Fav Reads On Italy This Week: Feb 14

Favorite Reads on Italy (FRI) is a weekly roundup published on Fridays featuring interesting articles, fascinating experiences, and handy resources that I’ve come across that week.

Postcard from Italy: Happy Valentine’s Day

This week’s roundup includes ways to express your love in Italian, exploring Cagliari in the region of Sardinia, off-the-beaten-path places in Tuscany and Le Marche, and why despite the mess in Italy, it’s still an amazing country.

Culture and Travel

From Naples to Florence, culture fetes Valentine’s Day by Ansa English – A great initiative by several cities to celebrate Valentine’s Day through cultural heritage. A great way to highlight the lesser-known treasures.

An Italian Monastery Becomes a Fashion Destination for Brides in a Frugal Era by New York Times – What a beautiful read! And yes, “love is a calling too”.

Medieval Skeletons Found at Florence’s Uffizi by Discovery News – There are no shortages of findings when renovation or excavation work is done in Italy. This discovery came about “during work to build an elevator in an area designed to house an expanded section of the Uffizi’s exhibit space, the skeletons belong to more than 60 individuals of various ages and genders who probably succumbed to a devastating epidemic”.

Exploring Cagliari, Sardinia’s ancient capital by Travel with Kat – Stunning photos of Cagliari, the capital and largest city of the region of Sardinia. Another visit to Sardinia is long overdue!

Things to see in Pompeii with kids by Italian Notes – In Pompeii, it’s obvious that you will find ruins everywhere and for kids, it might look like a site with stones, pillars and more stones. Here are tips to prepare kids for the visit to ensure they too are getting the most out of it.

[Video] Italian Artisans: The Art Restorer by Walks of Italy – Beautiful video where with “love and attention, these Italian artists have peeled away years of dirt and damage to reveal some of the world’s greatest paintings”.

Le Marche Travel Guide by Wine Enthusiast – This region in central Italy sure has it all and still unknown to most visitors to Italy. From pristine beaches to rolling hills to well-preserved medieval towns you’ll be fascinated by the gems in this region. Oh and their cuisine and wines are fabulous too! For more photos from this region, here’s a post on “Around Conero”.

An Umbria undertaking: A luxury villa and a heavenly week in Tuscany’s fine neighbour by MailOnline – Umbria is one of our favorite regions and being so close to Rome, it makes for a perfect weekend escape. While the villa mentioned here comes at a hefty price (unless you can find other 17 people to share it with), there’s a wide variety of accommodation options which caters to every budget. One hotel we have stayed at in Umbria is Hotel Bramante in Todi that boasts a fabulous pool and gorgeous grounds!

In the Valley of the Beautiful and the Good: Tuscany’s Serchio Valley by Italy Chronicles – It’s that “different Tuscany” that few are aware of but no less beautiful. A serene and tranquil setting with breathtaking scenery.

Food and Drinks

Bologna: The best place to eat in Italy? by Yahoo! Lifestyle – Recently there’s been a plethora of articles about Bologna being a foodie’s paradise. Yes, I’ll finally be headed there this year!

Octopus in its own water by Elizabeth Minchilli – I love octopus and one of my favorite dishes is insalata di polpo e patate (octopus and potato salad). This dish sounds too simple to be true and as it’s Friday, when we get fresh seafood,  I’m headed out to my neighborhood pescheria (fishmonger) to buy octopus.

Indulge with Carnival sweets by Emilia Romagna Blog – It’s that time of year again when bakeries are filled with an obscene amount of sweet treats for Carnival. For a sweet-tooth like myself, I’m not complaining at all – actually loving it! What are your favorite Carnival sweets?

Life in Italy

It’s just so messy by Paula H. Noe on Huffington Post –  I thoroughly enjoyed this piece because I can certainly relate to it. While Paula covers the challenges of parking, bureaucracy, and customer service (or the non-existence of it) in Florence and towns in Sicily, all that is compounded several times over in Rome. So why do some expats still fall head over heels in love with Italy?

Romantic Words in the Italian Language by Becoming Italian Word by Word – It’s Valentine’s Day so impress your Valentine by expressing your love in Italian.

Anita and Luigi, a story of love and wine by Cecchi – What a beautiful and moving story. I always enjoy reading articles that give a personal account of a person’s life.

Have you come across any great reads or resources on Italy this week? Share them with us in the comments below.