Come to our virtual Tuscany kitchen! Cooking with Tracy is one of our new UnTours at Home virtual experiences! Done live from Tuscany over Zoom, our Tuscany UnTour host Tracy is teaching some of the classics. Here is her recipe for mushroom risotto, part of one of her most popular cooking classes. Risotto ingredients: 8 ounces carnaroli arborio rice…
Like many families, I have spent a lot of time with my kids lately. I’m acutely aware of this precious opportunity to bond and make memories. At 12 and almost 14, they are not too keen to be in our company for very long. But joint walks and meal preparation have become activities we share….
Cooking with Tracy is one of our new UnTours virtual experiences! These cooking lessons are done live from Tuscany over Zoom. Our Tuscany UnTour host Tracy has invited us into her kitchen to learn some of the classics. She has lessons coming up for Tiramisu and Eggplant Parmigiana. You can sign up here. Here is…
The Scuole Grandi (Great Schools) of Venice were fraternal organizations, established between the 13th and 16th centuries. They operated as charitable and social organizations for non-noble Venetian citizens of standing and wealth. They played an important role in their communities and in the arts. The schools were normally associated with a church and built nearby….
Our colleague Helen Glave, UnTours on-site staff in Florence, shared this update with us this week from Florence, where residents are under Red Zone restrictions to contain the spread of COVID-19 in Italy. It was really lovely to get your heart-warming message. For many people it is a period of great anxiety as regards both…
As I promised in the Eurozine newsletter last week, I am sharing my photos from Carnevale in Venice this year. These images were captured before local cases of COVID-19 triggered regional quarantines and Carnevale events were suspended. Venice is a magical place in the weeks leading up to Shrove Tuesday. Its Carnevale tradition dates back…
So much to see and do in Europe already, but why not plan your trip around some of the season’s special events? Festivals and fairs are a window into a culture, a signifier of what is important to a community, and an excellent way to rub elbows with the locals. Here is your 2020 trip…
Tuscany is synonymous with wine and food tradition, an Epicurean streak running through the region’s history, economy, and daily life. Our Wine & Food UnTour is a natural in the region, and truffles are a given for a fall food (un)tour in the region. Truffles grow underground in certain zones within the Val d’Orcia, the…
Florence still has her sweet spots, as any Florence UnTour guest knows well. Though the historic center can feel overrun with tourists and students on a busy day in June, there are plenty of back streets and hidden churches to lure you in. Here are a few of my favorite alternatives to the tried and…
As spring merges into summer, gardens in much of Europe are at their most vibrant and colorful. Whether you seek out gardens as a main sight for your day or duck into them as a respite from sightseeing in built environments, it is hard not to fall in love with these lovingly cultivated spaces. They…