3 simple suggestions

After 1999 Oscar Prize won by Roberto Benigni "Life is Beautiful" (La vita è Bella), Italy won another one this year.
"The great Beauty" (La grande bellezza) managed to bring back the little golden Oscar after 15 years. In reality I am not a big Cinema fan. The last movies I watched were cartoons and I was obliged to go with my children but there's always a certain "Italian pride" when we win something regardless is a Football word championship or a friendly Curling match against Samoa Island (That, for obvious reasons, I hope we will win...).

But having a look a the two titles I think there must be a reason if in both cases the word "Beauty" is mentioned.
A movie coming from the "Bel Paese" the Beautiful Country as old poets used to call Italy winning the Oscar Prize must talk about Beauty. In whichever sense you can mean it.
Beauty of the place
Beauty of the arts
Beauty of the design
Beauty of the people
Even an ironic and often cynical showman like Jeremy Clarkson (I like him a lot though), always considered our cars and our places as among the best in the world.

I had already posted this link but I want to do it again... I am always touched when I see it.

So, being surrounded by all this Beauty, that is the normal environment for us make us losing the real importance of it.
The RESPONSIBILITY we have to preserve this and, possibly to improve it (see also my post People always get used to beauty though). This is a real responsibility, both for the country but also for the world as Italy has got the highest number of UNESCO world heritage sites.
That's part of the legacy, part of our DNA and culture that cannot be taken away unless we REALLY WANT TO.
It's our treasure that we are not fully exploiting, that we are even spoiling and ruining.

But we often do not realize that we have this incredible treasure and opportunity. We always look outside forgetting our beauty and not looking after this. "Bel Paese" is often used in ironic sense and used as an excuse to destroy everything.
STOP! Breath deeply and start looking around. Start looking outside and, with a clear and open mind, try to be objective.

THEN....
Time for the 3 points i would like to give to our colleagues managing our tourism to implement to try and go back to "beauty". It may look too simplistic but I am convinced that we should start from simple ideas and develop them.

1) COMMUNICATE!

I find incredible that in today's world, people cannot communicate in English. English has undoubtedly become THE LANGUAGE and not being able to communicate will simply cut you out of everything. If you do not tell people you exist, people will not know. And, most of all, nobody will listen to you. Everybody in Italy MUST learn English and be able to communicate.
This BLOG is the proof that, if you think you have something to say, you will find someone ready to listen.
Communication is making guest's life simple. Nobody wants to go where their life will be difficult.

2) PREPARE YOURSELF

It's like when you are dated, you must be prepared to always look GOOD and TIDY. We must have a plan to keep our treasures ok and always ready to be visited and appreciated.
Sad to say that, if we do not have the funds to do this (and I cannot really believe we do not have funds to look after what's extremely important for our country) we have to choose what MUST be looked after. It is better to have something great that everything bad.
Show people how to do things, where to do things and guide them. You are dating someone and nobody wants to end the story after the first date.

3) BE KIND WITH PEOPLE AND UNDERSTAND THE DIFFERENCES

Why people come here? Because they like Italy, a place that is DIFFERENT from where they live. The difference is the reason why they are here and if there was no difference they would simply stay home.
Difference is an opportunity, not a burden to be carried and pointed out every time you see things you do not understand. Listen and learn, you will be a better man afterwards.

Then you will be ready for that...

A presto
Have a nice week end 

Heaven...

Being home on holidays for some days is always a good thing.
Spending "high value time" with your family doing the things you like is quite addictive and makes me start planning my next holidays.
In this Blog I would like to share with everybody some information about places in Italy that are outside the normal Venice-Florence-Rome trip.

Let me then open this 2014 with a Post about Holidays.
Today, in this wintry, rainy and cold day I would like to talk about... SEA!

And this is the type of sea I like...

Where am I?
Is it Barbados, Caribbean islands or some "in the middle of nowhere" place?

No. This is Puglia (Apulia).

The easternmost town of Italy, the first to see the dawn of the new world, the enchanting landscapes of olive trees, the dry stone walls, the coastal towers, the historic farms, the white towns, the national parks, the ancient underground olive-presses, festivals and religious holidays, crystal clear sea, golden beaches, deep reefs, unforgettable sea bottoms, the local traditions and the ancient crafts, tasty food, beautiful little towns, all of this and much more is Puglia!

Taking a trip to Puglia it means to immerse yourself in a unique atmosphere, in which the visitor is captured by the many and varied attractions that this country offers.

Have a look at Gargano, the northest side of Puglia. If you have decided to visit Gargano, one of its tourist attractions are definitely its long coastlines and especially the coastline that goes from Vieste to Peschici characterized by "strange buildings" called “trabucchi”, 

that is old tools for fishing no longer used and converted into restaurants or tourist attractions becoming part of the "Gargano National Park".

If you love the sea and the white sandy beaches, so let's visit "Mattinata", known as the Gargano's butterfly, so called because it is placed on a hill like a white butterfly on a flower, in a typical Mediterranean landscape between olive trees, almond trees and prickly pears. To avoid losing these wonderful places, it is better to organize your holiday by entrusting to reliable online incoming websites, such as www.pacchettievacanze.it (see also their FB and G+ links) which is specialized in Puglia and offers accommodation, holiday packages, tourists guides services and even more.

Have you ever heard of "Trulli of Alberobello?" 

World Heritage Site since 1996, they are typical  buildings erected in the dry without the use of mortar, which end with a particular conical roof. Do not miss the chance to stroll the narrow, winding streets of "Rione Monti" and "Aia Piccola"

and live the experience of staying in a real trullo, catching some good deals as those proposed by www.pacchettievacanze.it.

Otranto, the easternmost town of Italy, it is the first Italian town to see the dawn of the new year. This ancient village, surrounded with the majestic walls of the castle, after knowing the "fear of the Turks", it reveals to visitors telling its stories through the architectural and historical beauties, such as its Cathedral with the majestic mosaic pavement and the chapel of the Holy Martyrs of Otranto, the Castle, the Ramparts, the small church of San Pietro, important example of Byzantine architecture. Live its charming history, discover its alleys and narrow streets looking for panoramic views and small jewelry, let yourself be guided by an expert guide to give voice to this ancient village.

This will be my summer destination... anybody wants to come with me?

Have a nice week end