It may be Berlusconi's birthday today, but for all of you who say to stop complaining about Berlusconi, he's been democratically elected, should read this:
You are so right to highlight this, Adriatica. Here is a Business Week article from 6 years ago, http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/03_04/b3817015.htm, and nothing much seems to have changed. Worryingly, the Pitelli site mentioned in that article is only 3 miles away from where I grow my veg and less than 10 miles from the world famous Cinque Terre. Not many people are aware of that. Apparently they have cleaned up the site in the meantime, but who knows what will have leached into the soil over the 15-20 years that dump had been used. Pitelli now eerily seems like a ghost town, somewhere cheap to live in easy commuting distance to La Spezia. It shows you that the problem is not just confined to the South.
As I've said somewhere else, my next door neighbours are dee[ly ashamed about being associated with Berlusconi. They ask me for news on Italy, because they don't trust their own media any more. They are honest, law-abiding and, above all, tax paying Italians, but according to B they are probably just a bunch of Communist.
Not up to us unfortunately. Also a highly undemocratic, albeit not uniquely Italian situation. As a Dutchman I have lived all my adult life outside the Netherlands and have hence never had the right to vote in any national elections. I believe everyone living legally in a democratic country, should be allowed to vote in that country. After all the decisions of the government of the country of my residence affect me more than that of my "home country".And the argument that Berlusconi should stay in power, because there is no credible alternative doesn't pull either. Hitler came to power like that.
That man is absolutely mad as a hatter. Read this: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/oct/09/berlusconi-boast-best-in-history?CMP=AFCYAH. He thinks he is the best ever and most prosecuted ever. Mind you he let slip at least one truth: "...I have the good luck – having worked well in the past and having accumulated an important wealth – to have been able to spend more than €200m in consultants and judges ... I mean in consultants and lawyers." Yeah judges more is like it.
Switzerland actually recently joined the Schengen agreement although not part of the EU. They shouldn't check passport at all any more and if you are just travelling through on transit, you are not liable for duties at all. (Illegal drugs and weapons might be a problem mind should you be caught with them).
Quick one, one press freedom: my Italian next door neighbours have started regularly asking me for updates on Italian politics, because they don't trust their own press any more.On immigration: The Lega Nord had election posters depicting a native Indian in full feather regalia with the caption: ^They did not control their immigration, now they live in reservations!"
For a bit of luxury try this:Castagne Sotto WhiskyIngredients: 1 kg Chestnuts, 1 litre whisky, 500g sugarMethod: Peel chestnuts Choose the largest and best looking chestnuts and keep them as whole as possible. Place the whisky in a saucepan and stir in the sugar. Bring the mixture to the boil. Add the chestnuts and turn off the heat. Leave to cool and bottle into clean jars. Serve as a dessert on ice-cream with a drizzle of honey and a dollop of yoghurt. As this is out of my Ligurian recipe book, there was really only one whisky that should be used for this, Glen Grant 5 Year Old Single Malt Whisky. This has long been the best selling whisky in Italy and made Italy the largest importer of malt whiskies well before they became popular anywhere else.Other than that, simply dry them and then grind them to make chestnut flour.Or make your turkey stuffing early and freeze like so:Chestnut stuffing(quantities for a chicken or guinea fowl. Double for a turkey)450g chestnuts, 450g sausage meat, 1 onion, 50g sultanas, ½ tbsp sugar, pinch cinnamon, 25g butter, salt & pepper to taste, a little tomato juice to moisten.Peel chestnuts. Slice onions & fry in the butter until golden, then add the sausage meat & cook gently for a few minutes. Do not allow the onions to turn brown. Add the tomato juice, sugar, salt & pepper and the cinnamon. Stir together until well blended, then add the chestnuts, previously minced, and the sultanas. Mix well & allow to cool before stuffing your bird.or try this, doesn't last as long as normal jam though:Marmellata di Fagioli e CastagneThis is a kind of substitute for the ubiquitous Nutella, just better and less sickly sweet.Ingredients: 400g dried white beans, 150g sugar, 400g chestnutsMethod: Soak the beans overnight in plenty of water. Drain and boil in fresh water until soft, then whiz them to a fine puree in a food processor. In the meantime peel the chestnuts and chop them finely. Put the bean puree back into the saucepan and, over a low flame stirring constantly, add the sugar. Once the sugar is dissolved, add the chopped chestnuts, taking the mixture off the heat. Bottle immediately into hot jars, seal and turn upside down for about half an hour. Use as a sandwich spread.
It is the how long is a piece of string question. We live on €5000 or less, growing our own food, dodging various bills the Italian way (no details in case the relevant authorities read this..), running a car on foreign number plates, going out once a month for a meal, seeing plenty free concerts and other cultural activities (some of the region's best musicians live next door to us!). Gas we keep cheap because we use bottles (bombole). Two 10 kg bottles at €15 a year do for all our cooking, and during the cold period which can be anything from 2-4 months, we use one every 2 weeks for heating. For transport we tend to use the bicycle unless we have to drive, despite living on top of a hill (300m up). Keeps us fit no end. In fact I just thought about how much we've earned over the last year and we live on more like €3000 a year. It is possible, once you've paid for your property.
Occasionally you will find signs in Italian and English. Such as the one in woods all through Liguria warning you of wild boar hunting "...on every wensday and sunday of mounth". The Italian actually specifies that wild boar hunting takes place on Sundays and Wednesdays during the months of October to December.
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You are so right to highlight this, Adriatica. Here is a Business Week article from 6 years ago, http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/03_04/b3817015.htm, and nothing much seems to have changed. Worryingly, the Pitelli site mentioned in that article is only 3 miles away from where I grow my veg and less than 10 miles from the world famous Cinque Terre. Not many people are aware of that. Apparently they have cleaned up the site in the meantime, but who knows what will have leached into the soil over the 15-20 years that dump had been used. Pitelli now eerily seems like a ghost town, somewhere cheap to live in easy commuting distance to La Spezia. It shows you that the problem is not just confined to the South.
Or you could always go for the other option of your initial question: "not TV"...
As I've said somewhere else, my next door neighbours are dee[ly ashamed about being associated with Berlusconi. They ask me for news on Italy, because they don't trust their own media any more. They are honest, law-abiding and, above all, tax paying Italians, but according to B they are probably just a bunch of Communist.
Not up to us unfortunately. Also a highly undemocratic, albeit not uniquely Italian situation. As a Dutchman I have lived all my adult life outside the Netherlands and have hence never had the right to vote in any national elections. I believe everyone living legally in a democratic country, should be allowed to vote in that country. After all the decisions of the government of the country of my residence affect me more than that of my "home country".And the argument that Berlusconi should stay in power, because there is no credible alternative doesn't pull either. Hitler came to power like that.
That man is absolutely mad as a hatter. Read this: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/oct/09/berlusconi-boast-best-in-history?CMP=AFCYAH. He thinks he is the best ever and most prosecuted ever. Mind you he let slip at least one truth: "...I have the good luck – having worked well in the past and having accumulated an important wealth – to have been able to spend more than €200m in consultants and judges ... I mean in consultants and lawyers." Yeah judges more is like it.
Switzerland actually recently joined the Schengen agreement although not part of the EU. They shouldn't check passport at all any more and if you are just travelling through on transit, you are not liable for duties at all. (Illegal drugs and weapons might be a problem mind should you be caught with them).
Quick one, one press freedom: my Italian next door neighbours have started regularly asking me for updates on Italian politics, because they don't trust their own press any more.On immigration: The Lega Nord had election posters depicting a native Indian in full feather regalia with the caption: ^They did not control their immigration, now they live in reservations!"
For a bit of luxury try this:Castagne Sotto WhiskyIngredients: 1 kg Chestnuts, 1 litre whisky, 500g sugarMethod: Peel chestnuts Choose the largest and best looking chestnuts and keep them as whole as possible. Place the whisky in a saucepan and stir in the sugar. Bring the mixture to the boil. Add the chestnuts and turn off the heat. Leave to cool and bottle into clean jars. Serve as a dessert on ice-cream with a drizzle of honey and a dollop of yoghurt. As this is out of my Ligurian recipe book, there was really only one whisky that should be used for this, Glen Grant 5 Year Old Single Malt Whisky. This has long been the best selling whisky in Italy and made Italy the largest importer of malt whiskies well before they became popular anywhere else.Other than that, simply dry them and then grind them to make chestnut flour.Or make your turkey stuffing early and freeze like so:Chestnut stuffing(quantities for a chicken or guinea fowl. Double for a turkey)450g chestnuts, 450g sausage meat, 1 onion, 50g sultanas, ½ tbsp sugar, pinch cinnamon, 25g butter, salt & pepper to taste, a little tomato juice to moisten.Peel chestnuts. Slice onions & fry in the butter until golden, then add the sausage meat & cook gently for a few minutes. Do not allow the onions to turn brown. Add the tomato juice, sugar, salt & pepper and the cinnamon. Stir together until well blended, then add the chestnuts, previously minced, and the sultanas. Mix well & allow to cool before stuffing your bird.or try this, doesn't last as long as normal jam though:Marmellata di Fagioli e CastagneThis is a kind of substitute for the ubiquitous Nutella, just better and less sickly sweet.Ingredients: 400g dried white beans, 150g sugar, 400g chestnutsMethod: Soak the beans overnight in plenty of water. Drain and boil in fresh water until soft, then whiz them to a fine puree in a food processor. In the meantime peel the chestnuts and chop them finely. Put the bean puree back into the saucepan and, over a low flame stirring constantly, add the sugar. Once the sugar is dissolved, add the chopped chestnuts, taking the mixture off the heat. Bottle immediately into hot jars, seal and turn upside down for about half an hour. Use as a sandwich spread.
It is the how long is a piece of string question. We live on €5000 or less, growing our own food, dodging various bills the Italian way (no details in case the relevant authorities read this..), running a car on foreign number plates, going out once a month for a meal, seeing plenty free concerts and other cultural activities (some of the region's best musicians live next door to us!). Gas we keep cheap because we use bottles (bombole). Two 10 kg bottles at €15 a year do for all our cooking, and during the cold period which can be anything from 2-4 months, we use one every 2 weeks for heating. For transport we tend to use the bicycle unless we have to drive, despite living on top of a hill (300m up). Keeps us fit no end. In fact I just thought about how much we've earned over the last year and we live on more like €3000 a year. It is possible, once you've paid for your property.
Occasionally you will find signs in Italian and English. Such as the one in woods all through Liguria warning you of wild boar hunting "...on every wensday and sunday of mounth". The Italian actually specifies that wild boar hunting takes place on Sundays and Wednesdays during the months of October to December.