Port of Civitavecchia on a sunny Wednesday

 

I noticed that big boats and yachts that docks in Civitavecchia's port have the opportunity to enjoy the Fort Michelangelo. It was built in 1535 on the harbour, exactly on the site of Roman buildings. The blue superyacht I saw this morning on this sunny Wednesday has a British flag.

This morning I also saw two three-wheeled vehicles. 

This type of three-wheeled cargo veiches is also so popular in South Asia, mainly India and Bangla Desh. It was firstly manufactured in Italy more than 75 years ago.

Have a nice Wednesday, and enjoy the rest of this week :-)

Snow in Northern Italy

After the II world war Piaggio SpA, an Italian motor vehicle manufacturer, made the first model of a three-wheeled light commercial vehicle. Since its 1948 introduction it has been offered in a series of body configurations. With more than 70  years of history and success, Piaggio is a brand recognised in numerous areas of the world. It is the absolute market leader in India in this specific product field.

This morning a friend of mine, who live in the Alps mountains (the Northest part of Italy), has just sent me a photo of his house covered with snow. Actually, it is not the view of Italy that first comes to mind. 

Have a nice weekend!

Good morning

This morning I had cappuccino at the coffee bar near my house. After the waitress had prepared the cappuccino, she wrote "good morning" ("buon giorno" in Italian language) on top of it.  There was a small Italian flag painted on the cup handle.  I thought people who love their job are always kind. One week ago she made another decoretion while she was making cappuccino and coffee cups.

The picture below shows a mural that I saw while I was walking along an alley in the older part of the town. It's easy to see it was painted recently, as the woman in the mural wears a masks :-)

With regards to the mask just above mentioned (and social distancing rules), I am sorry to hear that while many people inoculated with both doses are reporting symptoms of Covid-19, scientists in South Africa have just warned of a new strain of Covid-19 ... Just in time for 2022. EU and UK say they have restricted travels from the South African region to their countries. On the one hand, the effects on the economy of the new detected variant may be devastating, because of its multiple mutations. On the other hand, today "Moderna Inc." share price is rising by 22.45% ... 😦

God Bless the South African people. 

Six random pictures about summer holidays in Italy

As request by some blogging friends I put six random photos from Italy. I am glad to hear they enjoyed seeing summer holidays in Italy through my blog. 

This summer many tourists went to see the typical limestone dwellings with their conical roofs (Alberobello, Italy). My daughter, who is still there on holiday,  sent me the picture below.

I took a picture of  Civitavecchia harbour from the table of the restaurant where I had dinner yesterday (The cruise ship in the picture below hasn't been sailing since the epidemic began in early 2020). 

                                                                                                                                                                    

 A liberty style old house with its exterior decoration for sale (Santa Marinella,   Italy).             

Riva di Traiano is a modern marina with its architectures of historical works (Civitavecchia, Italy).

                                              

People enjoy the beach on Sunday, August 22nd (Santa Marinella, Italy),

and last but not least, three pink hibiscus flowers, which I saw while I was walking along the Civitavecchia's pedestrian area (I have seen many bloggers who publish pictures of white and blue hibiscus).

Have a nice week ⛵☀️🍸

August 15th, Public holiday in Italy

August 15th is the day when Chatolics celebrate the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. It seems the day was also a holiday in Roman times, as it was intended to be the beginning of a weekend of rest after months of hard labour. Nowadays, August 15th still marks the start of the Summer break for many Italians, who usually escape the heat at seaside, lakes or mountains.

The picture above shows the Sorgeto bay, which is the location of a true outdoor thermal park. Sorgeto bay is situated on the island of Ischia, which is the largest of the phlegrean islands (30 kilometres East of Naples). My daughter, who went there last week, sent me the picture.

The pictures below show three houses for sale in Santa Marinella, a municipality located about 60 kilometres Northwest of Rome, which includes beach resorts and a medieval castle. The three houses are located close to the sea. They were built more than 100 years ago.

And still in Santa Marinella there's the beach that I'm enjoying on August 15th

The bad news is that we (Italians) don't know who is setting our hills and forests on fire ... during the night and without a cop to bother him/her. I took a picture of a burning hill when I went to Itri, a small town in Central Italy. 

My two daughters, my nephew and I enjoyed a challenging trekking in the hills two days before the burning.

Along the path there were many signs indicating the ways to the various sites. We didn't wear a mask while we were walking up-hill.

At the moment, 57.1% Italian people have got the vaccine.

Italy's 2nd European Cup

The champions of the UEFA Euro 2020 final match are Italy 🇮🇹 ... They have defeated England at the Wembley Stadium on penalties  ⚽️

EURO 2020 final match, beaches, and tomatoes

We have lived with COVID-19 for more than one year. Will this pandemic ever end?  I am sorry to hear pressure grows on olympic games organizers over spectators, as there is a new wave of COVID cases in Japanese capital.

At the moment it seems European people would like to enjoy the urban environment, coffees, parks, and beaches. The picture below shows the pedestrian area located in the older part of Civitavecchia (70 km North from Rome).

Unfortunately, people who are on holiday (here in Central Italy) can't have lunch on the beach, because of the cloudy weather. 

Meanwhile, tomatoes on my balcony will be ready in one week. I hope seagulls will not eat them :-) 🙂🍅... last week they (seagulls) ate all tomatoes on my balcony 🤨

                                                                                      

And last but not least, on Sunday, July 11, the Euro 2020 final match will take place at Wembley Stadium in London 🏆 Italy and England will face off for the continental crown 🇮🇹 🇬🇧

Close to the Austrian border

My son has just sent me the following pictures which he took in the Northern part of Italy. This week he went  in the Alps close to the Austrian border.

The pictures show that a wellness holiday in the Alps can offer snowy pastures hikes, walks past marvelous lakes and secluded forests.  I would like to share these unusual images of the Italian territory.

Have a nice weekend!

Plan to ease the curfew

Since more than 50% people are vaccinated in the EU, we have seen many little tables scattering along streets and alleys. But we have to wear a mask, wash our hands and observe social distancing rules, as not everyone is vaccinated.

Today is public holiday in my country, as Italians celebrate the day when they voted to abolish monarchy in 1946 ...  my daughter had been cooking when I saw the colors of the Italian flag on the kitchen table: parsley (green), garlic (white), and tomatoes (red) 🇮🇪

On that  sunny morning I saw some beautiful donkeys while I was walking through the countryside. A fence and a small donkeys stable have been built on a spacious piece of land close to the town.

We have had Sars-CoV-1, MERS, and Sars-CoV-2 ... what will be the next one? Go running, go walking/hiking, go swimming, go biking ... because our lifestyle will dictate how vulnerable we are to the viruses 🏇🏇🚲🏃🏊🏂

Tolfa and its ancient castle

Central Italy witnessed in medieval time the growth of a number of castles, abbeys, and small inhabitated villages. That territory offers the opportunity to find medieval villages and areas of historical interest, like Tolfa and its castle.

Tolfa's ancient castle, which is located 80 kn North from Rome, had a defensive function.