Aielli & Benevento

In Italy, the Christmas celebrations really get started around 8 December, which is the Feast Day of the Immaculate Conception.  Many towns and cities will have displays of Christmas lights and most will have a presepe, or Christmas nativity scene, which will be in the main square or outside the main church or cathedral.  Naples is the place to see the most amazing variety of presepi and perhaps purchase some traditional handmade figurines to take home as souvenirs.  There are many towns that offer a presepi viventi, or living nativity, where actors perform the roles of the holy family.  It is also common for towns to hold their own Christmas markets, such as the Noel Noel family Christmas fair in Florence, running from late November until early December.  On Christmas Eve, warm yourself by the traditional bonfire that is held in the main square of many towns and then join the locals in the celebration of midnight mass.  Join in the Christmas Eve Vigil at St Peter’s Basilica in Rome.  In Abbadia di San Salvatore, you can watch a procession of Christmas torches on Christmas Eve, while in Cortina d’Ampezzo, the torches are carried by skiers and it is amazing to see hundreds of them descend the mountain.  Larger cities, such as Milan, Florence and Rimini, put on a series of concerts, Operas and other live performances over the Christmas and New Year period.

Lava trees, eruptive fractures, cinder cones, volcanic bombs, slabby lava… those are some of the geological points of interest clients see on the helicopter tours Aielli & Benevento arranges for those interested in Mt. Etna (Sicily) or  Mt. Vesuvius (near Naples). These tours can replace a day’s hiking or can be designed for serious volcanological field trips to all the Italian volcanoes: Etna, Stromboli, Vulcano and Vesuvio.

Aielli & Benevento’s  licensed guides are well-versed in geology and volcanology.  We also arrange fly bys to and around the exceptionally beautiful Aeolian Islands. From the air, you simply see things – beyond the crater — that you can’t see from below, or from the water. For example, one of the features that make Mt. Etna and other Sicilian and Aeolian Island volcanoes so spectacular is the ever-changing and breathtaking vistas. Landscapes range from lush pine to black lava deserts to snow-topped mountains to the sparkling Mediterranean sea. Helicopter tours add a new dimension to your private touring experience.

> Learn more, email: info@aielli-benevento.it .

Naples often is overlooked by Americans in part due to horror stories about the city’s pour sanitattion. What is always overlooked is the great number of places for indulging one’s appetite.  

Here are a few favorites in Napoli…  

> Caruso Roof Garden 

Via Partenope, 45; Tel #081 7640520; Hours: Tue-Sun 1-3pm, 8pm-midnight. Neapolitan cooking given the haute cuisine treatment on the rooftop terrace of the Grand Vesuvio luxury hotel. Overlook Bay of Naples and see Mount Vesuvio in distance.  Pride of place goes to the bucatini alla Caruso (pasta, San Marzano tomatoes, peppers and Zucchini), the famous singer’s favorite dish. 

> Pizzeria di Matteo

94 Via Tribunali; Tel # 081.455.262.  One of the most popular pizzerias in a town filled with great pizza. Call ahead to reserve a table.

>Scaturchio  (for great pastry!)

Via Pizza San Domenico; Tel# 081 5516944.  Hours: Wed-Mon 7:30am-9:30pm.  Ever since 1921, zepole (cream doughnuts), cannoli (Sicilian specialties based on ricotta, chocolate chips and candied fruits), ministerial (chocolate and cream medallion with liqueur) and baba have been pulling in the crowds in this café-store. Large terrace on the square.

> Da Dora

Via F. Palasciano, 28; Tel 081 680519. Try the linguini alla Dora or the fish soup.  Very small, informal place but very well known.  Giorgio Armani’s favorite in Napoli. Strongly recommended. Reservations suggested.