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Clippings From Italy & Italian Forteana

A

Anonymous

Guest
We're holidaying in Italy soon - specifically Venice, Rome
and Florence - and was wondering if there were any
particular sites of interest to a Fortean fan?

P.
 
Sorry the delay, oceanclub.

The only Fortean things I can think of off-hand are religion/conspiracy ones - Vatican City is obviously a good place to start. A side trip to Turin for the (in)famous shoud also bears consideration if you have the time.

And if you decide to make a detour to Milan, there's apparently a ghostly present nearby - debunked on this site , but who knows?

Anyway, enjoy your holiday!

Jane.
 
Has he/she left yet?

If your off to Venice try and hire a boat to take you to Plague Island, Oceanclub.

A place with a terrible history that no one will live on.

160,000 people met their deaths here. Mostly from the plague but in the 1920's it was a sanitorium with very dubious practices.

Some info here

http://www.metroradio.co.uk/nav?action=gallery&id=1063&start=0

mooks out
 
Mooksta said:
Has he/she left yet?

mooks out
Click to expand...

Mooks, though everyone has different opinion of "soon", since oceanclub started this thread two years, I hope so. ;)

What IS most odd, is that I'M going to be in Italy, very unexpectedly, in a month's time. (So thank you for bumping this thread!) I'll be near Naples. There's the archeaological museum there and of course, Pompeii. Any other suggestions?

(Sadly we will be a week/ten days too early for Festa di San Gennaro, getting to see the saint's blood liquify surely would be a great piece of great forteanea/Popish mummery, but alas. )
 
I just moved from the US to Sicily, and visited the catacombs in Palermo, which were great! I'm told that the catacombs on the mainland are even better- so I suggest you check them out if there are any near Naples.

My friend is coming for a visit this fall- we're planning on trying to get to Poveglia while in Venice, if anyone will take us there. I'll report back if I'm able to get onto the island! It's said that most boat owners won't even take you there... which, of course, makes me even more curious...
 
Around Naples there is plenty to see that would have a slightly fortean feel to it. The cave where one of the Sibylline Oracles was based is near there, the purported entrance to the Elysian Fields also lies just north of the city, a site in ancient times of fumaroles, hot springs, etc, it is less active today but still worth seeing. Also, in Naples itself, the statue of Neptune that predates the Roman Empire is worth a visit (is on a public street somewhere) and if you are feeling lucky, you can adopt the bones of a deceased faithful at one of the local churches and hope they will reveal the winning lotto numbers to you (a local custom). The Archeological museum is well worth a visit as is Pompeii and Herculaneum. If you can find a local who speaks enough English just ask them if there is anything else of interest to see - most Neapolitans love their city and have an almost encyclopedic knowledge of it.
 
Number 53 brings relief to Italy

The elusive number 53, blamed for several deaths and bankruptcies, has finally popped up in the Venice lottery after a two-year wait.

Italians had bet more than 3.5bn euros (£2.4bn), hoping that 53 would turn up, in what became a national obsession.

Last month a woman drowned herself in the sea off Tuscany after she bet the family savings on 53, Reuters reports.

And police said a man living near Florence shot his wife and son and then himself because of his number 53 debts.

The Italian national lotto invites bets of any amount on numbers from 1 to 90 in bi-weekly draws.

The draws take place in 10 cities across the country. For each draw, 50 numbers are picked, five in each of 10 cities.

A consumer group, Codacons, recently urged the government to ban the number 53 from the draw, to halt the country's "collective psychosis".

After 53 finally appeared on Wednesday night, it said it was delighted that Italy's "bewitchment" had been broken.

Italy's Ansa news agency said the wins from Wednesday's draw would cost the Italian state up to 600 million euros (£413m; $768m).

----------------------
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/w ... 256595.stm

Published: 2005/02/11 10:26:13 GMT

© BBC MMV
Click to expand...
 
yes it was a nightmare
luckily i don't know anybody who plays lotto, but i read that lots of people were drowning in debts because of their gambling on number 53
and then IIRC any person with an experience in statistics will tell you that there's no reason why a number that hasn't been extracted for a long time should be extracted more easily.
 
because it hadn't been drawn for 100 + weeks, so everybody was expecting it. as i said, that goes against the laws of probability: if there are 90 numbers to be drawn (as in italian lotto), every number has 1/90 chance to be drawn. the fact that the number was drawn the week before, or that it hasn't been extracted for 100+ weeks, doesn't affect the probability that said number is drawn.
 
That little statistical problem really buggered people up when I was at school.
 
yes, but where in italy is it?i've been to several abandoned villages in italy, but if i had a clue where this one is maybe i could help. (maybe not, but then again)
 
The mental picture of Ninjas on pushbikes makes me chuckle..

Russian 'ninja' arrested in Italy
By Christian Fraser
BBC News, Rome

Ninjas were assassins or spies in 14th Century Japan
Italian police have arrested a Russian "ninja" who had been spreading fear across farmlands in the north of the country.
The man, camouflaged in an all black suit, had robbed several farmers and their families at knife point, police say.

Police had been searching for him for several weeks.

Ninjas were trained for stealth. They first appeared in 14th Century Japan and were famed as assassins and spies.

Outwitted

For several weeks the police had been scouring the countryside looking for shadows.

The "ninja" was known to have struck several times - his head wrapped in a black bandana, a powerful bow in one hand and a knife strapped to his leg.

He targeted isolated farms late at night forcing farmers to hand over cash and valuables at arrow point.

His victims were usually so afraid they didn't report the attacks until some days later.

But on Monday night the "ninja" was outwitted.

As he smashed through the door of a farmhouse, a feisty old pensioner was waiting for him.

Former soldier

The old man came down the stairs but tripped on the last step letting off his rifle.

Startled, the "ninja" made his escape, hopping onto a bicycle and racing off into the nearby cornfields - followed by police who were quickly on the scene.

Police eventually trailed him to an abandoned farmhouse where he was arrested.

He was later identified as Igor Vaclavic, a former soldier from the Russian army.

He was caught carrying night scopes and a head torch.

When asked about his chosen disguise, he told police he had been inspired by his boyhood idol - Robin Hood.
Click to expand...

Source here

Mr P
 
I think this might fit in here.

Politicians see red in tomato row
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/wor ... 83891.html
TOM KINGTON in Rome

Mon, Feb 07, 2011

AN ITALIAN television presenter has infuriated government ministers by telling viewers to boycott one of Italy’s most famous varieties of tomatoes, claiming the Mafia has taken over the trade and pushed up prices.

Alessandro Di Pietro, who appears on consumer shows on state network RAI, called for the boycott of the Pachino tomato, the small, sweet variety grown around the Sicilian town of the same name. By controlling the distribution of the tomatoes to shops up and down Italy, Mafia clans are ensuring Italians pay up to 11 times what growers sell for, and pocketing the difference, he said.

Environment minister Stefania Prestigiacomo asked RAI to “retract this absurd and damaging accusation”, warning that it risked destroying the livelihoods of 5,000 producers.

Di Pietro’s claim is backed by police investigations into Mafia-backed freight companies that dominate the distribution of fruit and vegetables in Italy and unnecessarily send crates up and down the country repeatedly before delivery, in order to ramp up costs.

Investigators who arrested suspected mobsters in the fruit trade last year said that the Sicilian, Neapolitan and Calabrian Mafias who had teamed up to control the business were also using produce trucks to smuggle weaponry.– ( Guardian service)
Click to expand...
 
Italy: Campaign to sell Sardinia to Switzerland
News from Elsewhere...
By News from Elsewhere...
...as found by BBC Monitoring
http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-news-from ... e-26382847

A view of Calamosca on the Sardinian coast

Such a move could potentially give land-locked Switzerland 1,150 miles of coastline

Jokes about the Swiss Navy might be finally put to rest if a tongue-in-cheek campaign to sell an Italian island to Switzerland succeeds, it's been reported.

Nearly 4,000 people have joined the "Canton Marittimo" Facebook group, suggesting Sardinia becomes Switzerland's 27th canton to help reduce the national debt, the Swiss 20 Minutes news website reports.

Andrea Caruso, who created the Facebook page, says Sardinians have always strived for independence, and the autonomy of Swiss rule could help "exploit our land to our advantage". But he admits such a move would be unconstitutional, in an interview with the Globalist website.

The campaign appeared after Italian voters were urged to write "Canton Marittimo" on ballot papers in a recent local election. It is not known how many ballots were spoiled in this way, but a Democratic Party candidate won, the website says.

Proposed Canton Marittimo flag

A new flag merges Switzerland and Sardinia

Caruso posted a new flag on the Facebook group's page, merging Sardinia's Flag of the Four Moors with Switzerland's white cross.

A straw poll on the Swiss German-language Bluewin website found readers overwhelmingly in favour of the idea, with three-quarters of voters drawn by the slogan: "Yes! Finally Switzerland will have a coastline!"

Use #NewsfromElsewhere to stay up-to-date with our reports via Twitter.
Click to expand...
 
This one sounds like a Fortean must-visit. I do hope to get back to Europe one of these days.

Poveglia Island: Why It’s One of the Most Cursed Places on Earth

Poveglia Island is one of 166 islets in the Venice Lagoon off the eastern coast of Northern Italy. Although it has served various purposes, this place is well-known for its macabre history. Tens of thousands of dead and living plague victims were brought here across centuries. Corpses, one atop the other in pits, were burned in large fires. In later years, mentally ill patients on the island suffered heinous tortures and experiments at the hands of a mad doctor who killed himself. The locals say Poveglia is an “island of ghosts,” cursed with spirits. Internationally, it is known as one of the most haunted places on earth.
Click to expand...


https://www.historicmysteries.com/poveglia-island-venice-italy/
 
An upside-down fig tree in the ceiling of an ancient ruin in Bacoli, Italy

The tree sprouts from the ceiling of the arch it grows inside, which was allegedly part of the Emperor Nero's private villa.

FU-FYXRacAAYuO8.jpeg


See Details:
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/upside-down-fig-tree
 
All I want to know is when is the very last Inspector Montalbano going to be shown in the UK?
 
It may well have prevented an outbreak of armed hostilities.

In a unique act of diplomacy, Italy's government has settled the restaurant bill of four Italian tourists in Albania who left without paying.

The dine and dash in the city of Berat made headlines in both countries. The chatter prompted Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama to raise it with his Italian counterpart, Giorgia Meloni, while she was visiting the country.

She responded by telling her ambassador to "go and pay the bill for these idiots," he told La Stampa newspaper.

Italy's embassy in Albania confirmed in a statement that it had paid the bill, reportedly around €80 (£68), on behalf of its citizens.
"The Italians respect the rules and pay off their debts and we hope that episodes of this kind will not happen again," it said.

Italy's agriculture minister and Ms Meloni's brother-in-law, Francesco Lollobrigida, was also on the trip to Albania and told the Reuters news agency that paying the bill was a matter of pride.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-66548487
 
ramonmercado said:
It may well have prevented an outbreak of armed hostilities.

In a unique act of diplomacy, Italy's government has settled the restaurant bill of four Italian tourists in Albania who left without paying.

The dine and dash in the city of Berat made headlines in both countries. The chatter prompted Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama to raise it with his Italian counterpart, Giorgia Meloni, while she was visiting the country.

She responded by telling her ambassador to "go and pay the bill for these idiots," he told La Stampa newspaper.

Italy's embassy in Albania confirmed in a statement that it had paid the bill, reportedly around €80 (£68), on behalf of its citizens.
"The Italians respect the rules and pay off their debts and we hope that episodes of this kind will not happen again," it said.

Italy's agriculture minister and Ms Meloni's brother-in-law, Francesco Lollobrigida, was also on the trip to Albania and told the Reuters news agency that paying the bill was a matter of pride.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-66548487
Click to expand...
Behind the scenes, what may have happened... maybe Albanian mafia leaned on Italian mafia...
 
Yup. Got back Thursday night.
Had a great time, though nothing really 'Fortean' to report. Still amazed at how cheap everything is including public transport. Also, we 'discovered' the University's Botanical Gardens very near to us in Trastavere - spent 4 Euros and two hours wandering through A bamboo wood, a Japanese garden, mediterranean forest, medicinal, herbal (and poison) raised beds, and an excellent hot house with a massive variety of succulents and cacti.
 
Me and the beloved are going to rome in may going to see the catacombs and the Vatican etc.
Can you imagine the shrieks and outrage if it had been some brits or American people being called idiots by one of their politicians
 
Entry to the Vatican is a long queue (to security) but after that, it's certainly worth it.
If you can, pre-book on tours ... and try for the very earliest or the last tours. Even in the last weeks of Winter, the city's busy. Especially with any sporting event ... like the impending rugby tournament.
The public transport is so cheap, and efficient, I cannot recommend it too highly. Run by ATAC, a single biglietto for 150 minutes of travel is usable on the bus, tram or metro (like the DLR). You can get these tickets from any tobacco or cafe stall, or now they've introduced a contactless system-wide; hop on the front of the bus, tap your card and you get charged only 1.50 Euros. If you 'tap on' and you've remaining minutes, you don't get charged again; you only get charged if you've none remaining ... and still only 1.50!
 
Cheers stormkhan any and all advice etc gladly accepted.Going to go to ostia the Roman port for the city!
Probably do that one by myself so looking at buses etc
 
Who me said:
Cheers stormkhan any and all advice etc gladly accepted.Going to go to ostia the Roman port for the city!
Probably do that one by myself so looking at buses etc
Click to expand...

I highly recommend Ostia Antica. I was there a couple of years ago, and it really conveys the flavour of ancient Roman life, better in many ways than Pompeii or Herculaneum. It's a highlight of any visit to the area.

The best way to get there is by train. There might be a bus, I'm not sure if there is or not, but the train was fast, quick, and convenient. It's only a short walk from the station to the site.

I think you'll enjoy it.
 
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