Christmas in Italy: ‘Ndocciata Torch Parade

Updated 2019. Italy has many special Christmas celebrations, but there’s one in the region of Molise that may be among the most unique. The ‘Ndocciata, or torchlight parade, takes place on December 8 and 24 in the town of Agnone. It is the largest celebration of its kind in the world. The ndocce are 6- to 8-foot-high torches made of silver …

February 2013 – Best Tour Guides in Central and Southern Italy

The February 2013 issue of Dream of Italy – a special report on the best local tour guides in central and southern Italy – is hot off the presses. If you’re NOT a subscriber, subscribe today to instantly access the PDF version of this issue, our previous issue on best tour guides in northern Italy and nearly 100 back issues of our award-winning print newsletter. …

Fun Facts About Molise, Italy’s Undiscovered Region

  Much of our September issue was devoted to a region we have never convered before – Molise. (As we hit our 10th anniversary, I can now say we’ve covered all 20 Italian regions!) Molise broke off from Abruzzo in 1963 and became Italy’s newest region in 1970. Located approximately 100 miles southeast of Rome and 56 miles northeast of Naples, Molise …

You Say Abruzzi, I Say Abruzzo

So which is it? I’m working on a special report on Abruzzo – Italy’s mountainous region bordering the Adriatic. Yet so many people call it Abruzzi. Why? In the Middle Ages the region was called Abruzzo, from the Latin Aprutium. Later, the region was divided into three areas, Abruzzo Citeriore, Abruzzo Ulteriore I and Abruzzo Ulteriore II. So if you’ve …