ItalyUpdate

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.

The thousands of tourists flocking to Rome for the late Pope John Paul IIs Beatification ceremony, due to take place on the 1st May 2011, are faced with a dazzling choice of souvenir items

For the third year running, the Vatican Museums are to be open every Friday evening between the 6 May till 28 October 2011, except during the month of August.

In its bi-annual selection for 2011, the prestigious  Mies van der Rohe Foundation has nominated Romes MAXXI Museum of XXI century Art among Europes most beautiful museums.

The 3^rd edition of the International  Contest Instruments of Peace for young orchestral composers is to be inspired by phrases pronounced by three Nobel Peace Prize winners: Barack Obama, Lech Walesa and Aung San Suu Kyi.

The Italian post office is issuing a new series of stamps honouring Italian cheeses as part of its Made in Italy run. The stamps are limited editions with 2.500 million printed.The series features the DOP Cacciocavallo of Ragusa, Sicily, Parmigiano Reggiano, Gorgonzola and Mozzarella di Bufala Campana. The series is being launched in coincidence with the opening of Milanofil, the Italian Annual Stamp Fair held in Milan.  

Interested in local crafts? The calendar for the 2011 itinerant craft fairs in Tuscany published by ARTour Tuscany is as follows: