TASTE the AUTHENTIC ITALY with the LOCAL EXPERTS

If you are in Italy this coming weekend you should celebrate the new Primavera Spring visiting one of the 700 beautiful monuments, castles, churches, palaces and parks around Italy which, usually closed, will be exclusively open to visitors on March 23-24.

This event is organized by the FAI, il Fondo Ambiente Italiano, which raises funds to preserve, restore and manage some of the most beautiful places Italy has.

For a full list of all places open in Italy please check out the FAI website and click on the region you are interested in. The website is in Italian but it is easy to get the name of the monuments.

ROME – ROMA

Indirizzo: Piazza Capo di Ferro, 13, 00186, Roma, ROMA

TIVOLI

Indirizzo: Largo Sant’Angelo, 1, 00019, Tivoli, ROMA

VENICE – VENEZIA

Indirizzo: Santa Croce 2215 – Calle de Ca’ Corner, 30100, Venezia, VENICE

FLORENCE – FIRENZE

Indirizzo: Piazza San Pancrazio, 2, 50123, Firenze, FLORENCE

Indirizzo: Costa San Giorgio, 2, 50125, Firenze, FLORENCE

Indirizzo: Via della Petraia, 38, 50141, Firenze, FLORENCE

PUGLIA

For travellers to Puglia you should not miss these places in the Lecce area:

ABBAZIA SANTA MARIA DI CERRATE – BENE FAI

Address: S.p. Squinzano – Casalabate, 73100, Cerrate, LECCE

Address: Via dei Mesagnesi, 73100, Lecce, LECCE

Address: Piazza s. Francesco, 27, 73010, Lequile, LECCE

For more information about places which are open in Puglia please check this page

And of course please let us know if you are around in Puglia in the next weeks. We will be delighted to have you in one of our cooking classes, wine tours, olive oil tasting classes.

Stile Mediterraneo Cooking School Puglia is listed as the number one thing to do in Puglia by the Feinschmecker, the most famous German Food magazine!!

Given the success of our Christmas cooking classes and tour in Matera last week, we are pleased to announce another SPECIAL tour in Matera on April 17-21, 2012.

Matera is a Unesco heritage town located in Basilicata, a region at the border with Puglia, just 2 hour drive from Lecce. Matera became very famous after the Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ movie. The old town is called Sassi which means stones, because the houses are carved out of the rock. Originally only the facade of these dwellings was built up to set up a door or a window which let light and air the house.

Matera is also a culinary paradise. It is very famous for its bread (an IGP product), but also for the pasta, the excellent cheese (caciocavallo, ricotta) and the Aglianico del Vulture Superiore wine, which is the first DOCG wine from Basilicata. Introduced in Basilicata by the Greeks, Aglianico is planted on the Mount Vulture, an extinct volcano, on high altitudes in the region in between 200-700 metres. Vulture has volcanic soil and is rich in mineral water, which is totally reflected in the flavors and taste. Aglianico is an acidic variety, very tannic and requires a few years of aging before you can enjoy it.

During our tour in April, you will learn how to make traditional dishes of the Matera and Puglia cuisines: from local fresh pasta, to focaccia, sauces etc. All in the beautiful setting of the Matera’s Stones-Caves. You will taste the excellent local olive oils, bread and cheese and you will have fun exploring the beautiful old town of Matera with your news friends.

Happy 2012 and hope to have you on our cooking tours in Matera and Puglia with us!

Read more information about the Cooking and wine tour at the castle or write at [email protected]