POPE EXPRESSES ‘HEARTFELT SYMPATHY’ AFTER DEADLY ITALIAN FLOODS

May 18, 1920 – Karol Wojtyla was born in Wadowice, Poland. Today would be the 103^rd birthday of the man who became Pope John Paul II. I have a veritable album of photos with John Paul taken during the years I worked at the Vatican. I miss him every day and pray often to him. And frequently I ask Mary, whom he so loved, for the same favor! This is the first time we met – at Mass in his private chapel in December 1995:

WYD in Denver, Colorado 1993:

The last time we met: December 2004 when he welcomed the entire staff of the Holy See Press Office to his library to mark the 20^th anniversary of Joaquin Navarro-Valls as director of that office. I had memorized how to say Merry Christmas and Happy New Year in Polish:

POPE EXPRESSES ‘HEARTFELT SYMPATHY’ AFTER DEADLY ITALIAN FLOODS

Pope Francis expresses his heartfelt sympathy for the people killed, and thousands forced to evacuate their homes, as exceptional, torrential rains battered northern Italy, causing massive damage, as the climate crisis continues to provoke always more violent storms and severe consequences across the globe.

By Deborah Castellano Lubov (Vaticannews)
Nine people are dead and thousands were evacuated from their homes following exceptional, torrential rains which battered northern Italy’s Emilia-Romagna region, and eastern provinces, triggering floods and landslides. (photos of various media)

Death toll mounts in Italy’s worst flooding for 100 years | Italy | The Guardian  (Video)

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

According to Civil Protection Minister, Nello Musumeci, some areas had received half their average annual rainfall in just 36 hours. Rivers burst their banks and water washed through towns, and submerged thousands of acres of farmland, reported Reuters.

This catastrophe marks the latest episode of extreme weather and always-more-violent storms to strike the globe as the climate crisis intensifies.

Pope’s heartfelt sympathy, prayers

Pope Francis expressed his “heartfelt sympathy” to the suffering and affected by the extreme weather in Emilia Romagna, especially the eastern provinces, in a telegram of condolences. It was sent Thursday on his behalf by Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra, the Vatican’s Substitute for General Affairs of the Secretariat of State, to the Archbishop of Bologna and President of the Italian Episcopal Conference, Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi.

The Holy Father asked the Cardinal to convey his sentiments of heartfelt sympathy to the relatives and friends of the victims for the disaster which struck the territory.

Comfort following ‘grave calamity’

While assuring fervent prayers of suffrage for the deceased and expressing condolences to their families, the Pope invoked comfort from God for the wounded, and consolation for those who are suffering the consequences “of the grave calamity.”

Pope Francis expressed his gratitude to all those, amid great difficulty, are working to bring relief and alleviate all suffering, and to diocesan communities “for their manifestation of communion and fraternal closeness to the most-tried populations.”

The Holy Father concluded by offering his Apostolic Blessing to all, as a sign of special spiritual closeness. He also relayed the prayers of Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin.

 

Climate Crisis provoking global tragedy

As the deadly Italian rains wreaked havoc, across the globe, various climate catastrophes are killing many people and causing dramatic damage.

 

Earlier this week, powerful Cyclone Mocha slammed between Myanmar’s port city of Sittwe and Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh, home to nearly one million mostly Rohingya refugees, killing at least six people, causing hundreds of injuries and provoking a vast communications blackout that has left relief workers struggling to assess the extent of the damage.

 

Meanwhile, the death toll in Malawi from tropical Cyclone Freddy has surpassed 1000, confirmed Malawi’s President Lazarus Chakwer in April.

 

POPE ON LOW BIRTH RATES: THE FAMILY IS NOT PART OF THE PROBLEM, BUT PART OF ITS SOLUTION

Speaking at a conference in Rome on the ever-shrinking birth rate in Italy, Pope Francis highlighted “the urgent need for joint efforts to support families to address the demographic crisis, warning that ‘savage’ free-market conditions are preventing young people from having children.” He said “parents, and especially women, need more support and security if countries such as Italy were to reverse the course of the  “demographic winter.”

He said birth rate is crucial for the future of our societies. “Indeed, the birth of children is the main indicator for measuring the hope of a people. If few are born, it means that there is little hope.” Italy’s birth rate has been shrinking for years, and in 2022 hit a new historic low.

POPE ON LOW BIRTH RATES: THE FAMILY IS NOT PART OF THE PROBLEM, BUT PART OF ITS SOLUTION

This week, for the first time in public, we saw Pope Francis use a walker because of his ongoing mobility issues. In fact, Friday morning, he began his address to the General States of Birth conference by saying, off the cuff, “Pardon me for not speaking to you while standing but I can’t tolerate the pain when I stand.”

He then thanked organizers for the invitation to speak “because I believe that the theme of the birth rate is central for everyone, especially for the future of Italy and Europe.”

Part of his opening remarks were made off the cuff, including the stories he told about “two pictures” of moments in St. Peter’s Square, moments when people asked for a blessing, not for the child brought to the square in a small carriage, but for their dogs!

“I would like to give you just two ‘pictures’ that took place here in [St. Peter’s] Square,” began the Holy Father. “Two weeks ago, my secretary was in the square and a mother with a carriage was passing by. He, a tender priest, approached to bless the child… but instead, inside was a dog! And, two weeks ago at the Wednesday audience, as I was greeting people, I was in front of a lady, more or less 50 years old. I greeted her and she opened a large bag and says: ‘Please bless my baby’: a little dog! At that moment I lost patience and scolded the lady: ‘Madam, many children are hungry, and you have a dog!’ Brothers and sisters, these are scenes from the present, but if this is how things go, this will be the habit of the future, we’ll have to be careful!”

Pope Francis went on to say, “The birth of children, in fact, is the main indicator for measuring the hope of a people. If few are born it means that there is little hope. And this doesn’t just have repercussions from the point of view economic and social, but undermines confidence in the future. I learned that last year Italy touched the historic minimum of births: just 393,000 newborns. It is a fact that reveals a great deal of concern for tomorrow. Today, bringing children into the world is perceived as a burden on families. And this, unfortunately, conditions the mentality of the younger generations who grow up in uncertainty, if not in disillusionment and fear. They live in a social climate in which creating a family has turned into a titanic effort, instead of being a shared value that everyone recognizes and supports.”

More than anything, Francis stressed that “the family is not part of the problem, but part of its solution!”

For more of his talk this morning: Pope: The family is the future of society – Vatican News

 

VATICAN INSIDER: THE LENTEN STATION CHURCHES OF ROME

Some pretty surprising numbers in this piece on Italy and the Ukraine refugee crisis:  How is Italy responding to the Ukraine refugee crisis? (thelocal.it). I will follow this news and update reports as refugee arrivals continue to grow and welcome centers sponsored by churches, Caritas, the Sant’Egidio community and dozens of others step up to meet this crisis.

VATICAN INSIDER: THE LENTEN STATION CHURCHES OF ROME

On this first weekend of March – and of Lent – in what is normally the interview segment, I offer a mini-pilgrimage of sorts as we visit some of the Lenten Station churches in Rome, very special churches that tell a beautiful story over the 40 days of Lent, a story found only in Rome.

The first station church, as you will learn, is the Dominican basilica of Santa Sabina on Ash Wednesday:

file photo with Pope Francis:

The final station church, where Mass will be celebrated on Wednesday of Holy Week, is St. Mary Major:

There is a special side to this story for English-speaking Catholics as you will discover when you listen to this Special report. So, tune in to that after the weekly news update and the Q&A.

In the Q&A, by the way, I explain the original of papal and Roman Curia retreats. It’s timely because, in fact, Pope Francis and ranking members of the Roman Curia start their annual Lenten retreat this coming Sunday, They will not be together as has happened most years since 2014 when Pope Francis started retreats at a religious house in Ariccia, not far from Rome. In recent years, Covid issues persuaded the Pope to ask Roman Curia leaders to organize their own personal retreats, as he is doing.

IN THE UNITED STATES, you can listen to Vatican Insider (VI) on a Catholic radio station near you (stations listed at www.ewtn.com) or on channel 130 Sirius-XM satellite radio, or on http://www.ewtn.com. OUTSIDE THE U.S., you can listen to EWTN radio on our website home page by clicking on the right side where you see “LISTEN TO EWTN.” VI airs at 5am and 9pm ET on Saturdays and 6am ET on Sundays. On the GB-IE feed (which is on SKY in the UK and Ireland), VI airs at 5:30am, 12 noon and 10pm CET on Sundays. Both of these feeds are also available on the EWTN app and on www.ewtnradio.net ALWAYS CHECK YOUR OWN TIME ZONE! For VI archives: go to https://www.ewtn.com/radio/audio-archive and write the name of the guest for whom you are searching in the SEARCH box. Below that, will appear “Vatican Insider” – click on that and the link to that particular episode will appear.

 

TONGA RECONNECTS TO THE WORLD – HOW ITALY COULD BE IMPACTED BY RUSSIA’S INVASION OF UKRAINE

TONGA RECONNECTS TO THE WORLD

I got some wonderful news this morning from half way around the world   – an email from my friend, Cardinal Soane Patita Mafi, bishop of Tonga! The instant I knew of the underground volcano explosion that cut the islands off from the rest of the world in January, I wrote him to say I was stunned by the news but wanted him to know that I and countless others were praying for Tonga and its people. I told him I knew he would probably not see my message for a while!

The cardinal assured me that prayers were appreciated by all, and that Tongans have been recovering well, assisted by people and organizations within and outside the country. Many lessons of God’s grace can be learned when such help comes forth in tragic times, wrote Cardinal Mafi. His message was positive and uplifting and his thoughtful and kind words really made my day!

By the way, when I first met the cardinal in Rome, I was fascinated by his name. When I said it aloud (I love languages and etymology), I thought I knew what it meant. I asked him and indeed his name means John the Baptist.

This photo from the Catholic Herald was taken when we both attended a Saints Damien and Marianne Conference in Honolulu in October 2018, The cardinal presided at the opening Mass and we both gave talks during the conference. I interviewed him as well for Vatican Insider.

HOW ITALY COULD BE IMPACTED BY RUSSIA’S INVASION OF UKRAINE

The first word I saw today on how Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could impact Italy was the immediate increase here in the prices of gas, oil and wheat, with sticker shock hitting those who had to fill their gas tank at a local station.

I’ve seen a lot of TV today, including news from U.S., French, German and British sources. I’ll be riveted to TV and radio reports in coming days and will try to keep you posted on how our lives may be affected by Russia’s action.

I do not have a car but the Vatican building in which I live uses oil for heating (6 months a year but we pay that over 12 months, along with our rent and other expenses), and I have a gas stove and oven. Other appliances are electric and, for the moment, my contract with the gas and electric company precludes price hikes. Let’s wait and see….

I subscribe to thelocal.it, a wonderful online source of information for expats living in Italy. Here is a link to a report they published today: EXPLAINED: How Italy could be impacted by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine (thelocal.it)

ITALY WINS EURO 2020 CHAMPIONSHIP: DIARY OF A FAN

ITALY WINS EURO 2020 CHAMPIONSHIP: DIARY OF A FAN

What I know about soccer rules and playbooks and what the various zones mean on a soccer field and what causes a penalty could be written on the head of a pin. I am a fan of soccer when it is a question of a championship games like the Euro2020 or World Cup matches. If Italy and the U.S. are playing, I cheer them on! If they are not in the championship game, I am less interested.

I am however, a hugely passionate fan of the “other” football – the NFL and AFL football. I am really passionate about the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame University and have a few favorite pro teams as well (I grew up near Chicago so the Bears have always been a favorite). Anyone who has only known me from my Rome years and does not know about my love for football would be amazed to see me in a stadium! They’d see a Joan they did not know existed!

Soccer (the real foot ball) was relatively unknown in the United States when I was growing up, and what we Americans call football was the sport and what I knew. My nephews and nieces were of the generation introduced to soccer and it is their children who are now playing the game at all levels of school.

Below is the diary of an email exchange last night with my niece Christie who played soccer growing up, as did her siblings, and her own children have been involved in this sports for most of their young lives. It was obvious that she was following the game in Wisconsin!

The first email I got from Christie was, as you can see, at 10:27 pm (Rome time), and that prompted the email exchange. I alternate between her emails and mine.

10:27 pm – GOOOOOOOAL!!!! NOW we have a game!!!

11:06 – We are in what they call tempi supplementari – supplemental times?….not sure how to say that in English! Am on the edge of my seat!

11:17 – We call it ‘extra minutes’ on this side of the pond! Haha – crazy!! It’s so late there! We’re on the edge of our seats too!  Go ITALIA!

11:42 – Now we go to a shoot out! Not sure my heart can take this!

11:55 – OH MY GOSH THEY WON!!!

11:56 – OMGracious! We did it! Awesome! Wish we were together! Will call tomorrow!

12:51 – (Joan) It is unbelievable here and I am not even in the center of Rome! Cars, motorbikes, scooters, flags, horns, any kind of noisemaker! La Vittoria was closed this evening as I had hoped to watch the game there, and the only other restaurant in my neighborhood where I would have gone was also closed. I called a friend of mine who has a great restaurant near the Pantheon and I went there for dinner and watched the game until the start of the second half. I wanted to be home by the end of the game for several reasons. One was because I know that transportation ended at 9 pm for busses and there probably would not be a taxi in Rome available at the end of the game, especially if it was a victory for Italy. In addition I know what the center would have been like in the event of an Italy victory – I have experienced that before. So I watched the regulation end of the game and the two overtimes and then the shoot out in my own home. I am utterly delighted for Italy especially because of all it has gone through in the last 18 months with Covid. So many people suffered, so many businesses closed, so many restaurants closed as well. And that is not to mention the deaths that Italy suffered in the first six months of the pandemic. Thus, I am overjoyed for the nation that I love so well. And Christie, if there was a story that could put papal surgery and convalescence off the front pages of newspapers, it was an international soccer match! Wish we could have watched this together!

Love and hugs,

12:55 – PS. It is nearly 1 am! I’m watching local news on TV! I never would have made it home had I stayed at the restaurant! Every piazza and main street between the center and my home is filled with people. Such fun!

**************************************

And that it was! Wonderful, crazy, happy fun! A late night!

In her final email, Christie reminded me of July 2000 when she, her Mom and Dad (my brother Bill) and 4 siblings were in Italy on an unforgettable trip. On July 3, hours before they were to fly back to the States, we were in the Apostolic Palace where Pope John Paul welcomed all eight of us in audience!

As we were lining up, I introduced everyone to Msgr. Stanislaw Dziwisz, the Pope’s secretary whom I had known for years. He asked if we liked soccer and everyone smiled and happily nodded ‘yes’. I think it was the happy smiles that discombobulated Msgr. Stanislaw because he then asked, with a slight frown on his face, if we had seen the championship match the previous evening when Italy had played France but lost 2-1! The kids had, in fact, watched the game at my place while Bill, Anne and I attended a U.S. embassy July 4 party. We all expressed our real sorrow at the loss Italy suffered!

What I best remember about that audience is that, after I greeted John Paul, Msgr. Stanislaw placed me to the Pope’s right so that I could individually introduce Bill, Anne and the kids!

 

COVID-19: ROME’S FIRST FINE FOR NOT WEARING MASK HANDED OUT AT TREVI FOUNTAIN – ITALY EXTENDS STATE OF EMERGENCY OVER THE COVID-19 CRISIS UNTIL 15 OCTOBER 2020 – ITALY BEGINS HUMAN TRIALS OF COVID-19 VACCINE IN ROME

It was a quiet day in the Vatican. Not even a press office bulletin was published but that is not necessarily surprising in August, the main vacation month of the year in Italy. A fair number, perhaps I can even say a high number, of Vatican employees are away this month and things in the Vatican, in Rome and in Italy in general are expected to be back to normal by early, probably mid-September.

Today, the offerings are meager and basically concern the state of things in Italy vis-a-vis Covid-19, restrictions, travels, new laws, etc.

COVID-19: ROME’S FIRST FINE FOR NOT WEARING MASK HANDED OUT AT TREVI FOUNTAIN

Police enforce rules obliging people to wear masks in crowded places.
(wantedinrome.com) Rome police have fined a man €400 for refusing to wear a mask among the crowd at the Trevi Fountain on Friday night, after he made fun of the officers by saying “covid-19 doesn’t exist,” reports Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera.

The 29-year-old Italian, whose friends also mocked the situation before eventually putting on their masks to avoid the penalty, became the first person in Rome to be fined under the new regulations obliging people to wear masks in crowded areas at night.

Masks must now be worn in public areas where social distancing is not possible between 6 pm and 6 am, while the order closing discos also applies to outdoor dancing venues such as beaches.

The move is part of a coordinated operation by police to monitor the capital’s smaller squares and streets where social distancing is difficult to maintain, in addition to the usual nightlife hotspots of Ponte Milvio, Trastevere, S. Lorenzo, Campo de’ Fiori, Pigneto and Piazza Bologna.

The news comes as Italy registered 1,071 new covid-19 cases on 22 August, the highest number since 12 May when the country was still in lockdown, with 215 new cases in the central Lazio region which includes Rome, according to data released by the Italian health ministry.

ITALY EXTENDS STATE OF EMERGENCY OVER THE COVID-19 CRISIS UNTIL 15 OCTOBER 2020

(wantedinrome.com) The Italian government has extended the country’s existing state of emergency, which expands the government’s powers in tackling the coronavirus health crisis, until 15 October.

The extension of the current state of emergency – introduced six months ago and set to expire on 31 July – was approved on 29 July, despite objections from the opposition which accused Italian premier Giuseppe Conte of trying to keep too much power despite a dramatic fall in the rate of contagion.

Describing the extension as “inevitable,” Conte told the senate: “The virus continues to evolve and has not run its course. It would be incongruous to abruptly suspend such an effective measure.”

However Conte also stressed that there was “no intention to dramatise the situation” or to fuel “an unjustified state of alarm.”

What exactly is the state of emergency?
The state of emergency grants special powers to national and regional authorities in tackling the fallout from the coronavirus crisis quickly, cutting through the usual bureaucratic procedures to implement, modify or revoke emergency measures if and when required.

It will also facilitate the continuation of smart-working, will allow for the ban on flights to and from countries considered at risk, and will speed up the process in getting schools ready to reopen in September, reports Italian news agency ANSA.

ITALY BEGINS HUMAN TRIALS OF COVID-19 VACCINE IN ROME

(wantedinrome.com) Rome doctors hope to produce ‘Made in Italy’ coronavirus vaccine by next spring.

Human trials of an Italian-developed covid-19 vaccine have begun on volunteers at Rome’s Spallanzani hospital on 24 August, reports Italian news agency ANSA.

The first person to volunteer for the vaccine, a 50-year-old woman, was inoculated at 08.30 this morning at the Spallanzani, a specialist centre for infectious diseases which has played a central role in battling Italy’s coronavirus crisis.

The woman said she was “excited and proud” to be the first volunteer to take the vaccine and hopes that it will help to “save lives,” ANSA reports.

After being observed by doctors for four hours, the woman will return home and be monitored for the next 12 weeks, said hospital director Francesco Vaia, who stated that if the trials go well a vaccine could be ready on a commercial basis by next spring.

Earlier this month, when the Spallanzani put out the call for 90 volunteers to come forward to take the vaccine, more than 3,000 people volunteered, in what Vaia said demonstrated the “great heart of the Italian people.”

The vaccine has been produced by Italian biotechnology firm ReiThera of Castel Romano, near Rome, with funding from the Lazio Region whose president Nicola Zingaretti said: “Today, an historic phase in research begins.”

The news comes the day after Italy registered 1,210 new coronavirus cases, up from 1,071 the day before.

ROME AIRPORTS TEST FOR COVID

The following stories about travel, Italy and Covid are from wantedinrome.com and the Italian news agency, ANSA. I think you’ll be able to understand why Italy has included the U.S. among those countries on the “at risk” list, seeing that the U.S. has far more cases than the countries listed in the news stories. And you won’t need to read in between the lines to understand the importance of wearing masks and doing social distancing. This is what has been generally missing in the “at risk” countries.

It was a very quiet day in the Vatican, no news stories and no press office bulletin. August is, in any case, the month when great numbers of the Roman Curia staff go on holiday so few events, press conferences, etc. are ever planned for this month. In the past – the non-Covid past – people began to return and activities resume more or less full force by mid-September.

ROME AIRPORTS TEST FOR COVID

AUGUST 12: Italy adds Colombia to its travel ban list.

Travellers arriving into Italy from Croatia, Greece, Malta and Spain must be tested for covid-19 as concern grows over new infections amid a recent surge of coronavirus cases in the countries in question, reports Italian news agency ANSA.

Italy has also added Colombia to a list of countries under a complete travel ban, including transit passengers, announced Italian health minister Roberto Speranza late on 12 August

Health authorities in Italy are concerned about the return of Italian holidaymakers from destinations where social distancing and mask-wearing appear to have been widely ignored, according to Reuters.

“We must continue on a path of caution to defend the results we have obtained over the past months through sacrifices by everyone,” Speranza said on Twitter.

AUGUST 16: As from today, 16 August, vacationers returning to Italy from Spain, Greece, Croatia and Malta will be subjected to nasal swabs.

They will also be obligated to stay in their homes, and to remain in isolation until further notice, relative to the outcome of the test.

Covid-19 testing areas are already operational at Fiumicino and Ciampino airports. The governor of Lazio Nicola Zingaretti announced this via Facebook, stating that Rome’s airports “represent 70% of national traffic.”

In less than 24 hours, 12 testing sites were set up at the Leonardo da Vinci airport, in the arrivals area of Terminal 3, just after baggage claim. In a space of about 1,000 square meters 480 passengers can be tested simultaneously in full compliance with distancing rules. At Ciampino Airport there are three testing sites.

AUGUST 18: Rapid tests at Rome airport detect six coronavirus cases from ‘at risk’ countries.
Six holidaymakers tested positive for covid-19 on the first day of testing at Rome’s Fiumicino airport, reports Italian news agency ANSA.

The six individuals travelled to Rome from countries identified by Italy as being ‘at risk’ for covid-19, including Croatia, Greece, Malta and Spain.

The testing began at both Rome’s airports, Fiumicino and Ciampino, on 16 August in a bid to contain imported cases of coronavirus.

The first person to test positive at Fiumicino was a young man from Pescara returning from a trip to Malta.

A Roman woman returning to Fiumicino airport and coming from Greece (Skiathos) with a stopover in Athens also tested positive, as did a French man coming from Split in Croatia. Both are reportedly asymptomatic.

A Spanish man from Barcelona, who was travelling to Tuscany, also tested positive for covid-19 at Fiumicino.

The fifth case concerns a six-year-old Spanish boy, asymptomatic, from Barcelona who was travelling with his family.

The sixth case was a Roman woman returning from the Spanish island of Tenerife.

“The prevention method implemented in the airports of the capital is working”, said the health councillor for the Lazio Region, Alessio D’Amato.

POPE DONATES VENTILATORS, ULTRA-SOUND SCANNERS FOR HOSPITALS IN BRAZIL – ITALY TODAY: CRUISE SHIPS SAIL, DISCOS CLOSED, 4 MILLION BEES DIE

POPE DONATES VENTILATORS, ULTRA-SOUND SCANNERS FOR HOSPITALS IN BRAZIL

Hope Association, an Italian-based non-profit organization has mobilized the procurement and delivery of the devices, says the Office of Papal Charities.

By Vatican News

Pope Francis continues to make his heartfelt appeal for generosity and solidarity for communities and countries hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic by personally leading the way through concrete acts of closeness and affection.

He carries this out through the Office of Papal Charities, a department of the Holy See headed by the Apostolic Almoner, or papal almsgiver, Polish Cardinal Konrad Krajewski.

The cardinal said in a statement released Monday by the Holy See Press Office ithat, n the latest move, the Pope’s charity is being directed to Brazil.  Eight Draeger intensive care ventilators and 6 portable Fuji ultrasound scanners are being shipped to needy hospitals in Brazil.

Cardinal Krajewski said this has been made possible through the generous commitment of Hope Association, an Italy-based non-profit group that helps needy children and communities.  Highly specialized in humanitarian projects on health and education, he said the Hope Association finds ways to obtain high-tech life-saving medical equipment through donors, and arranges for their shipping and installation in hospitals.

These medical devices will be delivered to hospitals in Brazil chosen by the Apostolic Nunciature, so that “this gesture of Christian solidarity and charity can really help the poorest and neediest people,”

On several occasions, the Office of Papal Charities has mobilized medical material and equipment to be donated to many health facilities in situations of emergency and poverty around the world so that many human lives are treated and saved.

After the United States, Brazil has the world’s worst coronavirus scenario, reporting more than 3.3 million cases and close to 108,000 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

ITALY TODAY: CRUISE SHIPS SAIL, DISCOS CLOSE, 4 MILLION BEES DIE 

(thelocal.it) We’re back from our Ferragosto break, so here’s a quick look at the latest news here in Italy today:

The government held out until after the traditional August holiday weekend, but on Sunday night ordered nightclubs to shut down again and said masks must be worn at night in public amid a sharp rise in new coronavirus cases – many of which are being blamed on partying holidaymakers. (Masks must be worn from 6 pm to 6 am in public areas where people may congregate such as popular piazzas or squares)

Government health advisors also warned that further business closures could follow if people don’t stick to the rules – and insisted that Italy’s schools must reopen as planned in September “at any cost.”

On Sunday evening, the first cruise ship set sail from Italy since before lockdown as the MSC Grandiosa departed from the port of Genoa. Meanwhile, anti-cruise campaigners in Venice celebrated a temporary reprieve from liners in the lagoon.

And sadly, forestry police in northern Italy are investigating the “inexplicable” and “catastrophic” deaths of some four million bees overnight in the Lombardy region.

 

COVID TIMES IN ITALY: FERRAGOSTO, HOTELS, HISTORIC SITES, CRUISE SHIPS AND VACCINES…..

COVID TIMES IN ITALY: FERRAGOSTO, HOTELS, HISTORIC SITES, CRUISE SHIPS AND VACCINES…..

ROME SHUTS UP SHOP FOR FERRAGOSTO ON 15 AUGUST.

(wantedintome.com) – Italy marks the national holiday of Ferragosto each year on 15 August, the feast of the Assumption, the day when Catholics believe the Virgin Mary ascended to heaven, body and soul, at the end of her earthly life.

The origins of Italy’s Ferragosto, however, date back to Roman times, with the Feriae Augusti introduced as a period of rest by Emperor Augustus in 18 BC.

In the modern-day capital Ferragosto normally means an exodus of Romans as well as the closure of public offices and family-run businesses, restaurants, bars and shops, although larger supermarkets tend to open for a half day.

This year however, due to the covid-19 crisis, things may be busier than usual, as many families can’t afford holidays, or don’t wish to travel, and many restaurants can’t afford to close.

HOTELS IN ROME CUT THEIR RATES BY UP TO HALF AS THEY BATTLE TO ENTICE HANDFUL OF TOURISTS

(wantedinrome.com) – Rome’s hotels are slashing their rates, in some cases by 50 per cent, in a desperate bid to attract the few tourists visiting the Eternal City this summer. The capital’s hospitality sector, decimated by the covid-19 crisis, is struggling to survive, with many hotels either closed or with only a handful of rooms occupied.

The city’s luxury hotels are finding it particularly tough, with the absence of wealthy tourists from America, Asia and Russia, reports Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera.

(Rome hotels losing ‘€100 million a month’)

The Condotti Palace, a four-star hotel near the Spanish Steps, is offering a double room in the week before the national Ferragosto holiday at €67. The four-star Milton Hotel near the Basilica di S. Giovanni in Laterano offers a double room for €67, while the four-star Hotel della Conciliazione on Via di Borgo Pio near St Peter’s rents a room for just €65, half the price of last year.

So who are the tourists in Rome visiting this summer? Europeans: French, Spanish, British, and naturally Italians.

BULGARI TO OPEN LUXURY HOTEL ON HISTORIC ROMAN SQUARE

(wantedinrome.com) – Hotels may be in trouble now but the celebrated jeweller Bulgari intends to open a luxury hotel in 2022 that will overlook the Mausoleum of Augustus in Rome.

The Bulgari Hotel will be located in a rationalist-style building dating from the fascist era, designed by Vittorio Ballio Morpurgo, and built between 1936 and 1938. It will reportedly have 114 rooms (most of which will be suites measuring up to 400 sqm), a restaurant run by star chef Niko Romito, as well as the Bulgari Bar.

There will also be a 1,000-sqm spa, a 20-sqm swimming pool inspired by Roman baths, a gym and a library with antique books, according to local media.

Earlier this year it was reported that the mausoleum would open during the spring of 2020 however the covid-19 pandemic arrived in the meantime and no official completion date has been announced.

In addition to the Mausoleum, the piazza is home to the Ara Pacis museum designed by American architect Richard Meier in 2006 and two Baroque churches.

The new Bulgari hotel will be situated near its flagship store on the luxury shopping street Via Condotti and not far from the Spanish Steps whose €1.5 million restoration Bulgari financed in 2016. (wantedinome.com)

LARGO ARGENTINA TO BECOME ACCESSIBLE TO VISITORS THANKS TO BULGARI

(wantedinrome.com) – Rome’s archaeological site at Largo di Torre Argentina is to be restored in a €1 million project sponsored by luxury jeweller Bulgari, with a completion date in the second half of 2021.

Rome mayor Virginia Raggi has thanked Bulgari for what she describes as an “act of love for the city” while the deputy mayor Luca Bergamo said the site’s many cats would not be disturbed.

The works will reportedly include a new entry into the site, including elevator access, under the tower, with new paths around the archaeological area. (photo: https://civitavecchia.portmobility)

The so-called sacred area of Largo Argentina is best known as being the scene of Julius Caesar’s assassination; it is also the home of a popular cat sanctuary.

The plan to restore the site follows Bulgari’s €1.5 million restoration of the Spanish Steps in 2016.

PUGLIA REGION QUARANTINES RESIDENTS RETURNING FROM 3 COUNTRIES

(Thelocal.it) – The southern region of Puglia says residents must quarantine if they return from a holiday in one of three ‘high-risk’ EU countries.

Residents of Puglia will have to self-isolate for 14 days upon re-entry if they travel to Spain, Greece or Malta, according to a new regional ordinance, after a number of recent infections were traced back to returning holidaymakers.

“In the last two days we’ve logged numerous cases of Puglia residents who have tested positive after coming back from Greece, Malta, Spain, countries with a high viral circulation,” said regional president Michele Emiliano as he announced the new rule on Tuesday evening.

The quarantine requirement will not apply to Spanish, Greek or Maltese residents visiting Puglia, nor to people who live elsewhere in Italy and pass through the region on their way home – if, for instance, they return by ferry to the large ports of Bari or Brindisi and drive to another part of the country.

But everyone arriving in Puglia, including locals, residents of other regions and foreign tourists, is required to inform regional health authorities using an online ‘self-report’ form (available here). The requirement applies whether you’re entering Puglia from abroad or simply another region of Italy.

(Campania and Emilia-Romagna regions have also announced their own restrictions)

CRUISE LINES TO RETURN TO ITALY, BUT NOT TO VENICE

(TheLocal.it) – Neither MSC Cruises nor Costa Crociere plan to sail their giant liners to Venice as they resume operations this summer after a six-month shutdown.

Instead the companies are planning departures from the port of Trieste, around two hours north-east of Venice, and Genoa on the north-west coast.

(FILES) In this file photo taken on June 9, 2019 The MSC Magnifica cruise ship is seen from San Maggiore’s bell tower leaving in the Venice Lagoon. – Italy’s cruise industry is preparing to sail again in Mediterranean waters, hoping to help jumpstart the country’s economy while restoring the reputation of the beleaguered global cruise industry. The planned departure of the MSC Grandiosa and MSC Magnifica on August 16 and 29 from Genoa and Bari, respectively, to sites in Italy, Malta and Greece, represents a high-stakes bet for the industry that Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has called a “fundamental part of our economy.” (Photo by Miguel MEDINA / AFP)

Italy’s government has given the go-ahead for cruises to restart from August 15th, though operators must stick to European routes in line with a ban on tourism from outside the EU.

ITALY: RAPID COIVID TESTS AND VACCINE TRIALS

(ANSA) – Rome – The CTS panel of experts advising the government on the coronavirus emergency is looking at the possible use of new rapid COVID-19 tests to prevent outbreaks being caused by cases imported from abroad, sources said. These new tests are in the process of being approved. They could potentially be used at airports and border crossings on people arriving from abroad. hey could be especially useful for people arriving from countries with a high prevalence of COVID-19.

(ANSA) – Rome – Francesco Vaia, the health director of Rome’s Spallanzani infectious-diseases hospital, told ANSA on Monday that over 3,000 people have volunteered to take part in human trials on an Italian-developed COVID-19 vaccine. The hospital is set to start testing the vaccine on 90 people later this month. Vaia said the response to the appeal for volunteers showed the “great heart of the Italian people.”

FACEMASKS REMAIN AND CRUISE SHIPS RETURN: WHAT’S IN ITALY’S NEW EMERGENCY DECREE? – FROM THE PLAGUE TO COVID-19: WINE WINDOWS MAKE A COMEBACK IN TUSCANY

Today I have a serious story and then a fun one from Italy in the coronavirus era….

FACEMASKS REMAIN AND CRUISE SHIPS RETURN: WHAT’S IN ITALY’S NEW EMERGENCY DECREE?

(thelocal.it – August 10, 2020) –   Italy’s new emergency decree sets out how the country will continue fighting the coronavirus in the months to come. Here are the most important measures you need to know about.

Approved by the cabinet on Friday night, the decreto agosto or ‘August decree’ contains both safety rules and stimulus measures designed to support businesses as Italy seeks to recover from its Covid-19 lockdown.

It is the latest in a series of government decrees – formally called a DPCM (Decreto del presidente del consiglio, or ‘prime minister’s decree’) – issued under Italy’s coronavirus state of emergency that introduced the sweeping restrictions of the past six months. The last such decree expired on July 31st.

The new decree comes into force on August 10th and applies until September 7th.

The rules on travel, face masks and social distancing are accompanied by a stimulus package worth €25 billion that extends Italy’s employee furlough scheme and allows taxpayers to defer payments, among other measures. Italy is seeking funds from the European Union to help cover the cost.

While the decree (available here) stretches to nearly 200 pages, these are the main measures to know about.

Face masks compulsory until at least September

As expected, the new decree keeps Italy’s rules on facemasks in place: everyone must wear them in enclosed public spaces such as shops, restaurants or public transport. The only exceptions are children under 6 or people with a disability that makes it impossible.

Those rules will apply until at least September 7th, when the government will decide whether to extend them again.

Travel restrictions remain in place

Unfortunately for most people outside Europe, Italy has not eased its travel restrictions in the latest decree and won’t do so until September at the very earliest.

That means that only essential travel to Italy – not tourism – is allowed from the United States, India, Russia and most other countries, while even essential travel is restricted from 16 countries on Italy’s ‘risk list’.

Nationals and residents of the EU, Schengen Zone or United Kingdom can continue to travel freely to Italy. Residents of ten non-EU countries currently on the EU’s ‘safe list’ can visit, but are obliged to quarantine for 14 days on arrival.

For a full explanation of Italy’s travel rules, click here.

Cruise ships return

Italy will allow cruises to resume from August 15th, the new decree says.

But in line with Italy’s travel restrictions, they will only be allowed to sail to and from other countries in the EU – excluding Bulgaria and Romania. Ships must certify that none of their passengers have been to any non-EU or Schengen countries in the 14 days before docking in Italy, even briefly.

Cruise operators must also take safety precautions on board, including checking passengers’ health before embarkation, asking staff and passengers to wear face masks indoors and enforcing social distancing.

Social distancing on public transport

Trains and buses won’t be travelling full until at least September, after the government ordered operators to continue leaving seats empty to limit contact between passengers.

Some companies had been planning to relax social distancing requirements after the last decree expired at the end of July, but the Health Ministry insisted that passengers should continue to sit at least a metre apart and never face to face.

The government kept the requirement in place for trains, buses and metros in its new decree, despite opposition from some regional governors who have issued ordinances allowing local transport to run at 100 percent capacity.

To read more about the economic policies in this piece, click here: https://www.thelocal.it/20200810/italy-new-emergency-decree-august

FROM THE PLAGUE TO COVID-19: WINE WINDOWS MAKE A COMEBACK IN TUSCANY

(WantedinRome.com) – Italy has seen a revival of the ‘wine window’ tradition that dates back to the era of the ‘Black Death’ in the Middle Ages, thanks to the current covid-19 health restrictions.

More than 150 of these tiny 17th-century windows still exist throughout Tuscany, reports Italian newspaper La Stampa, however many have been sealed up or lost over the centuries.

In addition to the historic centre of Florence, the so-called buchette del vino can be found in 27 Tuscan towns.

Their origin goes back to the time of the plague, when they were introduced as part of anti-contagion measures, allowing merchants to sell wine and top up bottles without coming into contact with the customer. (nypost photo)

In the era of the coronavirus, the tradition has now turned full circle and the ‘germ-free’ wine windows are enjoying something of a Renaissance.

Their revival is being championed by the Wine Windows Association that, in addition to promoting the ancient tradition, has been busy affixing plaques under the pint-sized holes.

The Florence-based cultural association says that it is not just vino being handed out through the little windows these days, with the magical sight of hands offering customers gelato, coffee, spritz and even books.

For full details (in English) about the history of the buchette del vino, and where to find them, see the Wine Windows website.