I love collages and sewing so decided to save them. I bought some plain white T shirts and cut the pictures off the old T shirts. On the new T shirt I made a collage of cloth scraps from other clothes I’d made and the old T shirt picture. 

Yesterday I finished making my Etruscan Tomb of the Leopards “new” T shirt. I love the Etruscans and went to Tarquinia, an hour north of Rome, in the 1980s and in 1991 to go down into Etruscan tombs, including the famous Tomb of the Leopards with musicians. I got a kick of the T shirt that transformed them into a rock band. I got this T shirt in Florence around 1991.

new T shirt with Etruscan Tomb of the Leopards

In first “save the T shirt” project, I put the “wine lovers’ food pyramid” on a new T shirt and went a bit overboard with the number of patterns and colours! A tour client gave me the original shirt around 1998.

new T shirt with wine lovers’ food pyramid

Did you know that Michelangelo’s David and Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa had a love affair? I found this T shirt in Rome in 1996 and still chuckle over it. I added the red lace to spice it up and decided less was more in the collage design.

new T shirt of David and Mona Lisa

I love Matisse’s strong colours and lively dancers on this T shirt which I got in Vancouver way back when. I made my extra tidbits to follow the spirit of the original picture.

 I have other Italian T shirts that are approaching the “save me!” stage: red wines of Italy, types of coffee drinks in Italyand my beloved one of Mona Lisa laughing hysterically. I’ve also saved the cloth of my two umbrellas with Botticelli’s La Primavera and the Birth of Venus.

Saving Favourite Italian T Shirts

Amalfi Coast T shirt says, “Save water, drink limoncello.” Good advice!

You’ve decided to explore Italy for your 2012 vacation. Where to go? You face endless, tantalizing possibilities and feel like shouting, “Help!” Help is on its way…right here. 

1. “What kind of travelers are we?” Choose the best regions for you. 

Are you big wine lovers and want to experience your favourite wines right where they’re made with the producers? If you love Amarone, choose the Veneto. For Barolo—Piedmont. For Chianti or Brunello—Tuscany. For Nero D’Avola—Sicily. 

If food is your number one priority in life, ask yourself, “What kind of Italian food?” For silk-like pasta,Emilia-Romagna. For healthy vegetable dishes and seafood, the Riviera or Puglia among others. 

If you love adventures in nature, what season to go? In winter, you can ski in the Dolomites north of Venice, in the mountains near Turin in Piedmont or on Mount Etna in Sicily. 

In summer, you can hike on paths on the Amalfi Coast or in hills in many parts of Tuscany and Umbria. Italy’s two coasts of beaches may beckon you like in Sardinia, the Riviera and Calabria. 

If you adore art, what period of art and architecture? Florence focuses mostly on the Renaissance. For me, Rome shines for the antiquities and Baroque. Puglia offers imposing castles, Greek temples, quaint trulli houses, white Greek-like hill towns. 

Find regions that match at least one of your passions. How? Stay tuned for your next newsletter! 

David and his shadow at Palazzo Vecchio in Florence

 2. “What kind of travelers are we?” Slow or fast?  

Do you like to settle in one place, hang out for a few days and get a good feel for life, food, wine and culture there? If you have a week, pick one region as a base, or two regions a short trip apart. If you have two weeks, choose two or three regions. You’ll avoid spending too much time traveling and getting settled in too many hotels. 

Some flights cost less money and time than longer train rides. For example, flying from Rome to Catania in Sicily takes one hour and costs from 98 Euros return so you could do Rome and eastern Sicily in a week. 

Do you want to see as much as you can in the short time you have? Plan to stay at least two, or better three nights in each place. 

Travel time between places can eat up half a day door to door.Venice to Florence is about two hours by train. But add time to get to the train in Venice from your hotel, find your train in Venice (assuming you bought tickets in advance), get from the Florence train station to your hotel and get settled, and time for the unexpected. You’ve lost a morning. 

If you stay night #1 in Florence, tour Florence day #2, stay in Florence night #2 and leave day #3, you’ve spent about 1.5 days there.  Hardly doing this magnificent city justice.

Planning Your Trip In Italy: Where Should We Go?

2012 poster for the Baroque Carnevale in Castiglion Fibocchi in Tuscany

When I think “carnevale—carnival” in Italy, Venice’s famous one pops first into my mind (see carnevaledivenezia.it for an incredible line-up of events for Feb 4-5 and Feb 11-21). However, wherever you go in Italy, cities and towns celebrate Carnevale, some more flamboyantly than others. 

In Tuscany, the popular beach resort city, Viareggio (about 90 minutes west of Florence by train) is world famous for its lavish Carnevale celebrations, especially its gigantic, fantastical paper mache floats and allegorical characters in its parades. Up to one million spectators will marvel at five masked parades on the Liberty style seaside avenues on February 5, 12, 19, 26 and March 3 in 2012. The floats move among the public, so you can participate in the parades too. The entertainment program offers a wonderful variety of music and culture for the whole family. Check out Viareggio.ilcarnevale.com and have fun looking at the flamboyant costumes! 

If you want to celebrate carnival in Tuscany but partying with 1,000,000 joyful people makes you cringe, how about venturing to a 12^th century Tuscan hill town near Arezzo, Castiglion Fibocchi? Their carnival festivities with a Baroque theme February 5 and 12 sound utterly enchanting. 

They transform the whole town into the “Carnival of the Children of Bocco” with masked parades, street theatre, gastronomic stands and fireworks. (carnevaledeifiglidibocco.it) Arezzois about an hour south of Florence by train. You’d probably need to rent a car to easily get to Castiglion Fibocchi. 

On the Amalfi Coast, for 10 days the coastal town of Maiori turns into one big carnival with parades, floats, masks, dance and music performances, traditional games and general fun. The towns people work hard for about three months to make it happen and are all too ready to celebrate by carnival time! 

Other popular carnivals happen in Ivrea in Piedmont (famous for its orange fruit battle),Verona, Cento near Parma (twinned with a Brazilian carnival), Rome and Acireale, the most beautiful and fun carnival in Sicily. 

The best web site I found for lists of carnival celebrations all over Italy is travelitalytravel.com/Italian_carnevale_season which gives links to Italy’s 20 regions and carnivals in each region.

Where To Have Fun At Carnevale in Italy: Tuscany, Amalfi Coast & More

Tap Venice Eating 

For 15 years Michaela Scibilia’s book, Venice Osterie, has been the go-to guide for locals eating out in Venice (tapvenice.com). Michaela describes a huge variety of spots from down home style trattorias, to wine bars with quick snacks to famous but good value restaurants. She features only places she’s eaten at. 

In this iPhone version of her book, you’ll find 130 eateries in Venice and 30 near Venice: restaurants, trattorias, wine bars, specialty food shops, bakeries, bars, chocolate shops. Her descriptions include photos, maps, closing day, hours open, prices. Search by categories like “scenic view” or “tables outside”. You can even search multiple categories like a restaurant on Monday for a romantic dinner. 

Available at Apple’s iTunes store at $2.99. Updated September 2010. 

gelatos in Florence—Oh! Which flavours to pick today?

Eat Florence 

Rome resident and food journalist Elizabeth Minchilli (elizabethminchilliinrome.com) has written six books on Italian living and many articles for over 40 newspapers and magazines. Now she’s published two foodie apps, Eat Rome and Eat Florence.  

With Eat Florence, you’ll avoid tourist trap eateries through her expert suggestions and lively comments for 110 carefully chosen restaurants, bakeries, wine bars, kitchen and food stores, coffee bars and more. You can see over 800 photos and share reviews, photos and user comments. 

Available on her web site and sutromedia.com/apps.html at $2.99. Updated August 2011  

Umbria Slow: Food, Culture & Travel 

Alex Leviton has written the Umbria part for four Lonely Planet Tuscany & Umbria guides. Rebecca Winke, with her husband, owns and runs an agriturismo, Brigolante, nearAssisi and blogs regularly about Umbria. 

Along with uniquely Umbria spots tourists rarely experience, Alex and Rebecca tell you about family-owned restaurants, a zero-emission winery, their favourite cooking classes. You learn about the food like truffles, a truffle hunter’s restaurant, the wines and where to ride on horseback through vineyards. 

You can easily sort listings by category, name, price, area or distance. Check out hundreds of travel hints, tips for local events, weather or history. Look at step by step photos like how to pay for parking and share your reviews and photos. 

Available at sutromedia.com/apps.html at $2.99. Updated September 2011. 

Other Italy food travel apps: 

Tuscany For Foodies by James Martin at sutromedia.com/apps.html

Rome For Foodies by Katie Parla. Coming soon! See her web site at parlafood.com

Eat Rome by Elizabeth Minchilli 

Other app guides with lots of food and wine spots at sutromedia.com/apps.html: 

Milanand More by Stef Smulders

Florence Explorer by Leif Pettersen

Rome Dream of Italy by Kathy McCabe

Puglia Travel Guide by Martha Bakerjian

Apps for Italy Food Lovers: Perfect Gifts

mother from Australia with daughter living in UK enjoying Capri on their cooking tour in Sorrento. Courtesy of Elizabeth Sykes.

More and more parents are gathering their adult children, and sometimes their grandchildren, to share meaningful vacations where you learn something new and have fun together, as well as discover new cultures or ways of living. 

At the same time, you reconnect and deepen relationships with loved ones you may not see as often as you’d like to, and create wonderful memories your family will treasure forever. 

Here are some true family travel tales from our Italian cooking tours this year. There’s something about cooking and laughing together in Italy with local people and eating your efforts that brings people together! I’ve seen it happen so many times in Italy.

A 60 something uncle and aunt from South Carolina took their 16 year old nephew, who lives in Massachusetts and loves cooking, on our cooking tour in Emilia-Romagna. They wanted to spend more quality time with him and encourage his interest in cooking. Who knows, he may become a chef specializing in Italian cuisine! They had a fabulous time together, seeing first hand how parmesan cheese is made from scratch and making all kinds of pasta by hand. Their nephew loves cars too, so they visited the Ferrari museum. 

A 50 something mother and her 22 year old daughter from Florida enjoyed a week of cooking, wine and exploring Tuscany at a wine estate near Florence. The daughter had just graduated from journalism school so this special trip celebrated an important achievement. These two foodies had happily travelled together before but not for awhile and had lots of fun in Italy. 

A 60ish mother from New Hampshire travelled with Mama Margaret in 2001 with a group of women friends to Piedmont, Cinque Terre and southern Tuscany and has been getting our newsletter ever since. Her 26 year old daughter lives in Boston and as her mum put it, “needs a break”. With our tour colleague in south east Sicily, we custom designed a Sicilian cooking tour with extra outdoor activities for these active souls starting November 26, 2011. 

I’m 61 and very healthy, but am thinking I need to travel while I still can. A good women friend of mine died last week at age 57. Many baby boomers are traveling now with their adult kids while their health is still good and while their adult kids aren’t tied down in jobs, marriages or parenthood. 

I’m off to French Polynesia and Hawaii for Christmas and New Year on a ballroom dance cruise—my first cruise ever! Before sailing away, I’ll explore islands Tahiti, Moorea and less touristed Huahine, staying in more rustic accommodations, soaking up sun, slathering myself in insect repellent and savouring local food.

Share Meaningful, Fun Vacations With Your Family: True Tales

Osteria Pepo (pepo.it) at Via Rosina 4/6r near Florence’s central food market in the San Lorenzo area offers a variety of traditional and modern dishes. 

Some examples:

• white Tuscan beans with caviar
• gnocchi with gorgonzola cheese and arugula
• beef filet with green pepper sauce
• steak Florentine

 It’s near Mario’s and Za-Za restaurants but not in guidebooks, so more locals and fewer tourists dine there. 

Santa Croce church and piazza at night

Near Santa Croce church, at La Pentola dell’Oro at Via di Mezzo 24 (lapentoladelloro.it), the creative chef  revives Renaissance era dishes so you eat something unusual. 

Some examples:

• thin, truffle flavoured tagliatelle with a Renaissance cream of yellow squash
• pici with sausage,  porcini mushrooms and cherry tomatoes
• chicken breast with a medieval sauce of apple and pomegranate
• wild boar with cocoa, raisins and citrus

 Also near Santa Croce, the cute, modern Ristorante Vineria Gastone (gastonefirenze.it) at Via Matteo Palmieri 26r offers an impressive list of Italian reds and whites as well as champagne style wines and some French wines. The menu features creative Italian dishes and some traditional Tuscan ones. 

Some examples:

• small flan of squash, parmesan with balsamic vinegar and almond cookies
• spaghetti with pistachio nuts and sea bass
• thick pieces of grilled meat with rosemary
• salad of field greens, grilled chicken, dried tomatoes and pine nuts

On the other side of the Arno (Oltr’arno area), near Palazzo Pitti she likes wine bar Le Volpi e L’Uva (levolpieluva.com) at Piazza Rossi 1. They source out top Italian and French wines from less known, smaller, boutique wineries and pair them with crostone (thick pieces of Tuscan bread with toppings), vegetable plates, appetizers and tasting platters. 

Some examples:

• crostone with melted Asiago cheese and spicy Calabrian sausage
• smoked pork loin slices with salad greens,
• plate of five D.O.P. Italian cheeses with honey and fruit chutneys
• finger sandwich with Taleggio cheese and porcini mushrooms

Also in the Oltr’arno area just outside a medieval city gate at the old city walls is Enoteca Fuori Porta (fuoriporta.it), a wine bar at Via del Monte alle Croci 10. On any one day, they’ll have about 30 wines on their ever changing wine list. In a year their wine list sees about 250 different wines. You can sit back outside on their terrace and watch people walking by or inside in one of their cozy rooms. The menu of crostoni, salads and pastas with a glass of wine makes the perfect lunch or light dinner.

Where To Eat In Florence Where Locals Go: Judy Witts’ Recommendations

Margaret in Piedmont enjoying a glass of red wine with Massimo, an owner of the Ratti winery

Miriam Beard said, “Travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living.”  

This Hallowe’en I transformed myself into James Bond’s “Goldfinger Woman” resplendent in flashy gold from top to toe — a flamboyant, sexy creature. Where did this crazy idea come from? Maybe partly from the “over the top”, metallic, brightly coloured shoes I got such a kick out of  in Florence’s Ferragamo shoe museum. 

A little voice inside me nudged, “Hey, this side of you hardly ever gets out. What are you going to do about it?” 

Experiences on our travels can transform us, give us little nudges. This made me think about how Italy has changed me. 

In 1972 on my first trip to Europe, I fell for an outgoing, fun loving Sardinian man, partly because he kept throwing his arms around me and kissing me.  A completely new experience for me, coming from a reserved Scottish family! It all made me think, “Hmmm, I like Italian men.” As more new Italian friends, both men and women, hugged me regularly, I became more affectionate. I love hugs! 

When I got home from living in Italy 1977-1980, I kept my Mediterranean diet. To this day, I eat bread with no butter, use extra virgin olive oil about 95% of the time in cooking, drink caffe latte made with espresso in my stove top Italian coffee pot every morning, and drink a glass of wine about five times a week. Maybe one of the reasons I almost never get sick. 

A Vancouver man who’s been on a few of our cooking and wine tours told me recently, “Those trips to Italychanged my life. I changed my diet. I’m far healthier.”

Some trips bring a turning point in your life. A new, unexpected door opens and you feel compelled to go through it. I remember talking to one of our Piedmont tour members, an Ontario woman in publishing, a few years after her tour. She said she’d opened a cooking school for chefs, all because that tour awakened a love of cooking and teaching. 

How has travel in Italy changed you? How have your travels to other countries changed your life? 

As American actor Danny Kaye said, “To travel is to take a journey into yourself.”

True Travel Tales: How Travel In Italy Can Change Your Life

entrance of All’Antico Vinaio, a small wine bar at Via dei Neri 65, a few steps east of the Uffizi. I go there every time I’m in Florence.

On Skype I interviewed Judy Witts Francini, long time Florence and Tuscan resident and cooking teacher of divinacucina.com for tips on how to eat in Florence where you’re among locals. I really enjoyed “seeing” her again after a few years. 

Tip #1: Avoid restaurants cited in guidebooks 

Many tourists clutch their guidebooks as they explore Florence, so eat only in restaurants in the guidebooks, where of course, they find other tourists. Locals don’t want to wait in lines at these popular tourist restaurants, so go to nearby ones not in guidebooks. 

For example, near the central market, Mario’s and Za-Za trattorias are both in guidebooks, but Pepo’s (pepo.it) in the same piazza is not. You’ll find more locals in Pepo’s. Judy says many tourists aren’t that adventurous. If they haven’t heard of a place, they don’t go there. Be adventurous and shut your guidebook at meal time. 

Tip #2: Eat a light dinner early in a wine bar 

Eat a light dinner in a wine bar at about 7:00 p.m. It’s a real challenge for your stomach to eat two big meals a day in a restaurant, so a light dinner in a wine bar works well. Plus at that hour, many locals drop by for a pre-dinner drink and snack, so you’re among Florentines. They dine at 8:00 or 8:30 but 7:00 works well for us North Americans. 

Tip #3: In summer head to four or five star hotels’ cocktail lounges 

In summer in the early evening, go to four and five star hotels’ cocktail lounges. In these quiet, elegant spots, business people go for drinks that come with appetizers. For example, sit back at the Savoy Hotel’s lovely rooftop lounge with beautiful Florence views and strike up some conversations. 

Tip #4: Go to pizzerias or restaurants serving steak 

Local people go to restaurants for food they wouldn’t normally cook at home. In Florence, that means pizzas and steaks in the evening, so you’ll find more Florentines in pizzerias and restaurants with steak on the menu. 

Tip #5: Ask local merchants for restaurant recommendations 

Don’t ask the hotel concierge or receptionist for restaurant recommendations. They’ll suggest popular tourist spots and may even be getting kickbacks. Instead ask the person who sells newspapers or the local fruit vendor for restaurants where you eat well and spend little –“dove si mangia bene e spende poco”. 

After you eat at that restaurant, ask your server for other recommendations in the neighbourhood. They’ll recommend friends or neighbours with similar eating places. 

Stay tuned next week for Judy’s specific dining recommendations in Florence. 

Bonus tip from Mama Margaret 

I found few tourists last June near Piazza Sant’Ambrogio in the east part of the city, on the edge of the centre, north of Piazza Santa Croce. In the morning local residents shop for food, housewares and clothes in the outdoor Sant’Ambrogio market. On a warm summer evening many Italians crowded the wine bars and restaurants. Almost no tourists. I dined very well in one of Judy’s recommended restaurants where the menu came in Italian only.

Five Ways To Eat In Florence Where Fewer Tourists Go

What are your favourite places in Italy? Feel free to add to my list. Let’s have a conversation and widen our horizons for our next Italy trips! 

1. Florence is my favourite city in Italy. I especially love walking along the Arno River at night, sitting in the ancient San Miniato Al Monte church above the panoramic Piazzale Michelangelo, looking at frescoes in Santa Maria Novella church and taking my time at the Ferrgamo shoe museum.
   

   moon over Arno River with San Miniato church lit up top right.

2. Stromboli, an island in Sicily’s Aeolian Islands. Visually stunning, live volcano, black sand beaches, far away from it all.

   

   typical street in Stromboli

3. Sitting on the balcony of my room at Hotel Tramonto D’Oro in Praiano on the Amalfi Coast, in awe of the view of Positano, with a glass of prosecco in hand.

   

   View of Positano from my Praiano hotel balcony

4. walking the paths in Piedmont’s Barolo or Barbaresco wine country hills, especially with fall colours

   

   walking path from Monforte to Barolo

5. walking the paths in Cinque Terre, especially strolling and sitting under the olive trees between Corniglia and Vernazza and then lying on a sun cot right at the sea’s edge on the beach in Monterosso’s new town.

   

   beach in new part of Monterosso

6. Dining at Roberto Rossi’s restaurant, Il Silene in Pescina, a Tuscan hamlet near Mont’Amiata. Amazing food, wine selections by Roberto and hospitality.

   

   Margaret and friends with Chef Roberto

7. standing on the Strada Panoramica in Ravello looking down on the Amalfi Coast. Someone said, “Ravello is where poets go to die.” I can see why. Stunning beauty.

   

   view from Ravello of Amalfi Coast

8. browsing and taking photos in Bologna’s colourful central food market, especially the creative window displays that either amuse or disgust you.

   

   butcher shop window in Bologna’s market with a pig head as the centerpiece

9. Montepulciano in Tuscany is one of my favourite hill towns: spectacular valley views, walking paths, drinking Vino Nobile in Caffe Poliziano or Piazza Grande.

   

   Margaret at one gate into Montepulciano

10. walking in Ballaro and Porta Carini markets in Palermo in Sicily, gazing at food and houseware displays and watching the exotic parade of shoppers

    

    Palermo’s Porta Carini market

My Top 10 Places In Italy (in no particular order—it’s a stiff competition!)

The 80ish mother of the two middle-aged sisters was paying for all four trips, but couldn’t go with them due to chronic poor health. She told her daughters, “I travelled a bit but not to all the places I wanted to. Now my travel window has shut. I want you girls to go now while you still can.” Like many families, the adult daughters were weighed down with mortgage payments and other expenses of running a family and didn’t have money now for the trip to Italy they’d all been dreaming of sharing. 

They also took advantage of the time of life of their daughters. They traveled together before their daughters were tied down to a degree program, job, boyfriend, husband or children and less free to travel with their mothers. 

Our Mama Margaret tours draw food lovers because of the experiences of cooking, eating rather well, drinking great wines, visiting food producers and getting to know local people and local life. But underneath lies a deeper value… a closer, deeper relationship between you and the people you love that travel with you. 

This second value is my biggest “why I’m in this business”. I’ve seen so many examples of families and friends re-connecting or deepening their relationships on our tours. Every time, seeing it gladdens my heart. 

Who do you care about and want to travel with?  Travel now together while you still can.

Do It Now While You Still Can