- Italy
- (1402)
-
Padova is a wonderful place to explore Italian culture without hoards of tourists. Start the day with a cappuccino and brioche in one of the many cafes, then take a trip to the Scrovegni Chapel to see the beautiful frescos by Giotto. You can only spend 15 minutes inside but will appreciate their beauty. You must book ahead online. Walk to Prato della Valle, the largest square in Italy, sampling an ice cream from the many gelaterias on Via Roma on the way. Visit the Basilica di Sant' Antonio, known as 'Il Santo', where among the artistry and statues you can see St Anthony's relics. Round off the day with the local drink, Spritz, a bitter drink of Aperol, prosecco and sparkling water. Bellissimo!
www.cappelladegliscrovegni.it/eng/index_e.htm
www.basilicadelsanto.org/
Google map: bit.ly/zAiwpk
See the wonderful Byzantine mosaics in the churches of Ravenna, some of which are 1,500 years old. A trip to the Basilica di San Vitale is a must - the mosaics are the most impressive and of great significance. Buy a combo ticket and also see the mosaics of Basilica di Sant'Appollinare Nuovo. In total there are eight UNESCO sites. Have a wander around the historic centre, Piazza del Popolo and don't forget a visit to Dante's tomb while you're there.
www.ravennamosaici.it
Google map: bit.ly/ADKo91
Just five minutes from San Gimignano is a cookery class, run by Katia and her uncle Fulvio. With vineyards and the towers of San Gimignano as a backdrop, you can learn to make authentic Tuscan food in the kitchen attached to their hotel, Il Vicario.
We started with the preparation of bruschetta and panzanella (bread salad). Tearing up fresh basil and chopping up sun-ripened tomatoes instantly reignited an appreciation of Italian flavours. Next, we got stuck into hand-rolling ‘pici’ pasta, along with two sauces – tomato and cannellini bean. Finally, we prepared a chicken dish in an orange sauce to complete our lunch menu.
This is a really enjoyable format, as Katia takes you through the steps and explains Tuscan traditions, including the jaw-dropping quantities of garlic and olive oil used for each dish! The highlight is sitting down at a long table to eat, drink Chianti wine and chat with Fulvio, Katia and the other participants.
The half day class is very reasonably priced. We also recommend accommodation within walking distance, so you can ‘roll’ back in the afternoon sun.
www.ilvicario.it
Il Vicario, Sant’ Andrea, 1, 53037 San Gimignano, Italy
+39 0577941599
Google map: bit.ly/wVubmL
Political culture dying? Not in Italy on May 1st, International Labour Day. When the Left celebrates with music, food, performances and political speeches, it’s your chance to listen to old partisan songs, music from Dario Fo, Gianni Bosio, meet new and aged activists and admire handcrafted political banners. Find out where the music school of Circolo Gianni Bosio from Rome is going. The Circolo GB does political research, oral history, activism and folklore collection. Last year they were in Sesto Fiorentino near Florence at the Istituto Ernesto de Martino, another active centre of political culture. The same year a few days later, May 6th, the music group sailed with other Rome choirs on a barge over the Tiber, singing against Berlusconi’s politics.
Italy is all about culture - the place simply oozes with art and history and that fantastically laid back way of life that revolves around food and family. But if you are seeking a more modern cultural experience then I recommend a visit to the Moto GP - Italian style: Mugello in July (half an hour north of Florence) or Misano in September (walkable from the seaside resort of Cattollica, by Rimini). Italians are bike crazy and at Mugello in particular they are just crazy. The noise, colour, smells and sheer passion of the crowds are awesome, contagious and really need to be seen to be believed. The real excitement isn’t on the track – watching the crowd is entertainment in itself and it's impossible not to get swept up in the fun. It’s nothing like bike racing in England, and not just because the sun is shining. You don’t need to know about motorbikes to enjoy it, but you will certainly come to know a little more about Italian people and their culture. Little tip – Valentino Rossi, number 46, is the man to cheer for – wear something yellow if you can!
www.motogp.com
motogp.misanocircuit.com
www.mugellocircuit.it/en/grand-prix.html
Google map: bit.ly/xgdps5
A tasty Venetian snack of freshly made bites of bread topped with different variations of fish paste/cheese/onions/peppers/anchovies served with an 'ombre' or a glass of wine. The best places to go are off the beaten track. My favorite is Vini Al Bottegon otherwise known as Cantine del Vini gia Schiavi, a tiny standing room only wine bar, where you crowd around the food bar and wait for madame to patiently pick out the cicchetti you fancy. Each slice with it's topping is a reasonable one or two Euros and you ask for a full plate of five or just the number you want. Standing room only and a fab atmosphere!
992 Dorsoduro, Venezia, VE 30123 30123
+39(0)41 523 0034
Google map: bit.ly/ygctDw
One warm May evening in the Tuscan hill town of Cortona my new fiancé and I witnessed the ritual that is the Italian passeggiata. After the day’s work is done all ages take to the streets for a stroll, catching up on gossip, flirting and maybe enjoying a drink and a snack.
We watched the spectacle from the comfort of a street-side bar and ordered a negroni each, which arrived with complementary olives and breadsticks.
www.cortonaweb.net
Google map: bit.ly/x5iocS
It’s worth going to Padua just to see Giotto’s masterpiece in this chapel. The fresco cycle has been brilliantly and painstakingly restored; to prevent further damage you have to spend 15 minutes in an air-conditioned chamber before you can go in. Once in, it’s breathtaking, every surface bursting with colour and life. Giotto was the first artist to portray Christ as a real person and the story of his life covers the walls of the chapel while the entire wall above the chapel entrance is covered by his terrifying depiction of the Last Judgement. Just remember to book your tickets in advance online.
www.cappelladegliscrovegni.it/eng/index_e.htm
Cappella degli Scrovegni,
Piazza Eremitani 8, Padova
+39(0)49 201 0020
Google map: bit.ly/xkbNyM
In Sardinia, spend a morning wandering around the Bronze Age megalithic ‘nuraghi’ that dot the island. Little is known about the nuragic people or their culture although most archaeologists assume the buildings were used as religious temples, meeting halls, or military strongholds. The best example, dating from somewhere around the twelfth century BC, is Su Nuraxi Barumini. The complex includes the fortress and the village surrounding it. Walk through the village where you can see remains of stone huts and then climb down the narrow stone steps that lead to the fortress to get the real atmosphere. From the inside there are several chambers off the main tower and looking up you can see the blue sky through the dome at the top.
whc.unesco.org/en/list/833
Google map: bit.ly/zl2zM2
If you only have time to see one gallery in Milan, make it this one. Set up in 1618, it is home to over 1500 paintings by artists such as Raphael, Luini, Titian, Caravaggio, Botticelli and Brueghel. It also has a large collection of work by Da Vinci including his ‘Codex Atlanticus' and many of his notebooks. The building itself was completely restored in the 1990s and is a fine example of Lombard architecture with mullioned windows, frescoed walls and vaulted ceilings. The visit ends in the impressive library, rich in classical manuscripts, notably Homer and Virgil. Another bonus is the lack of crowds, so you always have a great view without having to jostle with the hordes!
www.ambrosiana.eu/jsp/index.jsp
Piazza Pio XI, 2, 20123 Milano, Italy
+3902806921
Google map: bit.ly/xVwNJW
I've been visiting Milan for quite a few years now, since my sister moved there to study, fell in love and settled.
Milan is not known as the most picturesque of Italian destinations. Having said this, it does have a lot to offer and I'd recommend it as a great mini-break destination. Apart from the art, architecture and opera there are loads of nice bars and places to go out, particularly if the weather is good. If you're lucky enough to be there on a warm spring day (spring is best as there are less mosquitos and more people about - the Milanese tend to leave the city en masse at the weekends in Summer) it's great to go out in the "Navigli" area which is full of nice bars and restaurants with tables and chairs outside looking over the ancient canals. This area is lovely although if you fancy having more than one beer or glass of wine it might sting a little as the prices are pretty high due to the "aperitivo" culture. This is basically Happy Hour time when drinks are expensive but the bar offers a buffet so you can eat and drink for 8-10 Euros which is great if you don't want to have more than one drink or go out for dinner afterwards.
I love going out for dinner and having more than one glass of wine so my top tip, to avoid getting stung, is the "Vineria" wine shop/bar on Via Casale, between the Porta Genova metro station and the "Naviglio Grande". This wine shop has big barrels inside and the staff pour out litres and bottle on request. It has no tables inside, no waiter service and no free aperitivo so it cuts out all the extra costs. You can sit outside with a glass of wine that costs €1.5 instead of €8 and, if you do fancy a bite, order a cheese and meat board, again for a very reasonable price. It's a great place allowing you to enjoy the hustle and bustle of the area, the good weather and wine and all on a budget.
www.la-vineria.it/eg/index.html
Via Casale, 4, 20144 Milano
+39(0)2 83242440
Google map: bit.ly/y6m8iP
The medieval hilltop village of Ceriana in western Liguria has many attractions, fabulous food, mountain walks, splash pools, but perhaps most unusual are the six choirs, famous for preserving the ancient tradition of regional polyphonic singing, or drone music. The thriving choirs, linked to the confraternities, have a calendar of events throughout the year. They are fiercely proud of their unbroken tradition of rural singing in the valley, some of which is sung in local ‘Cerianasco’ dialect.
Italo Calvino, the writer, was a partisan fighter there during the Second World War, and some of the modern (20th century) ballads recall the events of this period.
To hear the choirs, go to the Easter festival, or even better the festival of Madonna della Villa in September, which starts with a torch-lit procession to the chapel, and includes the choirs singing in the piazza. Festivals are both moving and entertaining, with most being accompanied by copious amounts of locally made food and wine.
If you are lucky, you don’t need to attend a special event; an impromptu session can happen at any social gathering.
These are very much village events, not tourist spectacle, but the welcome to strangers is open and sincere.
www.comune.ceriana.im.it/en-GB
Get the bus from San Remo, on the coast, up the mountain to Ceriana. Nearest train station - San Remo
Nearest airport - Nice in France
Google map: bit.ly/w7dvqu
What better way is there to discover Italian culture than to explore the most un-Italian of regions? Sample the delights of San Daniele ham, the winter warmer that is Frico and some of the best wines Italy has to offer. All this with views of the snow-topped Alps or the shimmering Adriatic. This Italian culture has a heart all of its own. Italy's best kept secret.
www.turismofvg.it/
Google map: bit.ly/xKs97d
Pick up a Chianti tour map in any Tuscan town or village and drive through the amazing hillside villages that make up the Chianti Classico collective. This wine is at the very heart of Italian culture. The people, places, food and wine on this village tour are the very essence of Italy, and the countryside is both varied and astounding. Stop off and explore each village, proudly displaying the Chianti Classico collective emblem of the black rooster, and experience Italian village life off the beaten track.
Between Florence and Sienna, covering the villages of Greve, Radda, Gaiole, Castellina and Panzano.
Google map: bit.ly/xo7rZF
Situated on a hilltop just outside the town, these painted Etruscan burial chambers inspired D.H.Lawrence to write what was to be his final, most heartfelt travelogue, Etruscan Places. Although there are more than 6000 tombs, only about 15 are open to visitors each day. The wall paintings are surprisingly celebratory, depicting scenes of dancing, music, feasting and even sex! After exploring the tombs, go into town to visit the Tarquinia National Museum, devoted to Etruscan exhibits and sarcophagi excavated from the necropolis. Be sure not to miss the almost life-size pair of winged horses from the pediment of a Tarquinian temple, one of the greatest Etruscan masterpieces ever discovered.
www.comune.tarquinia.vt.it/
Piazza Cavour, 1a, 01016 Tarquinia Viterbo, Italy
+39 0766 856036
Google map: bit.ly/yFewFd
These two Tuscan hill towns are in close proximity to each other but very different - you can do them in a day. I suggest Volterra first so you can then enjoy San Gimignano without the hordes of tourists and great light at dusk to take photos. Volterra has the Roman amphitheatre, great panoramas and a wonderful museum dedicated to its Etruscan heritage. San Gimignano has a medieval feel, with 15 out of its 70 original towers still standing. You can climb up one of these and get excellent views of the surrounding countryside. Both towns are unique and a must if you are visiting Tuscany.
Google map: bit.ly/Athd8H
The Amalfi coast is beautiful but especially worth a visit is the island of Capri. When you get there you walk along narrow ancient streets to the old Carthusian monastery of St Giacomo, a sight in itself. The monks developed the perfumes (with the Pope's special permission) from old formulas based on the native flowers and herbs of the island and now they are sold all over the world. Walk to one of the small idyllic beaches, eat local fish, drink the local wine and have a swim - pure bliss.
Google map: bit.ly/xYOf5u
When the usual sites in Rome are heaving with people, Ostia Antica is a place of superb Roman sites which are blessedly peaceful. The site was once the sea port of ancient Rome but was silted up after the decline of the Roman Empire. Many buildings have been excavated and it is possible to spend a whole day here enjoying the sites and rural peace. We were there on a Saturday and it was not mobbed like the centre of Rome.
Google map: bit.ly/Aet2ld
This splendid 10-room gallery on the Grand Canal - inexplicably absent from many online Venice guides - houses a delightful collection of 19th and 20th century art (as well as a smaller Oriental Art Museum on the top floor). While the great majority of the works are by Italian artists possibly less well-known to a general audience, some big international names are also represented, with fine pieces by Bonnard, Chagall, de Chirico, Kandinsky, Klimt, Mirò, Tanguy.
capesaro.visitmuve.it/en/home/
Galleria Internazionale d’Arte Moderna
Santa Croce 2076, 30135 Venezia
+39 041 721127
Google map: bit.ly/AlJDDG
This splendid 10-room gallery on the Grand Canal - inexplicably absent from many online Venice guides - houses a delightful collection of 19th and 20th century art (as well as a smaller Oriental Art Museum on the top floor). While the great majority of the works are by Italian artists possibly less well-known to a general audience, some big international names are also represented, with fine pieces by Bonnard, Chagall, de Chirico, Kandinsky, Klimt, Mirò, Tanguy.
capesaro.visitmuve.it/en/home/
Galleria Internazionale d’Arte Moderna
Santa Croce 2076, 30135 Venezia
+39 041 721127
Vaparetto Number 1 to San Stae
Google map: bit.ly/ziJtvK
Is this your business?