Mary Jane Cryan
Hot Water People
LazioThe January air may be chilly but at the hot water spas in the Viterbo area, there are dozens of happy people soaking in the outdoor pools enjoying the sun along with revitalizing heat from the sulphuric waters and vapors that flow from the source at 58°C. Several countryside hot baths are scattered along a… (more)
All Roads Lead to Rome …?
LazioWe all know how famous the Romans were for their fantastic system of roads. The first to be built, Via Aurelia, also SS1 nowadays (Strada Statale 1) runs along the sea from Rome to the French border. The second road built by Roman engineers is the Via Cassia (SS2) running from Rome to Tuscany and… (more)
Fontanella Borghese
Rome, LazioPiazza Fontanella Borghese is one of Rome’s elegant living rooms tucked in between the Tiber and via del Corso. A gem of urban architecture, one side of the piazza is a façade of the imposing Palazzo Borghese where Napoleon’s sister Paolina once lived while another side holds the University of Rome’s School of Architecture. Since… (more)
Lavender Festival
Tuscania, LazioNo need to go to Provence to enjoy the perfume and colors of these lovely purple flowers. Just drive up to Tuscania (100 kms north of Rome) for the first Festa della Lavanda, which will be tomorrow at the newly restored San Giusto Abbey. The festival marks the official opening of the newly restored San… (more)
Sixty years of buzzing
ItalyThe three wheeler cars that buzz around our villages are a modern version of the donkey which until 50 years ago was Italy’s beast of burden. But when Piaggio created this spin off of the Vespa (wasp) scooter in 1948 there was no turning back. The Ape (bee, for its engine’s sound) models run from… (more)
Vetralla’s Carnevale
Vetralla, LazioIf you have ever wondered what Carnival was like in Rome 180 years ago, you can read Charles Dickens “Pictures in Italy” or you can experience the festivities in Ronciglione and Vetralla during the next two Sundays before Lent begins. These country-style Carnivals should not be compared to the collective frenzy that invades Rio or… (more)
Laundry Lines
Vetralla, LazioSo the laundry has been washed…what about drying it? These photos show that solar energy is still the preferred method for drying laundry in most parts of Italy. On sunny days balconies are festooned with laundry except in some historic towns like Venice where the practice is forbidden for it would mar the facades of… (more)
Cool Summer Drinks
ItalyHeat wave arriving! What to order at the bar? (meaning, the café) Forget the numerous and appetizing beers which will have you sweating in a few minutes, forget coffee if you want to sleep and remember it’s a gaffe to order cappuccino in the afternoon or evening hours. Choose instead one of the many red… (more)
Spanish Tuscany
Monte ArgentarioCan’t decide whether to take your holidays in Italy or in Spain? You can have it both ways in this corner of Tuscany that was once a little bit of Spain. Porto Santo Stefano, Porto Ercole and Orbetello are three towns on the Monte Argentario peninsula which conserve reminders of their 150 years (1557-1707) as… (more)
Easter Rites
VetrallaSe piove sulla palma, non piove sulle uova… says an old proverb describing the weather between Palm Sunday and Easter. (If it rains on the palm, it won’t rain on the eggs.) Last week there were many ceremonies connected to the Easter festivities. One of the oldest is the traditional visit to the symbolic sepolcri… (more)
Irish Eyes Smiling
OnanoWhile celebrating St. Patrick’s Day give a thought to the many Irish who lived in Italy in past centuries. There were soldiers (Major Myles O’Reilly), saints, (Luke Wadding) and bank teller/English teacher/authors (James Joyce!). A newly discovered connection shows that Irish eyes were once smiling in Northern Lazio too. Joseph Denham was a penniless soldier… (more)
Traditional Hemp
VetrallaThe use of canapa (hemp) goes back thousands of years; in Italy it was a major source for clothing, burlap bags, ropes, sails…. as well as those beautiful hand-crafted and embroidered sheets that were an important part of every girl’s corredo (dowry). The Museo della Cittá e del Territorio located in a 12th century round… (more)
Erotic, Etruscan Chocolate
ViterboSteep Via Cairoli connecting two of Viterbo’s main piazze is a typical Italian street with dozens of tiny shops: a bookshop, pharmacy, travel agency and a pastry shop. The one we feature here, Pasticceria Casantini, has been churning out great cappuccini, gelati and pastries since 1970 and is known for cakes with seasonal themes that… (more)
Penny Candy, Italian Style
VetrallaIf you can remember choosing a nickel or dime’s worth of penny candy from the jars displayed at the neighborhood shop you are giving away your age. Just hearing their names is a nostalgia trip: red coated peanuts known as Boston baked beans, wax lips and bottles filled with syrupy liquid, candy buttons on a… (more)
Wedding of the Trees
VetrallaOn May 8th each year since 1432 the town of Vetralla, 68 kms north of Rome along the Via Cassia, celebrates the Wedding of the Trees, making it probably the first and most genuine festa ecologica (green or environmental celebration). Costumed dancers cavort to the music of the town band, flag throwers perform and horsemen… (more)
Peony Garden near Viterbo
ViterboIf you happen to be anywhere near the lovely Viterbo area (about 50 miles north of Rome) during the months of April and May, you will definitely want to visit this secret gem. Thousands upon thousands of Chinese peonies are all flowering at once at the Centro Botanico Moutan (Moutan Botanical Center). Located near Bagnaia… (more)
Portico di San Luca
BolognaKnown as La Dotta (the wise) for its historic university founded in 1088, and La Grassa (the fat) for its incredible cuisine, Bologna is also famous as the city where umbrellas are not needed, thanks to an ingenious network of covered sidewalks or porticos. The longest and most spectacular of these porticos climbs to the… (more)
Etruscan Gold
TorgianoFor thousands of years people have admired the design, detail and workmanship of Etruscan jewelry. This ancient central Italian people created incredible pieces from nothing but thin 22k gold foil through the art of granulation. This consists of baking closely packed tiny spheres of gold (photo 1) onto the foil so the piece can be… (more)
700 Year Lenten Lunch
VetrallaOn Ash Wednesday in the tiny town of Gradoli on Lake Bolsena in Northern Lazio, members of the Confraternita del Purgatorio (roughly the Purgatory Religious Brotherhood) serve a seated luncheon for more than 2000 people, as they have been doing for the past 700 years. Bundled up against the cold, diners find their numbered places… (more)
January Commitment
VetrallaThey say the difference between bacon and eggs is one of contribution vs. commitment. While the chicken might make a contribution, it’s the pig that makes the commitment. And so lucky us . . less so the pig . . . January is the month when Italian pigs make the commitment . . . tons… (more)
Traditional Christmas Cards
ItalyFeeling nostalgia for an old fashioned Christmas? These quaint and colorful cards from the ’50s show a lot about Italy’s not so distant past. Pastel colored angels, children, and sweet scenes contrast with today’s more commercial reindeer, Santas and snowmen. Baby Jesus is often featured, but not always, and loose re-interpretation of the nativity story… (more)
Wine at the Pump
ViterboGas prices might keep on rising, but at the pump of a cantina sociale (communally owned wine press and storage facility), you will really get your euro’s worth of energy: liters of hearty red or white local wine. A visit to one of the many local cantine sociali will not only save you money but… (more)
Italian Memorial Day
ItalyOn Tutti i Santi, All Saints Day, Nov.1st, and La Festa dei Morti, Day of the Dead, in Italy Nov.2nd, the dead are remembered by visiting their graves. Over these few days many families make an outing to the large cemeteries on the outskirts of the big cities (the traffic jams are legendary!). During this… (more)
Antipasti
VetrallaA pasto is a meal (not to be confused with pasta which simply means “dough”). It therefore follows that an antipasto . . is the meal that Italians eat right before a meal? Not too far from the truth, actually! Technically, antipasti are appetizers, but the variety (and occasionally quantity) is enormous and will please… (more)
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