Cisco punta su Napoli: «Ormai è la Disneyland dell’innovazione»
Scampia, Secondigliano, San Giovanni a Teduccio. L’istituto tecnico Fermi, il carcere e la Federico II. Cosa hanno in comune? La multinazionale Cisco. Che ormai da tempo ha deciso di investire su Napoli, anzi sul capitale umano napoletano. «Perché qui abbiamo trovato bellezza ma soprattutto competenze. Il nostro ceo, Chuck Robbins, è rimasto affasc...
Bosco del Sasseto
In the late 19th century, a banker named Edoardo Cahen purchased the castle of Torre Alfina and the surrounding forests. It’s rumored that his family obtained titles (marquis) and royal support for having supported King Victor Emmanuel II during the key period of the Italian Risorgimento. Cahen spent significant sums on restructuring the castle, wh...
On November 10th, 1902 Bocconi University was inaugurated
Different events have taken place over the course of history that have changed the course of things. These are remembered every year through the celebrations of their anniversaries. One of these is the one that took place in Milan on 10th November 1902. On this day the Bocconi University was inaugurated, to soon represent one of the most important...
The Mamuthones: traditions of Sardinia
Carnival in Sardinia (Carrasegare) is one of the most evocative and most popular events to take place on the island. Suspended between land and sea, the Sardinian land reflects its duality even in the masks that populate the Sardinian Carnival, existing in the limbo between nightmare and fantasy, between superstition and sacredness. Among these we...
A walk around Agriturismo La Fontaccia
Agriturismo La Fontaccia is located in Rufina, Italy, which is the eastern part of Florence in a very little known area filled with secrets to explore. The main difference between Rufina and other more well-known areas of Tuscany is that the little village did not change for tourists – giving travelers the opportunity to see things in a more authe...
The colors of the Italian street signs
When you come to a crossroads in Italy you may become disoriented by the multitude of signs. It may be hard to see the sign you are looking for while you are driving, especially if you see ten or more other signs. Italians have tried to make it easier by using different colors for their signage system: A blue background is used for city/town direct...
A Spirited and Unconventional Guide to Italian Culture
Bolognese . . . Sauce or Dog? The answer is: both! But let’s first explore the city of Bologna, home of both the legendary pasta sauce and noble breed of dog. All too often overlooked on the basic Italian tourist itinerary: a buzzing prosperous city renowned as the gastronomic center of Italy and capital of the Emilia-Romagna. It has an opulent fee...
The Soave Castle, war and sweetness
There is such a sweetness to its name: Soave, in Italian, means sweet and mellifluous. Yet everyone must realize that this medieval fortress, nestled up on a hill, probably was a theater of war, blood and bitter episodes and not delicate memories. Just by way of example, in 1338 there was a terrible battle between Rolando de’ Rossi from Parma, a ge...
Words on the street: graffiti campaign aims to save endangered Italian vocabulary
The Italian language is in danger of losing its beauty and complexity, language experts have warned, as writing becomes increasingly simplistic and people rely on an ever-smaller range of vocabulary with which to express themselves. Italian, as its students know, is a complex language with many fascinating words. But many of these words are now fal...
Boario Terme: an Italian Spa complex
There are four natural springs inside the Park of the Terme di Boario, each one characterized by different mineral concentrations and beneficial features: Antica Fonte, Igea, Fausta and Boario. At the center stands the Ancient Fountain Pavilion, a domed loggia, built in the early twentieth century in Art Nouveau style by architect Amerigo Marazzi....
Piedmont: Le Langhe
I was born in the province of Cuneo, near the Alps, in a village that looks like a still from a 1930’s movie, where women still feel they need to have red lipstick and heels to leave the house and go buy bread, where Sunday is still the day you go to mass at eleven in the morning, then stroll down the portici of the main street, chatting with peopl...
Tavole dei Briganti
Names, dates, and symbols are written all over an area densely covered in flat calcareous rocks high in the Apennines, at over 6,500 feet above sea level. They were written by bands of rebels, robbers, and outlaws following the conquest of the southern Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, leading to a unified Italian kingdom. The widespread brigantaggio mo...