Michelangelo’s David still standing… on fractured ankles Bad posture can lead to joint problems in the fittest of us, and standing slouched against a tree stump for over half a millennium seems to have caught up with Michelangelo’s statue of David. Scientists have discovered “micro-fractures on the lower part of both legs”, likely caused by […]
My mother in law remembers shopping for shoes at Ferragamo in Florence many moons ago and Salvatore Ferragamo would be there with his leather apron around his waist. The shop is still the same, located in the magnificent Palazzo Spini Feroni, built in the 13th century by Geri Spini, in the most elegant area of […]
Hannah Fielding talks about the inspiration for her new romantic novel, The Echoes of Love, which is set in the splendour of Venice… What made you fall in love with Venice? Its history, grandeur and beauty. I love the red sunsets on the canal that turn the water to fire, and then Venice at […]
When Rome’s famed Cinecittà cinema studio complex opened its doors for a Fellini exhibition in 2011, visitors could walk onto film sets including replicas of a stretch of 19th century Broadway used in Gangs of New York and the sprawling ancient Roman Forum built for the BBC television series Rome. Cinecittà was built in 1937 […]
Farfalla (n.f) Butterfly. Farfalla is a strange word because, although it does derive directly from Latin, the way that it has morphed into modern Italian is unusual. The Latin, ‘papilio’, has become ‘papillon’ in French, and the word retains its ‘p’ form in Old Florentine (the basis of modern Italian), in the Bolognese, Milanese and […]
In 1659, the Medici family, now well and truly the Grand Dukes of Tuscany, sold their 1400s Renaissance home in Florence, where they had lived when they were bankers and the unofficial rulers of the Florentine Republic, to the Riccardi family. Understandably, the new owners immediately renovated. Possibly their most spectacular addition to the palazzo […]
Located in the Piazza San Marco in Venice, the prestigious Caffè Florian is the oldest coffee house in Italy, and has attracted a particularly high calibre of guests over the years… This orchestra, playing al fresco in a time-honoured Italian tradition, are part of the expected luxury of Caffè Florian. Opening in 1720, it is […]
Located just outside the city of Agrigento in Sicily is one of the most iconic Italian sights, the Valley of the Temples, which serves to remind us of ancient Greek rulers… The Valle dei Templi is, quite understandably, one of Italy?s mostprized archeological relics. Built between 510 BC and 430 BC, it was excavated and […]
With incredible detailed stonework, the Arch of Constantine on the Via di San Gregario in Rome marks a significant historical victory that changed the course of religion? The impressive Arco di Costantino is one of the key architectural sights of ancient Rome. Located between the Colosseum and the Palatine Hill, it was built to celebrate […]
Sally FitzGerald celebrates the 100th anniversary of DH Lawrence’s move to Lake Garda with a tour around the town of Gargnano… When someone visits a place for a day and decides to stay for six months you know they must have discovered something quite special. This is exactly what happened when the much-loved English writer […]