It has been reputedly used since 6,000BC, and originates from Greece and ancient Asia Minor, but what of the modern-day oils on offer? Italia! selects seven of the best… We all use olive on a virtually daily basis. It’s become a staple in the kitchens of everyone who loves all things Italian. Arguments will rage […]
Each year, in a remote village in the Peligna valley, a festival takes place that dates back 3,000 years. Nadia Attura attends a celebration in the valley of the snakes. Deep in the Peligna valley, where north Italy meets south, villagers are preparing to celebrate Europe’s oldest festival: a bizarre, 3,000-year-old tradition that mixes ancient […]
Florence at Dusk by E Bellock
Since the height of its 17th-century splendour, this seductively sensuous Carnevale has lured visitors from afar. Sadie Briggs visits Venice in search of the magic behind the masks. Being swept along tall, narrow streets in an anonymous crowd of beautifully opulent revellers with music, shouting and whoops of excitement coming from every direction, can be […]
Like a rainbow of painted plaster, the village of Manarola hangs onto the cliffs above the swirling seas of the Gulf of La Spezia on the coast of Liguria – the home of fine wines and a one-time haunt of Byron’s. The Gulf of La Spezia is also known as the Poet’s Gulf – and […]
Fiat 500, Amalfi by Robert Birchall of Heath Charnock “I took this on a visit to the town of Amalfi when we visited Italy in July 2010 for our 25th Wedding Anniversary. I felt it summed up the love affair the Italians have for the original Fiat 500. Spot the little red heart!”
The smuggling of the mortal remains of St Mark to Venice from Alexandria in 828 satisfied a Divine Will – according to the Venetian version of the story, anyway… When, in the 4th Century AD, St Mark the Evangelist allegedly visited the then uninhabited lagoon, an angel appeared unto him saying: “Pax tibi Marce, Evangelistameus!” […]
In 1599, the Capuchin monks of Palermo made a macabre discovery: some of the corpses they had entombed in their catacombs had become naturally mummified. Then the monks decided to preserve one of their own… When the Capuchin monks of Palermo mummified Brother Silvestro of Gubbio they started a trend. From 1599 to 1880, when […]
Gondolas on the Grand Canal by Sian Jones “This was taken from Rialto bridge, it shows the variety of boats using the Grand Canal, as well as the elaborate buildings. My partner and I were there in May, we had been to explore the wonderful Rialto markets. It looks like the gondolas are going to […]
Almost 2,000 years ago, Emperor Vespasiano built the Colosseo in Rome – a giant oval stadium capable of hosting over 50,000 spectators that still stands today. No other monument says ‘Rome’ quite as much as this: the Colosseum, situated towards the south of the central area of the Eternal City (in the grounds of Nero’s […]