Topless in Tuscany Not Tolerated - The Florentine

4
Thursday 7 July 2005
Florence NEWS
News
www.theflorentine.net
News in BRIEF
Bus Strike July 15
Union representatives have decided
to strike again as negotiations
over medical leave fail to be
resolved with ATAF bus company
leaders. Bus drivers will stop
working for the entire day on Friday,
July 15.
Dante’s House Newly Divine
Dante’s House, which has been
closed for three years due to a
large restoration project, will reopen
to the public on July 15. The
house, located in Via Dante Alighieri,
was inaugurated last week by
Vittorio Sermonti, the artist who
read Dante’s entire masterpiece,
The Divine Comedy, over the
past three years at the Church of
Santo Spirito.
“Dig” Gets New Job
The puppy “Dig” is going to help
promote Florence as part of a new
marketing campaign. Protagonist
of a series of children’s stories,
Dig is author Joshua Held’s creation
and will be used to describe
and explore the many interests of
Florence. The campaign, organized
by the APT Tourist Agency
of Florence, and in collaboration
with hotel owners, will also be offering
free hospitality to children
under 12 years of age until December
31.
Jonathan Coe Comes
to Florence
British author presents latest
book translated in Italian
Author Jonathan Coe presented
his latest and last book in a very
popular series he has written over
the past three decades at the Feltrinelli
Bookstore in the centre of
Florence last Monday evening.
The presentation introduced the
Italian translation of the novel The
Closed Circle (Circolo Chiuso).
The book is available in both languages
at Feltrinelli bookstores.
Tuscany is Top Pick
for Tourists
The majority of tour operators
questioned in a survey by ISN-
ART (National Tourism Research
Institute) reported that Tuscany
is the preferred destination of
tourists. Of the 2,875 operators
(2,500 European and 275 American)
who participated in the survey,
Italy was defi nitely the top
country destination choice, and
within that, Tuscany topped the
list with 23.9 percent out of total
requests. It is followed by the
Veneto (14 percent) and Lazio
(13.9 percent) Regions.
High Fashion for “Bimbos”
The annual Florence fashion fair
dedicated entirely to children, Pitti
Bimbo, opened for three days
last week, offering a glimpse of
next year’s fashions for kids.
Little ones will be sporting beach
styles, hippy comfort, and military
as well as bright colours if they,
or their parents, want to keep up
with the latest trends.
Hot Dogs, Coca-Cola,
and Ribollita?
Florence Celebrates U.S. Independence Day
In what has now become an annual
tradition, “The Friends
of the American Community”
put together a huge party in Florence
to celebrate the U.S. Independence
Day this past weekend. The
event’s goal is to provide an arena
for Americans to honour their traditions
while abroad, as well as to
share them with the Italian community
of which they are a part.
Although the party, held at the
beautiful park of Villa Demidoff
just outside of Florence, was strictly
invitation only, several hundred, if
not a thousand, people did attend
the event. Under the watchful eye of
the statue of a giant, the park’s most
notable monument, American and
Italian officials and heads of state,
dressed in formal attire and surrounded
by security agents, mingled
with more casually-dressed American
students; expatriate groups
from the Florence area, such as the
Church of St. James and the Tuscan-
American Association; and Florentines
in some way connected to the
American community.
In the strikingly Florentine surroundings
of the Medici Villa and
FOREIGN RESIDENTS
SEEK RIGHT TO VOTE
Local union requests the right to vote
its park, a truly American-style
festival was set up: complete with
several smoking grills barbequing
hamburgers and hot dogs, tables
full of chips imported form the
U.S., bands playing classic American
rock, and youngsters equipped
with red, white, and blue sparklers.
In honour of the surroundings,
typical Florentine side-dishes, like
ribollita and beans, as well as local
wines were also served. An Italian
Bersaglieri military unit also trotted
through the crowds playing
traditional military tunes on their
brass instruments.
During the most official part
of an otherwise relaxed event, the
U.S. Consul General of Florence,
William W. McIlhenny, gave a
short welcoming speech to a portion
of the attending crowds. He
was accompanied by the President
of the Province of Florence, Matteo
Renzi, the Mayor of Vaglia
(where the park is located) Fabio
Pieri, and two surprise guests, U.S.
Congressmen Bill Young (R–Florida)
and John Sweeney (R–New
York), who both happened to be
visiting Italy on vacation.
The Tuscan sector of the national CISL union has requested that a law
be made to guarantee foreign residents in Tuscany equal rights, opportunities,
and, above all, the power to vote in administrative elections.
There are over 200,000 foreign residents living in Tuscany, accounting
for 5 percent of the total population, and almost all of them are employed.
According to the union group, these residents should be allowed to participate
in local decisions and to decide how local tax money is being
spent.
NIGHT-TIME
DISCOVERY
WITH
GALILEO
Galileo takes groups
on tour through
museum
hen the Earth Realised It
“WLived in the Periphery” is
the title of the newest initiative by
the History of Science Museum of
Florence. The museum is now offering
evening tours led by “Galileo
Galilei himself” (that is, an actor impersonating
him). Demonstrating
with the actual tools used by Galileo
that are housed in the museum,
the guide explains how Galileo’s
discoveries overturned the longstanding
belief that the earth was
the centre of the universe, and thus
moved the planet to its peripheral
location orbiting the sun.
The tours are offered every
Thursday evening throughout the
summer at 8 and 9.30pm.