All Around Italy

Among the reasons that make the Tuscan region one of the most beloved of the whole Bel Paese, the fine arts, its unique landscapes and its delicious food are definitely on top of the list. What is more, the possibilities …

Italy is all beautiful, but it’s undeniable that outside national borders some regions are more popular than others: topping the world’s preferences are usually Tuscany, Sicily and Umbria, followed by the regions where our most famous cities are: Campania for …

For Italians, the piazza or square, is not just the architectural space that characterizes cities and villages, but an open air, urban living room. It is the heart of each Italian town where history, architecture and social relations become one. …

For a new angle on Italy, ditch the car and try sailing off on the Ionian Sea along the coast off Rocca Imperiale, a bijou-size borgo that just joined the club of the most beautiful villages of Il Bel Paese. A sojourn …

“Industrial city of the 20th century:” this is how Ivrea has been recently introduced to the UNESCO World Heritage List, at the beginning of the month of July. Ivrea is little known outside of Italy, but its most beloved son, …

For a little town just off the A16 autostrada, east of Naples, Nola has some big claims to fame. Spartacus once conquered it, Hadrian tried and the first Roman Emperor Caesar Augustus died here. Nola also famously introduced bells to …

There is a remote island of resilient men in southwestern Sardinia. It is called San Pietro and legend has it that St. Peter visited in 46 AD. The lovely town of Carloforte lies at its heart as an island within …

As your eyes acclimatize to the soft ambient light, sacred statues begin to peek out from shaded alcoves. A single shaft of dazzling sunlight hits the floor, drawing your gaze up to the heavens. And the smell of incense assails …

Born Joanne Stefani Germanotta, Lady Gaga was raised in Manhattan, but her melodramatic excess and sense of the theatrical baroque might spring from her Sicilian cultural matrix. Her grandfather came from Naso, a small, isolated, aristocratic town with 4,000 residents …

Summer is on its way, or so we all hope here in Italy. The weather remains unstable, albeit temperatures are pleasant and I happily enjoyed my first seasonal swim in the sea over a week ago. In any case, with …