After a break, the Guess Where in Italy? series is back!  To kick things off, here is one of my own photographs of Italy

Have you any idea in where in Italy city I took this picture?

I suspect that only those who have spent some time wondering around this charming Italian city will know what it is called, and where it is in Italy.  It’s a lovely city too -well worth visiting.

On to the photograph.

Can You Guess in Which Italian City this Photograph was Taken?

This is just for fun.

If nobody has managed to guess the answer by Monday, I’ll post clues until somebody gets the answer.

Happy hunting!

Photograph by Alex Roe with a Canon Eos 40d.

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When people ask me for travel information, they often append their request with something like, “Don’t send me to any tourist traps. I want to go to a place without tourists where I can have a true cultural experience.” The unwritten part is, “…which you are going to spell out for me and which is going to be easy.”

Here’s the thing: nobody can give you steps to follow to have a cultural experience—or, for that matter, an epiphany.

I like epiphanies. You just can’t force them. They come when you’re ready.

What you can do is open yourself up to experience. For the most part, this means becoming a “cultural relativist”, even if only temporarily and then only if your chosen political party or leaning allows it. Yes, that’s right, the first step is to stop thinking that the culture you come from is the very bestest in the whole wide world and nobody does it better, despite the fact you haven’t experienced any other cultures. Other folks a long way away from your country have solved (or tried to solve) the same social problems. They got different answers. That difference is what makes the world go ‘round. Well, that and a whole lot of good Barolo…

Become childlike. Marvel at things. Have no shame in asking about things you don’t understand. People everywhere like explaining their traditions. Open your mind. Control nothing.

You’re in the garden of Eden. What’s around you is beauty and goodness and light. Marvel at it. Remember you get kicked out if you try to gain control of things. Remember God.

Now you’re ready. I’ve got tips.

Learn a bit of the language. You’ll have a hard time making inroads unless you can at least show folks you’re a decent person. Learn the polite words. Greet people in shops. Thank folks who help you.

Go on a quest. Got a question about why folks do what they do? Find out for yourself. Want local regional foods, the best a restaurant has to offer? Discuss the food with the waiter and take his recommendations; it’s how you get good food in Italy because what’s special isn’t always offered to us hamburger eaters and isn’t always on the menu because they think we won’t like it. Or—go to an open air market and search for something you’ve never eaten before—perhaps agretti, or perhaps a rare cheese from a guy in a truck who likes talking and using his hands to make a point.

Stay where you’re not isolated as a tourist. That usually means you won’t be staying in a hotel. You might try a self-catering vacation home or apartment, but you’ll get more advice in a rural agriturismo, a country house on a working farm, where there’s someone to lead you over the cultural hurdles and send you to the right places to learn what you want to learn. You’ll also eat well and learn how the Italian insistence on good ingredients has created a cuisine that’s the envy of the world, especially in places where the industrial hamburgers are awash in Ammonia or other noxious liquids.

How to find an agriturismo and an owner that suits you? Easy. Go to twitter and search with the term “agriturismo”. You’ll come up with a list of owners that use the social network to tell you what’s happening in their neck of the woods. You can use twitter not only to find a likely agriturismo, but to see if the owner might share your interests or be willing to teach you something about the culture. If your quest is to find out how the taste of extra virgin olive oil you buy in the supermarket is different from that of artisanal production, you’ll be amazed the first time you taste an oil made by people who care. It’s an astonishing difference you’ll tell your friends about until they hate you for it.

I’m out of gas. Maybe my open mind has dried up. I need to remember to cover it in saran wrap when I’m not using it. There’s a hockey game on tv tonight.

In honor of the parents of kids in Southern California who discovered the salacious entry oral sex in the new editions of Merriam-Webster and had a cow over it, I’ve prepared this post. For a while these folks managed to make the dictionary a tome non grata in school libraries. Can you imagine?

I just don’t get it. How turned on can a modern kid get over the “explicit content” of this entry. Cover your ears cuz I’m gonna repeat it: “Oral stimulation of the genitals.”

Yup. That’s it. Totally, as far as I can tell.

Those parents probably don’t travel, but if they did they’d be horrified to discover the wonderful world of sex lurking in such unlikely places as Italian archaeological museums. There’s hardly a Greek vase (or Roman copy of one) that doesn’t have something genital-like peeking out from the folds of those gowns they wore.

But it’s the Italians we promised to talk about here. We might as well start with the Romans. For them, the erect, you know, “male genital apparatus” was a good luck symbol. You tacked a representation of one over the door of your business to ensure good exchange of money. Kids saw ‘em, too. They didn’t melt. They probably didn’t even giggle. Much.

And it makes a certain amount of sense. Good health was lucky. An erection was a sign of good health, so you put it over your shop. I don’t mean the real thing, I mean a representation of an erection.

Anyway, just as soon as the Romans figured out how to make molded oil lamps like the one you see on the right, what did they do? Well, how many sexual positions could you imagine being put on top of the lamp you kept near your bed? Never mind that the wall of your bedroom was likely fresco-ed with folks “doing it” as they say. You needed something tactile. Bas relief. You grabbed your oil lamp. Yes, they mass produced oil lamps with different sexual positions on them. These sexual oil lamps sold like hotcakes evidently, because you find them darn near everywhere you dig in Italy.

These lamps were mass produced in ports, most notably the old port of Rome at Ostia. Yep, you might as well make ‘em were there are sailors, your sexually deprived best customers—until the rape and plunder part of the job starts anyway. (If you go to Rome, you should definitely plan to visit Ostia Antica as a day trip.)

If you want to get an education on these and other sexual appurtenances of the Romans, you’d best get yourself over to the Naples Archaeological Museum and head right for the secret cabinet: the Gabinetto Segreto, where they’ve stocked all the stuff they couldn’t show women, children and excitable parents in the dark ages of a “little while ago.” Now anyone who can afford entrance to the museum can go in and poke around. I mean “poke” in a general way, of course.

Oh, and click the picture to see it bigger. Warning: you’ll see in pretty good detail just what the parents in Southern California were talking about: Roman archaeology and social customs of times past in living, digital color. You might decline to look if you’re too excitable.

This is just a quick post on how laws end up becoming so in Italy, as well as some brief comment on an interesting new law which is being dressed up as a reform.

I’m writing this post in the face of new legislation which is intended, or so its instigators claim, to reform and speed up Italy’s legal system. The accelaration of Italy’s criminal trial system will mean that certain cases will have to be heard within a certain time, or they will simply be dropped.  Those accused of complex white collar crimes are likely to benefit from such time limitations, and it is rumoured that the lawyers acting on behalf of a certain Italian prime minister are ensuring that around one thousand witnesses will be called to appear in court.  Hearing all these witnesses will ensure that the case concerned will never end on time.  Someone will thus avoid prosecution.

Another key, and controversial, aspect of this proposed law is that certain trials in progress will be brought to an abrupt halt.

According to one side – Italy’s Justice Minister, Alfano, the forthcoming reforms will only cause very few criminal cases currently before Italy’s judges to end.

On the other hand, Italy’s judiciary is claiming that ‘hundreds of thousands’ of cases will be filed away, leaving as many people unable to right certain wrongs.

It is not clear why the numbers quoted by both sides differ so widely. Someone may be ‘massaging’ the figures.  As already mentioned, a certain Italian prime minister will benefit from the new legislation which is intended to reduce the time it takes to hear criminal cases in Italy’s courts.

Round One to the Government

On the 21 of January, the first attempt to push the short trials law through Italy’s parliament was successful.

The proposal for a new law was introduced in Italy’s upper house, the Senate, and has now been passed to the law house – the Chamber of Deputies – for either approval, or amendments.  If the lower house decide that the text of the new law is fine the way it is, then the law goes to Italy’s President Napolitano for his singature.  Hey presto – a new law is born. But.

Italy’s president can send the law back the the house in which it was originally proposed – the Senate in this case.  If the Senate does not change anything, the text goes to Italy’s Chamber of Deputies.  If the Chamber alters nothing, the test goes back to Italy’s president -who must then sign the bill in order to turn it into binding law.

Who Can Propose Ideas for New Laws in Italy

In Italy laws can be proposed in three ways:

1. A citizens petition with 50,000 signatures is presented to either of Italy’s houses.

2. A member of Italy’s Senate makes a proposal for a law.

3. A member of Italy’s House of Deputies suggests a new law.

For a proposal to be passed from either house to the president for approval, the wording of the new law must be the same.  Indeed, both houses must agree on the wording, or else the proposal will bounce back and forth until the wording has been agreed.

The Flow of Law

The ‘flow’ is either:

• House of Deputies – Senate – President – Law

• Senate – House of Deputies -  President – Law

The Check Mechanism

With a sound majority, Italy’s parliament can, on paper, push through just about any old law.  However, there is an interesting little built in check mechanism.  If an Italian judge, any Italian judge, decides that any law goes against the spirit of the Italian constitution, then that judge can call for that law to be reviewed.

If the offending law is found to be unconstitutional, it will be torn up.  End of law.  This, in part, is what happened to the law which was passed to grant Italy’s Prime Minister immunity from prosecution while in office.

It will be interesting to watch the progress of the new ’short trial’ law – which is being marketed as a form of reform by Silvio and his supporters, and see whether a judge steps in and calls foul on the grounds of the new law being unconstitutional.

Berlusconi appears to fear the power of Italy’s judges, and would dearly love to clip Italy’s judiciary’s wings.

Sorry, what was meant to be a brief post, grew into something which is not that short.

Further reading:

Corriere Della Sera 21 January 2010:  Senate Approves Short Trials Amid Protests - in English

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On the streets of Milan in Italy hybrid cars, such as the Honda Insight and the Toyota Prius are becoming common sights.

The effects of ever rising fuel costs coupled with the introduction of the Ecopass pollution charging system certainly seem to have convinced more than a few of Milan’s motorists to go for a means of transport which is perhaps a little kinder to our environment.

It is not just Milan’s private motorists who are going for hybrids and thus going green.  Then there is green luxury too.

Milan’s Green Taxis

Owing to some promotion on the part of Toyota back in 2007, quite a number of Milan’s taxi drivers now drive Prius’ (What is the plural of Prius?).  On at least a couple of occasions I’ve ended up in one.

Whether Milan’s private motorists have genuinely become more ‘environmentally friendly’ is probably open to question.  What is more likely that Milan’s financially astute population is ‘going green’ because it makes economic sense, and being green is terribly fashionable too.

Still, if people save money while being gentler on the environment, this is probably no bad thing.

If you read on though, you will discover that the canny Milanese seem to have cottoned on to the fact that you can be trendy, save the environment, and even save some cash.

Prius Hybrids Hold Their Values

While hybrids such as the Toyota Prius may cost more than an equivalent non-hybrid car, Italians tend to keep their cars for ten years or so, and these green Toyota’s do not depreciate as fast as non-green cars either.  Well, this seems to be the case from what I read on the Kelley Blue Book web site, and elsewhere.

Lexus Hybrid SUVs Green Luxury

Those like the idea of being green, and who don’t need to worry about depreciation, can nowadays one waft along in the lap of luxury, whilst at the same time being marginally more environmentally friendly, in a cossetted, padded leather, kind of way.  Yes, Lexus RX luxury hybrid SUVs can also be seen on the green streets of Milan.  Lexus also happens to be a Toyota brand.

The odd thing is that on the basis of their tax declarations, most Italians who own luxury cars, or even less than Lexus expensive Toyota Prius’, should not be able to afford them!

There was a lovely article; which reminded me of articles in The Economist in style; in Italy’s Repubblica paper on this subject last week (I shall never forget a wonderful article in the Economist years ago which proved that smokers save society money.).

What the heck.  If a little tax evasion helps people do their bit for saving the environment, than how can not paying taxes be so bad?

La Repubblica, 20 January 2010: Auto di lusso e redditi? Qualcosa non quadra…- Luxury Cars and Incomes -Something does not Add Up…

See Wikipedia for more information on the Toyota Prius and Honda Insight hybrid cars, and on the Lexus RX luxury SUV hybrid.

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Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi’s legal woes seem to be never ending.  Up until recently, it was only Silvio himself who had attracted the attentions of law enforcement authorities in Italy.

Now though, Silvio Berlusconi’s son, Mediaset Vice-Chairman Piersilvio, has been named in investigations into an alleged attempt by an arm of the Berlusconi family’s Mediaset empire, MediaTrade, to defraud Italy’s tax system.

The Right Fiddle

The alleged Mediaset fiddle revolved around one Berlusconi group company buying and then selling on to another Berlusconi group company at grossly inflated prices.  The items being bought and sold were rights to television programs and films, and large amounts of the proceeds were being filched away into offshore bank accounts.

A Machiavellian level of complexity ensured that the connections between Berlusconi group companies were kept well and truly obfuscated for a good long time.

In addition to the father and son duo, another close friend of clan Berlusconi and Mediaset bigwig is also having his affairs examined by investigators.

Italian companies simply adore Chinese boxes.  Italian tax people simply detest them.

Tax Evasion Business As Usual

Tax evasion is nothing new in Italy, and is acknowledged as being a huge problem in a land where levels of public debt continue to soar.  Italy’s finance minister, Guilio Tremonti, has admitted that too many people pay too little in tax in Italy.

In view of the investigations into his boss, Tremonti, who is a close Berlusconi ally, may feel a wee bit embarrassed if the subject of tax evasion comes up in discussions on how to make Italy’s reluctant tax payers cough up.

Tremonti appears to believe that dealing with tax evasion in Italy is a key aspect to sorting out the stagnant Italian economy. Well, this is what Tremonti intimated in an interview with Italy’s financial daily, Il Sole 24ORE.  Obviously Silvio Berlusconi agrees that tax evasion is not good.  This would explain why he’s been setting such a good example.

Note to Tremonti: The answer to the Italian reluctance to pay taxes lies in indirect taxes.  Italians are not averse to a little ostentation.  Lamborghinis sell very well in Italy.

Those Darn Commies Again

Berlusconi senior, backed up by loyal son, is claiming that the accusations are nothing more than a yet another dastardly commie inspired plot designed to depose him from his prime position.

The soap opera that is Italy trudges repetitively on.

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Lately there has been a general decline in the number of times folks collar me to ask what Italians think of Americans. These days, the Italians in my village are too troubled with their own um—for lack of a better word—“leadership”, not to mention the slumping, dead-in-the-water economy.

I was thinking of this when I remembered the picture over there to the right (click to see it bigger). It was part of an art display that caught my eye as I searched for the entrance to the Naples Underground excavations below the Church of San Lorenzo Maggiore, located at the exact center of the Greco-Roman city.

The artist wanted to know if an American like me “got” the art. Well, certainly I got this one. And they’re right, the dollar will probably never be the same again; all bow to Goldman Sachs. We know they won’t quit until the even the butterfly loses interest in the greenback.

Another thing I noticed is that Italian art is like Italian food. It’s simple, direct, and to the point. There’s not a lot of ingredients. You don’t stew in it for hours. After, you go out for coffee…

In any case, you should forget the wallowing dollar and make an effort to get below Naples at any cost. It’s quite interesting. As in many Italian cities, people have been digging out soft limestone underbellies for years. They’ve made bomb shelters, dovecotes, wine cellars. Along the way they’ve discovered that other folks have been carving out the same territory; ancient Greeks and Romans had the same ideas. You can go underground in Rome, Orvietto, and Naples and probably a bunch of other cities built on soft rock.

The other interesting thing is that the folks who keep the Naples underground going are volunteers. It makes sense—if the Italian government financed every archaeological excavation and visitor center they wouldn’t have money left to repair their leader’s faces after irate and ignored citizens smash them with Duomo statues.

Of course, through these volunteer organizations you can explore the whole underground thing in Italy virtually. Try Napoli Underground for example. One of its members is Larry Ray. I bet you can’t guess what Larry does. He’s a Gourd Artist. As someone who’s lost his gourd years ago, I can dig what Larry does. Besides making some incredible art out of inedible squash, Larry has written the history of some of the stuff that gets discovered under Naples. Check out Larry Ray’s Site then read the stuff Larry has penned about the underground history in Naples, Italy

There are some mighty fascinating people in the world. You should go visit them. They tend to live in some interesting places. To hell with the dollar. Just go.

Whilst flicking through what YouTubes has to offer, I came across this little photo presentation of the region of Abruzzo in Italy, which, if you remember was hit by an earthquake in April 2009.

This selection of views of Abruzzo is very nice, and there are a few images which show the havoc wreaked by the quake too.  The presentation is new.  It was placed on YouTube today -the 20 January 2010.

Captions show the names of the places in the photographs, and I get the impression that the person who created this presentation is most probably an Italian from the Abruzzo region.  Indeed, I wonder whether this video was created to help give the people of the area a little pick me up.

Those of you who are good at these things will no doubt be starting to think about your summer holidays, and the locations shown might just persuade you to head towards the Italian region of Abruzzo.

Have look, and see what you think.

Abruzzo, Italy

Note that there is music -so keep the volume low if you are viewing this at work!

The presentation ends on a hopeful note with the words in Italian ‘Domani è già qui’ – ‘Tomorrow is Already Here’.  I quite like the soundtrack which is in sung in a mix of Italian and English.

Click here to view the embedded video.

After viewing the images, I have no problem at all understanding why people like Bodach, who runs the About Abruzzo blog, buy houses in this attractive Italian region.

If you do end up in Abruzzo for a holiday, then please pop back here upon your return and leave a comment to let us all know how you got on.  And if you want to send in a photograph or two, just let me know.

Italy’s beauty never ceases to amaze me.

For more information on Abruzzo, why not have a look at the links listed on @Italyis over on Twitter?  This month is Abruzzo month on @Italyis – next month will be the turn of Italy’s Aosta Valley.

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Even people who have never been to Italy have probably heard of Italy’s infamous mafia organised crime groups.  Just how powerful are Italy’s mafia groups today?

Groups? Yes, groups.  There are several.

When I came to Italy a good few years ago, I had heard of the mafia, but thought it was one organisation centred in Sicily.  It was seeing the Godfather films which probably implanted this impression in me.

Before setting foot in Italy, I was aware the mafia was quitea  strong criminal organisation, and that it corrupted politicians too.  However, I did not really think the mafia was much more than a localised bunch of hoodlums.

Then I came to Italy, and discovered that I was wrong.  I came across a mafia bar in Milan, and ex-mafia members walking the streets of the same city.  I even witnessed what I suspect may have been a mafia soldier picking up weekly protection money – not while I was on holiday in the south of Italy, but up here in Milan.

In my mind the mafia went from being Hollywood fiction to solid reality.  I also found out that there was not one mafia, but there were several.

What follows is a list of all the mafia groups which afflict Italy.  Why write about this age old Italian problem?  Well, it does look as if this age old Italian sickness is being eradicated.

Cosa nostra – Sicily – Battered

Once Italy’s number one mafia, at least by reputation, the power of the cosa nostra mafia is being eroded in Sicily.

A campaign against the payment of the pizzo protection fee, which was a major source of income for the Sicilian mafia, does appear to have been successful.

Then there has been the arrest of suspected mafia bosses Bernardo Provenzano, Totò Riina and Leoluca Bagarella which may well have irreparably damaged the capability of the Cosa Nostra to organise itself.

The Italian authorities seem to consider that the activity of Cosa Nostra is becoming controllable.

Camorra – Naples and Campania region – Dented

In terms of power, the camorra may have been second to Sicily’s cosa nostra.  Lot’s of supposition in this post, I know, but then it’s not easy to find concrete statistics relating to the mafia. It is not known for keeping records.

After all the publicity writer Roberto Saviano’s Gomorrah book attracted, there seemed to be more reports about the arresst of senior camorra bosses in Italy’s media.

The camorra is still operational apparently, but it appears to have been dented by the activities of Italy’s law enforcement bodies.

The ‘ndrangheta- Calabria – Relatively Healthy

In terms of power and activities, the ‘ndrangheta seemed to play second or third fiddle to Sicily’s cosa nostra.  After various crack downs, the camorra came to be regarded as being more powerful than the Sicilian mafia.  However some Italians believe that the camorra has never been as powerful or as influential as Calabria’s ‘ndrangheta mafia.

There is a difference between the way in which the camorra and the ‘ndrangheta operate.  That difference is that while the camorra seems to do its thing in and around Naples, it has not really ventured far into the north of Italy.  On the other hand, the ‘ndrangheta has not been afraid of stretching its legs and moving further north in search of new markets.

Rumours that the ‘ndrangheta are very interested in becoming involved in the construction of buildings in Milan in connection with the 2015 Expo are legion here in Milan.

Like its Neapolitan counterpart the camorra, the ‘ndrangheta knows that huge amounts of money can be siphoned off construction contracts, and that such contracts offer prime opportunities for money laundering too.

As you will now be aware, there are three main mafias in Italy – Cosa Nostra from Sicily, the Camorra from Naples, and the ‘ndrangheta who occupy Italy’s toe -which is otherwise known as Calabria.

Then there are the two others:

Other Mafia Organisations in Italy

Sacra Corona Unita, (SCU) or United Sacred Crown – Apulia

Occasionally news of SCU activities makes it into national news, but generally not much seems to be written about this relatively low key Italian mafia organisation.  Its operations generally do not reach beyond the Apulia region of Italy.

The Wikipedia entry on the SCU indicates that this mafia had its power seriously reduced in the Apulia region of Italy after the Italian army was sent in to curb illegal immigration back in 1995.

As a result of military intervention, the SCU was effectively decapitated and although it still exists, it is no longer effectively coordinated.

Stidda – Sicily

Much smaller than cosa nostra, the stidda seems to limit its business to certain areas of Sicily, such as Agrigento.  Not much is written about stidda activities at a national level in Italy.

The Stidda began as a spin-off of the Cosa Nostra.

Bye, Bye Mafia?

The official line is that all flavours of the mafia but the ‘ndrangheta have been diluted.

At a popular level though, Italians do not really believe that the mafia -in any of its forms- has been beaten.  And they are not sure it ever will be.

Sources:

Wikipedia – Italian and English entries on mafia.

Further reading: The Pizzo – BlogfromItaly.com

Related articles by Zemanta

• Italy’s ‘coexistence’ with the mafia | Roberto Mancini (guardian.co.uk)

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After a fine meal with friends and a new acquaintance at Olea Restaurant in San Francisco I was itching to go back to Rome. Yes, we discussed the Eternal City, it’s secret gardens and some interesting places to view Rome from above.

Rome is one of those cities that divides folks. Orderly folks will hate it as they might hate Naples for some of the same reasons. For those of us who like surprises, cacaphony, life lived sometimes in the midst of surreal oddness, Rome is the motherland of vacations.

Anyway, this occasion, a fine meal presided over by a waiter who understood our desire to communicate unabated while he worked in the background tirelessly, gave me an opportunity to drag out one of my favorite pictures taken last year at the Christmas Market in Piazza Navona. Call it performance art if you wish. It was colorful. Dazzling in its serenity. There was also a little eye candy in it. So shoot me.

Which also reminds me of a page I wove together yesterday on Rome Taxis. It includes a widget that allows you to find what the _real_fare is to wherever you’re going, just so you don’t get ripped off I mean.