ItalyUpdate

Veronas city council has come up with a sure-win idea to help fill the town coffers. Romantically minded couples can now get married inside the house of the Capulet family and have their wedding photos shot on the balcony where Shakespeares ill-starred heroine Juliet conversed with Romeo......

SCILLA: CORAL TREASURE

A forest of rare black coral, calculated to be composed of 300,000 colonies, has been discovered near the coast of Scilla, Calabria, during explorations of the sea floor by environmental scientists. The coral is located at a depth that varies from 50 to 110 metres and is considered to be the most extensive known colony in the world.

The worlds most famous doll, Barbie, who celebrates her 50 th birthday this year, has chosen one of Italys most famous cars - the Fiat 500  to be her official conveyance during the year-long anniversary celebrations.

The 3 rd World Slow Day, invented by a stressed Italian manager, has now spread outside Italys borders and was celebrated last week in various countries.

LAZIO REOPENS WWF RESERVE

Il Monumento Naturale di Piano SantAngelo, a nature reserve run by the World Wildlife Fund, has now reopened, thanks to funding received from the Lazio regional government. The reserve, which lies between the towns of Corchiano and Gallese, near Viterbo in northern Lazio, is noted for its unusual and dramatic landscape, with deep canyons  refuge for a wide variety of wildlife - and for its archaeological remains dating back to the ancient race of Falisci, that include an aqueduct and a series of rock tombs.

Coriandoline, a little town designed entirely by children near Correggio (Reggio Emilia), has now been officially inaugurated.

Italys ever more popular bubbly, Prosecco, is to apply for official recognition as a certified product of a particular area in the Veneto Region, in order to protect it from the many imitations springing up in countries such as the USA, Brazil, Australia, Austria, Chile and Romania.

ITALY HONOURS DALAI LAMA

Terzin Gyatso, the Dalai Lama, is now an honorary citizen of both Rome and Venice. The Tibetan spiritual leader was greeted with a standing ovation at Romes City Hall on Capitol Hill. Mayor Gianni Alemanno presented him with the symbol of Rome - a model of the ancient bronze sculpture of the wolf suckling the twins Romulus and Remus, legendary founders of the city.

Shortly afterwards, the honorary citizenship of Venice was also conferred on the Dalai Lama by Venetian mayor Massimo Cacciari in a special ceremony at Venice City Hall 

Despite the present unfavourable economic climate, the Italian cruise company, Costa Crociere, has achieved a highly successful 2008 and announces that it expects to continue on the crest of the wave during 2009.

 FORGOTTEN RAILWAYS DAY

Forgotten Railways Day on the 1 st March will be marked by over 60 events dedicated to Italys historic railway tracks. Stretches of railway lines, no longer in use, will be rediscovered during a series of excursions on foot and by bicycle, or by trips on special trains running over many highly scenic routes.

For information: www-ferroviedimenticate.it