PASSION FOR ITALY BLOG

SMALL GROUP TOURS TO ITALY - Part 1

Tuesday, 24 May 2011 11:24

Have you been to Italy many times and are looking for something a little bit different?

Or, are you traveling alone and want to be able to share experiences (and feel safe) but don't want to be herded around on a whirlwind bus tour of Italy?

Our Small Group Tours and Packages are the perfect solution!

We have a range of tours catering for a variety of interests. All our tours meet our criteria of small groups, reputable tour operators who share our passion for Italy, beautiful destinations and unique experiences.

For the rest of this week we will feature a different tour each day, giving you an idea of the options that are available.

Today's tour is for our energetic clients - CYCLING IN MAREMMA.

For anyone looking for authentic experiences, fewer tourists, and amazing flavours this 8 day cycling tour of the undiscovered Maremma region of Tuscany fits the bill - cycle through medieval towns, beautiful vistas and coastal roads.

On Learning to Speak Italian

Thursday, 12 May 2011 15:25

I took the train up to Florence for the weekend to meet one of my good Australian friends, who had just arrived in Italy for the first time. It was wonderful to speak English again and so great to laugh and joke in our way with our sayings where we only have to look at one another and both get the joke! When learning and speaking another language, it is really hard to express your humour as you never quite get the words right and it does not sound funny to the natives so I am often laughing to myself and I cannot share it as humour needs precise words to be comical and if you are not a native this is quite difficult....

POLITICIANS OF NAPLES!!

ALL I CAN SAY IS HANG YOUR HEADS IN SHAME POLITICIANS OF NAPOLI!! 

Hang your heads in shame!  

I have travelled in many third world countries and I never have seen anything like this.  The wind last night blew the meters high mountains of rubbish out of their piles on the street corners and all over the countryside and streets. Everywhere is covered with stinking, composting litter. 

I feel so sorry for the lovely people down here. They need to stage a revolution like Egypt and get rid of their dictator Berlusconi. You have taken away the people’s pride, no jobs for their young and now their city is piled high with rubbish. What respect you have for your people? What love do you have for your people?  
All I can say - is hang your heads in shame.  Absolutely.... Absolutely disgusting. I have no more words to describe it. I am in shock.

PUCCINI OPERA FESTIVAL 2011

Thursday, 05 May 2011 12:52

PUCCINI OPERA FESTIVAL 2011 - July and August

Torre del Lago, home of the Puccini Festival, lies between the Lake of Massaciuccoli and the Tyrrhenian Sea, 4 kilometres from the magnificent beaches of Viareggio on the Tuscan Riviera, and only 18 kilometres from Lucca and Pisa. 

The festival attracts approximately 40, 000 spectators every year to its open air theatre, just a few steps from the Villa Mausoleum where Giacomo Puccini lived and worked.  His mortal remains are now in a small chapel just outside the villa. 

Torre del Lago is a favourite destination of opera lovers and tourists who wish to visit the places where the most beloved composer of the 20th Century lived.

Food Simple and Pure in Italy

Wednesday, 04 May 2011 23:01

The sea is incredibly beautiful today. What I love about the spring in Italy is that the air is so soft – dolce. What I love about living in small villages anywhere in the world is that people have time to talk. Italians particularly love to talk, in fact you cannot shut them up!   Sometimes when Pepe (my local fruit man) and I are having conversation for example about the local dialects in Pozzuoli, he has the amazing ability to bring everyone else into the conversation.  Soon everyone has joined and announced their opinion on the subject!!.......

Motorbiking on Amalfi Coast Italy

Saturday, 30 April 2011 16:47

In fabulous Positano, Amalfi Coast, a village built on the edge of the mountain leading down to the sea. Here there are a thousand steps to go anywhere and views to die for. It is an amazing little place and I think everyone should go to the Amalfi coast at least once in their lifetime. The smallness of the towns here adds to the community feeling. Everyone is packed in together squashed between the mountain and the sea. I tell you to stay here in the summer would be one of the most fabulous weeks that you could ever have. It has it all- Views, mountains, sea beaches, great food, great walks.....I would love to bring my family here in the summer for the month.

I went riding on a motorbike with the lovely Rosella from Amalfi town who was showing me the some more fabulous apartments for Passion for Italy. An experience which was simply - one of the most fabulous I have ever had!!

TIME IN ITALY IS GENTLE

Monday, 25 April 2011 20:52
In Italy never expect to get to an appointment on time. It is the unexpected chaos that ensures that Italians are always late. The other side of the coin is that they put themselves first which is both a good thing and bad. Good for their life but bad for services.  If it is coffee time and you have lined up in a queue at the bank..... Down comes the sportello – window and the bank man goes off to have morning tea leaving you standing there for another half an hour.   "Please can you serve me first before you go"!!  With a wave of the hand off he goes and you have to decide to wait or come back another day.  Never go into a bank close to closing time or lunch time. As they say here – buonanotte!!......

EASTER IN ITALY PART TWO

Monday, 25 April 2011 20:35

Easter here is only a one day holiday on Easter Monday, which is unusual really being such a big Catholic country. However they make the most of the ceremonies playing the masses and processions over the loud speakers. Holy Thursday (Giovedi Santo) there was a mass where everyone donated a pot of wheat to fill the church to ensure a good harvest for the following year.

EATING OUT IN ITALY

Thursday, 21 April 2011 15:58

I always encourage my clients travelling in Italy to eat at the local restaurants where there are lots of local Italians and no tourists. However this means venturing into waters unknown where there could be a few surprises. There might be a waiter who can speak English and translate for you but it is a bit scary I must say when you do not recognize anything written on the menu. Lurking in that nice tranquil water might be a shark!! (By the way an Italian told me only today that the only sharks in Italy are the men and yes this is true too!!)......

EASTER IN ITALY

Monday, 18 April 2011 04:33
I have just partaken in a Palm Sunday Catholic procession and Way of the Cross for miles through the streets to the Port of Pozzuoli in Campania, finishing outside the spot where St. Paul stayed. It was very beautiful. I was surprised at how many young people were there especially young men. This was lovely to see. The prayers and songs were amplified out on loud speakers throughout the town so even if you were inside you could not but hear it. The onlookers too were very respectful.  The prayers in Italian sound so moving.  A lovely soft sun today which was nice to warm the cockles of one’s heart.

Easter is an important time in Italy; Vatican city in Rome, being the center of the world Catholic Church and also a separate state in Italy with its own rulings and autonomy. They even have their own stamp. The Vatican organisation is made of  80% Italians so the Catholic church is controlled by Italians even though the pope is German. The majority of popes over history have been Italian. And as Italians are slow to change their way of doing things (which also can be both good and bad)....is it any wonder that the Catholic Church is slow to change with the people!!

The easter eggs in the shops are very ornate and one can buy hand made large chocolate eggs with presents inside them. If one is a romantic man and wealthy, he can even buy an egg with a diamond bracelet inside for his lover. And girls - many Italian men are sporting diamond earings and no they are not gay!!

Way down in Pozzuoli, Campania Italy

Sunday, 17 April 2011 01:46

It is quite fresh here in Campagnia still and I thought spring would have arrived by now.  Settled now and working from my lovely apartment that I had last time when visiting this region, right on the beach at Pozzuoli on the gulf of Napoli. I can see the isle of Capri out my window now as I write and there is a bright red geranium on the balcony that would make a lovely typical italian postcard. Red geranium, light blue sea then the darker blue of Capri rising up from the sea - beautiful!!.

BOOKING APARTMENTS IN ITALY

Sunday, 03 April 2011 21:44

PITFALLS FOR THE INEXPERIENCED!

I recently have had a huge challenge booking many apartments in Italy at short notice for a large family in the July school holidays which as you all know is also the European and American summer school holidays.

Also many Italians take holidays in July to avoid the August traffic jams. Large three bedroom apartments are rare as hens'teeth in the major cities of Italy as all the large properties have been split up into smaller apartments for rent.

At the end of it all I was so happy that I was able to help this family because if they had tried to do it themselves without knowing the Italian ways - it would have been a disaster as it was challenging enough for us and we know who we are up against!!....

VOGALONGA RACE VENICE JUNE 2011

Wednesday, 30 March 2011 12:43

Vogalonga is a 30km non-competitive rowing race where hundreds of boats of every shape and form get together with hundreds of Venetian and foreign rowers. It is being held in Venice on Sunday 12th June 2011.

This day of festivity, completely devoted to rowing, makes it possible for Venice and the lagoon to be rediscovered along the race's singular course.

The first edition of the Vogalonga originated in 1974 to find a solution for the degradation of the lagoon due to noisy boats with outboard motors. Five hundred old Venetian boats gathered following the same route today.

Now the boats number more than 1700 with about 5000 rowers and Venetians are almost a minority in comparison with vigorous crews coming from all over the world. A medal is given to all the participants that cover the whole itinerary.

For accommodation in Venice during Vogalonga, contact us.

THE CAVALCATA SARDA, MAY 22 2011

The Sardinian Cavalcade is a pageant as well as a joyful gathering of people from all over the island of Sardinia, all bringing together various traditions. During this event, the town of Sassari bursts into life with colourful traditional costumes and decorations, horse shows, poetry competitions, chants and traditional dances.

Unlike most Sardinian feasts, the Cavalcata Sarda is not a religious festivity. The event has been celebrated since 1899, when King Umberto I and Queen Margherita of Savoia went to Sassari for the opening of a monument dedicated to King Vittorio Emanuele II , located in Piazza D'Italia. That day a spectacular cavalcade took place, with 3000 horsemen from all over the province parading in their traditional costumes.

Contact us for accommodation in Sassari and Sardegna.

ROME’S ALL NIGHT CELEBRATIONS FOR UNIFICATION

MARCH 16 2011

NOTTE TRICOLORE

For the 150th anniversary of the unification of Italy, the city of Rome has put together an entire program of events which begins with the Notte Tricolore (translated as the “three-coloured night” - the three colours being green, white and red of the Italian flag) on the evening of the 16th March.

Romans have been invited to decorate their windows, balconies, terraces, gates, courtyards and shop windows with the Italian colours.

The city centre will become one big coloured stage, hosting street performances and fireworks, military bands in concert, musicals, plays and lectures, guided tours. Many of Rome's most beautiful historic buildings will be lit by spectacular architectural projections.

Almost all of the events are free of charge, and the party kicks off in the Piazza del Campidoglio at 7pm.

150th Anniversary of Unification of Italy

Tuesday, 08 March 2011 09:22

17 March 2011 150th Anniversary of the Unification of Italy

All of Italy will be celebrating the day when in 1861  King Victor Emmanuel II became king of Italy with many events around the country but especially in Rome.

Schools and Offices will be closed.

ROME BEATICATION OF JOHN PAUL II

Tuesday, 08 March 2011 07:04

May 1 2011 will be chaos in Rome with thousands of Catholic pilgrims entering the city for the beatification ceremony of Pope John Paul II. As well May 1 is the labour day public holiday in Italy so it will be a busy day. Passion for Italy advises tourists who are not wishing to attend the ceremonies to delay their entrance into Rome to another day so as public transport facilities and roads will be overcrowded.    Please note that all non Roman citizens are not allowed to bring cars inside the central walls and parking is not allowed inside the walls otherwise a fine will be incurred by cameras. All car parking is outside the walls and entry is by bus or train.

For details of the ceremony and list of events for the BEATIFCATION OF POPE JOHN PAUL II please click here.

PASSION FOR ITALY CAN BOOK ACCOMMODATION IN ROME FOR THE EVENT.

Please view our online list of Accommodation in Rome and fill out the availability form and please submit your favourite two choices.

Chocolate Festival Perugia

DATES FOR 2012 - 19 - 28 OCTOBER 2012

The International Eurochocolate festival of Perugia is undoubtedly one of the most sought after Chocolate Festivals amongst Italians and chocolate lovers alike.

The Umbrian capital will turn into a huge open-air chocolate shop!

View our Perugia Hotels here and book at least six months before the festival as Perugia is a small city.

The popularity of this festival continues to grow and accommodation is limited.

OCTOBER 2011 UPDATE - please contact us now if you wish to arrange accommodation during the 2012 festival.

JAZZ IN ITALY UMBRIA JAZZ FESTIVAL 2011

Monday, 21 February 2011 10:02

Umbria Jazz 11, Perugia 8-17 July 2011.

This year’s festival, from 8 to 17 July, promises music at the highest level. On 9 July, their only Italian date, there is a supergroup comprising Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock and Marcus Miller, performing a tribute to their maestro Miles Davis, twenty years from his death.

And on 12 July Carlos Santana, the inventor of Latin rock, makes a very welcome return to Perugia. On 16 July there is BB King, the most celebrated, most honoured, most imitated and most loved blues artist playing today; and preceding him onstage is Trombone Shorty, one of the rising stars of New Orleans, with his band Orleans Avenue. All of these concerts will take place at the main festival venue, the Santa Giuliana Stadium.

WHERE TO GO IN ITALY

Monday, 21 February 2011 09:35
Some clients come to me and say ‘I want to go to Italy” but I do not know where. They have heard how wonderful it is but do not know where to travel other  than the famous spots in Rome and Venice.

When travelling the things you like as a person do not inherently change.  Choose the things you love as this then will be a real holiday. Catch the train if you do not like driving – drive a car if you do not like public transport.
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