No, Italians are not flag-fliers. A nationalistic sense of being Italian is missing. For an Italian, first reference point is the family. If you are Italian, identity point is the section of…
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Pino and I will head to the meeting tonight (May 9th) in Assisi in memory of courageous young Sicilian Peppino Impastato, eliminated by the Mafia on May 9th, 1978 for his outspoken…
Since time immemorial, man has heralded the arrival of spring with ritual and festivity. In Assisi, committees meet nightly for months to plan the annual traditional salute to spring, the Calendimaggio. The…
I often tell my tour guests that appreciating Italian passione is key to fully understanding the Italians. Passione is the underlying theme of all things Italian: from the elegant presentation of colorful…
I know where I will be at 9 pm on January 27th: in the city hall of Assisi where young local musicians and actors will perform readings of Primo Levi (his If…
If you truly wish to experience Italian passione, join “the locals” for their May festivals. Work goes on all winter in Assisi for the town’s medieval welcome to spring in early May,…
The crib scene originated in Assisi with St. Francis who was the first to create a “living manger scene”. In 1223 (3 years before his death), Francesco decided to celebrate the memory…
What do the Acropolis, Angkor Wat, the Great Wall of China, the Old City of Havana, Dubrovnik, the Great Barrier Reef , Yellowstone Park- and pasta, tomatoes and olive oil have in…
Si! Naples has its woes. All the world knows about them. Naples has its treasures – and not all are known. Whenever I have a couple of free days from my tour…
Monteleone. The picturesque hilltown’s name, “Mount of the Lion”, denotes force, domination and greatness. The name might seem pretentious for this tiny mountaintop village in the Val Nerina area of Umbria, not…