Italy
Val Gardena. Summer in The Dolomites.
Anna is teaching me the highly skilled art of Tyrolean cooking at the chalet Luech de Curijel in Selva and she’s not looking best pleased. It seems my Apfelstrudel and spinach crafuncins, two of the simplest of local dishes here in Val Gardena, are not up to standard. Now when your teacher possesses hands with the power to knead dough as if it were mash potato, generating hostility is not a healthy option.
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Terranima
Bari is so unrepresentative of Puglia – the formal, imposing and rather austere capital of a region which is all about charm, informality and joie de vivre – that it’s surprising to find a suitably charming and informal restaurant in its back streets.
Terranima is a microcosm of rural Puglia – its trompe l’oeil decor is designed to evoke the feeling of a street in one of the region’s hilltop towns – and the food is utterly authentic.
Inspector Montalbano Sicily
“Il Commissario” has done for south-east Sicily what “Bergerac” did for Jersey, Steve McGarrett for Hawaii, “Wallender” for south Sweden and what “Shetland” is doing for Shetland.TV detectives have become ambassadors. And travel agents. And are bringing in the tourists to visit Inspector Montalbano’s Sicily locations. The New Year sees a new ten-part series of BBC4’s “Inspector Montalbano”, starring the Bruce Willis- headed Luca Zingaretti and based on Andrea Camilleri’s books which have sold 15m worldwide.
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Walking Holiday in Le Marche
Our first evening briefing in the lounge of Hotel Leone was preceded by wine and nibbles, so naturally, on the pretext of looking to store much needed energy for the next day’s trek, the majority of my nibbles were gratefully received . After all, you don’t go on a walking holiday in Le Marche trekking the mighty Sibillini national park with hunger pains, that would be foolish wouldn’t it?
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Hotel Leone. Montelparo
The historic hilltop town of Montelparo has witnessed many things during her long lifetime; more than a few wars, an odd feuding baron or two the advent of electricity and of course, stunning views of the Marche landscape. But surely none perhaps more bewildering for the old girl than finding a young couple from England turning up one day as the proud new owners of a ruined palazzo at the top of the town, abandoned for over thirty years. Three years later and after much personal toil and sweat, the old palazzo was alive once again, transformed into the stunning eight bedroom luxury boutique hotel and restaurant that is Hotel Leone.
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Puglia. Perhaps Italy’s best kept secret
Not so long ago Puglia, at the tip of Italy’s boot, was down at heel, poor, neglected and far flung. No more. Flanked by two seas the thin peninsula is often described as ‘Italy’s best kept secret’.
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