Traveling To Italy In Spring, By Way Of The Fava Bean
The first time I ever tasted a fava bean was after landing in Rome on my very first trip to Italy, back in May of 1991, and driving to Todi (in Umbria), where I was spending the whole glorious summer. Our host’s father, an American ex-pat who lived down the hill outside the medieval town walls, had stopped by to show us the ins and outs of the apar...
AP PHOTOS: Italian mountain retreat banks on summer recovery
As Italy gradually emerges from its two-month coronavirus lockdown, tourism operators in the hard-hit Val Seriana valley look ahead with trepidation at an uncertain summer season that could make or break them. An Associated Press photographer ventured into towns in Italy's hard-hit Bergamo province along the Orobie mountain range to capture residen...
Grana Padano PDO wins the WIPO award for environmental sustainability
An important international recognition for environmental sustainability has been given to the Grana Padano PDO protection Consortium by WIPO, the World Intellectual Property Organization. On the occasion of the 2020 edition of the World Intellectual Property Day on the theme ‘Innovating for a green future’, among 21 major initiatives worldwide the...
Lockdown Diaries: 5 Italian Teens on Life During the Coronavirus Pandemic
Distanced from school, friends, and social gatherings, Italian teens have been locked inside for about two months. In confinement and surrounded by family, life carries on in strange, but sometimes recognizable, ways: classes are live streamed, sports take place via Skype, oral and written tests are taken via Google Hangout. This technology has res...
8 Ways To ‘Travel’ To The Italian Riviera And Cinque Terre Until You Can Go There
A visit to the Italian Riviera, a destination for millions of travelers each year, may not be in the offing for a while because of the pandemic, but you can keep its home region of Liguria front of mind through virtual tours and performances and by sampling some of its special flavors at home. Here’s what to do until the clouds break and you’re abl...
Italy Doesn’t Plan On Closing Borders To Tourists In 2020
After reports surfaced recently that Italy was going to close its borders to tourists until 2021, Giorgio Palmucci, president of the Italian National Tourist Board (ENIT) set the record straight: Italy will not be closed off to tourists this year. “Tourism in Italy will start again, with all precautions and in maximum safety,” said Palmucci in a st...
A One-Year Farwell To Italy's Final Exams As We Know Them
The coronavirus outbreak has completely turned our lives upsidedown. Before this global crisis, it was awkward to see lines of people patiently queueing outside to get into almost empty stores. Today, such a thing has become the rule. For the lucky ones who are still employed, it might seem odd to work from home. It is even stranger to see very lit...
Italy’s La Scala to reopen in September with Verdi’s Requiem
The Teatro alla Scala, Milan’s iconic opera house, is planning to reopen in September with a performance of Verdi’s Requiem. Italian maestro Riccardo Chailly will lead the famed work for soloists, choir and orchestra in memory of the victims of COVID-19. In the announcement, La Scala manager Dominique Meyer added the Requiem will be performed at la...
L’azienda siciliana che analizza gli agrumi per sviluppare i vaccini
PlaYOURope vi porta in Sicilia, alla scoperta di Etna Biotech, un centro di ricerca e sviluppo all’avanguardia con competenze nella ricerca e nello sviluppo di vaccini e immunoterapeutici per le malattie infettive e altre malattie croniche. Il progetto – che si chiama Vaima – è stato finanziato dal fondo FESR 2007-2013 e ha permesso al centro di ri...
‘The biggest shock was fresh air’: Italy begins cautious exit from virus lockdown
There were feelings of relief and trepidation as people in Italy returned to the streets after almost two months indoors under a strict lockdown. “I literally haven’t been out of the house,” said Rina Sondhi, who lives in the Umbrian town of Orvieto. “The biggest shock for me was the fresh air. Today I feel liberated, but with caution – that’s the...
Coronavirus: Italy enters Phase Two: all you need to know
As Italy begins to relax its coronavirus lockdown on 4 May, easing certain restrictions in place nationwide since 10 March, the government has released a new version of the self-declaration form required when going outside. The latest version of the form is now available on the website of the interior ministry and can be downloaded here. However th...
‘He Was a Great Intellectual Force’: Christo, Miuccia Prada, and Other Art-World Figures Remember the Late Curator Germano Celant
Germano Celant, the widely influential Italian art historian, critic, and curator who coined the term Arte Povera to describe the radically economical art of Jannis Kounellis, Mario and Marisa Merz, and Giuseppe Penone, among others, died on April 29 at age 80 in Milan due to complications from the coronavirus. We asked some of his friends and coll...