NOVEMBER 2010

DREAMY LITTLE RESORT

11012010 Cilento is a protected Italian region - much of it a national park and Unesco world heritage site, no less - that sits not far south of the teeming holiday centres of Naples and the jet-setting Amalfi coast. Its interior is all sun-baked hilltop villages and majestically undulating, tree-clad mountains - harbouring, it is said, eagles and wolves. Our first base was Le Favate in Ascea, a stately farmstead hidden within the green folds of interweaving valleys that roll back from the blue Mediterranean. It's part of the agriturismo chain, a nationwide affiliation of rural estates that also provide impressively upscale hotel accommodation; its buildings - stylish, spacious and chunky - date from the very early 17th Century and are as natural to the ancient terrain as the surrounding olive groves. Hiding away in Cilento, the secret corner of southern Italy | Daily Mail
11022010 Villa Enterprises Management Ltd., Inc. (and its affiliates, Villa Enterprises) is a global multi-concept restaurant franchisor with 322 quick service restaurant (QSR) locations across 38 US states along with five additional countries. Founded in 1964 by Naples, Italy native Michele Scotto as a small pizzeria next to the Ed Sullivan Theater in New York City, Villa Enterprises today is an international organization that owns several unique QSR brands. 'Feed The Fear' Winner to Receive Pizza for a Year | PR Newswire
11032010 Danny DeVito -- actor, producer, director and proud Italian American -- has reached back to his roots to bring Americans a taste of Sorrento in Danny DeVito's Premium Limoncello. Danny DeVito Wants to Get You Drunk | Advertising Age
11042010 Carthusia I Profumi di Capri: "I always pick up several of these scents when I'm in Italy." Beauty Tricks for Travel | Marie Claire
11052010 Live like a prince in a country villa in Nola. This raspberry pink, 18th-century mansion was the neglected holiday home of the Princes of Castelcicala; now it has been restored, with care and passion... Relais Castelcicala | Sawday
11062010 An Italian gentleman, Mr. Leonardo B. Romano from S.Agata de Goti, a town near Naples, has recently watched the documentary movie about the Bosnian Pyramids on Italian TV. It hit him like lightning that he had an identical view from the balcony of his house, a pyramid like hill covered by grass with pointed edges and a square base. He always was wondering what this strangely shaped hill was, but never thought of doing research. “What is in front of your eyes every day, is of no special interest after some time”, he says. But after having seen the Bosnian Pyramid documentary he was convinced that his town of Santa Agata dei Goti had a pyramidal structure under one of the hills. The Pyramid Hill of S. Agata dei Goti | European-Pyramids
11072010 Through the brand Giosole, the Pasca di Magliano family commercializes from more than twenty years, homemade food specialties transformed by using fruits and vegetables produced in the land in Capua (Italy) owned from more than three centuries. The strong point of Giosole’s products lays in the highest quality of the row ingredients employed: fruit and vegetables are cultivated according to the “lotta integrata” method (which means the lowest possible use of pesticides and the use of natural farming and storage techniques) in the farm estates and then processed on the premises with artisanal care. Giosole s.a.s | Bravo Italy Gourmet
11082010 Off the coast of Amalfi, a Neapolitan man that I admire. His head fell into my lap with exhaustion, preceded by the rest of his Neapolitan body. He was wet and cold and the night sea water was rough and dangerous. A fisherman’s trawling net was caught in the motor of our sail boat. He was full of gratitude to be born in Napoli, the son of a doctor, at the foot of Vesuvius in a village of sailors. He spoke willingly about his Napoletanità, how they thrive on drama, deep feeling and the friggatura; the clever getting away with va fan cuolo rule-breaking that delights a free soul and their appetite for living in the flesh, eating well, living large, simply and sensibly. When the elements were with us, instead of against us, sailing with him was a blue dream, like being on the back of the surfboard of a skilled surfer, going up and down the swells with controlled abandon. Whehew! Fantastico! Che pezzo di uomo! What a man! A Man of Substance. | Elephant Journal
11092010 Jennifer Egan's spellbinding interlocking narratives circle the lives of Bennie Salazar, an aging former punk rocker and record executive, and Sasha, the passionate, troubled young woman he employs. We first meet Sasha in her mid-thirties, on her therapist's couch in New York City, confronting her long-standing compulsion to steal. Later, we learn the genesis of her turmoil when we see her as the child of a violent marriage, then as a runaway living in Naples, then as a college student trying to avert the suicidal impulses of her best friend. We plunge into the hidden yearnings and disappointments of her uncle, an art historian stuck in a dead marriage, who travels to Naples to extract Sasha from the city's demimonde and experiences an epiphany of his own while staring at a sculpture of Orpheus and Eurydice in the Museo Nazionale. A Visit from the Goon Squad | KQED
11102010 In the summer of 2004, while traveling to Naples, Italy with my family, I found myself standing in the middle of a courtyard that, as a boy in the 1960’s, I had once claimed as my domain. I had fantasized about this return to childhood for many years. I had imagined entering the courtyard in endless variations, and envisioned startled ghosts, shaken by my appearance. But when I discovered the big courtyard door unexpectedly open, allowing me to step straight into the rectangular courtyard, I found myself simply, uneventfully there. Robert Zweig, Return to Naples | Jewish Magazine
11112010 For the spring summer Kenzo campaign, fashion photography by Mario Sorrenti was turned into Kenzo artwork, per usual the house always succeeds in bringing up the artsy side. Sorrenti was born in Naples, Italy, he moved to New York at the age of ten, where he’s still working and living. Besides working on notable photography like Calvin Klein ads featuring Kate Moss, Lancome, Paco Rabanne and Benetton adverts, Sorrenti’s photography was also a subject of exhibitions at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum, New Yorks Museum of Modern Art and a number of other galleries. Kenzo by Mario Sorrenti | Designscene
11122010 By measuring telltale molecules in the blood, doctors can determine patients' cancer risk, monitor chronic diseases, and estimate the best time to perform in vitro fertilization. A European consortium, including electronics companies ST Microelectronics (headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland) and Technobiochip (of Naples, Italy), is developing a device for bedside diagnostics that integrates sensitive optical detectors with sample-handling microfluidics on the same chip. Silicon Chip Spots Blood Proteins | Technology Review
11132010 The Cilento coastal region in Campania remains as down to earth today as it was centuries ago, and gives priority to the tranquillity of country life amid unspoilt natural beauty rather than any tourist bustle. Of course its residents are proud of sights such as the Temple of Paestum, which Goethe praised so highly. But instead of advertising these things, the residents allow visitors to discover them in passing – the wonderful food (the authentic buffalo mozzarella and the original hand-twisted fusilli pasta come from Cilento) and the warmth of the locals.
Great Escapes, Italy, Taschen | Telegraph
11142010 Next, a plush intercity train from Bologna to Naples, where, in December 1818, Percy Bysshe Shelley's party visited en route to Vesuvius. Although the landmark volcano was spewing smoke and fire, Shelley et al attempted an ascent on mules. Their guides tried to desert them, and the party was overcome with exhaustion. I took the bus to the last stop and joined a grey stony track that winds to the top of the cone. Today, vents spew out steam and a smell of sulphur hangs in the air. I stayed in the youth hostel near Paestum, about 50 miles south-east of Naples. The Greek temples of Paestum, discovered in 1750, are a breathtaking sight: 2,500-year-old structures standing magnificent in tall, wild grass and poppy plains, accompanied by bird song and the occasional visitor. Goethe visited the ruins of this ancient Greek city in 1787 and marvelled at the temples of Neptune and Hera as they stood enormous in the marshes, surrounded by buffalo. On visiting Paestum, Shelley found the place inexpressibly grand. Poetry in motion: On the trail of Shelley | The Indipendent
11152010 The town of Pompeii existed already in the archaic period. Traces survive from the seventh, eighth, ninth centuries BC. People have always wanted to live on the delicious Bay of Naples. Greek settlers, Etruscans, Oscans, Campanians, all occupied attractive sites and left evidence of their settlements. When Rome conquered and unified Italy, wealthy Romans flocked there; we find straitlaced or pessimistic commentators complaining that slackers, even among members of the Senate, preferred the luxurious half-Hellenized lifestyle of that seductive area—”more or less the ancient equivalent of St Tropez,” as Beard calls it—rather than the generally hard-faced and censorious atmosphere, and the dignified but less comfortable dress, of Rome, the conqueror of the world. Such complaints were generally ineffectual, and many upper-class Romans continued to prefer the softer and more interesting existence. Under the Volcano | The New York Review of Books
11162010 During the break between the master-classes professor A.Gruen (Switzerland) made a presentation about 3D modeling of Pompeii using air photos, terrestrial laser scanner data and close-range digital images. Along with the busy commercial program, the guests had an interesting cultural one. The conference participants could learn a lot about Italian traditions and culture during tours to Rome, Vatican, Naples and Pompeii. Xth International Scientific and Technical Conference | GeoConnexion
11172010 The Benevento Missal will be the first item of Nazi-era loot from a UK national museum to be restituted to its pre-war owner. It will be received by the archbishop of Benevento, Andrea Mugione, on 11 November, during a symposium on medieval literature. For the Italian city, the UK’s decision to return the 12th-century missal has a symbolic significance, since its cathedral was destroyed by British bombs during the second world war. UK national museums (which include the British Library) were not allowed to deaccession, so the restitution had to await a change in the law, which came into effect this year. The final chapter in a story which we initiated over a decade ago. It began in February 2000, when UK museums published lists of works which had an uncertain provenance for the Nazi era (1933-45). Among hundreds of items, one caught my eye: a missal in the British Library from Benevento cathedral library, “removed at some time before 1944”. The manuscript had been bought that year from a Naples bookdealer by Captain D.G. Ash, who sold it at Sotheby’s in 1946, when it went to the British Library. How The Art Newspaper changed the law | The Art Newspaper
11182010 Sure, Capri can be a cliché: a jaw-droppingly beautiful Mediterranean island drenched in champagne, caviar, Gucci…and tourists. But if you book a room here, by dusk the island will have emptied. Stroll along the winding streets, scented with lemon and juniper, toward the ruins of the Roman emperor Tiberius. Stare at the rising moon and Mount Vesuvius in the distance, and thank God you’re not a day-tripper. A Week in Capri | GQ
11192010 Currently in the midst of a trek through Europe, Kim Kardashian and Kris Jenner were spotted keeping busy in Capri, Italy on Saturday (September 18). Making numerous stops during the course of the afternoon, the purple dress clad E! babe and her mom grabbed up lunch before treating themselves to an ice cream at the pier market. Also partaking in a little sightseeing, the brunette beauties checked out the view at a spectacular panoramic sea-view terrace locale. Kim Kardashian And Kris Jenner: Capri Chicks | Celebrity-Gossip.net
11202010 Sebastian Vettel shook his head and said: "The greatest moment in my life was when... ah but then you weren't there. It was when I lost my virginity." Once asked his favourite item of clothing, he joked: "My Red Bull hat!" As for lavish holidays with the rest of the glitterati, forget it. Last year, he and Hanna went as far away as possible from the limelight. Finland. In a Caravan. "After the madness of motor-racing, I have to get away from it all." And you can't get much further away than on top of Japan's Mount Fuji, which he climbed last year. Only a month ago, he went up Vesuvius. Vettel just loves fast women | The Sun
11212010 Many of Italy's best-known wines come from northern or central Italy, but southern Italy also has its share of impressive wines. Some of DeCastro's favorites are from the Campania region, which includes Naples, especially the Feudi di San Gregorio estate. "Incredible wines," he says. The location near Mount Vesuvius has a major impact on the flavor. "It's from volcanic soil -- the reds are dark fruit, spicy and licorice," he says. Holidays Cheers | Kiplinger
11222010 On “Vesuvius,” Sufjan Stevens imagines himself as a volcano, finally speaking to his pain directly, sounding half-crazed: “Sufjan, the panic inside / The murdering ghost that you cannot ignore.” “Vesuvius” is so…apocalyptic, as brutally rendered as it is overblown. But in the commingling of tone and perspective, it feels both intimate and bombastic, a feat that’s maybe never been more successful in Stevens’ work than here. Sufjan Stevens, The Age of Adz | cokemachineglow
11232010 For Zachary the art director, Town & Country was an extension of Holiday: a magazine that allowed him to dream up even more fantastic pictures, with a cast of characters in even more extravagant attire. “Poverty makes great pictures too,” he says (witness Cartier-Bresson’s memorable reportage in Naples or Burt Glinn’s images of the seedy side of Hamburg, both shot for Zachary at Holiday). “But the rich have a sense of drama and a sense of their importance that can yield some colorful moments too.” Tutoring the Rich: Frank Zachary | Veronique Vienne
11242010 Italian architect, Matteo Thun, has built quite a reputation for his sensitive approach to corporate spaces. Both Hugo Boss and Vodafone have benefited from his fluid, delicate renditions of office buildings (...). What's your dream project? The most important aspect for me is location. And I’ve realised it with my house in Capri. Matteo Thun round-up | Wallpaper
11252010 For the first time in Naples, the city where the majority of Italian Shipowners are based, will host a conference during which some among the most important Italian and European Shipowners, Shipbuilders, Bankers, Marine Underwriters and other important service providers to the maritime field, will be engaged in a public discussion with some among the European leading maritime lawyers and arbitrators. The title of the conference, organised by Studio Legale Lauro, Shipping and the Law in the recent and current Market is self explicatory. In Naples, International Conference with Major Shipowners | Italian Insider
11262010 Adm. Mark Fitzgerald turned over command to Adm. Samuel J. Locklear III, during a change of command ceremony at Allied Joint Force Command (JFC) Naples, Oct. 6. The ceremony marked the completion of Fitzgerald's tour as commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa (NAVEUR-NAVAF), commander, Allied Joint Force Command Naples. During his time in Naples, Fitzgerald successfully oversaw a large number of missions and programs, to include the multinational annual exercises of Noble Manta, Juniper Cobra, Phoenix Express, and the preconception and introduction of Africa Partnership Station (APS) East and West. NAVEUR-NAVAF, JFC Naples, Welcome New Commander | Navy.mil
11272010 Campania's aerospace industry began before the First World War and today ranks third in terms of the size of its sector, behind Lombardy and Piemonte, representing about a quarter of the €8 billion ($12.8 billion) Italian aerospace industry. There are about 10,000 employees working for 29 "core" companies and some 120 smaller suppliers, according to the regional government, which promotes the cluster under the Campaniaerospace banner. Alenia builds the fuselage of the ATR 42/7 as well as the C-27J in the region - and most of the smaller suppliers rely on the airframer. But although manufacturing of aerostructures is the dominant activity, the city of Caserta also hosts the Italian aerospace research centre, Cira, as well as institutions specialising in composites, microgravity and microelectronics. Other companies, including Piaggio and Aerosoft have research and development facilities and the region has five universities offering aero engineering degrees. The aerospace engine room of the south | Flight International
11282010 Ettore Majorana was an Italian theoretical physicist who worked with both Werner Heisenberg and Neils Bohr. Majorana began to develop a theory of neutrino masses while still in his twenties. Around 1933, he began suffering from illness and became a recluse. In 1937, Majorana was appointed a full professor at the University of Naples just a few months before his disappearance. He was only 31 years old in 1938 when he vanished during a boat trip from Palermo to Naples. Suicide, murder, and voluntary disappearance are all possibilities, but no one knows for sure. 6 Unsolved Disappearances | mental_floss
11292010 You’re a young ragazzo growing up in Castellammare di Stabia near Naples, Italy. In the shadow of Mount Vesuvius, surrounded by vineyards and olive groves, you spend the days watching your mother tend the family garden, raise a small flotilla of farm animals and prepare regional dishes from handfuls of fresh local ingredients. And though her talent in the kitchen has earned her a spot as chef for a noble family, she never wavers in her approach to food: simple, fresh, local ingredients cooked in a manner that showcases rather than overwhelms the individual ingredients. Cut ahead 20-odd years and you’ve been transplanted to Toronto. Mamma still tends vegetables in the backyard garden and cooks traditional dishes that fill the house with aromas from the past.With Ontalia, Angelo Bean has taken the best practices of the Slow Food Condotte — plus the legacy of his mother — and combined them with sustainable, local ingredients to create an evolving line of exceptional Italian-inspired Ontario delicacies that offer a true taste of the land. Ontalia Puts Italian Roots in Local Soil | Tidings
11302010 In 1866, Carlo Collodi, the Florentine author of Pinocchio, described Naples’ contribution to world cuisine as “a patchwork of greasy filth that harmonizes perfectly with the appearance of the person selling it.” Pizza was cheap, the food of the poorest of the poor in Europe’s cholera capital. No one with a choice would eat something that was made and sold by the hands of the Neapolitan underclass. It was only in the 1960s, after pizza’s New World success, that most of Italy took to it. Was pasta the original fusion food? | Maclean's