Great Synagogue of Rome

14 October 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Museums, Exhibitions Reading Time:  7 minutes

© Fczarnowski/cc-by-sa-3.0

© Fczarnowski/cc-by-sa-3.0

The Great Synagogue of Rome (Italian: Tempio Maggiore di Roma) is the largest synagogue in Rome. The Jewish community of Rome goes back to the 2nd century B.C when the Roman Republic had an alliance of sorts with Judea under the leadership of Judah Maccabeus. At that time, many Jews came to Rome from Judea. Their numbers increased during the following centuries due to the settlement that came with Mediterranean trade. Then large numbers of Jews were brought to Rome as slaves following the Jewish–Roman wars in Judea from 63 to 135 CE.   read more…

Palazzo dei Normanni in Palermo

9 September 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Palaces, Castles, Manors, Parks, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  8 minutes

Renaissance wing © Bjs

Renaissance wing © Bjs

The Palazzo dei Normanni (Norman Palace) is also called Royal Palace of Palermo. It was the seat of the Kings of Sicily with the Hauteville dynasty and served afterwards as the main seat of power for the subsequent rulers of Sicily. Since 1946 it has been the seat of the Sicilian Regional Assembly. The building is the oldest royal residence in Europe; and was the private residence of the rulers of the Kingdom of Sicily and the imperial seat of Frederick II and Conrad IV. The palace stands in the highest point of the ancient centre of the city, just above the first Punic settlements, whose remains can still be found in the basement.   read more…

Museum of Italian Judaism and the Shoah in Ferrara

11 August 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Museums, Exhibitions Reading Time:  6 minutes

© Lungoleno/cc-by-sa-4.0

© Lungoleno/cc-by-sa-4.0

The Museum of Italian Judaism and the Shoah (MEIS) (Italian: Museo Nazionale dell’Ebraismo Italiano e della Shoah) is a public history museum in Ferrara, Italy. It opened in 2017, and traces the history of the Jewish people in Italy starting from the Roman empire through the Holocaust of the 20th century. Chartered by the Italian government in 2003, MEIS contains over 200 artifacts and exhibits that proceed chronologically through the periods of Jewish history in Italy. The museum is continuing to expand through the year 2021.   read more…

Mediterranean Region

29 July 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, French Riviera, European Union, Living, Working, Building, Sport, UNESCO World Heritage, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  28 minutes

Monaco © Tobi 87/cc-by-sa-3.0

Monaco © Tobi 87/cc-by-sa-3.0

In biogeography, the Mediterranean Basin, also known as the Mediterranean Region or sometimes Mediterranea, is the region of lands around the Mediterranean Sea that have mostly a Mediterranean climate, with mild to cool, rainy winters and warm to hot, dry summers, which supports characteristic Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub vegetation.   read more…

Cappella Palatina in Palermo

28 July 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Architecture, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  11 minutes

© Holger Uwe Schmitt/cc-by-sa-4.0

© Holger Uwe Schmitt/cc-by-sa-4.0

The Palatine Chapel (Italian: Cappella Palatina) is the royal chapel of the Norman Palace in Palermo, Sicily. This building is a mixture of Byzantine, Norman and Fatimid architectural styles, showing the tricultural state of Sicily during the 12th century after Roger I and Robert Guiscard conquered the island. The Cappella Palatina is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Arab-Norman Palermo and the Cathedral Churches of Cefalù and Monreale.   read more…

Mercato Orientale in Genoa

22 July 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Bon appétit, Shopping Reading Time:  7 minutes

Mercato_Orientale (Eastern Market) © Twice25 e Rinina25/cc-by-2.5

Mercato Orientale (Eastern Market) entrance © Twice25 e Rinina25/cc-by-2.5

The Mercato Orientale (Eastern Market) is a market in Genoa that opened in 1899. Located in the very central via XX Settembre, it is housed in the ancient cloister, never finished, of the convent annexed to the church of the Consolazione, built between 1684 and 1706.   read more…

Alassio on the Italian Riviera

20 July 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  5 minutes

© Martin Stiburek/cc-by-sa-4.0

© Martin Stiburek/cc-by-sa-4.0

Alassio (Ligurian: Arasce) is a town and comune in the province of Savona situated in the western coast of Liguria, Northern Italy, approximately 80 kilometres (50 miles) from the French border. Alassio is known for its natural and scenic views. The town centre is crossed by a pedestrianised cobbled road known as the Budello.   read more…

Neapolitan pizza

7 July 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Bon appétit, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  13 minutes

Authentic Neapolitan Pizza Margherita © Valerio Capello/cc-by-sa-3.0

Authentic Neapolitan Pizza Margherita © Valerio Capello/cc-by-sa-3.0

Neapolitan pizza (Italian: pizza napoletana), also known as Naples-style pizza, is a style of pizza made with tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. The tomatoes must be either San Marzano tomatoes or Pomodorino del Piennolo del Vesuvio, which grow on the volcanic plains to the south of Mount Vesuvius. The cheese must be Mozzarella di Bufala Campana, a protected designation of origin cheese made with the milk from water buffalo raised in the marshlands of Campania and Lazio in a semi-wild state, or fior di latte, a cow’s milk mozzarella created according to the procedure for which it was registered as a Traditional Speciality Guaranteed (TSG). Pizza napoletana is a TSG product in the European Union and the United Kingdom, and the art of its making is included on UNESCO‘s list of intangible cultural heritage. Motivated by the success, Italy is now promoting the inclusion of all Italian cuisine in the world heritage. It has been part of the Mediterranean Cuisine World Heritage in parts since 2010.   read more…

Column of Marcus Aurelius in Rome

10 June 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  10 minutes

Column of Marcus Aurelius © flickr.com - Rodney/cc-by-sa-2.0

Column of Marcus Aurelius © flickr.com – Rodney/cc-by-sa-2.0

The Column of Marcus Aurelius (Latin: Columna Centenaria Divorum Marci et Faustinae, Italian: Colonna di Marco Aurelio) is a Roman victory column in Piazza Colonna, Rome, Italy. It is a Doric column featuring a spiral relief: it was built in honour of Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius and modeled on Trajan’s Column.   read more…

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