BLOG (Page 4)

Of all the beautiful spots in the beautiful Cinque Terre, Vernazza is certainly the most beloved by photographers and painters…and book cover designers… It’s a dream to arrive to this village on the path from Corniglia… The view is crowned by the Belforte tower and Doria Castle, named after the powerful Doria family from Genoa. (BTW, as I’m always highlighting HERstory, the name Doria actually came from a 12th century Genoese noblewoman, Auria, who married a noble pilgrim who went off to fight the first crusades in Jerusalem. The name was originally, in Latin, de filius Auirae=Sons of Auria). If you arrive to Vernazza byRead More →

Florence = Heaven for so many reasons. There’s the masterpieces of architecture and art, amazing food and wine, welcoming natives, AND wonderful shopping. During our Golden Weeks, I’ve loved seeing the great joy women experience over filling their suitcases with gifts to bring home, and to keep for themselves for lasting memories… It’s so easy to come by fun leather finds in the market stalls of San Lorenzo, around Santa Croce, and the Mercato Nuovo (aka Straw Market, Mercato del Porcellino)… And lovely to stroll along Via Tornabuoni for designer brands in shops that were once Renaissance palaces… What’s marvelous is how history and traditionRead More →

Buona Primavera = Happy Spring! The Romans considered April the Sacred Month of Venus, Goddess of Love, Beauty, Fertility, and Sex… Her presence is eternal…you see her all over Italy, in sculptures, paintings. You feel her spirit beckoning you to lighten up, enjoy all the flavors and pleasures…Here in the Uffizi in Florence is the Botticelli painting of her being born from the sea… The Romans believed they were the chosen descendants of this beauty. As Virgil wrote in the Aeneid, it was Venus who seduced a Greek mortal and thus became the grandmother of Romulus and Remus, those twins suckled by a she-wolf on Rome’s Palatine Hill, whoRead More →

Happy International Women’s Day! All over Italy on March 8, this holiday is celebrated with mimosa flowers, given by men to the women in their life, or by women to their friends… It’s a global day to celebrate all female achievements–past, present, and future. Courageous women began it in the early 1900s, holding demonstrations for the right to vote and for equal pay and working conditions.  Credits: PagineCorsare The Union of Italian Women officially declared March 8 Women’s Day in 1945. The scent of mimosas is everywhere, reminding us that spring is near… At night, girlfriends get together and have fun…and maybe get a little wild… Mimosa cocktails are enjoyed… ,AND Mimosa cake…Read More →

Susan Van Allen, 100 Places in Italy Every Woman Should Go

When I’m not in Italy, I seek other comforts in my Italian American world. Such as: New York’s REAL Little Italy: Arthur Avenue in the Bronx. I’ve long loved this humble neighborhood of shops, bakeries, and restaurants—many that have been run by Italian-Americans for generations. It’s a kick to leave the skyscrapers of Manhattan behind, and in just a half hour feel as though I’m stepping back in time, to the days when I’d trail behind my mother on a shopping outing in the small town I grew up in, as we’d go from baker to deli to pizzeria—where everybody knew our names. The ArthurRead More →

Buona Befana! Tonight’s the night this dear signora rides through the night sky, sweeping away last year’s troubles with her broom, bringing in a Bright Happy New Year to All! Here’s an excerpt from my book, Letters from Italy,that tells my story of celebrating the holiday in Rome… Postcard from Rome: The Legend of La Befana* “There is no Santa Claus in Italy,” my Nana told me when I was a kid. I had nightmares of how awful Christmas must be over there. Nana said she had to wait until January 6, The Feast of the Epiphany, to get gifts. The presents came from an oldRead More →

100 Places in Italy Every Woman Should Go, Susan Van Allen, Women Only Tours to Italy, Small Group Tours Italy, Women's Travel, My Brilliant Friend

So happy to see HBO’s My Brilliant Friend Episode 6 , where Lenu gets to leave the Neighborhood and go to Ischia…She was so pensive on her way there, and there’s me, returning ecstatic to one of my most beloved places in Italy… The island has been adored for its restorative springs since the days of the ancient Greeks, and today is the largest thermal-water destination in Europe, with over 300 spa-hotels and thermal parks. I fell in love with Ischia 10 years ago, while doing spa research for 100 Places in Italy Every Woman Should Go., and keep returning to discover more of this treasure…The AragoneseRead More →

I can hardly settle myself down to write this. I’m immersed in the throes of Ferrante Fever here in Hollywood…watching trailers incessantly, reading reviews, studying photos of  HBO’s “My Brilliant Friend”–-that premieres tonight… Ferrante’s Neapolitan Novels took hold of my life a few years back, when I devoured the series in a staying-up-late fury, turning pages, promising myself I’d go to bed…maybe after the next chapter…or the next… When the HBO show was announced recently, I started listening to “My Brilliant Friend” on Audible just to refresh my memory…and now my walks have become very looong…listening riveted to the whole series again…that would be meRead More →

One of my favorite June in Italy times was a Golden Days in Sperlonga, a beach town in Lazio, easily reached from Rome. My dear Roman friend Gioia, first told me about Sperlonga: “It’s where we all had our first boyfriends,” she said, with a dreamy look in her eyes…With Gioia as my cicerone=guide, I landed in all the right places… The bella Hotel Corallo, the only hotel at the top of the old town, where Salvatore and his family welcomed me… The village is an enchanting mix of stairways and alleys, with shops, restaurants, and caffes… Down below are the beaches, set up inRead More →

I’m often asked: “I have 10 days in Italy, can you please help me with my travel itinerary?” Oh how I’d LOVE to! Except when that question is followed by that very looonng, heavy bucket list of ALL the traveler expects to  pack in to 10 days. While I love enthusiasm for Bell’Italia, and totally understand  “not wanting to miss anything”, the Truth is This:  When you cram too much in to an Italian vacation, you miss out on the most essential Italian experience: La Dolce Vita=The Sweet Life. A trip to Italy is a chance to open yourself up to the old world wayRead More →