Published on Saturday, August 27, 2016 by Kathy McCabe For travelers seeking an otherworldly experience, the allegedly haunted Isola Bisentina, said to host spirits, demons, and other monstrous creatures, may transport you to another realm. The island is in the middle of Lago di Bolsena, a crater lake located in the province of Viterbo about 81 miles north of Rome. The island was inhabited during ancient Etruscan and ...

Published on Wednesday, August 17, 2016 by Kathy McCabe August in Italy primarily means two things: vacation month for Italians all over the country, and hot weather that drives the masses to the coast. Popular vacation spots around the country are crowded, and visitors will go to great lengths to ensure their holiday is perfect. At the beach, it’s very common for both vacationing foreigners and Italians to leave their ...

Published on Saturday, August 13, 2016 by Kathy McCabe Italian cuisine is among the best in the world, and its delectable, gourmet dishes embody the passion of a country devoted to cooking as craft. Italian-American food is also delicious, ranking high on the list of staple comfort foods that are easy to prepare. To the surprise of many Americans who visit Italy, though, there’s not always overlap between the two. The ...

Published on Saturday, January 23, 2016 by Kathy McCabe The famous tramezzino sandwich, which originated in the Caffè Mulassano di Piazza Castello in Turin in 1925, celebrated its 90th birthday last week. A version of an English tea sandwich, the Italian classic is made from two slices of crust-less white sandwich bread and cut into triangles. Popular fillings include tuna and olive, as well as prosciutto, but the Caffè ...

Published on Friday, October 9, 2015 by Kathy McCabe After sparring with France for years over which country produced the most – and best – wine, Italy has outpaced France in annual wine production, just surpassing France’s 46.4 million hectoliters of wine. At an estimated 48.9 million hectoliters, Italy is now the world’s largest wine producer, according to European Union data provided to Coldiretti, an Italian...

Published on Monday, September 28, 2015 by Kathy McCabe A millennia-old Etruscan outpost in the middle of Lazio, Civita di Bagnoregio rises precariously from the volcanic rock. It seems anchored squarely atop the rugged hill, where it has sat for 2,500 years, but is in grave danger of collapse, both figuratively and literally. Only a tiny handful of people live here year-round – the population fluctuates, but is limit...

Published on Friday, September 18, 2015 by Kathy McCabe If you have millions of dollars burning a hole in your pocket – and a desire to snatch up a tony piece of Tuscan real estate burning a hole in your heart – Michelangelo’s Italian residence is calling your name. The property in Castellina in Chianti, which Michelangelo Buonarroti purchased in 1549, belonged to the artist’s family until 1867 and has since been c...

Published on Monday, August 10, 2015 by Kathy McCabe Fifty years after its release, Federico Fellini’s iconic film La Dolce Vita will be remade by Andrea Iervolino’s AMBI Group. The Fellini family has approved this new film, which will be “a contemporary story every bit as commercial, iconic and award-worthy as the original,” said Iervolino. Starring Marcello Mastroianni, Anita Ekberg and Anouk Aimée, the 19...

Published on Wednesday, July 15, 2015 by Kathy McCabe Olives and olive oil symbolize Italy and its culinary delights for many people, but for Italians the products of olive trees influence their economy as much as their diets. Each year the country exports about one trillion pounds of olive oil, second only to Spain. The giant, twisted trees of Puglia usually account for nearly 40% of Italy’s overall olive-oil produ...

Published on Friday, July 10, 2015 by Kathy McCabe Italian divers recently reached a sunken cargo ship full of roofing tiles off the coast of Sardinia.  The ship and its cargo are 2,000 years old, a Roman find of “great archaeological value,” says the police statement issued to announce the discovery. Not only can the find provide information about ships and their construction, it sheds light on marine logistics,...