, the news made it big in the US, so you probably didn’t only hear it from us. Let’s …