Marco Polo's Spirit

Italy's Emilia-Romagna has a sun-seeker holiday riviera, Riviera Romagnola , on the Adriatic coast , which stretches from the town of Ravenna down to Rimini .   They are the heaven for Italian ballroom dancing , crazy nights of fun in discos , beach volleyball tournaments, cycling enthusiasts and sailing boat fans . Cesenatico , Rimini, Riccione and Cattolica are the beach resorts towns that come up all the time. However, since the eighties when the crazy summers of the Italian Riviera holidays were very popular, the feeling today is that the Italian Romagna lifestyle have been changing.  Maybe I've changed: the nights on the disco have lost its edge, and have given way to healthier interests such as renting a bike and pedaling the kilometer-long avenues that runs alongside all the Riviera Romagnola beach resorts. As a good Venetian, to me the Riviera Romagnola brings to mind more the long-standing seafaring traditions , especially the one I discovered cycling along the

Sutrio's traditional wooden houses and blacksmith wooden statue In the heart of the north-western Italian region Friuli Venezia Giulia , in the mountain area called Carnia , between the Alps and the Carnic Prealps, there is an ancient village of 1,400 inhabitants at 570 meters above sea level: Sutrio .  Sutrio is located on the slopes of Monte Zoncolan  which is a heaven for skiers in winter and for cycling enthusiasts in summer. This attractive village is part of the Italian association of the most authentic villages in Italy .  You are actually spoilt for choice: in Sutrio you have it all from a fascinating history to excellent food to very friendly people! However, there is another special reason to reach the Valle del But (But river valley) where Sutrio is located.  If I tell you " Pinocchio ", does it ring a bell?  No, Sutrio is neither the homeland of Pinocchio's author, Carlo Collodi, nor the set of the latest Pinocchio's movie.  Sutrio and Pinocchio are c