ISSUE No. 126
ISSUE / No. 126
July 1, 2010
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News - Florence
It's high time!
Change is in the air this summer at TF
Summer is finally here and it's time for a breather. Wherever you go, don't forget to take a bit of Florence with you
After five years, the paper is updating its look. We've decided to take advantage of the summer break to …
News - Florence
They're back!
Stats reveal the return of travellers
Tourists are coming back to Florence. The latest data from the hoteliers association of the province of Florence has revealed that despite the global crisis, which has especially hit the international tourism sector, tourist presence rose during the first four months …
News - Florence
Caravaggio's Remains
DNA testing reveals artist's final resting place
Athropologists recently cleared up a 400-year-old mystery surrounding Caravaggio's final resting place. Following carbon dating and DNA tests, officials confirmed that painter Michelangelo Merisi, known as Caravaggio, was buried in Porto Ercole, in the province of Grosseto. ‘We can confirm we …
News - Florence
Among sharks and Sirens
Don't miss Archeological Nights in Tuscany from July 10 to 31
As
every year, Tuscany celebrates its vast archeological heritage
in the month of July. Running July 10 to 31, the Nights of
Archeology event is held this year in 155 museums, parks and
archeological areas throughout the region and features over 200 events, including special …
News - Florence
An 'infernal' comedy in Prato
Actor John Malkovich takes the stage on July 16
After
having launched a clothing line and opened a shop-atelier in Prato,
the famed American actor takes his talents to the stage in the
English-language theatre performance (with Italian subtitles) of
Micheal Sturminger's The
Infernal Comedy: Confession of a serial killer, based on the life of …
News - Florence
We love Florence!
Survey probes locals' views of the city
A
recent poll reveals that eight out of 10 residents in Florence are
'happy' with the city and wouldn't change anything about it, and if they had
to move house, they would look for a property in Campo Bisenzio or
in the historic centre. Moreover, …
News - Florence
Tea time with butterflies
After years of closure, the recent opening to the public of Florence's Roster Tepidarium of Horticulture has been a great success. Approximately 3,000 locals have visited the trepidarium thanks to the recently launched initiative, A tea with Butterflies. Through the event, visitors can have a cup …News - Florence
Gay-friendly Tuscany
Tuscany was recently declared one of the top destinations for gay tourism in the world. As a result, regional officials announced on July 7 that it will dedicate an entire portal of the province's tourism website, www.intoscana.turismo.it, to the homosexual community who want to visit …News - Florence
Hilton Hits Monteriggioni
Luxury hotel chain comes to Tuscan countryside
By 2011, the province is Siena will have its own Hilton hotel and complex. Located along the ancient pilgrim route, the Via Francigena, the new Tuscan gem of the world's largest hotel chain will extend over six hectares of land, near …
News - Florence
Maroni Confirms
Expulsion centre for migrants to be built in Campi Bisenzio
Over the last year, much talk has surrounded proposed locations of the Centres for Expulsion and Immigration (CEI) that the national government intends to build in each region for the detention of deportees. Tuscany has voiced its opposition from the start, …
News - Florence
Bronzino works brought to light
Three recently found panels to go on display
New information has come from a recent discovery of works by Florentine Renaissance artist Agnolo di Cosimo Tori, known as Bronzino (1503-1572). The focus of a major show, running from September 24, 2010, to January 23, 2011, at Florence's Palazzo Strozzi, …
News - Florence
Oil-rich Elba?
Controversy over possible drilling
Key Petroleum, an Australian oil company, is waiting for the green light from the Italian government to drill for oil in the seabed a few kilometres south of Elba Island. Although the area proposed for drilling is not located in the …
News - Florence
Parking predicament
Officials weigh options to counter the effects of Ztl notturna
To ease tensions between local merchants and the city administration over the night-time traffic ban, Ztl notturna, and ensure that people can easily frequent restaurants and bars in the city centre at night, Firenze Parcheggi has proposed a solution: free bike …
News - Florence
Find Artisans
Tuscany's workshops on Google maps
Looking for an artisan in Tuscany? Using GPS technology, anyone can now find over 300 artisan workshops throughout the region. In conjunction with Google, the workshops of engravers, woodworkers, silverware makers, frame makers, goldsmiths and more have been plotted on Google …
News - Florence
Fun for foodies
Guinness for gluttons and Chianina for life
The Tuscan town of Monte San Savino, in the province of Arezzo, recently claimed the Guinness World Record for the longest porchetta ever roasted. To clinch the record, locals roasted 65 sucking pigs, weighing 80-100 kilos each, and then tied them …
News - Florence
Easy living
Riverside fun in the sun
Located just under the San Niccolò ramp, near Piazza Poggi, is the city's free beach area, equipped with sand, walking paths, lounge chairs and umbrellas, a volleyball court, a bar, showers, large cabanas to provide shade and misters that give fast …
News - Florence
High-Tech Classroom
Montelupo school participates in pilot project
An interactive chalk board, netbooks for students and a desk with touch screens. This is part of Italy's first high-tech classroom, to be located in Tuscany. Part of a pilot project run by the National Agency for Autonomous Development, in collaboration …
News - Florence
Fewer speed cameras
Province releases map of traffic traps'
From 319 to 135, with another 9 along the Florence-Livorno-Pisa highway: not only has the number of speed cameras diminished, but motorists can now locate them with pinpoint accuracy. Now available on the website Province of Florence Prefect's Office (www.prefettura.it/firenze; see …
News - Florence
New route to Elba
After 20 years, the port of Cavo on Elba Island again has service. With five runs a day until September, ferries will connect Cavo and Piombino. In the last two decades, ferries to Elba docked soley at Rio Marina and Portoferraio. …News - Florence
En travesti
Uniting good food, fun and edgy cabaret, Tuscany's first drag restaurant, Bigodini, opened last June. Located in Torre del Lago, an area famous for its gay population, the restaurant is headed by Cesira Bigodini, a well-known cabaret artist from Milan. Enjoying …News - Florence
Youth working for youth
The provincial administration in Pisa is the first in Italy to hire an external group of consultants, aged 18 to 30, to help develop and advocate policies for local youth and children. ‘Our objective is to foster increased cooperation among local …News - Florence
Free meds for allergy sufferers
Tuscany is Italy's first region to offer free medication to those who suffer from persistent allergic rhinitis, also known as hay fever. According to statistics, approximately 25 percent of Tuscans under 18 years and about 5 percent of adults in the …News - Florence
New supermarkets
Conad recently opened two new supermarkets in Florence's city centre that sell traditional Tuscan and Italian culinary delicacies. Located on the premises of two cinemas that have been closed for years, on via dei Bardi and largo Alinari, the supermarket chain …
News - Community
Networking Tuscany
ToscanaIN events for English speakers
While small and navigable at first glance, Florence is a difficult city for meeting new people, let alone making work contacts. Everybody, it seems, already has his or her circles. This is what president and founder of FlorenceIN, Laura de Benedetto, …
News - National
Check Your Tires
Free service offered on Italy highways this summer
To better educate motorists on road safety, especially in periods of increased traffic, like the summer months, the firm that manages Italy's highways, Autostrade per l'Italia, and Italian tire manufacturer Pirelli have teamed up for the Safe&Go program.
Every weekend until August …
News - National
Italy nuts over Nutella
Supporters up in arms over draft law on EU labelling
Jars of Italy's favourite hazelnut spread have graced kitchen tables for over half a century. However, with growing concern over weight and rising levels of obesity, the Europe Union (EU) has decided to revamp food labelling laws in an effort to …
News - National
Dancing With Jesus
Parish priest at the mixer in first Christian disco
Opened just in time for summer, Italy's first Christian disco is at Bagni San Pietro, a private seaside beach resort owned and managed by the Genoa diocese in the Ligurian seaside town of Arenzano. The DJ, Don Roberto Fiscer, is a …
News - National
Skip the line
New app gives direct access to top tourist sites
As of July 1, visitors to Italy with an iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch in hand can download a new application to buy tickets and the skip the lines for Italy's most popular monuments, museums and sights, including the Colosseum, Pompeii …
News - National
Hands-On Leonardo
Vinci masterwork in bas relief for the visually impaired
Those who cannot see can now ‘read' the Last Supper with their hands. A bas relief version of Leonardo da Vinci's masterpiece was made so that the visually impaired can also explore and admire the famed fresco. Sponsored by the Fondazione …
News - National
Fines For Free Helmets
Bari promotes road safety
Riding scooters without a helmet is still customary in southern Italy. Following the success of their 2008 pilot program, the first of its kind in Italy, city officials in Bari have decided to give a helmet to anyone fined for failing …
News - National
Good Samaritans
Just one month after the National Health Council approved the practice, Italy already counts 10 ‘good samaritan' volunteer organ donors. The donors are willing to anonymously donate organs that they can live without, like a kidney, to a person to whom …News - National
App for prayer
Io Prego, an electronic rosary app for the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch, is selling well across Italy, with 13,000 sold on average in a month, 4,600 of which in Lombardy alone. Made and distributed by Eurodigital equipment, the rosaries allow …News - National
The World Cup at work
According to a survey conducted by Monster.it, one of the world's largest online recruitment websites, 33 percent of businesses in Italy did not allow workers to watch 2010 FIFA World Cup matches of the Italian national team during work hours. Almost …News - National
Closer to summer
With rain and below-average temperatures, even snow at high altitudes, Italy marked the official start of summer on June 21. Weather experts from the CNR, however, claim that the unusually cool temperatures will soon be over as the summer hits its …News - National
Most beautiful pool in the world
Italy is renowned for its blue seas and pristine shorelines but it also loved for its ‘artificial' waters, reveals the online tourism site TripAdvisor. According to the results of TripAdvisor's most recent Traveler's Choice Awards 2010, the Hotel Caruso in the …News - National
Cyber-nonno
How the old are keeping up with the young
Grandparents
in Italy are going high tech. According to the latest Istat
statistics, the percentage of those over 60 using computers, the
Internet and social networking websites is on the rise. In 2009, 37.3
percent of the men and women over 60 polled said they …
News - National
A boom in mobile phone-banking
Will it be as popular as net banking in three years?
In
Italy, where even grandmothers have two cell phones, mobile devices
are now being used for more than checking up on sons and
boyfriends. According to recent research, within three years mobile
banking will be as popular, if not more popular than Internet
banking.
Internet
banking recently saw …
News - National
A canoeing Kennedy
Next generation of American dynasty is green
Last
week, Robert Kennedy III, grandson of the late Robert Kennedy, spent
a day evaluating the ‘health' of the Lambro River in the northern
Italian region of Lombardy. The 20-something Kennedy heir went on
canoeing excursion along the river, located near Lake Como,
in an effort …
News - National
New Aussie ambassador
Australia has a new representative in the Italian peninsula. In the month of July, David Ritchie OA (Order of Australia), will replace Amanda Vanstone, the former Australian cabinet minister who has served as ambassador since mid-2007. Ritchie previously served as Australian ambassador to Indonesia, and has …News - National
Wines fly in from Down Under
Celebrations begin to honour Australia's first saint
To
celebrate Australia's first canonized saint, Mother Mary MacKillop,
thousands of bottles of Australian wine will be shipped to the
Australian Embassy in Rome from Coonawarra, a region in South
Australia that is best known for its vineyards and wine production.
Mother
MacKillop's canonization will be formally …
News - National
Young and jobless
Almost one out of three people under the age of 24 is jobless in Italy, according to the latest statistics released by Istat. Data also shows that the unemployment rate is among youth aged 15-24 has continued to fall over the last year to a …
Summer in Florence
Cool off in the city
A selection of pools in Florence
Can't escape to the Tuscan coast or to the Tuscan hills? Don't fret. Florence has many pubic and private swimming pools, offering the summer urbanite an aquatic paradise. Whether for a quick afternoon dip or a daylong bout of poolside relaxation, …
Summer in Florence
Lounge By The Lake
Fresh water refuges just minutes away
Just beyond Florence are watery oases, places for summer fun that every member of the family can enjoy. For more information on nearby lakes, Tuscan beaches and parks and gardens in Florence, see TF 106 at www.theflorentine.net
Outdoor action
Summer fun for children …
Top Picks
Independence Day 2010
July 4, 5pm to midnight Parco d'Arte E. Pazzagli, Rovezzano
Cheers to the red, white and blue! Enjoy an all-American barbeque, beer, sports, games, children's corner, a Delta Airlines raffle, the mini-Main-Street business fair and much more at the Tuscan American Association's Fourth of July celebration.
For more information, see www.toscanausa.org or …
Top Picks
The Nights of Archaeology: Evening Openings and Events in Archaeological Museums and Sites in Tuscany
July 10-31 Florence and Tuscany
Over 200 opportunities to discover the archaeological treasures of Tuscany, including evening museum and site openings, private tours, conferences, labs and shows. Now in its tenth year, the Nights of Archaeology promises its best program ever, with events for children, such …
Top Picks
Florence Dance Festival
July 12-30 Museo Nazionale del Bargello
Dance lovers of all ages won't want to miss the 21st annual festival of professional dance performances, this year in the stunning setting of Florence's Bargello. For 2010, the festival will feature both Italian and international dance companies, including the Florence …
Top Picks
Tuscany Through Different Eyes': ToscanaIN's 2nd Annual English Night
July 12 Palazzo Rosselli del Turco
ToscanaIN, in partnership with The Florentine and in collaboration with the Tuscan American Association (TAA) and its Professional Women's Committee will be holding its second annual English night, Tuscany Though Different Eyes. At the stunning Palazzo Rosselli del Turco in Florence, …
Top Picks
Vintage Selection 2010
July 6-10 Stazione Leopolda
This is undoubtedly one of the hippest annual events in one of Florence's coolest spaces. The vast selection, display and sale of unique vintage clothing, accessories and kick-knacks of all kinds and colours is sure to dazzle the fashionista or the …
Top Picks
Mercantia Street Theatre Festival
July 14-18 Certaldo (Florence)
The 23rd annual youth-focused international street theatre festival celebrates the exciting and strange, the colourful, the loud and the musical (complete with flame-throwing!) in the streets of Certaldo's historical centre. This year's theme is Luce Leggera (‘Light Light'), promising nights of …
Top Picks
Concerts
The summer months will be music to your ears, with a series of live, open air big name concerts in and out of town. In Florence, be sure to catch the Live on Festival from July 15 to August 7 at …Top Picks
Traditional
Many summer events celebrate the Tuscany of once upon a time. Our Top Picks include the Middle Ages Festival in Palazzuolo sul Senio (July 16-18, 23-25; www.osteghibellina.net), which will feature an array of locals wearing and selling medieval wares in Palazzuolo's …Top Picks
Festival Intersezioni 2010 Chamber Music Festival
July 1, 5, 8, 13, 15, 20 and 22 Historical Villas of Sesto Fiorentino
Nine concerts in the historic villas of Florence and surrounding area are sure to delight the ears of the classically inclined. The event features such masterpieces as 1939: Schumann and Hoffmann, played by classical pianist Sergio De Simone, the talents of …
Top Picks
Parigi Val Bene una Messa! Exhibition in Honour of King Henry IV
July 15 to November 2 Medici Chapel
The Soprintendenza of Florence and Medici Chapel museum have teamed up with the Musée National du Château de Pau to organize this major exhibition honouring the 400th anniversary of the assassination of King Henry IV of Navarre. An amazing exhibition of …
Top Picks
Vinum Nostrum: Art, Science and Myths of Wine in Ancient Mediterranean Civilisations
July 20, 2010 to May 15, 2011 Museo degli Argenti, Palazzo Pitti
Wine lovers and history buffs alike will not want to miss this massive exhibit focused on wine and all its uses throughout human history, from communion to drunkenness, sacrificial symbol to food pairing. The exhibition uses relics, showpieces, sculptures, frescoes, mosaics, …
Movie Reviews
THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE
by James Douglas
As the
news breaks that the forthcoming fourth episode will become two
movies, the third episode in the saga The Eclipse sees Bella,
with her graduation approaching, having to choose between the two men
in her life, Edward the vampire and Jacob the werewolf, while …
Movie Reviews
TOY STORY 3
by James Douglas
For
their third outing the toys are consigned to a day-care centre as
Andy gets ready to go to college. This benign neglect on his part
leaves them to the mercy of the brats and a great escape is
necessary. Some new characters add even …
Italian Sketches
Ferdinando Innocenti
by Deirdre Pirro
The motor scooter mogul
No doubt, many of us have walked past buildings being constructed, restored or painted all over Italy without giving a minute's thought to the intricate cage of tubular steel scaffolding encapsulating them. The man who invented the labyrinthine system of vertical …
Expats in Florence
Natasha Garland
by Melinda Gallo
An adventurous expat sharing Florence with visitors
Florence is home to many expats: those who have longed to live here, those who have found love and moved here, and those who have come to Florence and felt immediately at home here. Many people arrive here at a point …
News - Current Issues
Visibility for women artists
by Rea Stavropoulos
A debate on artistic taste, patronage and our changing times
We introduce this space as a forum in which TF readers can voice and exchange their opinions, concerns and kudos about life in Florence and Italy. E-mail your letters to the editor, essays and opinion pieces to inbox@theflorentine.net and we will …
In Other Words
Unforeseen
by Linda Falcone
Admittedly, most English-language learners are concerned with the nuts and bolts of it. Until the 1990s, students of English in Italy based their language skills on a single unarguable certainty: the pen is on the table. Whose pen it was, what …
Florentinisms
Bacchialo, Buscanne, Strasciconi, E sa anda bene di nulla
by Alexandra Lawrence, Francesco Stefanelli
Your in-progress dictionary of the Florentine dialect
Bacchiòlo: Stick.
Example: ‘Con quelli ci vorrebbe un bel bacchiolo e daglielo in testa!'
(‘When it comes to those guys, you need a big stick to whack them in the head!')
Buscanne: To get beat up.
Example: ‘O ragazzi,occhio perchè c'è i' rischio di …
Style & Fashion
Fashion-forward Florence
by Enrica Guidato
Pitti Uomo and FIFA
Florence, June 15 to 18: traffic is jammed; it's impossible to find a cab, let alone a table in a good restaurant. C'è Pitti! Earlier this month, Pitti Uomo exhibited hundreds of spring/summer 2011 collections, from classic suits to denim, tees …
Culture & Customs
High-school blues
by Suzi Jenkins
Italy's education paradox
Seen some long faces on Italian teens (and their parents) recently? Summer's the season when young students all over Italy learn the hard lesson of ‘too little, too late.' At the end of each year, high school students (aged 14 and …
Culture & Customs
Lights...Cake...Action!
by Joelle Edwards
A day in the life of a wedding planner in Italy
Is the wedding season in Tuscany!
You've seen the happy couples in piazza della Signoria and piazza Duomo, and if you haven't, you definitely will. Each year for the past 20 years, an average of 1500 couples have said ‘I do' in …
Summer in Florence
TF Staff's Summer Picks
How to enjoy Tuscany like TF
Drink a cocktail, head to the country, enjoy a meal, lounge on a beach or poolside... TF style!
For our last print issue before summer vacation, The Florentine staff shares their personal picks for enjoying Florence and Tuscany over the summer months. …
Food & Wine
Fit for a prince
by Rachel Priestley
A summer salad with humble beginnings
My latest consulting job finds me working for a prince in a palace surrounded by olive groves and vineyards. Among horses and children, fields of green grass and gardens, I am organizing traditional Tuscan gourmet picnics, lunches and cooking classes to …
Travel & Leisure
Is it a Good Idea to Move Abroad?
by Lisa Becker
Leaving your home country and moving to a new land is one
of the most exciting decisions you can make. Moving overseas is like
experiencing a fresh start in life. You may be moving for business, marriage,
or just for a long holiday. However, …
Features
Articles
Special Issues
Sunday, September 05, 2010