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Last November, Susan Van Allen, author of 100 Places in Italy Every Woman Should Go, took a group of women to experience a Golden Week in Tuscany… It was Glorious! “This trip was clearly designed by an artist–everything flowed along beautifully–a delicious, transformational experience of La Dolce Vita!”–Helen, San Francisco, California We stayed at Il Borgo di Villa Bossi Pucci, a half hour south from Florence… Every morning a breakfast basket arrived for us to enjoy the view… Then we set out for adventures: The Arezzo Antique Market, where the whole town is transformed with vendors filling the vias of the Medieval town… And sawRead More →

One of my 2012 highlights was meeting Anna Merulla in the centro storico of Genoa on a spring Sunday. I’d found Anna through her Beautiful Liguria blog, where she gives us an insider’s view of the region and expresses her passion for the food, history, and culture with gorgeous photos and recipes–including one for risotto and porcini, that is calling out to me this cold winter day. Beautiful Liguria is also Anna’s  travel concierge company that offers everything from tour planning, hiking excursions, weddings services, cooking lessons, and personal shopping in this region.   It was a Golden Day for me to meet Bella Anna inRead More →

Megan McCaffrey-Guerrera  is a California native turned Ligurian. Her longtime passion for Italy inspired her to move there, where she married Cinque Terre native Luigi, and created Bella Vita Italia, a company that offers customized itineraries, trip consulting, rentals, and excursions up and down the boot. Clients rave about Bella Vita Italia’s services, that tailor all details to individual desires, and give travelers insiders’ experiences for the memory books. When Megan has a moment away from her work and new baby Pietro, she blogs about her life in Lerici and her beautiful travels in Italy (including great photos and advice)–I especially enjoyed a recent post:Read More →

Ciao Amici– Grazie mille for all your wonderful comments/answers to the Who Inspired Your Love for Italy question. I’ve loved reading each of them–from beautiful stories of nonnas, parents to teachers, children, friends, chefs, neighbors, Dante!–what amazing paths bring Italy into our lives! My husband drew names from a pasta bowl today…Allora…Drumroll… Here are the Book and Dream of Italy subscription winners: Trena Johnson = 100 Places in Italy Every Woman Should Go, by Susan Van Allen Margery Holdsworth = How to Eat in Italy…if Chicken Parm is Your Favorite Italian Dish, by Carol Coviello-Malzone Christine Reinhardt = Italy: Instructions for Use, by Nan McElroyRead More →

To Celebrate the Holidays: ITALY BOOK GIVEAWAY! FIVE BOOKS ABOUT ITALY & AN ONLINE SUBSCRIPTION TO THE DREAM OF ITALY NEWSLETTER  WITH BONUS 2013 ITALIA CALENDAR Will be given away to commenters selected in a RANDOM DRAWING It’s NOT a CONTEST, anyone who comments can win! TO PLAY: Complete This Sentence In The Comment Section Below: Someone who inspired my Love for Italy was/is ________________________ Write the first thing that comes to your mind, for example… My Nana, who emigrated from Molise, traveled back to Italy, and sent letters that intrigued me  OR Iolanda, the signora in Montefollonico (Tuscany) who taught me to roll pici  OR TheRead More →

“Texan by birth, Italian by accident,” is how Kate Little describes herself. For Kate, a sciopero (strike) became a life-changing event. In 1989, she was traveling through Italy, got stranded in Monterosso al Mare (Cinque Terre) because of a train strike…and never left. She now lives in Fontana, a village between Monterosso and Levanto, with her husband, son, 2 dogs, 2 cats, 8 chickens, a turkey, and 2 awol land turtles. I discovered Kate through her Little Paradiso blog, where she writes great insider posts about her area, including a recent one about Monterosso’s prized lemons. Kate is an authorized Italian tour coordinator, a licensed sommelier, and holds a master’s degree fromRead More →

Andi Brown’s Once in a Lifetime blog sparkles with her lively passion for Italy. You’ll always find stunning photos there, and she covers the range of Italian experiences from recipes to rock bands, to one of her recent posts, that had me nodding along and smiling: Top 10 Cheap Thrills in Italy.  Though Andi’s traveled all over the globe, she has always been drawn back to Italy. She brings her love and decades of experience traveling there to her Consultation Service, where she customizes Italian travel itineraries, designing fabulous trips to fit any budget, giving visitors the chance to experience authentic Italy–from family run businesses,Read More →

There’s a new book on my reading list: Memoirs of a Solo Traveler – My Love Affair with Italy, by Margie Miklas. Margie is an Italian-American writer, photographer, and critical care nurse, based in Florida. Her memoir recounts her dream-come-true-3-month trip to Italy, where she visited 50 towns, from Val d’Aosta to Sicily, and also searched out her grandparent’s village, meeting long lost cousins. Brava Margie! I also recommend checking out this Italofile’s blog, Margieintaly, which features a mix of up to date Italy info and her beautiful photos, some of which she’s turned into notecards and sells in her Etsy shop. I’m so grateful she’sRead More →

We’re moving on to the region of Liguria, that enchanting crescent on Italy’s northwestern shore. Last spring, I spent a few dreamy days in Portovenere. The Romans believed that this spot is where the Goddess Venus rose from the sea. In early May, before the summer tourist crowds, it was heavenly. A lovely way to get there is by ferry from La Spezia, bobbing past fishing villages on the Gulf of the Poets, and then the Portovenere harbor appears…Click here for ferry schedule–the ride is about 45 minutes. Start your day with a buon capuccino at the Bar Lamia, right at the marina, where youRead More →

Lake Garda, Italy’s largest lake, is a gorgeous spot for relaxing and discovering charming towns. The jewel of them all is Sirmione, on a peninsula at the lake’s southern edge, surrounded by water on 3 sides. If you dash in for the day, or on a weekend in the summer tourist season, you may get turned off by the throngs of travelers. But if you wander away from il centro, and spend the night after the tourists have gone, you’ll experience paradise. The entrance to Sirmione is magical: you leave your car behind to enter this pedestrian-zoned town, and cross a moat that leads to the medieval Castello Scagliero. IfRead More →