ItalyUpdate

The wines of Puglia take over the historic Ceramic Workshops of Grottaglie (Taranto) at the end of this month, with the annual Vino è Musica (Wine is Music) appointment where visitors can sample a selection of 150 labels from 40 cellars between the 30^th -31^st July 2015.

Almost very evening throughout the months of July and August, recitals of sacred music are performed in some of Milan's most beautiful old churches during the Milano ArteMusica International Festival of Ancient Music, organized by the Cultural Association La Cappella Musicale.

It is difficult to imagine a more superb setting for one of Shakespeare's best loved tragedies Romeo and Juliet than Villa Da Porto at Montorso Vicentino. Part of the Ville Venete Festival programme, Opera in Love Romeo & Juliet, takes a fresh approach to the timeless tale of the star-crossed lovers, with the accompaniment of baritone and soprano voices to add extra atmosphere.

Every Wednesday and Sunday throughout the summer visitors can participate in a special guided tour of Herculaneum by Night. The second Campania city after Pompeii swallowed by the fatal Vesuvius eruption in 79 AD, the tragic story of the last hours of the inhabitants is recounted by archeological experts, who lead participants through the ghostly darkened streets to the Terme Suburbane (Suburban Baths), normally not open to the public,

The Adriatic resort of Rimini is one of the latest entries in the Guinness Book of Records with its Masters of Magic event that featured 137 conjurers all performing together on stage

The fishermen's village of Cetara on the Amalfi Coast holds its picturesque Lampara Festival  on the night of the 18^th July 2015. The lampare are the traditional fishing boats with lanterns that illuminate the dark sea and attract the fish for a practice that the local fishermen have been carrying on for centuries.

The Salesian Society, founded by Catholic priest Giovanni Bosco soon after the Unification of Italy in order to educate poor children from the slums of Turin, is to have its special celebrative day at EXPO Milano on the 12^th July 2015. This year, in fact, marks the bicentenary of the birth of the saint, who was canonized by Pope Pius XI in 1934.

The EXPO Don Bosco Day will be presented by the 10^th

The famous botanical gardens of Castle Trauttmansdorff at Merano (Alto Adige) welcomed their fifth million visitor on the 24^th June 2015 since they opened to the public on the 16^th June 2001. The gardens have now become the biggest tourist attraction in the region, drawing visitors from some 90 different countries.

Historic churches, castles and theatres of Lake Trasimeno host international chamber orchestras, solist musicians and singers during the eleventh Trasimeno Music Festival between the 4^th - 10^th July 2015, under the direction of Canadian concert pianist Angela Hewitt.

The medieval hilltown of Murlo (Siena, Tuscany) launches its first Bluetrusco Festival on the 3^rd July 2015, with an intriguing mix of jazz and Etruscanology. The event takes the form of a journey with the Etruscans of yesterday and today, according to Murlo Town Council, who are organizing the festival with the support of the Siena Museums Foundation (Fondazione Musei Senesi),