Silvio Berlusconi has stepped down as Italy’s prime minister, but he has far from disappeared. After conferring with all political parties, Italy’s president Giorgio Napolitano has given the economist Mario Monti the difficult role of trying to form a new government. If he does not succeed – a majority vote in Parliament is crucial – then in all probability new elections will be called, and Italy risks going further downhill.

Mario Monti, the appointed prime minister, announced his list of “technocrat” ministers, who will head the newly formed government if support from Italy’s myriad political parties is forthcoming. Monti has promised to focus on economic growth and badly needed reforms, and in facing the country’s huge deficit, has vowed to distribute the hard-hitting austerity measures in an equitable manner. Rumor has it that he intends to re-introduce property tax on primary residences (a tax that Berlusconi abolished after an election promise) and to introduce a tax on the assets of Italy’s wealthiest citizens. Berlusconi has already stated that he will not support such a tax and while giving his support on the confidence vote in the Senate, breezily commented that he and his PDL party can make the new government fall whenever it deems appropriate, stressing that he still wields a great deal of power.

Monti’s government faces an uphill battle, but is backed by several political parties, including the centrist UDC and the center-left PD, while the left parties of SEL and IDV were more cautious, calling for a marked change of direction from the Berlusconi government and claiming they will examine each initiative of the Monti government individually before declaring its support. The extreme right Lega Nord, has declared their outright opposition, and have temporarily split from their ally Berlusconi.

Meanwhile Italy’s gorvenment-issued bonds have reached alarmingly high interest rates hovering around 7%, as the country struggles to regain credibility. A confidence vote for Monti’s government passed in the Senate, and the confidence vote in the lower House is set for November 18. If this passes, the true uphill battle begins to pass reforms. If the confidence vote fails, early elections are the most likely next step, and would further tarnish Italy’s credibility. To complicate matters, the current electoral laws, which were put in place by an earlier Berlusconi government, allow for fixed electoral lists. Voters express a preference for a list but not for a specific candidate. Opposition parties favor changing the current electoral law, before new elections are called (no later than 2013), but that is not a priority for the Monti government.

In sharp contrast to the Berlusconi government which was marked by constant clashes and brash statements, Monti has focused on cohesion and a spirit of working together to solve the current financial crisis, regain credibility in world markets, and move Italy forward.

While Berlusconi may not be happy with the current turn of events, neither are Italy’s comedians. For them, Berlusconi was a font of great material, known for his sex scandals, endless legal problems, outrageous comments, gaffes in the presence of foreign leaders, hair transplants and facelifts, as well as wearing elevator shoes to compensate for his decidedly short stature. On the other hand, Monti is calm and collected, married to the same woman for 40 years, well-respected internationally and sports his own naturally grey hair atop his nearly 6-ft frame. What’s to make fun of?

In a country known for its cultural treasures, the medieval town of Pietrasanta – known as the “City of Artists” —has deep roots in Italy’s legacy of art and sculpture.

Located near the Italian Riviera in northern Tuscany, this little town has been a hot spot for artists and sculptors since the 15th century, when Pope Leo X ordered Michelangelo to construct a road from the coast below Pietrasanta to Monte Altissima, an otherwise inaccessible peak known to contain rich deposits of pure white statuary marble.  Cutting and then transporting the stone from the wilderness back to the coast proved too difficult a task to perform very often, so only the Michelangelo’s Moses and the unfinished Slaves were carved from  this marble. 

But from here, Pietrasanta’s reputation as an international center for art and sculpture was set in stone, and today artists from around the world come to use the local marble studios and bronze foundries, and to benefit from the knowledge of master artisans.  And not only are these artisans highly skilled at carving stone, they also sport nifty paper hats handmade out of newspaper. 

Staying in Pietrasanta is an interesting experience, where you may run into Colombian artist and sculptor Fernando Botero, who has made Pietrasanta his home for part of the year; one of his bronze scuptures graces the entranceway to the town.  Quirky restaurants, unusual shops, and art galleries abound, so there is always something to do.   

Worth a visit is the Museo dei Bozzetti which has hundreds of sculpture models by over 300 Italian and foreign artists.  It also offers guided tours explaining the many “meanings” of the museum—that is, the history of local sculpture, what a model is, the contemporary artistic background and the work of the craftsmen, who are the real force behind today’s artists.  You might be surprised to learn that few contemporary artists produce their own designs in stone—visit a sculpture studio and you’ll find hardworking artisans working on stone sculptures that are destined for public gardens or private villas around the world. 

On our walking tours in Italy that touch upon Pietrasanta, I always include a visit to a sculpture studio or a bronze foundry to see the fascinating process firsthand.   I love staying at the luxurious Albergo Pietrasanta, a boutique hotel housed in a palazzo in the center of town,  with a stunning modern art collection that seamlessly blends with the historic building and fine antique furniture.  This is where we stay on our Cinque Terre & Beyond walking tour, which touches upon some of the more well-known hiking trails in Liguria as well as the quiet undiscovered trails that bring you to Tuscan marble quarries or tiny seaside villages.

Intrigued with sculpture?  You might like:

The Looted Goddess of Morgantina

The 5th century BC Greek statue known as the goddess of Morgantina, was unearthed in illegal excavations in Sicily, and after being smuggled into Switzerland and eventually given “legal” status, it was purchased in 1988 by the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles for $18 million.  Recognized by archeologists as having come from the ancient site of Morgantina, after a thorough investigation and long negotiations the Getty museum eventually agreed to return the disputed statue to Italy in May of 2011.  Amongst much rejoicing and fanfare, the looted goddess is now housed in the archeology museum in Aidone, a small town set on a lofty hilltop near the ancient city of Morgantina.

Sicily’s hilly terrain coupled with an antiquated road system means getting to Aidone and Morgantina is a long trek from just about anywhere, but one fine June day we decided to see what all the fuss was about.   Much of our route from Modica to Aidone was on winding back roads with little traffic, and also without much in the way of road signs, but we managed to find the town with only a couple of U-turns. 

Before arriving at the museum, we noted an information point with a couple of tour buses, and stopped for further info. A friendly man gave us a map of the town, and with obvious pride, pointed out the route to the archeology museum, and also suggested we visit a church and the belvedere with a splendid view. 

We are instructed to leave our car and continue on foot, but Emanuele, ever the hardheaded Italian, insists on driving, and after getting lost, we soon end up on a steep narrow street barely wide enough for our compact car.  After wedging the car into a stairwell, we clamber out and hurry to rush past the tour group arriving on foot.  Inside the splendid statue is a bit of a surprise.

At 2.20 meters tall (7 ½  ft) this a big goddess, with massive thighs outlined beneath her flowing gown, and I am at first a bit disappointed as she seems to lack a certain elegance. It’s as if the size of the room does not quite do justice to this amazing figure – she needs more space. But the more I gaze upon her, walking around to get a good look from all sides, I begin to sense her power and feel that she just might burst through her gown, crushing the onlookers in one triumphant step.

The Goddess of Morgantina (often erroneously referred to as Venus) is most likely a figure of Persephone and is carved using the acrolithic technique in which a different material is use for the body and the extremities. In this case the body is carved from a limestone from Ragusa, while the head and extremities are carved from Greek marble. Traces of color suggest that the gown was once painted. Archeologists date it from 400-425 BC, and a likeness of the statue has been found on ancient coins from Morgantina. It is surmised that the statue stood on a pedestal in the center of the city. 

Locals hope that the return of the Goddess of Morgantina will help the economically depressed town of Aidone, and I hope that they are right.

The Aidone Archeological Museum is open everyday from 9.00 am to 7.00 Pm.  Tickets are 6 euro, children and students 3 euro. It is recommended that you arrive early so as to allow time to also visit the nearby archeological site of Morgantina, and the Roman Villa Casale at Piazza Armerina (under restoration, but parts of the magnificent mosaics are open to the public. )

Join us on October 31 as we explore these sites together, as an add-on to our Splendors of Sicily walking tour, Oct 24-30, 2011.  Only a few spaces available – see our contact info below

Read similar stories:

The Looted Morgantina Silver Hoard

History of a Sicilian Biscuit

After being looted and sold to the Metropolitan Museum, the stunning collection of 3rd century BC silver pieces known as the silver hoard of Morgantina has come back to Aidone in Sicily.   It’s an arduous task to get to this remote town,  but I can assure you that it’s worth the trip. 

On a recent visit, I found the silver pieces breathtaking – exquisitely crafted bowls, drinking vessels and other pieces left me and other lucky visitors gasping in awe.  The silver hoard is beautifully displayed in the tiny archeological  museum of Aidone, and in the same museum you will find the Goddess of Morgantina, a Greek statue that also has a murky past, having come home to rest after having been looted and sold to the Getty Museum. 

We will be including a visit to the Morgantina archeological site, Aidone archaeology museum as well as the spectacular mosaics at Piazza Armerina as a 1-day add-on to our Splendors of Sicily walking tour Oct 24-30, 2011 ( add-on day is Oct 31.)  To join,  e-mail us or call to find out more: (780) 438 5712. 

The looting, sale and investigation of the Morgantina silver is also a fascinating story.

Considered to be among  the finest Hellenistic silver known from Magna Grecia,  the pieces were purchased by Metropolitan Museum of Art in the early 1980’s  for $2.74 million from Robert Hecht Jr,, an American dealer in antiquities that is currently in trial in Italy for conspiring to deal in stolen artifacts.  Robert Hecht Jr is now 90 years old and the statute of limitations runs out in July 2011, so it is doubtful he will ever be convicted. 

It was also an American, the archeologist Malcom Bell III, who championed investigations at the archeological excavations of Morgantina, and eventually proved that the silver hoard had been stolen.  

After a tombarolo – tomb robber – confessed to having had a hand in digging up the treasure, Bell was given permission to examine the silver, and deciphered an inscription dated 211 BC of the family name Eupolemos.  Bell claimed that the silver pieces were “most likely hidden beneath the floor of a house by a Greek man named Eupolemos, who was trying to protect his wealth from invading Roman armies.”  The similarity to other silver pieces found at Morgantina also supported his theory. Another clue to the source of the silver was Bell’s discovery of a coin, minted between 212 and 214 BC found in one of the excavated holes that the tombarolo had indicated.  The most damning piece of evidence, was actually a 1978 coin of Italian lira that was also found in an excavation hole, apparently having been dropped by the illegal diggers, and proof that the silver had been looted. (Both of these coins are on display at the archeology museum in Aidone Sicily.)

The Metropolitan Museum agreed to return the Morgantina silver hoard to Italy, but retains joint custody of the pieces, allowing the Met to have the silver pieces for an exhibit every 4 years.  When the Morgantina silver came to Italy in February, the Met received a recently excavated 20-piece Roman dining set from Pompeii for a temporary exhibit.

The archeology museum at Aidone is open everyday from 9.00 am to 7.00 pm.  It is recommended that you arrive early so as to allow time to also visit the nearby archeological site of Morgantina, and the Roman Villa Casale at Piazza Armerina (under restoration, but parts of the magnificent mosaics are open to the public. ) Join us on October 31 as we explore these sites together, as an add-on to our Splendors of Sicily walking tour, Oct 24-30, 2011.  Only a few spaces available – see our contact info below. 

Read similar stories:

Goddess of Morgantina Returns to Sicily

A Foraging Walk in Sicily

660 properties will be open to the public throughout Italy during a weekend sponsored by FAI,  the Italian National Trust.  This year, in honor of Italy’s 150th anniversary, the 2011 weekend includes places linked to the Risorgimento in Italy, as well as bicycle rides, guided walking tours through nature reserves, and visits to archeological sites and gardens. Many sites are not normally open to the public, so here’s your chance to get a peek into Italy’s hidden treasures. 

You are encouraged to make a donation of your choice to FAI, which goes toward the restoration of important historical properties and gardens, as well as an educational program in Italian schools promoting knowledge and pride in Italy’s vast cultural and historical heritage.  

Visits to many sites are available in several languages, with Italian school kids as your guides – in my past experience, they have been excellent and enthusiastic tour guides to these unique attractions.  Dates are March 26 & 27, 2011.  The FAI website has a complete listing of open sites in every region of Italy – just click on the map of Italy for a list of properties and hours.

Read about other unique attractions in Italy:

Mysterious Muragghi of Sicily

Stalking the Magical Mandrake Plant

All state run museums in Italy will be free on March 17, 2011 in celebration of Italy’s 150th anniversary.  This includes all archeological sites and state parks, so wherever you are in Italy, there will be a vast choice.  In addition, several important sites will be open the night of March 16 including:

Turin:  l’Armeria Reale, la Galleria Sabauda and  Palazzo Reale
Milan: la Pinacoteca di Brera
Florence: la Galleria degli Uffizi, la Galleria Palatina, la Galleria dell’Accademia
Rome: Palazzo Barberini, Castel Sant’Angelo, Monumento Nazionale a Vittorio Emanuele II
Naples: Palazzo Reale

There will be all-night parties on March 16 in many Italian cities, so join in the celebrations and get a free dose of culture, too.

The fun continues with the San Giuseppe festivities on March 19.

‘Mpanatigghi biscuits are a specialty of the town of Modica in Sicily, and have a long history, as they were first brought to Sicily during the Spanish rule in the 16th century.  In fact, the Sicilian dialect name ‘Mpanatigghi derives from the Spanish word empanada.

If you are wondering how to pronounce this strange word in Sicilian, imagine that you have stuffed your mouth with empanadas, and someone asks you what you are eating – your reply will be remarkably close to the correct pronunciation for ‘Mpanatigghi. Both the Sicilian and Spanish words come from the verb meaning “to wrap or cover with bread dough.”

‘Mpanatigghi are little half-moon shaped biscuits (or cookies) with a thin crust, that are stuffed with a mixture of sugar, chocolate, almonds, lemon peel, egg, cinnamon and vanilla, plus a secret ingredient that is impossible to detect – minced beef!  If anything could be more unusual, these biscuits originally contained wild game.  In case you are breathing a sigh of relief that you are vegetarian, there is also another version that substitutes the meat with eggplant.

If these sound revolting, it is best to try them without knowing what you are eating, and in my experience everyone loves them- it’s only after being told what’s inside that people turn up their noses. It says something about food prejudices, no?

One of the best places to sample ‘Mpanatigghi is the historic Bonjauto Chocolate Shop, in Modica.  This is a favorite stop on our eastern Sicily walking and cooking tour where we taste lots of different chocolate items.  And just for comparison, I recently tried the ‘Mpanatigghi from Casalindolci, which is convenient if you are staying at the Hotel Palazzo Failla, and was impressed with the thin crisp dough and the fragrant stuffing.  Tip: Because non-Sicilians find this sweet to be  unpronounceable, ‘Mpanatigghi are usually ordered by pointing at them.

Read more about culture, traditions and regional foods in Italy:

Avoid the Gift of Death 

Have Sausage, Will Travel

June 2 marks the Festa della Repubblica  – Feast of the Republic – in Italy.  The day commemorates a 1946 referendum in which the Italian people voted to decide their form of government — monarchy or republic — in a tense and chaotic climate following the end of Fascism and the Second World War. Though controversy about irregularities in counting the votes were numerous, Italy was declared a republic.  After 85 years of reign the monarchy ended, and the members of the House of Savoy were exiled.

To celebrate the Festa della Repubblica, a grand military parade is held in Rome, presided over by the President of the Republic, currently Giorgio Napolitano.  The Prime Minister (currently Silvio Berlusconi) and other public figures will be in attendance.

Giorgio Napolitano called for national unity on this day, but Italy feels anything but united.  Political squabbles are continuous, scandals and muckraking a daily occurrence, and political parties with vastly different points of view struggle to form a coalition based on keeping themselves in power rather than offering a coherent agenda for the country.  Umberto Bossi, the founder of the Lega Nord political party and a member of parliament, has often called for northern Italian regions to secede from Italy.  Current legislation under discussion aims to silence journalists, while proposing limits to wiretapping that opponents say will benefit criminals, and magistrates are threatening to go on strike in protest. 

I see a country in a fragile state of balance, and have the sense that Italians are scrambling in a free for all to grab what they can before the current government falls. Though this is hardly new, it is still painfully sad. During my 22 years in Italy, the only time Italy felt truly united was in 2006, when it won the soccer World Cup.  At least for a few weeks the citizens of Italy were all proud to be Italian.  

All that said, I’ll be celebrating just the same, with the hope that fervently believing in the Republic is the first step to actually having one.  Viva l’Italia!

On our Maremma tour, we do not go to the chic resort area of the Antinori and Alain Ducasse set- which, in my opinion, has little to do with the real Maremma, plus the flat countryside is uninspiring for the walker. I prefer the hilly coastal area of the Maremma regional park (also known as Parco dell’Uccellina) with its stunning pristine coast, and the wonderfully mysterious Etruscan sites further inland. 

Everyone on our walking tour in the Maremma was amazed at the Etruscan city of Vulci, which was later occupied by the Romans, and contains the remains of a perfectly preserved stretch of Roman road and spooky frescoed tombs.  This is a place rarely mentioned in travel magazines yet was a highlight of our tour.  It is just over the Tuscan border, in the region of Lazio.

The walk along the Etruscan byways carved into the rock near the hill town of Pitigliano was lots of fun, along with sampling the sweets from a Kosher bakery in the old Jewish quarter. 

The coastal walks in the Parco dell’Uccellina rank among my favorite walks in Tuscany, perhaps because I first visited the park back in 1988 a few months after I had moved to Italy, when everything was a new adventure.  I took a dawn train from Florence, then deciphered the bus schedule in order to get to the park, did a long hike and then sprinted for the bus to connect to the last train back to Florence.  You don’t have to worry about any of that on our walking tour! Instead you’ll wander through pink heather and wild rosemary (okay, you’ll pant for a while uphill)  and end up at Tuscany’s loveliest beach, where you can cool your feet in the turquoise sea.

In 1993 the Parco dell’Uccellina received a European diploma for being among the most well-protected areas in Europe, and it can only be visited on foot. Within the park there are several watchtowers dating from the 11th to the 16th century, an enormous variety of Mediterranean plants, as well as cultivated olive groves and a few areas of pasture favored by the local maremmana cow, an impressive beast with alarming horns. 

The maremmana cow is often only encountered in restaurants, in the form of bistecca – a thick T-bone steak served rare.  I had a fabulous bistecca grilled over an open fire at the Trattoria Verdiana near Montemerano. 

The next day we had a cooking lesson in the kitchen with the simpaticissima cook, where we learned to shape homemade pasta and make zuppa di pane – a bread soup with greens we picked from her garden.

Aside from the Saturnia spa, with it’s sulfur hot springs (and accompanying odor) the country towns of la Maremma are relatively free of tourists, yet full of intriguing sites and fascinating walks.  Join us for an off-the beaten path walking tour in southern Tuscany’s Maremma, and experience idyllic coastal walking and lots more.

I first read about muragghi in a book by a local historian named Paolo Tiralongo, and when I discovered that one of the largest and most beautiful was not far from my house in Sicily, I went off on a search.

So, what the heck was I looking for?  Muragghi are stone constructions, built to contain rocks.  Wait, wait, don’t run away, they are really cool!  

Stunning in workmanship and sheer labor, it is difficult to believe that these 16th century stone towers were built simply to contain rocks that were cleared from fields. Their majestic and mysterious presence in the countryside of Ragusa makes them appear as a monument or gathering place for some strange cult.  Most are in the midst of lovely countryside that has thankfully been spared much of the hideous building that is all too rampant in Sicily, so the view from the top is wonderful. 

Slightly conical in shape or made like a huge stone wedding cake, there is also a stairway built into the muragghi.  On a walk near the old feudal estate of San Filippo, I find this simple yet beautiful muragghio, and I climb to the top to find a stubborn bagolaro tree firmly rooted in the rocks, and vow to return in summer to sit in its shade.  

The larger the feudal holding, the more land had to be cleared, so a larger, grander muragghio was the result.  Which brings me to the amazing wedding cake muragghio just a few kilometers from where I live.  Even after spotting it in the distance, it took me a while to figure out a way to get there, with Proprietà Privata signs, barbed wire fencing and deep ditches acting as deterrents.

But finally, on a glorious late winter day with the almond trees in bloom, I find a sort of pathway through thick mud, and tromp towards the stone wedding cake.  It is hard to gauge the size of this muragghio from a distance, and as I approach, it seems to grow to massive proportions.  On one side there is a wedge cut into the muragghio – like a slice of missing cake – where a stairway is built.  I climb to the top and the feeling is powerful, mysterious and somehow melancholy.  I can’t seem to help feeling sorry for the contadini who toiled to build this rather absurd thing some 500 years ago. 

In the end, the beauty of the countryside has a calming effect. My view stretches across almond orchards, olive groves and pale fields green fields of early wheat, with the sea shimmering in the distance. To the north, the snow-covered Mt. Etna volcano peeks over the horizon.  This is a moment in which I cannot help but love this crazy island that is Sicily.