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Coffee helps keep blood pressure low: this is the result of research by the University of Bologna, carried out in conjunction with the IRCCS Policlinico Sant'Orsola, going against every belief on the subject taken for granted. The study shows how those who drink two or three coffees a day have lower blood pressure on average than those who drink on...

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In our journey through the UNESCO Sites of Italy, we will discover a destination quite different from the others. The Sasso Fratino Natural Reserve, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2017, is a place where trees have been writing history for a long time. Beech trees have been born, live and die here for hundreds of years and are silent witnesses t...

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Visiting a Jewish quarter means approaching a fascinating world that perhaps many people still know too little about. It's not only a very ancient civilization, from which the three main monotheistic religions are derived, but also a culture with a strong identity that has found expression in literature, art, phylosophy, complex symbolism, and even...

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Rounds of sliced-thin, pink, white-speckled mortadella are popping up on sandwiches, on charcuterie plates and even in the occasional cocktail in Los Angeles, but it’s hard to view any food item depicted in ancient Roman carvings as a flash in the pan. The Italian deli meat that traces its roots to Bologna and as far back as the Etruscans isn’t new...

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In Via D’Azeglio near the Basilica of San Petrognio, you’ll find the house of the great singer-songwriter Lucio Dalla. At the corner of the apartment building is a silhouette of the artist playing the saxophone surrounded by seagulls painted on the cream-colored wall facing the little square. Beside the image is the balcony where a red tenda (outer...

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In Italy there are many wonderful small villages to discover like Castelvetro di Modena in Emilia Romagna. In this territory are made many typical products of the highest quality. These are Lambrusco Grasparossa PDO, PGI balsamic vinegar, Parmesan cheese and Modena ham. Here you can discover where this country is and you can also discover what to s...

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Obtaining a position as a professor at an esteemed university is, by modern standards, an impressive accomplishment in its own right. But imagine being awarded such a position in eighteenth-century Italy, at height of the Age of Enlightenment, when, as historian of science Paula Findlen describes, the industry of science was booming and scholars we...

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Ravenna had emerged as the center of the Western world by the time Placidia arrived in 416. “Ravenna attracted the best artists and architects from around the empire,” noted Claudia Frassineti, a cultural heritage specialist and guide in the city. “It was the new capital city, the focus of wealth and power.” Emperor Honorius, Placidia’s half-brothe...

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The Po Delta Natural Park captured UNESCO's attention in 1999 when its southern portion became part of 'Ferrara, City of the Renaissance, and its Delta'. In 2015, UNESCO recognised Po Delta Natural Park as a Biosphere Reserve (MAB). It is an important recognition for such a great area. It lies on the border of Veneto (Land of Venice) and Emilia Rom...

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Luca Cesari got his first taste for pasta as a child in the 1970s in his native Bologna when his grandmother lovingly served him two Italian specialties: tagliatelle alla bolognese and tortellini. Now, in adulthood, the food historian and writer has chronicled how a wide array of pasta dishes made the Italian food staple so influential around the w...

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