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LA BELLA VITA

La Bella Vita: Secret places in Milan and making the perfect moka coffee

From visiting Milan's hidden treasures to getting the best out of your trusty Italian moka pot, our weekly newsletter La Bella Vita offers you an essential starting point for eating, talking, drinking and living like an Italian.

La Bella Vita: Secret places in Milan and making the perfect moka coffee
An Italian moka coffee pot. Photo by Thanos Amoutzias on Unsplash

La Bella Vita is our regular look at the real culture of Italy – from language to cuisine, manners to art. This new newsletter will be published weekly and you can receive it directly to your inbox, by going to newsletter preferences in ‘My Account’ or follow the instructions in the newsletter box below.

Summer finally seems to be on the way, and we’re more than ready for gelato, dining all’aperto, and long days at the beach. But summer in Italy also means unbearable crowds, particularly if you want to do some sightseeing on a trip to any major city.

Milan isn’t always known for its artistic cachet, but the city has its fair share of tourist destinations which get extremely crowded during the warmer months: take the Duomo and Castello Sforzesco to name just two examples.

If you’d rather skip the long queues and dodge the selfie-stick waving crowds, there are plenty of other options which we think are just as interesting to visit.

Here are six of the northern city’s lesser-known attractions where you can soak up some culture and escape the tourist crush:

Six ‘secret’ places in Milan you need to visit

If you love Italian cuisine but don’t live in Italy, you won’t need us to tell you how difficult it can be to find Italian food abroad that passes as authentic.

Some readers rejoiced at the recent news that the Italian minister for ‘agriculture and food sovereignty’ had proposed the creation of an official ranking system for Italian restaurants abroad.

There’s no doubt that sourcing quality raw ingredients, never mind finding acceptable restaurant versions of classic dishes, is generally a challenge.

Luckily though, the ratings system proposed by the agriculture minister already exists. And there are a few other things you could try if you’re craving well-executed Italian classics, but can’t make it back to Italy just yet:

EXPLAINED: How do you find good Italian food abroad?

Tracking down a good Italian restaurant abroad is not always easy. Photo by Gabriella Clare Marino on Unsplash

And who doesn’t appreciate the classic Italian design of the Bialetti moka coffee pot?

This little gadget became an essential part of the morning routine for many Italian families after its invention in the 1930s and, if you live in Italy, chances are there’s at least one in your kitchen right now. But do you know how to get the best possible coffee out of it?

Opinions on the best way to use the moka pot vary in Italy and this can, unsurprisingly, be the subject of heated debate. But here’s what the experts had to say on the subject:

How to make the perfect Italian moka coffee at home

Though lots of popular English sayings are largely similar (or even identical) to their Italian equivalents, this is not always the case.

In fact, some Italian translations of famous English idioms can leave language learners perplexed.

From full barrels and drunk wives to catching fish in the morning, here are some of the creative ways in which the Italian language expresses the sentiments behind familiar English sayings:

REVEALED: The Italian versions of 11 famous English sayings

Remember if you’d like to have this weekly newsletter sent straight to your inbox you can sign up for it via Newsletter preferences in “My Account”.

Is there an aspect of the Italian way of life you’d like to see us write more about? Please email me at [email protected].

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LA BELLA VITA

La Bella Vita: Must-try Roman foods and alternative places to visit in Veneto

From enjoying typical Roman culinary delicacies to exploring the region of Veneto beyond Venice, our weekly newsletter La Bella Vita offers you an essential starting point for eating, talking, drinking and living like an Italian.

La Bella Vita: Must-try Roman foods and alternative places to visit in Veneto

La Bella Vita is our regular look at the real culture of Italy – from language to cuisine, manners to art. This newsletter is published weekly and you can receive it directly to your inbox, by going to newsletter preferences in ‘My Account’ or following the instructions in the newsletter box below.

Italian cuisine is incredibly diverse, with culinary traditions, recipes and delicacies varying greatly from region to region, or even from city to city in some cases.

Rome and the surrounding Lazio are no exception as the region boasts a 2,000-year-old food scene that truly has something for all tastes and preferences. 

From typical pasta dishes such as cacio e pepe, amatriciana, and carbonara to deep-fried artichokes and finger-licking street food, we’ve put together a list of the Roman specialities you should try at least once.

15 typical Roman foods you need to try at least once

Gnocchi are a Roman favourite, particularly on one day of the week. Photo by Neilson Barnard / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP.

With prestigious attractions such as the Doge’s Palace and Saint Mark’s Basilica, and its timeless aura as the world’s most romantic city, Venice is one of the most popular Italian destinations among international visitors.

This, however, means that many of its sites and central areas often get hopelessly crowded during peak tourist season, with visitors frequently facing long queues and disheartening waiting times.

Whether you’ve already visited Venice multiple times or you just want to escape the chaos of the summer months, you may be happy to know that the Veneto region is home to many wonders beyond the ‘floating city’, with plenty of small hilltop towns and lesser-known natural parks and beaches just waiting to be explored.

25 alternative places to see in Veneto other than Venice

After a spell of changeable weather and unusually cool temperatures, particularly in the north of the country, mercury levels have risen all around Italy this week, with heat alerts in place for multiple major cities from Wednesday to Friday. 

But as the peninsula experiences the first heatwave of the summer, with highs of around 41°C expected in parts of Puglia, Sicily and Sardinia this weekend, there is further proof that estate is well and truly here. 

From bars and beach clubs everywhere blasting tormentoni tunes of questionable taste to the return of bulky cooler bags stuffed with anything from pasta fredda (pasta salad) to prosciutto e melone (ham and melon), here are nine unmistakable signs that summer has arrived in Italy. 

Nine unmistakable signs that summer has arrived in Italy

Remember if you’d like to have this weekly newsletter sent straight to your inbox you can sign up for it via Newsletter preferences in “My Account”.

Is there an aspect of the Italian way of life you’d like to see us write more about on The Local? Please email me at [email protected].

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