Recently, I’ve noticed calendar events popping up on Facebook announcing “Unfolding Paper Stories” with the accompanying photos displaying delightful and complex paper creations with the tag line: “not just for kids”! I was intrigued. The organizer is Annalisa Metus, a paper engineer (a title I have never heard of before) so I immediately reached out to her and…
As you may well have noticed, the days are a little longer, the sun a little warmer and the hillsides are now dotted with flowering trees. On the Carst, there are violets, crocuses, buttercups and daisies dotting the fields and roadside. Pretty soon, the first of the lucertole (lizards a.k.a. sun-seekers) will creep over to the…
On my way to the gym, I walk past a very pretty pastry shop. In contrast to the dark, grey buildings that surround it, the CADENARO shop in via Palestrina emits a golden glow. I finally caved and instead of marching ahead with resolute will-power, I allowed myself to be lured inside to look over…
This past Sunday, the Mayor of Trieste handed over the key to the city to the King and Queen of Carnevale 2019 to signify the start of the festivities. Fat Thursday is this week and already, families (with pets in tow) in matching outfits have taken to the streets with their adorable kids to festoon…
At first glance it appears a “new” restaurant has opened on the Rive, just across the street from Eataly — in fact, Joia opened 4 years ago in Via Diaz, but recently relocated to this prime spot on the waterfront. When I first saw it in its original location, I was impressed by the spillover…
Last month, on January 24, amid little fanfare or celebration, the Despar supermarket opened its doors onto Piazza Unita’. Long awaited, much debated and controversial, the arrival of a supermarket on the most iconic piazza in Italy was largely frowned upon by almost everyone in Trieste, concerned that it would “cheapen” the piazza and quickly…
Recognized as one of the forefathers of Italian advertising poster art “Cartonellismo”, Leopoldo Metlicovitz is being commemorated with twin exhibits at the beautiful Carlo Schmidel Museum on the famed Canal Grande and at the sumptuous Museo Revoltella off of the trendy Via Torino. Leopoldo Metlicovitz (1868-1944), a native of Trieste, worked primarily in Milan for…
The Nonino family would be the first to tell you that there is no such thing as magic — only hard work and passion. And, if anything comes close to magic it is their matriarch, Giannola Nonino (nee’ Bulfoni in 1938 in Percoto (UD)) also known as the Queen of Grappa. When I was growing…
As a carnivorous American with a penchant for good, flavorful meat, I had a hard time finding both a good butcher in Trieste and quality meat. In fact, when I first got here, many locals suggested I go to Slovenia to buy meat. There, I was told in a hushed whisper, the meat was better…
Trieste is inherently tied to Vienna. Having been under Austrian rule since as far back as 1382, when the main citizens of Trieste in petitioned Leopold III of Habsburg, Duke of Austria in order to become part of his domains. Subsequently Trieste gained wealth and importance as the port city of the consolidated Austrian Littoral. It became little Vienna on the…
Silvia Rossi is a wisp of a woman whose creativity bubbles, breaking the surface and it is barely contained by the walls of her tiny atelier at the foot of Castello San Giusto in Trieste. I first met her on a freezing cold winter day at a market organized by Barbacan Produce (a group of…
Just behind the Ospedale Maggiore there is a little oasis, it is l’annaffiatoio. This small flower shop carries a surprisingly large selection of all natural and high quality plants with a sort of “shabby chic” vibe. Owned by Luisa Cividin, the shop has been around for over 30 years. Luisa’s mom started the shop…
Trieste’s public transportation includes a very efficient and environmentally friendly bus service and ferry service (Delfino Verde). Recently added to Trieste’s system is the new HopTour bus service. Many tourists who visit Trieste don’t often rent cars, and yet several of the sightseeing hotspots are not located in the downtown area. Here’s where HopTour comes…
Le Fave dei Morti (“The Fava Beans of the Dead”) sounds particularly well-suited to this time of year, now that we’re coming up on Halloween and the Giorno dei Morti, or Day of the Dead. Each year, starting in October, piles of pink, white and brown round treats fill the windows of the local bakeries.…
With the 50th Anniversary of Barcolana successfully celebrated and relegated to the annals of history with a record-breaking 2700 boats and more than 250,000 visitors — summer is now officially over and mother nature seems to agree. Gone are the warm breezy days of early fall, and now grey skies, red sumac and a more…
