ItalyUpdate

To honour the 500 th Centenary of the birth of the great Italian architect Andrea Palladio, the city of Vicenza is organizing a series of tours of the Veneto villas, palaces and public buildings constructed by him.

Thousands of street performers (commonly known as buskers) will be thronging the historic piazzas around the castle and the cathedral of Ferrara for the annual Buskers Festival, running from the 22 nd to 31 st August....

The splendid Villa D'Este at Tivoli,  famous for its fountains, is staging an additional treat for visitors this year. An exhibition of baroque portraits, many by

famous artists such as Guercino, Van Dyck, Artemisia Gentileschi, Anton Raphael Mengs and Ludovico Stern, is on show in the vast reception rooms of the

residence leading down into the gardens.

The XIII International Biennal of Sculture opened on the 27th July at Carrara of  the famous Tuscan city of the marble quarries  will continue until the 28th September.....

An exhibition in Ravenna (Emilia Romagna), running till the of October, gives visitors a picture of leisure in ancient Roman times. Otium, the Art of Living in a Roman Domus in Imperial Times reconstructs the comfortable lifestyle of the Roman upper class...

One of Italys most spectacular amateur swimming events, the annual race across the Straits of Messina between Sicily and the Italian peninsula, is scheduled for the 10 th August....

   SUMMER OPERA SEASON

The summer opera season in Italys two most famous and spectacular venues is in full swing.

The 86 Festival programme of the Arena of Verona features five time-honoured favourites running throughout August, including a special production of Aida, in addition to Tosca, Nabucco,śCarmen and Rigoletto.

In Rome, the magnificent backdrop of the ruins of the Baths of Caracalla provides an unforgettable setting for the summer programme of performances of Aida, Madame Butterfly, Lucia of Lammermoor and the ballet Giselle.

www.arena.it  www.operaroma.it  

Hollywood heart throb Robert Redford will be a star attraction at this years Tuscan Sun Festival in the city of Cortona in the heart of Tuscany. ---

The 4-star Hotel Punta Rossa, perched high on the rocks of the Lazio coast directly in front of the Pontine Islands, is the kind of place romantics fall for.

The 19th edition of Thermalia Italia, the annual Fair of thermal tourism is to be held in Naples between the 26 th and 28 th September 2008.