Perche

Thank you to Helosc for a great idea!

He wrote, "How about starting an informal, non-specific, all about Italy, chatty thread? For discussions about all and everything, for small questions not meriting their own thread, for small complaints, for news, for entertainment....
There's a tendency in this forum to go off topic anyway, so a general thread could be a good idea.

I, for instance, wanted to share what a good time I've been having here in Firenze - sunshine, lots of food, lots of wine - I don't know what it is about Italy that releases the inner glutton/enjoyer of life."

So here it is, not meant as a place for specific topics, but for talking back and forth about Italy. That is fine, and everyone is welcome. The hope it that this will allow us to continue to improve the community feeling here on the Italy Forum.

Perche

London is famous for its gigantic Ferris Wheel right next to the Thames, and Paris, Vienna, and other cities have done the same. Concerned that it is losing out on tourism competition, the town of Pisa has decided to build a Ferris Wheel next to the Leaning Tower of Pisa. It will be taller than the Tower, and they are advertising it as saying you will no longer have to fly a drone to get the best view of it. It took hundreds of years to keep the Tower from falling down, now they want to build a giant machine next to it.

http://www.corriere.it/cronache/17_f...e5fcea94.shtml

In Italy, you never can tell if something is really going to happen, but the leading newspaper published that it will be wheeled in by truck in time for this summer. The City's leadership wants to show that, "Pisa is more than just a tower."

Not too long ago Florence planned to build a giant Ferris Wheel on the River Arno not too far from Ponte Vecchio, but it was finally stopped. Pisa, at least for now, seems to be going ahead with building theirs. Critics are saying that London cannot be compared to Pisa because it is a modern city and the Ferris Wheel fits in with the skyscrapers, and the one in Vienna was built in the 1800's.

Sometimes, it seems that there is nothing that Italy won't do for tourism.

obscure2k

Thanks to Perche for welcoming us to the Sala Italiana.
I am often asked why I choose to go to Venice every November. My answer is always the same, white truffles, few tourists and cool weather and the best 10 days of my year

obscure2k

Curious about the wearing of fur coats in Italy. Is it my imagination or are the beautifully-dressed Italian women substituting fur for down-filled (or synthetic) to keep them warm?

helosc

Thank you.......
Am leaving Firenze this morning - spending the day in Bologna and flying home this evening - weather is still beautiful.

tyn

Spot on! That has indeed been the trend for several years and now that the weather is turning to spring you will see everyone in a bright/pastel colour lightweight down jacket. Mind you, a nice "piumino" from Moncler or Herno can cost more than a fur coat

Perche

Trapizzino have come to NYC. Katie Parla has written about how this Roman street food that is a mix between a pita pocket, a sandwich, and a pizza was started by a man who sold them in the street, and it took Rome by storm. Then, he opened a booth in the market in Testaccio, then several other shops around Rome, including the Mercato Centrale. They are amazing. They are so popular that he is going global, and just opened a shop in Manhattan. So, if you want a taste of great Roman Street food;

Katie Parla's article.
https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2...zza?CMP=twt_gu

The article about last month's opening in Manhattan.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/21/d...eet-snack.html

http://ny.eater.com/2017/2/22/147007...yc-photos-menu

obscure2k

Oh my, tyn. Not sure whether to curse or compliment you for introducing me to the"piumino" from Moncler or Herno". My Northface vests and jackets are not beautiful but they are functional. I am now trying to justify the cost of a Herno coat.The scary thing is that they are sold on Amazon so I have to exercise serious restraint.

Perche

Piumino is a very important word, also used to describe a down comforter, which can be a good thing to have during a cold summer in San Francisco.

obscure2k

On one of our trips to Venice, I think it was in Winter, we were staying at Ai Mori D'Oriente in Canarregio. We were upgraded to a very large and elegant room with many windows. Living in Southern California, we always sleep with our windows open. When in Italy, same thing. Windows are open. This is one of the reasons I love the hotels in Venice. We can open the windows^@:-) One of the reasons I have problems sleeping in so many U.S. hotels is that I can not open the windows.
We decided that we needed a Piumino. Near the end of Strada Nova was a shop which sold nice linens and it was there that we bought our down comforter which provided warmth during our stay in Venice and warmth and sweet memories at home.

Perche

For those thinking of hiking up Mt. Etna, here is a link to an interesting video showing something that happened up there today.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-39293086

Perche

This is a picture of an explosion of Mt. Etna last night, yet they let the tour companies take people up there this morning, where ten people were hurt.

Perche

Better view of the eruption the people on the tour were caught in today. The temperature of the rocks that come out of there is about 1000C, or about 1800F.

Perche

Some strange things are happening in Venice. Venice is one of the safest cities in Italy, with very little crime. In the last month or so there have been two armed robberies of jewelry stores near Rialto, something that was a very rare event.

Yesterday, the strangest thing happened in Piazza San Marco. San Marco Square started to fill up with smoke. The Piazza is always full of anti-terrorism police. Everyone assumed an act of terror was about to occur, and the source of the smoke was right next to the Campanile, or bell tower, and people thought it was going to be blown up. The police started running in that direction.

There was a tourist in Cafe Quadri, the famous Cafe on Piazza San Marco where musicians play classical music outside. For some reason, this tourist wasn't distracted by the smoke, that by then was so thick you couldn't see the Basilica of San Marco. Instead, he kept looking into the Piazza, and noticed that across the Piazza there was an armed robbery of the famous jewelry store Missiaglia taking place. He notified a waiter who ran outside and started signaling for the police. The armed robbers' lookout saw that they had been noticed and they fled, but not before menacing two women with their guns, and shoving one to the ground.

It turns out they set off these enormous smoke bombs to pull the police away towards the Basilica and the Campanile. If you look at the pictures, you'll see just how full of smoke the Piazza became. The thieves are still on the loose.
http://www.veneziatoday.it/cronaca/f...arzo-2017.html
http://video.ilgazzettino.it/nordest...a-2323573.html
http://corrieredelveneto.corriere.it...82637203.shtml
http://foto.ilgazzettino.it/nordest/...a-2323521.html

helosc

As I brought home a nice big piece of bresaola from Bologna, I would like to ask here which cheese it is that it is normally served with?
I am thinking of when it is served with rucola salad and big peel-like pieces of cheese on top.

I am enjoying reading this thread even if I don't have much to contribute myself.