Every September 26th, vases of fresh flowers encircle the pink limesonte plaque on the floor at the entrance to the Basilica Superiore di San Francesco. Look closely at the plaque and you’ll…
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A late December “freddo polare” (“polar cold” – which for Italy means anything below freezing temperature) – did not deter jazz appassionati from heading to hill town gem Orvieto for the twenty-second…
No, “a truffle is not forever” – so enjoy them while you can. Due to a rainy spring and summer, this has not been a good year for olives, grapes, chestnuts or…
All over Umbria in late October, early November, medieval hilltowns celebrate autumn culinary specialties in a fanfare of festivities. Hazelnuts take center stage in Bevagna’s Festa della Nocciola during the first week-end…
Fernando Checchini, Umbrian Regional Assessor of “Agricultural Politics” (literal translation), put it this way: “Bees and honey are important for the well-being of all. Bees offer a very high quality product and…
You’ll see elderly Agostino and a young assistant roasting chestnuts and grilling sausages over an open fire, just after you pass through a medieval arch. A sure sign you’ve found the Festa…
If you’ve never tasted corbezzoli, giuggiole or pepini, you can try them at the Festa del Bosco (“Woodland Festival”) in the northern Umbria walled castle-village of Montone. Just stop at one of…
Who ever thought that at an olive oil festival, you’d come home with a hand-bound journal or a handmade eelskin belt – or a pair of handmade leather shoes? Gianfranco will tell…
In updating my website, I came across this note on a fascinating festival. Enjoy. I’ve lived here in Umbria, “Italy’s green heart”, for well over 25 years… and finally this past year…
We took the motorcycle to Gualdo Tadino at the end of September to a medieval festivals where donkeys star (a draw for Pino, who has a few asinelli). During our nearly forty…