Milan: where a real newyorker can get a bite of NY ?

Screen Shot 2016-05-18 at 09.52.40New York e Milano.
Conosco bene queste due città e ritengo che una cosa le accomuni: lo stress.
Quindi andare in una palestra è meta d’obbligo sia per rilassare la mente che per beneficiare il fisico. Trovo che a Milano la piu’ newyorkese sia GetFIT (www.getfit.it)Un newyorker a GetFIT Express Foto© Cesare Zucca JPG copy
un network di palestre con 12 sedi, da quelle di Vico, Piacenza e Ravizza, perfettamente attrezzate, ricche di piscine, saune e steamrooms, fino a quelle ‘express’ come Galvani, ideale per un workout ‘mordi e fuggi’, stile ‘broker di Wall Street’.
Prerogativa di GetFIT sono le numerose classi LesMillsUna classe LesMills Foto©GetFIT copy studiate per allenare la forza, sviluppare agilità e bruciare grasso. Prevedono allenamenti yoga, tai chi e pilates, con esercizi che aumentano flessibilità, lasciando una sensazione di equilibrio, calma, armonia e benessere generale.Allenamento da GetFIT Foto© Cesare Zucca  copyUn vero newyorkese non rinuncia al bagel, panino-ciambella di tradizione ebraica. È coperto da cereali, noci, semi di sesamo o papavero e tradizionalmente farcito con salmone affumicato, crema di formaggio, pomodoro, capperi e cipolla.
Ottimi quelli di California Bakery (Via Larga 19), Bagel Company (Piazza XXIV Maggio 1/8), Vintage Bakery (Viale Stelvio 39) e del minuscolo Ofelé (Via Savona 2).
Non a caso si chiama Big Apple, l’hamburger più classico (carne di manzo, pomodoro, cetriolo, insalata e bacon) servito da New York Meneghina (Via Melchiorre Gioia, 35) New York Meneghina Foto©Cesare Zucca copyristorante-loft dove un enorme graffiti unisce Lady Liberty alla Madonnina. Il menu è l’ incontro di due culture diverse, la tradizione americana e la creatività italiana, come il Burger Parmigiana, con tataki di melanzane e grana padano. Delicious!Burger Parmigiana di New York Meneghina  Foto© Cesare Zucca jpg copyCosa più NY di un NY cheesecake? Da Vanilla Bakery (Via San Siro 2), Biancolatte (Via
Turati 30), Viole di Liquirizia (Via Madonnina 10) e That’s Bakery (V. Vigevano 41). A NY il drink per antonomasia è il cosmopolitan. A Milano Sushi B (Via Fiori Chiari 1A) lo prepara con gin, limone, triple sec, melograno e fumo al lemongrass. Altro classico è il Moscow mule nato nel 1941 al Chatham Hotel di New York, a base di vodka, ginger beer e succo di lime e riproposto al Moscow mule (Via Teodosio 60)
Serata al cinema? Purtroppo anche a Milano sussite la pessima consuetudine di doppiare i film. Nessun americano vuole ascoltare Meryl Streep con la voce di un’altra!Meryl-Streep-agli-OscarPer fortuna la catena UCI e la rassegna Sound&Motion proiettano versioni originali sottotitolate in italiano.
Cosa manca?
Ma certo, il mitico fried chicken! Corey McCathern, nativo del Kentucky e trapiantato a New York, ha aperto il coloratissimo Corey’s Soul Chicken (Via Paolo Sarpi 53),Fried chicken di Corey McCathern Foto©Cesare Zucca jpg copy dove cucina le ricette della nonna, come la potato salad, gli immancabili fagioli in salsa barbeque, la crostata alla zucca pumpkin pie e, naturalmente, il suo famoso pollo
fritto, vero trionfo di sapore e croccantezza.

Rome: A night to remember

The gigantic Rome’s Night of Museums
is back on Saturday, May 21, 2016:
Museums and cultural spaces will open to the public at night and hosting many events including art shows, music, dance, theatre, cinema, readings, guided tourPaying the symbolic 1 euro ticket you can visit the museum with exhibitions hosted, and watch performances of music, theater and dance program.notte-musei-romaHere the museums involved:
MUSEUMS CAPITOLINI, MONTEMARTINI, MACRO, MACRO
TESTACCIO, ARA PACIS MUSEUM, MUSEUM OF ROME – BRASCHI PALACE, MUSEUM, ROME IN TRASTEVERE, TRAJAN MARKETS – MUSEUM OF THE IMPERIAL FORUMS, MUSEUMS, VILLA TORLONIA, PALACE OF EXHIBITIONS, STABLES QUIRINALE, AND THE WISDOM UNIVERSITY OF ROMEgallery_34007_4943_257854
For the program and a complete list of participating hotels: www.museiincomuneroma.it
Opening hours 8.00 pm to 2.00 am
Ph  +39 060608

VIENNA:THE 5 BEST COFFEEHOUSES

What could be better than a coffee served with all the rules and perhaps
accompanied by a Viennese dessert?Vienna Cafe Sperl copyyy Foto@Cesare Zucca copyHere is my top list
Hawelka Famous Buchten, vanilla cupcake.
Central Splendid but touristy
Sperl marbles and fine mirrors 800. Frequented by the locals
Mozart cake biscuit, pistachio cream, chocolate mousse
Landtmann establieshed 125 years ago. Anyone important has been here,
from Freud to Lady Gagaarticle-0-0EC94B5E00000578-863_468x666

HIDDEN UNDERGROUND JEWEL IN MILAN

45741-Cripta_Santo_SepolcroMilan, exactly in the spot that a Leonardo‘s drawing described as an ideal center of the plant in the city,  it was reopened to the public the impressive underground church of Santo Sepolcro. Here it was built a copy of the alleged “tomb of Christ”, was brought here the land of Jerusalem after the First Crusade.
Here Saint Carlo Borromeo came to pray.
Milan returns to show its history and its beauty.

See the 360 video
https://youtu.be/JVPVqssdO6c

 

 

Learn how to cook, to drink, to eat…in “green” paradise

Screen Shot 2016-04-29 at 09.02.33It’s called “Food & Drink Sensorial Cooking Seminar” .
Four (or six, for the luckier ones) days at the Agriturismo Podere Santo Stefano,Tuscany. In the middle of a breathtaking landscape, located in the heart of the Maremma, the italian sommelier Diana Zerilli among other Chefs, will hosts a guided seminar that includes: cooking lessons, tasting of the prepared plates, combination food & drink, Maremma’s extravirgin olive oil tasting, guided tour of the wine cellar and the oil mill in addition to Dinner with special menu combined with oil tasting.dieta-mediterranea.jpg-okThe lessons, who’s topics are Tuscany cuisine
Hand made pasta, Game, and Middle age cuisine, will take place from 10.00 a.m. to 12.30 a.m. – lunch break – than from 2.30 p.m. to 4.30 p.m. Screen Shot 2016-04-29 at 09.03.18At the end of the course you will receive a participation certificate
and the recipes of the different prepared plates.
This is the perfect place to spend a relaxing holiday,
nearby very interesting and cultural places.
Daily fee: 380 € ( includes accommodation, international breakfast buffet, cooking lessons, wine tasting, welcome dinner, certificate.) vinoDaily fee without seminar participation: 150 € ( includes accommodation, international breakfast buffet, wine tasting). Minimum participants : 4 persons. Payment: 50% at registration, 50% on the 1st seminar day.Screen Shot 2016-04-29 at 09.01.01May 6/8, June 24/26, July 16/18, Aug 12/14, Sept 23/25
.For information, dates and registrations: zerillisommelier@gmail.com.
Ph + 39 345.38.91.151

Düsseldorf Wehrhahnline it’s alive!

After Fifteen years of planning and construction,26179_Manuel_Franke_Heike_Kluss
Düsseldorf has completed an extraordinary collective undertaking.v

On February  20th, 2016  the City and its Mayor Thomas Geisel, will celebrate the opening of the Wehrhahnline, a new metro link that will run beneath the city centre, over a distance of 3.4 kilometres boasting six stations collaboratively designed by artists and architects.000426

 20th 2016 at 12 pm, Station Heinrich-Heine-Allee

 

 

3 ‘Nobel’ days in Oslo (possibly at the Grand Hotel)

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The Nobel Peace Prize 2014 has been awarded  to Pakistani education activist Malala Yousafzai and Indian children right’s campaigner Kailash Satyarthi.
900x506Malala rose to fame after Taliban militants shot her at close range in the head for speaking out against the Islamic extremists and demanding education for girls.
Satyarthi has headed various forms of protests and demonstrations, all peaceful, focusing on the exploitation of children for financial gain.
Nobel Committee chairman Thorbjorn Jagland said the joint prize was symbolic because it was important for “a Hindu and a Muslim, an Indian and a Pakistani, to join in a common struggle for education and against extremism.
Highlights of the 3 days event include:
Save the Children’s Peace Prize Party [in Norwegian] outside the Nobel Peace Center.
Nobel Peace Prize Ceremony in Oslo City Hall.
Torchlight parade and The Nobel Banquet at the Grand Hotel
_DSC7796Oslo 9,10,11 of December 2014
Great time to visit Oslo, celebrate PEACE, enjoy the magnificent Grand Hotel a superb symbol of a first-class hospitality with tradition, atmosphere and style
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And this is me …right on the famous Grand Hotel balcony, where the Nobel Recipient waves to the crowd.

Oslo, four museums not to be missed

Astrup Fearnley
A wonderful collection of modern and contemporary art.

Astrup Fearnley

Astrup Fearnley Museum Photo@Cesare Zucca

Designed by Renzo Piano, is inspired by the elements that surround it, the steel cables resemble the masts of boats, the use of wood brings us back into the forests, the silver-gray facade looks like a is a prelude to a winter storm.

Astrup Fearnley

Astrup Fearnley Photo@Cesare Zucca


Nobel Peace Center.
Interactive museum celebrating the annual Nobel Peace Prize, which rewards the dialogue and cooperation to a safer world. It was awarded to some legendary champions of peace, as Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela, the Dalai Lama, Mother Teresa.

Nobel Price Museum

Nobel Price Center Photo@Cesare Zucca

Munch Museum and National Gallery
Emotional appointment with the iconic Scream” by Edvard Munch. The artist painted four copies. One is the National Gallery that hosts exhibitions of contemporary art and the other reigns at the Much Museum. Not to be missed.

Edward Munch The Scream

Edvard Munch “The Scream”

Etruscan horses will spread their wings in Tarquinia.

Saturday, July 4 at 9:00 am, in the National Archaeological Museum of Tarquinia will be inaugurated the Hall of Winged Horses, a precious Etruscan jewel,
symbol of the city and evocative reminder of past and present.

Flying horsesThe winged horses will be on display in a new exhibition that brings them back to the origins, in the room that welcomed them after the discovery and is now again ready to celebrate its beauty.
For info and directions check
Museo Archeologico Nazionale Tarquinia

ITALIAN VACATION? BRING THE KIDS!

 
Welcome to a magic place considered the most pristine of
the entire Dolomite group, today UNESCO World Heritage:
the
Friuli Venezia Giulia Dolomites
Photo:Mario Verin

montagna estate

Friulian Dolomites” were built for families!
That’s the motto of Club Product Family Mountain Experience, with which the Agency has collected TurismoFVG accommodation facilities with adequate characteristics to welcome guests of all ages
What should I expect?
The club includes hotels, farms, guest houses, rooms or apartments suitable to accommodate families, with recreational areas and an amazing recreation staff that can provide information and advice on children’s activities, places to visit, events, and useful practical information.
Do you whant more?
Upon request, you ”ll find babysitting service, breakfast buffet, a restaurant or in the immediate vicinity, flexibility mealtimes, the presence of pottery and materials for the comfort of the little ones too table.
What will I find?
Unspoiled nature, history, art, traditions and local products are the essential ingredients of the proposed tourist season in the mountains of Friuli Venezia Giulia, 
Small villages, shops and carpenters, blacksmiths forges and mills,ancient crafts.
What will I do?
Hiking, canyoning, tree climbing, hiking with a donkey or horse are just some of the many outdoor activities proposed, adapted and made accessible to children
What about local food?
Traditional and contemporary gastronomy, simple yet rich in flavors, with specialties worthy of PDO and Slow Food.Great soups, fresh mushroom with polenta, lots of fruits&vegetables, river fish, and more, more, more…
Are you ready to discover this paradise?
For more information visit: http://www.turismofvg.it/Family-Experiencez
dolo

MILAN EXPO 2015. DISCOVERING POLAND, CITIES AND FOOD

DISCOVER POLAND AND ITS MAGNIFICENT CITIES!  Milan, EXPO 2015 padiglione polka
It will be a great occasion to  get closer to Poland through a series of events held within the exhibition hall, the area in front and inside the city area. In the Poland Pavilion, you will find interactive installations and video themes, broken down by regions, creating an interesting virtual journey of the country: the Malopolska region, with 14 UNESCO sites, the magnificent city of  Krakow, pol horse  copy copy the Podlasie region, an area of ​​wilderness, great traditions, multiculturalism and numerous paths for cycling; the Lower Silesia region from the rich and varied landscape with ancient cities, prestigious spas and the city of  Wrocław, which in 2016 will be the European Capital of Culture;In addition to that you will discover cities of the Baltic Sea, amber; the capital Warsaw, UNESCO World Heritage town, exuberant, lively and full of life, with a cultural offer so rich that it boasts 28 theaters, 35 museums and 60 art galleries;pol war Finally Lublin, hosting the early famous Carnival of Acrobats. During the week it will be also presented the  Greenvelo Project,  the longest cycle path in Poland that crosses five regions of the territory east of the country. One of the attractions of the Pavilion is its magical garden. The winning design relates to one of Poland’s top agricultural exports – apples. Piotr Musiałowski, leading the architectural team, during the conceptualization of the Pavilion, sought to create a symbolic maze, with a magical garden as its focal point – a Polish orchard, full of apple trees. The hidden garden becomes a resting place on the other side of the mirror. An apple orchard reflected in infinite space is clearly associated with the Polish agriculturepolOhhhh I forgot about polish food ! Poland offers a culinary paradise that deserves  to be discover and tastefully experimented!

ITALY? ABRUZZO? ANDIAMO!

I Found an exquisite hotel in  Santo Stefano Di Sessanio, Abruzzo, Italy
its name is Sextantio Albergo Diffuso, a smattering of hotel rooms spread throughout a preserved medieval village nestled in the Abruzzo region of Italy.ImageProxy.mvcThe local farms have ancient Mediterranean varieties of spelt, lentils, and garbanzo beans growing on the rolling hills in much the same way they did over 3,000 years ago. Recipes going back generations are used in the hotel’s kitchen to serve up traditional Abbruzzese dishes in the private dining room.  camera-matrimoniale-albergo-diffuso-300x198

A stay here is an experience like no other. From the artisanal cheeses to the handmade soaps to the local tailors, this hotel encompasses everything the slow movement has come to represent.

www.designhotels.com/sextantio-albergo-diffuso

Stay at “LA TORRETTA”, Cinque Terre, Ligury

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“LA TORRETTA”, Cinque Terre, Ligury

A gentle yet accurate reception, bottles of Italian prosecco and Cuban rum welcome you in one of the ten gorgeous sunny rooms that harmoniously mix a combination of antique and contemporary pieces.

My suite with a nice welcome! an iced bottle of prosecco

My suite with a nice welcome! an iced bottle of prosecco

SAM_3185 copyMost of them have balcony overlooking the vineyards to one side and the blue Mediterranean to the other. At breakfast time, the “buongiorno” , is a real “good morning” thanks to Gabriele’s Mamma who prepares the most delicious torte salate (salted cakes with fresh vegetables) and the succulent torta di riso ( a rice cake traditionally cooked every year con August 10th, but available here every morning! ). All this goodies enhance a generous breakfast with local cheeses, meats, home-made patisserie, fresh squeeze oranges.

Mamma does breakfast. Do not miss her "torte salate" and the traditional rice cake!

Mamma does breakfast. Do not miss her “torte salate” and the traditional rice cake!

Enjoy one ( or more…) glass of wine offered at your arrival or served at the sunset aperitivo time in the terrace that boasts a spectacular views of the stunning Bay.

Spectacular view from the terrace

Spectacular view from the terrace

Superbly located in the centre of the wonderfully picturesque village of Manarola a once-in-a-lifetime ultimate destination in beautiful Cinque Terre, Ligury, Ital. Reservation a must. Here the link
http://www.torrettas.com