Tuscan Traveler

The Year of Astronomy was celebrated in 2009 to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Galileo’s invention of the telescope. It was also a special opportunity to see the Florence Biomedical Library and its collection of first edition books published by the scientist, including the volume that brought him before the Inquisition.

Exhibition of Galileo First Editions at Florence's Biomedical Library

The Biblioteca Biomedica is located in the Careggi Hospital complex. Galileo’s books came to the library from the collection stored at the ancient (built in 1288, but still in use) Santa Maria Nuova Hospital, located near the Duomo. It was a bit disconcerting to realize that over a million dollars worth of books and manuscripts were on such casual (though securely locked) display.

Galileo writes the handbook for his calculating compass

The oldest book I saw was the Operazioni del compasso. Written in Galileo’s workshop in Padua and printed in Bologna in 1609. Only 60 copies were printed. (One was just sold at auction for over $500,000.) Galileo may have issued the Operazioni del compasso in order to establish his sole priority as the inventor of the “geometrical and military compass,” a calculating and observation device that he had begun manufacturing in 1597. It was a mathematical device – a sort of calculating ruler based on the principle of proportional magnitudes – that brought speed and accuracy to computations about armaments and their trajectories. Galileo’s compass remained unsurpassed until the advent of the slide rule in the mid-nineteenth century. His pamphlet is the first published work on an analogue calculator. The success and popularity of Galileo’s instrument naturally made it attractive to imitators, and Galileo deliberately omitted any illustration of the compass in his treatise as a deterrent to unauthorized copying.

Discoursing with the Pisans over water displacement and other ideas

Galileo’s important (and unendingly titled) treatise on hydrostatics, Discorso al serenissimo Don Cosimo Il Gran Duca di Toscana intorno alle cose, che stanno in su l’acqua, o che in quella si muovono (“Discourse to the Serene Don Cosimo II, Grand Duke of Tuscany, Concerning the Natation of Bodies Upon, Submersion in, the Water”). Written in 1612, the “Discourse” constituted Galileo’s first direct attack on Aristotelian science. Written in the context of an ongoing dispute on the nature of buoyancy between Galileo and a group of pro-Aristotelian Pisan professors, the Discourse on Bodies in Water represented an attempt by Galileo to transfer the dispute from a narrowly focused to a more general and systematic approach. In it Galileo refuted the Aristotelian view that a solid body’s ability to float is a function of its shape, demonstrating instead the truth of the Archimedean principle that flotation depends on the relative densities of the floating body and the fluid.

Galileo in dialogue with Copernicus and Ptolemy

“DIALOGO”, now known as the Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems (Dialogo sopra i due massimi sistemi del mondo), written by Galileo in 1632, compared the Copernican system with the traditional Ptolemaic system. In the Copernican system the Earth and other planets orbit the Sun, while in the Ptolemaic system everything in the Universe circles around the Earth. The first edition at the Biomedical Library has a beautiful woodcut frontispiece of Galileo, Copernicus and Ptolomy discussing the universe. This was the book that, in part, led to Galileo’s Inquisition trial and subsequent excommunication by the Pope.

Galileo’s formal use of the term and title Dialogo allowed him to explore his Copernican theories fully within the rubric of the “equal and impartial discussion” required by Pope Urban VIII, thus getting around the initial scrutiny of the Inquisition, which, in fact, granted it a formal license to be printed, believing it to be a book discussing tides, not knowing that the subtitle would reference “two chief world systems”. (The name by which the work is now known is extracted from the subtitle.) The book was dedicated to Galileo’s patron, Ferdinando II de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, and was a bestseller.  The fact that so many copies went into circulation throughout Europe was its salvation because within a year Galileo was convicted of “grave suspicion of heresy”, and the Dialogo was then placed on the Vatican’s Index of Forbidden Books, from which it was not removed until 1835.

Biblioteca Biomedica

Viale Morgagni, 85 · 50124 Florence
Tel. 055.4598055, Fax 055.4221649

Director: Dr. Laura Vannucci

In these hard economic times, the best business to have is the guy selling padlocks at the little cart on the Ponte Vecchio. It’s a return business that beats all others in Florence.

Locks of Love circle Benvenuto Cellini on the Ponte Vecchio

Locks of love, or lucchetti dell’amore, are the padlocks fixed by loving couples on to part of the Ponte Vecchio, usually to the fence around the statue of Cellini located in the center of the bridge, to symbolize their eternal love. The symbol is further enhanced by the fact that the bridge unites two sides of the city (unites/joins/attaches/holds together – get it?). The enamored twosome locks the padlock after inscribing their names or initials and/or the date on it and throws the key into the Arno so that their love is locked forever.

Lovers' Locks along the Great Wall of China

Some say the practice started in China where the Juyongguan, Sanbu and Badaling sections of the Great Wall (those closest to Beijing) are the most popular sections with thousands of locks of various sizes attached to the rows and rows of steel chains along the wall. (I’m not sure where they throw the key – an important part of the ritual.)

The lamp poles on Ponte Milvio in Rome can't take much more love

Reportedly the practice in Italy was born in Rome, when in 2006, a romantic movie based upon the novel “Ho Voglia di Te” was released. In the book a young man tries to win the heart of his true love by telling her that their love will last forever, preserved by the lock attached to Ponte Milvio and the key lost forever in the Tiber. Supposedly, the movie – not the book- started a wildly popular ritual among young Romans.

The Italian story I like the best about the lucchetti dell’amore also relates to attaching padlocks to bridges. It is said that the tradition began when young men had to leave their hometowns to do military service. They attached a lock to one of the local bridges before their departure as a promise to return home, essentially a promise to survive their enlistment.

Signed and date with hope of forever love

But back to the mess of locks closing in around the venerable Benvenuto Cellini. About once every four months, a city worker with huge lock cutter arrives to denude the fence. One wonders what happens to the love of those now not so immortalized there. Do they feel a instantaneous heart pang when their lock is snipped? Do they suddenly look at each other for some unexplicable reason, realizing that their love is over/false/fading/mistaken/doomed?

The City of Florence battles lovers

The powers-that-be in Florence have called for more policing on the bridge to stop the locks, which some find unsightly and others claim are damaging historic artifacts. They hung a sign in front of poor Cellini that states in both Italian and English (why not also in Japanese, Russian, French and Spanish?) that the fine for attaching locks to the railing is 50 euros. The threat seemed to work for awhile, but love will not be denied. Also, they failed to stop the vendor on the Ponte Vecchio from selling cheap padlocks and felt-tipped pens.

Is Love recycled still Love?

I have a suggestion for that enterprising fellow: sell locks that come with two keys, but keep one key. With a little soapy water or, at most, a dab of benzine, and the shiny second key, you will be able to lure two sets of lovers to the fantasy of love everlasting, pocketing twice the price.

The Romans are working on a more high tech solution – Lucchetti dell’Amore Ponte Milvio Virtuale – virtual locks of love suitable for FaceBook – never in danger of the lock cutter.

The most Anglo American-styled library in Florence, the Harold Acton Library, is owned and operated by the British Institute of Florence. Contained on 2 ½ book-lined floors, the library allows full access to the stacks and provides knowledgeable assistance to the collection and extensive archives. The full catalogue is computerized and is available on-line. The Acton library contains the largest collection of English-language books in Italy.

Books line the main conference room used for the Wednesday evening lectures

There is a reading room, furnished with ancient over-stuffed couches and chairs, where both English and Italian newspapers and a variety of literary, economic, news and travel magazines completely cover the coffee table. Computers are available to use for a fee, but it is rumored that free wi-fi may be offered in the future.

Views of the Arno and Florentine palazzos

The British Institute of Florence, established in 1917, granted a Royal Charter in 1923, was the first of the post-colonial British cultural institutes to operate overseas. The Institute’s objectives are “to promote understanding between the citizens of Italy and the countries of the British Commonwealth through the maintenance in Florence of a library illustrating Italian and British culture and the promotion of the study of both the English and Italian language and the cultures of both countries.”

The library, with its panoramic views of the Arno River, was born from dozens of small donated collections and has matured into the present compilation of over 50,000 volumes published between the 16th and 21st centuries. About 500 new titles are added each year.

The collection has a strong emphasis in history of art, English and Italian literature and language, history, travel, the Grand Tour (mostly undertaken by Brits and Americans in the 18th and 19th centuries), and music. The library has a couple of thousand literary novels by both American and British authors, mostly from the first half of the 20th century, enough to keep an expat busy catching up on a must-read list of the likes of Wharton, Austen, Henry James and Virginia Woolf.

A mix of the old and the new.

The library was named after Harold Acton. Harold’s father, Arthur Acton, well-bred, but poor, was from Shropshire. His mother, Hortense Lenore Mitchell, was a banking heiress from Chicago. When Hortense married Arthur in 1903 they moved into the Villa La Pietra on the via Bolognese in Florence – a short time later she bought it for him.

Harold Mario Mitchell Acton was born at La Pietra in 1904, and grew up in the cultured and cosmopolitan Anglo-Florentine society before the First World War. He was sent to Eton and then to Christ Church, Oxford, where his contemporaries included Evelyn Waugh, Graham Greene, Cyril Connolly, and Brian Howard.

Harold was an active member of the British Institute. He joined the governing board in 1950 and made available his apartments in the Palazzo Lanfredini (in the Oltrarno neighborhood downstream from the Santa Trinita Bridge) for the library in 1966.

When, in 1994, Harold died, he left his portion of the Palazzo Lanfredini to the British Institute and the Villa La Pietra and its surrounding properties to New York University.

The Harold Acton Library can be visited free of charge and offers a free well-attended lecture series on most Wednesday evenings.  To check out books and use the internet, a variety of fees apply. See the website.

Address:  Lungarno Guiccardini 9

Hours:  10am to 6:30pm, Monday through Friday

Americans and Brits usually find visiting libraries in Italy both frustrating and dissatisfying. The stacks are not open, so no browsing. You usually have to deal with a surly civil servant who will tell you that you do not have the right paperwork, but even if you did have lending privileges, it will take at least two weeks to obtain the books you are requesting and then you won’t be able to remove them from the premises and there is no place to sit down.

A short walk from the Duomo

In May 2007, the Oblate Library (Biblioteca delle Oblate) opened. It is the most user-friendly library in Florence for tourists and foreign students. (Another option is the Bristish Institute Library – better for expats, graduate students and seniors.)

Cloistered calm inside the Oblate Library

The Oblate Library is a long block from the Duomo and occupies the newly restored space of a huge 13th century convent of nuns – the “oblate”. Oblate derives from the Latin for “colei che si è offerta” or “she who offered herself”.  The semi-cloistered nuns served as nurses, cleaners and cooks at the Santa Maria Nuova Hospital from the time of Dante (the hospital was built by Beatrice’s father) through the 1400s when Leonardo da Vinci was examining corpses in the tunnels that ran below the convent and for over 400 years more – until 1936 – when a new convent was created near the much larger and more modern Careggi Hospital.

Magazines and newspapers outside the children's space

The convent building was sold to the City of Florence. It first became the new home of the Museum of Prehistory as well as the central city government library that was moved from the Palazzo Vecchio.  Then it was closed for years for a full restoration, which preserved the late-Medieval, early-Renaissance bones of the building while opening the warren-like space up for two libraries – one for studying and the other for lending books, DVDs and CDs.  There is also a reading room where daily newspapers and monthly magazines are available in Italian, English, French and German.

Enjoy a cappuccino at the Oblate

Computers and free WiFi are also available. Children run wild in the spacious colorful biblioteca per bambini. Parents can escape to the adjoining café with a view of the cathedral’s dome. On the second floor the museum of prehistoric artifacts has reopened and can be visited for a fee.

Views from the top floor of La Biblioteca delle Oblate

La Biblioteca delle Oblate is worth a visit just for the panorama from the top floor or the sense of quiet offered in the walled cloister, but the friendly openness will bring you back to use the reading room, to listen to music in the outside loggia (where the nuns used to hang the hospital’s linen to dry), and maybe, even to peruse the book shelves holding a small selection of English fiction available for checkout for a month at a time.

The website of the Oblate Library is not available in English.

Address:  Via dell’Oriuolo 26  Florence

Hours: Mon. (2pm to 7pm), Tues. (9am to 10pm), Wed. to Sat. (9am to 7pm), closed Sunday.

In the 16th century Medicean Villa of Castello, is one of the most important of Florence’s many libraries, the Crusca Academy (Accademia della Crusca).  The Villa of Castello, located on the northern edge of the city, with its magnificent gardens (open to the public), passed from the Medici dukes to the Lorraine dukes to the King of Italy, who gave it to the State in 1919. The villa was chosen as the permanent home of the Crusca Academy in 1966.

Lunette of Villa of Castello and its gardens by Giusto Utens (1599)

The location is fitting because the origins of the Accademia della Crusca can be traced back to the mid-16th century when a group of educated philosophers, writers and linguists, disliking the rigidity of the revered Accademia Fiorentina decided to form a new academy. Calling themselves the “brigata dei crusconi” (brigade of coarse bran), they organized cruscate – amusing meetings with trivial speeches and conversation – but which also included debates and readings of cultural value, focused on works written, not in Latin, but in Italian, especially in the Florentine vernacular.

Sheaf of wheat - another symbol of Crusca

Soon, the academy adopted the name Crusca (bran), establishing the use of the symbols related to flour and to the process of separating the flour (the good language) from the bran (the bad language), following a language model that was based on the supremacy of the Florentine “vulgar” or everyday tongue. The goal of the lexicographers was to propose language cleaned of the impurities of its usage.

They went further with the theme by deciding that all the objects and furniture of the Accademia should have names relating to grain, bran, and bread, including the personal coats of arms of the Academicians, the “pale” or wooden shovels, which were painted with a symbolic image, together with the nickname of each Academician and his chosen motto.

Contento is the nickname of one of the members of Crusca

In 1590, the “frullone” or sifter, the vessel used to separate the flour from the bran, was chosen as the symbol of the Academy, as well as the motto -“il più bel fior ne coglie” (”she gathers the fairest flower”) – taken from a verse by Petrarch.

The traditional furnishings of the Accademia della Crusca included:

1) the gerle (panniers) – ceremonial academic chairs made of an upside down breadbasket with a bread shovel skewered through it to form the backrest (the addition of the shovel is attributed to Leopoldo de’ Medici);

2) the sacchi (sacks) – lockers shaped as sacks, which each had a door and shelves inside to preserve the “farina” or flour – the statutes, regulations and other writings approved by the academic censors; and

3) the pale (shovels) – decorative painted wood paddles, each bear the academic name of its owner, the motto (a line of verse originating from the 14th century many composed by Petrarch, chosen to encapsulate the spirit of the enterprise chosen by the Academician), and an image. The iconography of the shovels has been an object of study precisely because of the metaphoric meaning of the subjects, always linked to the agricultural, domestic or culinary subjects.

'Pale' adorn the walls with 'gerle' chairs below

In the 20th century, the Accademia dedicated its energies to research activities, editorial duties and to giving advice about the Italian language, opening new paths in the fields of grammar, lexicography and philology.

Today, the Accademia della Crusca is the most important center of scientific research dedicated to the study and promotion of Italian language. Its main goal is to share historical knowledge of the Italian language and its ongoing evolution in the contemporary world, in Italian society (especially in the schools), and abroad.

A 'pala' showing the process of distillation

The Academy pursues its own editorial activity, and allows public access to a specialist library and the archives; it also maintains international contacts with similar institutions, organizes meetings, seminars and conventions on the Italian language; and it has an active role in the field of European linguistic policy. The Crusca Academy offers a linguistic advice service to the public and preserves a rich collection of artistic portraits, painting, frescos, and objects, such as the famous pale.

The Accademia della Crusca is located in Florence, at the Villa of Castello, Via di Castello, 46. Its website, accademiadellacrusca.it, contains all relevant information in English as well as in Italian. For information about entry into the gardens, see the website of the State museums.

Of all of the Musei del Cibo (Museums of Food) in Italy, there are probably more dedicated to olives and olive oil than any other (except, perhaps, wine). Tuscany has the best olive oil (according to this writer), so it is a decided disappointment that the region has only one measly museum (and perhaps another, rumored to be in Carmignano) dedicated to the golden-green oil.

As the new 2009 extra virgin cold press Italian olive oil is released to the impatient masses, the following is a survey of some – but not all – of the Musei dell’Olio d’Oliva.

TUSCANY

Museo dell’Antica Grancia di Serre

The Museum of the Ancient Serre Grange is housed in a grange (fortified farm) situated in the Sienese countryside. Its fortification, which served to safeguard the stores from incursions, represents an interesting architectural type. In 2001, the museum  was inaugurated, divided into two sections, the Olive Oil Museum and the Grange Documentation Center. The first of these museums, housed in an ancient frantoio (olive-mill), displays a collection of implements and materials from the early 20th century pertinent to olive-growing and the production of olive oil.

Address: Via dell’Antica Grancia 3, Rapolano Terme, Serre di Rapolano (SI)

There is no museum website, but it is described in the website of the Florence History of Science Museum.

LIGURIA

Museo dell’ Olivo – Fratelli Carli Possibly the most interesting and complete of all of the Italian olive oil museums, the Olive Museum in Onelia was established to house a variety of objects collected over decades by the Carli olive oil company, founded in 1911. Housed in a small Art Nouveau mansion (1920), which was the company’s headquarters, it is still surrounded by the olive-oil factory. The same building accommodates a library dedicated to the olive and olive oil, while a cafeteria and a museum shop are in an adjacent building. The collection includes several rare objects, antiques and archaeological finds. All the exhibits tell the story of the customs, costumes, tools, production methods, commerce, without omitting the philosophical and artistic – the olive tree has inspired poets, authors and painters for more than a thousand years. The Olive Museum received the European Museum of the Year Award for 1993.

Address: Via Garessio 13, 
18100 Oneglia (IM)

Official Website (occasionally out of order)

UMBRIA

Museo della Civiltà dell’ Olivo

The Museum of the Olive Culture, the first public museum of its kind in Italy and in Europe, is housed in an old Franciscan monastery, which also includes the church of St Francis and a collection of works of arts. Divided into four sections (”Botany”, “Getting to know the olive and olive oil”, “The olive as a symbol of peace”, “The history of the olive”) the museum utilizes multi-media to tell its story. The Ro Marcerano** sketches amuse and educate children. The texts presenting the olive in history, botany and agronomy complement corresponding tables with data from the National Research Center. Interactive devices provide information on pressing techniques, while documentary films show such details as the manufacture of the sacks made of goat hair in which the crushed olive mush is placed for compression, and the phases of high-density cultivation, including tree pruning.

Address: Musei di San Francesco, Chiesa di San Francesco, 06039 Trevi (PG)

The official website has no information about opening times or ticket prices.

Museo dell’ Olivo e dell’ Olio – Fondazione Lungarotti

The Museum of Olive and Olive Oil was established in 2000 by the Lungarotti Foundation in a small nucleus of Medieval residences, where many decades ago an olive press operated in Torgiano’s historic center. The museum is organized in ten rooms and the tour starts with information about the phytological characteristics of the olive, the varieties grown in Umbria, and the various methods for olive cultivation and olive oil extraction, from the traditional to ultra-modern techniques. The presence of the olive and olive oil in daily life, and their use and importance throughout the centuries are also explored. These exhibits examine the mythological origin of the plant and the use of olive oil for lighting, in rituals of major western religions. The role of olive oil in medicine and in the diet, in sports, in cosmetics, for heating are described.  Finanly, popular beliefs attributed to the tree and its product – symbolic, appeasing, deterrent and therapeutic – are explored.

Address: Via Garibaldi, 10 
06089 Torgiano (Perugia)

Official Website and another claiming the museum as one of the attributes of Bella Umbria.

Frantoio Bartolomei Olive Oil Museum

The Vecchio Frantoio Bartolomei has an extensive collection of old machinery and vintage objects used in the cultivation of olives. The exhibition provides an itinerary that takes the visitor through the phases of the production of olive oil, from the growing of the olive trees, to the gathering of the fruit, from their processing to the storing of the golden oil. A 16th century press is one highlight of the collection.

Address:  Via Cagnano, 6 – 05020 Montecchio (Terni)

Official Website

LAZIO

Museo dell’Olio della Sabina Located in the village of Castelnuovo di Farfa, the Sabina Olive Oil Museum holds a rare collection of olive presses, which attest the evolution of olive oil production in the region over the course of four centuries. The museum is unique in its use of the works of five internationally renowned artists (A. Cavaliere, G. Gazzola, M. Lai, H. Nagasawa and I. Strazza), who, with music and sculpture as their tools, explain and honor the important role played by olive oil in civilization.

Address:  Via Perelli, 7
02031 Castelnuovo di Farfa (RI)

This museum has many fans, especially in Great Britain where it has been written up in the Independent and the Telegraph.  It was also mentioned in a Slowtrav.com trip report.

VENETO

Museo dell’Olio – Oleifico Cisano del Garda The Olive Oil Museum at Cisano of Bardolino, near Lake Garda, was established by the Cisano del Garda Oil Mill, which has been operating since 1936. The museum’s most important exhibits include an ancient olive-press with a lever, grindstones, screw presses and the reconstruction of a 19th century hydraulic press, as well as a centrifugal separator from the 1930s and various containers used to store the final product, including the characteristic stone jars of the Garda-Verona region.

Address: Via Peschiera, 54
37011 Cisano di Bardolino (VR)

Official Website with virtual tour. Military families from the nearby U.S. base include this museum in their visits to Lake Garda as reported in the Stars & Stripes.

PUGLIA

Museo dell’ Olio di Oliva Sant’ Angelo de Graecis

Created in the 400-year-old building that housed the olive press of the Sant’ Angelo de Graecis estate, the Museum of Olive Oil includes a collection of machinery and equipment attesting the history of olive oil production from the late 17th century until the early 1900s.

Address: Contrada S. Angelo, 5
72015 Fasano (Br)

There is no official website, but it is mentioned in a travel site and the details of the museum’s hours are on the Fasano website.

ABRUZZO

The Museum of Olive Oil of Cantinarte

Located in the small village of Bucchianico near Chieti, the Olive Oil Museum offers a view of olive oil production as practiced in the 18th century using stone and wood machines powered by man and donkey. The museum is housed in an ancient frantoio where the interior spaces and architectural details have been restored with special care to authentic detail.

Address: Via San Camillo 21, 66011 Bucchianico

Official Website and the website  Abruzzo Today describes the museum.

Museo dell’ Olio di Loreto Aprutino

The small Abruzzo hill town of  Loreto Aprutino has five – yes, five – museums. One is all about olive oil. It is housed in the New Gothic-stlye castle, itself worthy of a visit. A 90 minute guided tour is included in the 6 euro ticket price.

Address: Via C. Battisti, 65014 Loreto Aprutino (PE)

Official Website and bloggers About Abruzzo and Life in Abruzzo describe the olive oil museum and the castle.

All About Olive Oil Museums

For information about Olive Oil Museums anywhere in the Mediterranean check out the Olive Oil Museums site.

Best Photo of Olive Oil

National Geographic’s Photo of the Day – Olive Oil: Elixir of the Gods

Next time:  Museo del Gusto – the Taste Museum

Only death or divorce will get you a spot in the coveted first row on an Italian beach. In a country where there is a socialistic equality in most things – health care, long lines at the post office, job security, good food – the beach is not one of them. In the U.S., if you get up early enough, you can stake out the best piece of sand on almost any shore and you can usually have a couple of yards between you and your nearest neighbor.

Each beach station has its own color scheme

In Italy, the best spot is already taken – everywhere.  This prime real estate is a ten foot square piece of sand on the front row (closest to the waterline) in one of the hundreds of beach stations (stabilimenti balneari or bagni) that line the sandy beach along the gently rolling Tyrrhenian Sea from Rome to Cinque Terre. It is only obtained through patience or primogeniture.

This, of course, is not the natural sea-washed, wind-ruffled, kid-pocked, littered and shell-strewn beach of the States or Britain. No, this is ten feet of perfectly groomed sand, topped by a large beach umbrella, a beach chair, two matching sling-back chairs and a long lounge with attached sun-shade.

Chairs for five under the umbrella

It’s crowded, especially after the allowable five people move into the space. It’s more crowded when the neighboring umbrellas on either side are raised and their quota of five people each arrive. But ,of course, if you have a spot on the front row, you know everyone around you – they have been friends, or even family, for decades.

It takes a lifetime to get to the front row

Each summer Italians spend as much time as possible, not only in the same seaside town, or at the same bagno, but on the same spot of sand, the same distance from the same sea.  They frequently rent the spot for three to four months each year. When no member of the extended family is present between the months of May to mid-September, no one else is allowed to sit under their umbrella, on their chairs, or on their ten-square feet of sand.

For Americans who for the most part don’t spend the summer holidays in the same place twice, this shows an astonishing commitment or a sad lack of imagination. But this is not unusual for Italians. A recent study showed that over 70% of Italians take their 30 to 60 days of vacation each summer at the same time and over 65% spend that holiday time in the exact same place every year.

Perhaps it is the chaos of their history and politics that push Italians into a comfortable conformity in their private lives.  They have a sense of humor about it all. In the 1960s, Piero Focaccia, a popular singer, warbled this tune:

Changing cabins for rent at the beach

Per quest’anno, non cambiare.
Stessa spiaggia, stesso mare.

For this year, don’t change
Same beach, same sea.

Italy is blessed with beaches, both east on the Adriatic Sea or the west on the adjoining seas:  Ligurian, Tyrrhenian, as well as the southern Ionian Sea.  The personalities of the coasts are clearly defined.  The east coast has thousands of stabilimenti lined up at Rimini, Ancona, San Benedetto and Lido di Jesolo, south to Pescara. The sea is flat and tepid, but the beaches rock with discos and luna parks.  The west coast has more rambunctious seas, but seems to have a more placid beach life, fewer teenagers looking to hook up, more groups of three or four middle-aged ladies standing knee deep in the water gossiping. Italians are opinionated and loyal – those that favor the east coast, do not let the west coast sand slide through their toes.

Actually, there is not a lot of sand-toe contact on the Italian beaches. Once the Italian family (this is not a solitary pastime; you only go to the beach with family or friends) selects its preferred coast, picks a town to match their socio-economic class (Forte dei Marmi for high-rollers, Viareggio and Lido di Camaiore for the well-to-do, Lido di Massa Carrara for the middle class) and puts down one to five thousand euro for the sixteen summer weeks (mid-May to mid-September) at a bath station, they will have a combination of the following amenities: a parking lot, an entry portico, a receptionist (for day or weekly renters), a bar or café, showers (mostly cold, some hot for a fee), toilets, changing cabins, restaurant, fresh- or sea-water pool (higher end establishments), video games, fooseball tables, boardwalks to the sea (wood, plastic, or rubber), a bagnino (lifeguard cum umbrella jockey cum sand raker), a flag pole with colored flags (red if sea is too rough), paddle boats for rent, and a rescue rowboat for the bagnino.

Upscale stabilimento balneari provides extra space

For the American with an exaggerated sense of personal space, the Italian beach scene, although colorful, can seem claustrophobic. For the Italian it is a joyful place of friends and family – teenagers fall in love, get married ten years later, socialize and play cards with other couples, have children – who play as babies/toddlers/teenagers, and then fall in love and start the cycle all over again.

As the summer ends and the ombrelloni are put away, Italians say goodbye to their beach mates with promises of “Stessa spiaggia, stesso mare” next year.

While visiting the Musei del Cibo in the region around Parma, a visitor will find a rewarding short detour to the Balsamic Vinegar Museum (Museo del Balsamico Tradizionale) in Spilamberto, less than ten miles southeast of Modena.

Casks used to ferment Traditional Balsamic Vinegar

Traditional Balsamic Vinegar (Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale) is produced in the area around Modena, which was once the ancient lands of the ducal family of Este.

Acelto Balsamico Tradizionale of Dukes of Este (18th cent.)

With no addition of any aromatic substances, Traditional Balsamic Vinegar is obtained from cooked grape-must, which is slowly turned into a rich, think, sweet deep caramel-colored liquid from natural fermentation and progressive concentration through a very long (10 to 100 years) ageing process in a set of progressively smaller casks of different kinds of wood.

Traditional Balsamic Vinegar is a deep, dark and bright brown color with a smooth thick density. The taste is a well balanced sweet and sour that changes depending on the types of wood used for the aging.

The main difference between the Traditional Balsamic Vinegar and all other vinegars is not only the material from which it is obtained, but most of all the alchemy of time together with the knowledge and know-how of a tradition of ancient origin.

The so-called balsamic vinegar, found in the U.S. at neighborhood supermarkets or on the table of most Italian restaurants, is frequently made of a splash of Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale mixed with a large quantity of regular red wine vinegar, or worse, is sweetened red wine vinegar with caramel coloring.

Copper-lined Pot used to Cook Grape-must for Balsamic Vinegar

The Museo Balsamico Tradizionale provides a comprehensive explanation, through both an English-language film and rooms filled with ancient and modern equipment, of the deceptively simple process for making this sublime nectar.

Bottles of Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale di Modena

The museum is compact, but a visitor emerges with an understanding of the history, culture and pride of the producers located in a narrow a strip of land in the Italy’s Emilia Region. The museum displays reveal true complexity of the product’s preparation that time and experience have made perfect; argues for the need to protect its name, control its genuineness and regulate its production so as to avoid any form of industrialization.

Museo del Balsamico Tradizionale

Villa Comunale Fabriani
Via Roncati, 28
41057 Spilamberto (Mo)

tel. +39 059 781614
fax +39 059 7861913

e-mail: info@museodelbalsamicotradizionale.org

Hours:

Tuesday to Sunday 9.30 – 13.00 / 15.00 – 19.00

The Museum is closed for holidays, including December 23 – 25, and January 1.

Tickets:

€ 2,00
€ 4,00 w/ tasting (only on Sunday morning or by reservation)
€ 1,00 for seniors over 65
Free for minors under 18

Guided Visit:

Only with prior reservation: info@museodelbalsamicotradizionale.org

Web Site:

http://www.museodelbalsamicotradizionale.org

Despite the fact that it may seem like carrying coals to Newcastle or running the sprinkler in a downpour, the arrival of many of American Greg Wyatt’s sculptures to Florence’s Piazza Signoria and the Sala d’Arme in the Palazzo Vecchio is a welcome change from the offerings of Giambologna, Cellini and Ammannati.

Ammannati greets Greg Wyatt

Greg Wyatt, a native of Grand View-on-Hudson, New York, presently holds the position of Sculptor-in-Residence at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine in New York City. Cast bronze is his primary medium of artistic expression. Dr. Anthony Janson, editor of W.H. Janson’s History of Art, has stated that Wyatt’s work is based on the philosophy of “spiritual realism.”

Mr. and Mrs. Wyatt watch the placement of Two Rivers

Yesterday, Wyatt’s mammoth sixteen-foot bronze, Two Rivers, said to symbolize the creative relationship forged between the world of Florence’s Arno River and that of New York’s Hudson River, arrived in Piazza Signoria from a foundry in France. It will remain in the shadow of the Palazzo Vecchio until November 24, 2009. Wyatt has donated the statue to the City of Florence where it will take its place among other modern works in Piazza Poggi.

Detail of Two Rivers by Greg Wyatt

Inside the Sala d’Arme a number of Wyatt’s smaller works will be on display for free viewing by the public from September 5 to November 24. The excellent exhibition catalog (with Italian/English translation by Tuscan Traveler’s own Francesca Boni) will be on sale. The opening ceremony will take place at 7:30pm on Saturday, September 5.

Two Rivers in the shadow of the Palazzo Vecchio

An interesting interview with Greg Wyatt where he discusses his artistic influences and philosophy, as well as the process of creating his bronze sculptures can be seen online.

The Museum of Prosciutto and Cured Meat Products of Parma is located in the small city Langhirano, west of Parma,in the site of the former cattle market between the historic center and the Parma River.

Savory cured meats hand-made in Parma

For centuries and still today the area south of the Po River and north of the Apennine ridge of mountains, is famed for its prosciutto, cured hams.  It is a land rich in oaks yielding acorns for feeding pigs; guaranteed a supply of special preserving salt from thermal springs; and blessed by the marine winds from the Mediterranean Sea for drying the savory haunches.

Museum of Prosciutto and Cured Meats of Parma

The Museum of the Prosciutto and cured Meats of Parma is dedicated to these gifts of nature, to the gastronomic culture that developed prosciutto, to its history and to the generations of people who have faithfully passed on its secrets.

Inside the museum, there is an exhibition detailing the production of Parma’s prized cured meats. You can also follow the changes in production methods from ancient pork butchery to modern technologies.

Prosciutto hand-made in 1930 using methods still practiced today

There are eight sections in the museum composed of photographs, historic documents, machinery, and audio-visual productions. The museum strives to define the region, the pig breeds used for certain products, the historic and political role of salt, pork butchery, and the many types of traditional Parma salumi (cured meats). There is also information about importance of the Prosciutto di Parma Consortium and their work to safeguard quality.

High praise for the cured meats of Parma

A visit to the museum ends in the tasting room where a variety of sliced meats and local products are served.  For a very special afternoon, add a tasting of local wines.

Museum of Prosciutto and Cured Meats of Parma

Via Bocchialini, 7
Langhirano (PR)

Open to the public:

From March 1 to 8 December
Saturday, Sunday and holidays: 10.00 – 18.00
Monday to Friday: by appointment for groups

From December to February:  Closed

Ticket Prices:

Full:  € 3.00
Reduced:  € 2.00 groups (minimum 15 people), adults over 65 years
Reduced for schools:  € 1.50 schools and children from 6 to 12 years
Free:  disabled and their escorts, children under 6 years

Sampling of Prosciutto di Parma:

Full:  € 3.00
Reduced:  € 1.50 (for children under 15 years)

Guided tours

For groups of up to 25 people: € 20.00 in addition to the ticket price – reservation necessary.

Museum Shop

Publications and typical products of the territory.

Information and reservations (required for groups and schools):

IAT Torrechiara: Tel. +39-0521-355009 – Fax. +39-0521-355821

Museum of Prosciutto: Tel. +39-0521.864324

E-mail: prenotazioni.prosciutto@museidelcibo.it

Web Site: www.museidelcibo.it