Travel Tips

The Flag Throwers ( Sbandieratori ) of Soriano nel Cimino

4 years ago

by Michael in Culture, Festivals, Lazio, Music, Tours, Travel Tips, Umbria

TweetThings got quite busy since my last post. We had a wave of guests come to Soriano, and the annual chestnut festival ( Sagra delle Castagne ) began, which really kept me running, camera in hand. The folks in Soriano’s tourism office were kind enough to issue me an all-access press [...]

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The Wine Harvest – Making wine in Italy

4 years ago

by Michael in Cooking, Culinary, Culture, Festivals, Food, Lazio, Tours, Travel Tips, Tuscany, Umbria, Wine

Tweet I remember my mother telling me about her move to Southern California, and how excited she was the first time she picked an orange off a tree and ate it right there. I was thinking, like… ok, big deal… you need to get out more! But then again, she was from New York, and I had [...]

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You can travel to Italy without worrying about the weak Dollar

4 years ago

by Michael in Culture, Tours, Travel Tips

TweetIn the past year, the value of the dollar has fallen 10% against the Euro. That means if the price of something in Europe has not changed, it costs you 10% more if you earn your money in US Dollars. In other words, a hotel rate of E.200 per night a year ago translated into $242, [...]

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Would you have a second home in Italy?

4 years ago

by Michael in Culture, Travel Tips

TweetIt used to be that when I would come to Italy, for the first few days, people would see me and give me a huge ‘welcome back’. That was then. I would come here once a year in the summer and spend a month to six weeks here. Michael and Paola are here… it must be summer, right? Big [...]

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Slow down and let your vacation happen

4 years ago

by Michael in Tours, Travel Tips

TweetHave you ever been on a vacation and come home having the feeling that you need a vacation from your vacation? Have you ever phoned home and said something to the effect of ‘We’re exhausted, but we’ve seen this, and that, and that, and that, and that’? When you plan trips, do you [...]

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Your second trip to Italy may be your first

4 years ago

by Michael in Tours, Travel Tips

TweetWe’ve been renting homes to travelers for over a year now, and I’ve noticed two distinct groups of people: ‘Italy first-timers’ and ‘Italian culture chasers’. In all honesty, some, albeit very few, of the first-timers truly resemble the culture chasers. The ‘first-timers’ are the [...]

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The Tuscia in Jazz Festival

4 years ago

by Michael in Culture, Lazio, Music, Travel Tips

TweetFor the first time, Soriano hosted the Tuscia in Jazz Festival. This international festival had been held in nearby Ronciglione for the past five years, but apparently that town had complained about the noise and decided they didn’t want it anymore. The festival promoter, Italo [...]

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Finding Italy through London Fog this XMas

5 years ago

by Michael in Let Me Vent, Personal, Travel Tips

TweetOn Tuesday, December 19th at around 4:30 PM we sat at the departure gate in Los Angeles waiting to board our flight. It had already been a very long day for us, and we were looking forward to a 10 hour flight to London with a connection that would take us to Rome. It was me, Paola, [...]

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Living Mangers in Italy

5 years ago

by Michael in Culture, Lazio, Tours, Travel Tips, Tuscany, Umbria

TweetA tradition in Italy during Christmas time is the living manger. Many towns go way beyond a simple manger scene, and produce a full scale reproduction of Bethlehem. What makes it so special in many cases, is that they have the landscape and existing structures to really make it [...]

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How do they get the flavor out of the food in the states?

5 years ago

by Michael in Cooking, Culinary, Culture, Food, Let Me Vent, Things that make me scratch my head, Travel Tips

TweetI’ve been back in Los Angeles for a week now, and last night we went to an Italian restaurant for dinner for the first time since I got back. This may not seem like a big deal, but for us it is always a tragedy. The restaurant was Pomodoro in Woodland Hills. I don’t want to say it [...]

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Cattle Call in Rome versus an Italian country sunrise

5 years ago

by Michael in Culture, Let Me Vent, Things that make me scratch my head, Tours, Travel Tips

TweetI’ve been here for 5 days now and have had no time to write as I have been so busy working on our apartments. However, yesterday I took my cousin to see Rome. After all, she has never been to Italy and it is less than an hour away from our house. It’s late October… we are pressing [...]

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Discovering the True Italian life when vacationing in Italy

5 years ago

by Michael in Lazio, Tours, Travel Tips, Tuscany, Umbria

TweetSome people travel to Italy, see the sights, eat the food, and go home thinking they experienced Italian culture. In reality, the vast majority of these people only experienced a tiny fraction of the amazing culture that Italy offers. You cannot experience the true Italy from a [...]

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How to avoid getting ripped off as a tourist in Italy

5 years ago

by Michael in Culture, Let Me Vent, Travel Tips

TweetWhen you are traveling, sometimes you can just feel it. You go to pay for something, and you just know that if you were a local, you would have paid a much lower price. You are an ‘unsuspecting tourist’, and they will take you for what you’ve got. Here is a link to a New York Times [...]