Search results for: Golden Day Ten (Page 14)

December 13 — Feast of Saint Lucy Celebrate the Saint of Light and Sight, Italian Style Today is Saint Lucy’s Feast Day, where Hope comes to dark winter days The festa also brings me back to Siracusa, Sicily, and the island of Ortygia, where she is honored, along with other amazing females… Ortygia’s Duomo is built around the remains of a Greek Temple that honored the Goddess Athena, patron of Wisdom, Craftsmanship and Heroic Endeavors, who became Minerva to the Romans. Sprung from the head of Zeus, Athena was a real career goddess who did such great things as guide Odysseus home, think up theRead More →

Once spring is near, I start dreaming about Rome…and artichoke season. Here’s an excerpt from “Hungry for Italy”: “Order carciofi,” (pronounced car-CHO-fee), is what I tell travelers who ask for advice about Rome. Sure, you can run around oohing and aahing over the Forum, Colosseum, and Sistine Chapel, but for the True Roman Experience, you have to stop and taste the artichokes. From late February to early May, overflowing crates of these green and purple-tinged beauties from surrounding farmlands begin to appear in the Eternal City. Signoras in smocks sit in the open air Campo dei Fiori market, peeling Carciofi Romaneschi with their tiny knives, as if they’re made of butter. InRead More →

With Valentine’s Day, thoughts turn to chocolate. Here’s an excerpt from “100 Places in Italy Every Woman Should Go” to help you find the best places for chocolate in Italy… “Let them eat chocolate,” was the kind proclamation of Madama Reale. The year was 1678. Madama Reale was thirty years old, widowed, with a boy to raise, and had become the ruler of the Piedmont region in northern Italy. She took her job seriously and carried on major beautiful changes to the city during her reign , continuing in the tradition her husband had began, remodeling the Palazzo Madama into pretty French style. In Madame Reale’s dayRead More →

WHY SUSAN VAN ALLEN’S ITALY? 10 Reasons Why Women Love GOLDEN WEEKS IN ITALY: For Women Only 1 Small Group Tours (14 max) You get personal, caring attention every step of the way. A small group also means we move gracefully through cities and towns–we can blend in at restaurants, travel in smaller buses, and become a fun family during this extraordinary week. 2 Led and Designed by Italian American Author You have the experience of traveling with a writer, who has done deep-dives into all the places we’ll go to together. So you get the experience of a fun-loving savvy traveler girlfriend with youRead More →

Ciao Amici, I send you and yours my good thoughts and prayers during these challenging days. One of the comforts I’ve been grateful for lately has been recipes from my maternal line and from cooks I’ve met over many delicious years of traveling in Italy. Along with great flavors, they’ve wrapped me up in beautiful, rich memories, that connect me to Italy’s abundant heart and soul. I’ve collected some of my favorite Italy adventures into my latest book, Hungry for Italy. It’s a chance to immerse yourself in the flavors of the Bel Paese, with stories that range from stirring risotto in Milan, to harvestingRead More →

Refreshed and Updated, with Golden Days & a New List of Favorites. One of the most innovative and fascinating travel guides dedicated to Italy… – Select Italy Don’t go to Italy without reading this! — Kathy McCabe, Editor and Publisher, Dream of Italy Travel Newsletter CLICK FOR MORE BOOK INFO My love for Italy began at a dining room table in Newark, New Jersey: Sunday dinners at my maternal grandparent’s house. Amidst the deliciousness, opera blaring, and hands flying through the air, I felt the soul of the Bel Paese: An Abundant Delicious Heart. Traveling to Italy for over 40 years, I’ve met so manyRead More →

Ciao Amici! I’m so grateful that 2016 included the release of the Third Edition of “100 Places in Italy Every Woman Should Go.” Wonderful surprises have come into my life since this book first hit the stands in 2009. It’s been thrilling to hear from travelers who enjoyed discovering new places and experiences through its pages, and that the book added so much fun to their Italian travels. Here’s a Sneak Preview/Excerpt… It’s the Perfect Gift for the Italophile in your life… AVAILABLE at your Local Bookstore, AMAZON, and BARNES & NOBLE PREFACE I fell in love with Italy at a dining room table in Newark,Read More →

TOP 10 TIPS FOR ITALIAN TRAVELexcerpted from100 Places in Italy Every Woman Should Go 1. Lie about when you’re leaving and returning. Tell yourself and those in your world you’ll be away the day before and the day after whatever it says on your airplane ticket. It’s not really lying. Mentally you’re in Italy those pre- and post-travel days. This helps me to not leave packing until the last minute, and spares those around me from being with getting-on-the-plane-to-Italy-obsessed Suz. The day after you return, you’ll be on an Italy high, unpacking, and will get no sympathy with your “I’m jet-lagged, just got back fromRead More →

Susan Van Allen’s love for Italy stems from her maternal grandparents, who emigrated from Southern Italy. She was born in Newark, New Jersey, and grew up on the Jersey shore amidst wonderful food and drama. When she first stepped off the train into Roma Termini in 1976, she got hooked on Italian travel. Since then she’s explored the country up and down the boot–visiting relatives, immersing herself in the country’s masterpieces and culture, taking language and cooking classes, and going on boating, biking, and hiking adventures. She’s written about Italian travel for many media outlets, including National Public Radio, Town & Country, AFAR, Tastes ofRead More →