You can go and see the Trevi Fountain for free, it’s just there, but it will cost you money if you ever want to see it again… Words and image by Jon Palmer There are actually lots of things you can do for free in Rome – especially if you happen to be around on […]
St Peter‘s (La Chiesa di San Pietro) in Portovenere stands on a promontory overlooking the Gulf of Poets Saint Peter’s at Portovenere is built on the site of a 5th-century church, and before that an earlier, pagan temple dedicated to Venus. It was consecrated in 1198 but its bands of black and white Carrara marble (the […]
Travel to Tuscany during the summer months and you can enjoy thrilling operatic performances in the region’s historic towns and villages. Adrian Mourby visits Lucca as it comes alive with the music of Giacomo Puccini Photos by Kate Tadman-Mourby Towards the end of his life, Giacomo Puccini admitted that one day he’d like to hear […]
Food writer Mario Matassa introduces some Italian classics – traditional dishes that are known all over the world, yet rarely prepared properly outside of Italy – and shows us how they should be made… Photos by Mario Matassa Everyone loves ‘spag bol’. It’s possibly Britain’s favourite meal. Yet many people would be surprised to learn that […]
The transhumance of livestock in Italy is a tradition that dates back centuries, even millennia… Transhumance, the act of moving livestock ‘across ground’ to new pastures, has been practised in Italy – and other parts of the world – for longer than anyone can remember. Recently, Italy, supported by Austria and Greece, asked to […]
Rachael Martin visits Cortona to meet Sarah Marder, a film-maker whose documentary explores the changed life of this Tuscan hilltop town Photos by iStock unless otherwise stated When Sarah Marder first started going to Cortona in the 1980s, she fell in love with a place and a time. At this point in her life she […]
The Cathedral of Saints Peter and Donatus in Arezzo, Tuscany, boasts a long history and some eye-catching architecture La Cattedrale dei Santi Pietro e Donato is the city cathedral of Arezzo, Tuscany. The façade is a 20th-century reconstruction, and the clock tower was added then too, but the rest of the church was built between the […]
If it’s ancient statues you want, this is the place to be, but don’t ignore the works on the piazza outside the museum either… Words & image by Jon Palmer Recognised as the world’s first public museum (though that really depends on what you mean by ‘museum’, what you mean by ‘public’, and what you […]
For lovers of Italian language, literature and culture, Lorenza Bacino offers a round-up of some of the nation’s lesser-known book fairs and literary festivals 1. CaLibro Festival, Città di Castello “We share a passion for books,” says Andrea Tafini, one of the organisers of the CaLibro Festival in Città di Castello, Perugia. His small group […]
Despite its origins in a terrible period of Venetian history, Il Redentore is a spectacular celebration that takes place in the city each July Words by Sara Scarpa. Images by Iain Reid Most years, on the afternoon of the third Saturday of July, my friends and I prepare for a fantastic event. We set up […]