ItalyUpdate

 
A treat awaits garden lovers on the 29 May 2011 when over 50 of the most beautiful private gardens of Florence, Siena, Pisa and Lucca will throw open their gates to the public.

Slow Fish, the Slow Food movements bi-annual appointment with the world of fishermen, the sea and the river, opens at the Genoa Fair on the 27 May 2011.

A colossal statue dedicated to the late Pope John Paul II, erected in front of Romes Termini railway station and unveiled on the 18 May 2011, has attracted a flood of criticism.

Rainbow MagicLand, a brand new theme park at Valmontone, in the vicinity of Rome, is due to open its gates on the 26 May 2011.

Romes prestigious wine bar, the Enoteca Ferrara, has been hosting a special showcase of the top wines produced by the Azienda Marchese Antinori and the Azienda alesco.

After a long and laborious restoration, Agnolo Gaddis  fresco cycleThe Legend of the True Cross is now once more visible in the Cappella Maggiore of the Santa Croce Basilica in Florence.

Romes Zoo, known as the Biopark, is celebrating its hundredth anniversary with a souvenir  photo competition of family snaps and videos taken at the zoo between 1911 and 1989. The entries are to be used to set up a historic exhibition documenting the zoos development and progress.
Prizes include  Reflex and Coolpix Nikon cameras and vouchers for prints.
For information: www.centenario.bioparco.it

The  Caffè Sospeso, an old Neapolitan custom where cafeteria customers would pay for an extra cup of coffee to be set aside for anyone unable to pay for his/her own,  is the inspiration behind the Caffè˝ Sospeso Network, which was presented at the recent edition of the Valsusa Filmfest, Valle di Susa (Piedmont).

The network is concerned with initiatives that help inmates of Italian prisons maintain contacts with the outside world and was represented at the Filmfest by members of two cooperatives who  help groups of prisoners  - the Lazzarelle Cooperative of Naples which produces coffee under the trademark Lazzarelle with inmates of the womens prison at Pozzuoli  and the Pausa Caffè Cooperative of Turin producing coffee, cocao and beer at the prisons of Turin and Saluzzo. An additional guest was Davide Dutto, author of the book Il Gambero Nero, ricette in carcere (The Black Shrimp, recipes in prison  with reference to the Italian Michelin guide equivalent, known as the Gambero Rosso or Red Shrimp).

Vintner SantAndrea in the coastal plain area south of Rome has been judged best wine producer in Lazio at the recent Vinitaly Fair at Verona.

A plan to re-populate the ancient village of San Fruttuoso with its 10^th century Abbey, considered one of the jewels of the Ligury coast, has been launched by the mayor of nearby Camogli, Italo Mannucci.