Postcards from Italy

Happy Thanksgiving!

After a couple of challenging years, marked by personal loss and the almost complete shutdown of travel to Italy and Switzerland, the ship is beginning to right itself and we move into the holiday season with much to be thankful for. 

We were able to visit our beloved Bel Paese twice this summer and reconnect with friends and colleagues as we traveled from north to south after more than a year’s absence. It was a pleasure to see our favorite hotels and restaurants bustling with business again and meet up with our trusted guides excited to share the beauty and history of Italy with travelers.

We joined friends for a visit to Sicily’s Aeolian Islands this past summer.

Our new Cantina Direct gourmet food shop has grown from simply a way to share Umbria’s unparalleled extra-virgin olive oil with the world to a true online Italian culinary boutique, with artisan Parmigiano-Reggiano, a wide range of Italian food boxes direct from Florence, and more to come. 

Once again, we are able to share in the excitement and anticipation of plotting out custom Italy and Switzerland trips for new clients or those who have had to postpone long-awaited holidays for the past two years. The upcoming year will be a busy one and we are so grateful for all of our clients who have been a source of support and encouragement over this difficult time.

Our favorite Negroni and Spritz cocktails overlooking the spectacular cityscape of Florence.

And, most importantly, we continue to enjoy good health, a wonderful network of friends and family, and one of the best jobs in the world! This Thanksgiving, we raise our glasses and give thanks for all we have…cin cin! 

We are sitting down to turkey stateside this year (though we have hosted Thanksgiving in Italy in the past), but here are a few of our top memories from our jaunts to Italy this past year in photos!

The Aeolian Islands were a balm for our travel-starved souls this past summer.
Finally able to meet up with friends and colleagues like our crack Florence guide Elvira.
We had missed Italian food so much! Here’s an aperitivo spread at the Casa Gola olive oil farm in Umbria.
Dramatic skies over Foligno, where we have our second home in Italy.
We popped into Parma2064, our artisan Parmigiano-Reggiano supplier to check on the wheels.
While in Emilia Romagna, we feasted on Bologna‘s famed fresh tortellini.
We always love to visit Italy’s traditional workshops. Here is how authentic Deruta majolica ceramics are made.
We were able to reconnect with our CIUTravel Operations Manager Cristina, friends, and Luciana at Casa Gola over lunch…
…plus other dear friends over plates of authentic Carbonara pasta in their Trastevere kitchen.

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