All Around Italy

We made a brief stop at Grassano, one of the two small southern villages where Mussolini exiled Carlo Levi to silence him during the fascist’s ruinous reign.  But the real story of both Scotellaro and Levi is found in Matera. …

After visiting Fellini’s hometown of Rimini, our journey through the cinematic roots of the Emilia-Romagna region leads us to the city of Ferrara. Besides being known as one of the “capitals” of the Italian Renaissance, as well as because of …

The “Scoppio del Carro” or Explosion of the Cart, is one of the most spectacular festivals in Italy. It’s an ancient tradition that is deeply rooted in folklore. One that’s exciting and noisy as it is colourful. This is Easter, …

In the summer of 2015, the city of Bologna hosted in its town hall a successful exhibition titled Emilia-Romagna, terra di cineasti (Emilia-Romagna, a land of filmmakers): inspired by an eponymous essay written in 1990 by the influential film critic …

Perched atop three Tuscan hills, the ancient walled city of Siena is famous for many things. Its medieval streets and architecture have barely changed in 800 years. Its polychrome marble cathedral rivals the beauty of Florence’s own. And its historic …

During the early Rena-issance, the noble Malaspina family became so powerful that it managed to rule over the border region between Tuscany, Liguria, and Emilia for several centuries. Instrumental to this success was their control over the Apuan Alps surrounding …

After three eventful days in Naples, we rented a car and drove over the mountain pass to the Amalfi Coast, the iconic site of southern affluence and prosperity. The Amalfi Coast is another of those iconic, idealized images of the …

The pristine medieval village Civita di Bagnoregio has paradoxically found a boom in tourism due to its slow, steady collapse down a jagged cliff of volcanic rock. Its nickname is Il Paese che Muore because it has actually been collapsing …

Bagheria is a curiosity, a literary space in the most exotic place in Europe: Sicily at the crossroads of the Mediterranean, part of Europe and Africa, yet belonging entirely to neither. Sicily remains a unique land with an Arabic vibe, …

Without cars, buses or other vehicles, Venice is a pedestrian paradise—until you get lost. As I discovered on a recent visit, you need more than a map to navigate the Venetian labyrinth: You need a new vocabulary. As in other …