SEPTEMBER 2011

ROMEO AND JULIET CHALET

09012011 The reality starlet, 30, and NBA star, 26, mostly kept to themselves at a $3,300-per-night Romeo and Juliet chalet at the five-star Hotel Santa Caterina on Italy's Amalfi Coast -- emerging for al fresco meals and PDA-packed time by the pool and in the Mediterranean Sea. Adds a source of their uber-affectionate time: "Kim is the kind of bride who'd be thrilled if she had gotten pregnant on her honeymoon." Inside Kim Kardashian, Kris Humphries' Sexy Honeymoon | Us Weekly
09022011 Weiner and Abedin are spending a holiday -- or “babymoon” -- in Positano at the historic Le Sirenuse resort overlooking the breathtaking Amalfi Coast. Perfect for a shamed politician seeking a private hideaway with his forgiving wife. According to the resort’s Web site, Le Sirenuse is “furnished with all the comforts of a luxury hotel, while maintaining the atmosphere of a private home.” Weiner's Italian babymoon | New York Post
09032011 The wooded slopes of the Cilento form the breathtaking backdrop for this old-meets-new inn. Set across two lovingly restored houses, the exposed stone exterior belies little of the minimal modernism inside. Dinner, using produce from the adjoining farm, is served on the terrace with its stunning views towards the island of Capri. Guests also have use of the owner's beach near the ancient site of Paestum. Il Cannito, Campania | The Indipendent
09042011 Agropoli harbor is one of the most important in Campania and South Italy, thanks to its facilities and its approximately 1200 mooring places for pleasure and tourist boats. A wide range of craft, from sailboats to the typically Mediterranean gozzo, are available for cruising along the Cilento and Amalfi Coasts. Agropoli: Gateway to Cilento | restacumme.com
09052011 ‎'Don't think of this as a hotel. Think of it as your own home.' The Prince Belmonte still has his own residence, originally built as a hunting lodge for the King of Naples. Lying beside a sandy beach of Santa Maria di Castellabate, it is surrounded by high walls ensuring complete privacy. Secluded gardens lead up the steep hillside where cascades of blue plumbago run rampant among exotic palms and lemon trees. How Nessun Dorma woke me up at Palazzo Belmonte | Daily Mail
09062011 The Amalfi coast is on the Southern coast of Italy and is known for its scenic beauty and picturesque villages. Visit if you love the sun, want to go to fabulous parties in Positano, or explore the hilltop gardens of Ravello. Amalfi Coast | life-in-travel.blogspot.com
09072011 The walks in and around Positano and Amalfi are very special. Depending on your time frame we can arrange walks from 2 hours to 6 hours in duration amidst some of the most enchanting scenery in Italy. Positano walks, hiking, trainings, excursion nature Walks | positanoadventurewalks.com
09082011 How would you describe the Neapolitan techno sound? The soul of our city is the funkiness! I think we have created over the years, a special mix of old Detroit and German techno, which we've fused together with our Latin and "Partenopean" classic sounds. We have it in our souls, so what we did came very naturally I think. How would you describe the Neapolitan techno sound? Napoli is the capital city of techno in Italy, I think. | blog.drumcode.se
09092011 ‎"The sky is the limit for Napoli. Serie A, Champions League and Coppa Italia: we will do our utmost in all competitions," Cavani said to Il Corriere dello Sport. "We have everything it takes to have a successful season. It's impossible not to do well with such fantastic fans. We are very optimistic." 'Sky's the limit for Napoli' - Edinson Cavani | Goal.com
09102011 Why you want in The bustling city of Naples sits on top of an enormous, nearly 3,000-year-old network of caves. This particular entrance to the underground city leads to 17th-century aqueducts that were once the property of Ferdinand II, king of the Two Sicilies. How to get in Make your way sotterraneo by heading through the unmarked doors and down the rickety WWII-era spiral staircase built by Mussolini’s civil defense program. Unassuming Entrances Hide the Planet's Hippest Hangouts | Wired
09112011 Cava de’ Tirreni has been renowned as a tourist resort since the 18th century. Eighteenth-century Neapolitan painters preferred it for its pleasant views, green panoramas and marine background. Many painters of the Landscape Painting School of Naples, Gigante, Morelli, Palizzi, Van Pitloo and Poussin painted perspectives of the Metellian Valley on canvas. Cava de Tirreni, Salerno - Italy | CLM Assembly
09122011 In a secret corner in the heart of Cuma, just a few steps away from the sea immersed in stunning scenery, amongst the green hills of the Phlegraean Fields and Lake Averno, you will find Villa Giulia. A beautiful old tufa stone farmhouse. The Villa's hillside atmosphere with an amazing sea view covers an area of 6500 square meters of flowering garden and a large swimming pool. Welcome! | villagiulia.info
09132011 This place is my capriccio, my self-indulgent whim,” says Giovanni Russo from the cliffside terrace. Four years ago, Russo, who also owns the nearby islands of Li Galli, bought the estate from legendary film and opera director Franco Zeffirelli and restored it from top to toe. Designer Fausta Gaetani elected to leave much of decor virtually untouched. “How could one possibly change the white-tiled room designed by Mongiardino?” she asks. Villa Tre Ville Hotel Opens | Architectural Digest
09142011 There is nothing more memorable for me then attending the feast of Obelisco in Mirabella Eclano "the feast of Saint Mary". the third Saturday in September. I recall the statue of the Virgin Mary carried in a church vessel made up of straw being pulled by ox in the middle of the piazza. There is music, spirits and and more importantly the streets are littered with street vendors. Street vending | Bostonfood Design
09152011 The new Fiat Panda is on display during the Frankfurt Auto Show IAA in Frankfurt, Germany, Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2011. Production of the Panda will begin in November at the Pomigliano plant near Naples. Fiat, Chrysler CEO affirms goal of 6M cars a year | Fiat, Chrysler CEO affirms goal of 6M cars a year | Forbes
09152011 Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis is eagerly anticipating his clubs first Champions League match in 20 years. "It is a fascinating challenge," the Napoli chief told Radio Marte. "We will enjoy a really great experience. Napoli chief De Laurentiis excited ahead of Man City meeting | tribalfootball.com
09162011 While very few people rate Napoli against Manchester City in their first Champions League tie, almost everyone can agree that the Italian side are one of the craziest clubs in football. Owner Aurelio de Laurentiis has a penchant for dramatic exits on commandeered scooters, coach Walter Mazzarri enjoys mowing the pitch by hand, and the team calendar re-creates a scene from Harry Potter. Who Needs A Champions League Win When Napoli Have Their Own Pasta? | SB Nation
09172011 During a recent trip to Ischia I had the opportunity to visit a lemon ranch and taste the genuine article in its natural setting. At first glance, the liquid appears thicker. A taste reveals we're worlds away from the exported brands, as the elixir slowly warms in your mouth and releases the flavor of fresh lemons like a flower coming into bloom, all the while retaining its silken texture. Limoncello – The Classic Italian Cocktail | Chilled
09182011 Lance Walheim of California Citrus Specialties became so intrigued that he visited the Sorrento lemon district, where he found that it was hard to unravel the influence of the varieties, climate, ripeness and growing practices on fruit quality. "On the Sorrento coast they say the climate and rich, deep volcanic soil contribute to the flavor of the lemons," he said. "Also, the aromatic oils are strongest when the lemons are turning from green to yellow, and that's when they make limoncello." The renaissance of the Italian lemon | Los Angeles Times
09192011 Step into Via Napoli and you could be stepping one of a whole bunch of similar restaurants in Southern Italy. This restaurant is operated by the Patina Group. The same group that also operates Tutto Italia and Naples Ristorante and Pizzeria at Disneyland. Pizza is the star. It's made with flour imported from Naples, San Marzano tomatoes, handmade mozzarella, water (yes water) brought over from wells in Naples. Via Napoli | Dad's Walt Disney World
09202011 By the time they meandered down to Sorrento. It was the bit when they were on that vine-shaded balcony overlooking the Bay of Naples that really did it. Gennaro Contaldo made a melting Ragù alla Napoletana, with sausage, pork ribs, stewing beef and loads of tomatoes and basil. Antonio Carluccio whisked up a ricotta and lemon tart, plucking perfumed, zesty Amalfi lemons off an overhanging tree branch. In between times, they grazed on peaches so ripe you could almost drink them. Does food get much better than that? Little Italy | The Herald
09212011 Ask residents from Benevento to name the town’s most iconic trait, and many will point you to L’Arco di Traiano, one of the best-preserved and ornate of the Trajan arches in Italy. Another of Benevento’s signature structures is the church of Santa Sofia, built by the Lombards in 760 and modeled after a mosque in Constantinople. It is a circular structure, with an interesting interior design based on a hexagon. The interior was once covered with frescoes, bits of which remain. Benevento: Beautiful and posh | Stars and Stripes
09222011 The region’s volcanic soil, ideal for grape growing, also produces black truffles. Taste them in local dishes like the homemade pasta from neighboring Monti Picentini at Feudi di San Gregorio’s Michelin-starred restaurant Marennà. Pair it with Feudi’s mineral-rich Pietracalda, or “Hot Stone” Fiano, for a full-circle wine and food experience. The grape harvest is over, but the heady bouquet of fermenting Greco di Tufo and Aglianico perfumes the cool evening air. Go to the source by touring local wineries, including Cantine di Marzo, with its bedrock cellars, or grab a glass at Winebar, dramatically located in a volcanic crater. The lowdown on an outstanding wine experience in Italy's beautiful Irpinia. | Wine Enthusiast Magazine
09232011 I spent many hours at MADRE Museo d’Arte Contemporanea Donna Regina, it covers a lot of (recent) art historical ground in a small space. Like the Peggy Guggenheim in Venice or the Hallen für Neue Kunst in Schaffhausen, Switzerland, it's the kind of museum that can be done in an hour or less—but gets more interesting on your 2nd and 3rd visits. Contemporary Art in Naples | Hannah Wallace
09242011 Graham Greene bought a small house on Capri in 1948 and kept it for more than 40 years, returning for short visits, mostly in the spring and fall. The house, Il Rosaio, was a rare constant in Greene's restless existence (“one of nature's displaced persons,” Malcolm Muggeridge called him). On Capri, he said, “in four weeks I do the work of six months elsewhere.” In Search of Graham Greene’s Capri | The New York Times
09252011 Hikers go for the Amalfi because it offers some of the most rugged coastal terain in the world: The peaks may be only 3,000 to 4,500 feet high, but they're unrelentingly vertical. You ascend through well-tended lemon groves and fragrant fields of wild roses and rosemary. Wandering through chestnut groves, you tread on dirt tracks and foot trails that once formed the only connection between the region's still-remote villages. Up the rocky flanks of Monti Lattari or through the Valle delle Ferriere, your rewards are the most stunning views in all of coastal Italy. Hiking the Amalfi Coast | Outside
09262011 ‎"Pompeii The Exhibit: Life and Death in the Shadow of Vesuvius" also chronicles life in the vibrant mercantile city before and after Vesuvius erupted. Colorful room and garden frescoes, mosaic floors, pottery and gold jewelry are among the artifacts featured. The ancient Romans also loved to display erotic artifacts, with everything from lamps to garden statuary. Pompeii housed 41 places of prostitution and a public brothel in the middle of town, a two-story structure with five cubicles — sparse tiny, narrow rooms — on each floor containing erotic frescos. Pompeii Exhibit at New York City | artdaily.org
09272011 I chose a route to the village of Pontone. There I had an espresso in a cafe and got directions, which took me down an endless flight of steps to the back side of Amalfi. Thus, I limped, hungry and exhausted, into the capital of chic on the coast, as the sun fell into the sea at passeggiata time. Fortunately there was enough time before the bus left to visit the Amalfi Cathedral, with its checkerboard brick facade, steep steps and asymmetrical tower. The best thing about it is its 13th century Paradise Cloister, decorated in a southern Italian hash of Byzantine mosaics, Roman sarcophagi and twisting Arab columns. Among the gods on the Amalfi Coast | Los Angeles Times
09282011 The ferries that make regular runs to Amalfi from Sorrento, Salerno or Naples give a superb look at the rugged cliffs and the small towns that sit in the hollows of the green hills. The alternative is the coastal road, infamous for its hairpin turns, so narrow that traffic crawls and buses seem about to fall into the sea. Not for the faint of heart (in 1953 the author John Steinbeck wrote in "Harper's Bazaar" that he clung to his wife during the entire journey), the road is a good way to see the various villages without visiting all of them. By Land or by Sea | Smithsonian Magazine
09292011 If you looking for a book that chronicles those who used to be en vogue, I highly suggest Cafe Society: Socialites, Patrons, and Artists 1920-1960. The book includes a myriad of chapters that include aristocrats, wealthy Americans, socialites, chic places, interior designers, courtiers and jewelers, fashion editors and models, photographers, artists, ballet dancers, musicians, and writers. The best part has to be the pages reproduced from the scrapbooks of Baron de Cabrol that illustrate much of the book. Like the collage made up of artwork and photographs titled: Cabrols on holiday at Mona Bismarck's Villa Il Fortino, Capri. Chic Reads: Cafe Society | Home Interior Designs
09302011 It’s been a long time since kings and cardinals went shopping for paintings in Naples, but even so the city authorities can still flatter their artists, whether they’re natives or not. An American, Ryan Mendoza has been in Naples for seven years and has been painting for little more than that, yet the city happily granted him two rooms in the 13th-century Castel Nuovo, overlooking the bay. When I visited, there was an unseasonably hot sirocco blowing in from Northern Africa, tourists were shielding their eyes from the dust and a beggar with one leg was playing the violin: it was very much the Naples of the imagination. Ryan Mendoza | Frieze Magazine