Susan Van Allen - 100 Places in Italy Every Woman Should Go -- 10th Anniversary Edition

Praise for 100 Places in Italy Every Woman Should Go

This book makes me want to pack my bag with the lightest of clothing and follow Susan Van Allens alluring suggestions for traveling in Italy. Her knowledge reveals an intimacy with the country and a honed sense of adventure. Andiamo!

Frances Mayes, author of Under the Tuscan Sun

Written with cheeky playfulness, this ode to the Italian motherland is a treasure trove of female-centered delights. From the good luck gained by patting the buttocks of Venus to sleuthing through lush gardens that once courted Papal trysts, from spree-shopping at La Perla lingerie to witnessing centuries-old female saints day processions, this companion guide invites a rich kaleidoscope of adventures, wherein no woman traveler takes a back seat. Brava !

Anne Calcagno, editor of Travelers Tales Italy

No country welcomes women travelers like Italy, and Susan Van Allens compendium is a delectable fritto misto of places and experiences that makes its readers be counted among the cognescenti.

Carla Gambescia, author of La Dolce Vita University:
An Unconventional Guide to Italian Culture from A to Z

Susan Van Allen might be the best girlfriend you never meta virtual passport to a girl-friendly ride up and down the boot.

Pittsburgh Tribune

A wonderful gift for any woman traveling to Italy. With Susans advice you wont be overwhelmed and youll discover how nurturing it is to travel in a country that has honored us since we all descended from Venus.

Marybeth Bond, author, Gutsy Women and
Best Girlfriend Getaways Worldwide

One of the most innovative and fascinating travel guides dedicated to Italy...It fills a gap on the shelves at the right time. No ordinary directory of addresses, 100 Places in Italy Every Woman Should Go is an authentic portrait of Italy from the charmed perspective of a woman, a writer and an experienced traveler.

Select Italy

I knew that Italy was the land of la dolce vita and far niente , but this is the first book to present an organized way to find your way through her earthly and soulful wonders. I want all my girlfriends to have a copy of 100 Places .

Camille Cusumano, editor of Italy, a Love Story

Susan Van Allens writing makes the magic of Italy jump off the page. She has a knack for capturing the charms, quirks and authenticity of this magnificent land. Dont go to Italy without reading this!

Kathy McCabe, editor and publisher,
Dream of Italy Travel Newsletter

No matter how many times youve been to Italy and think you know it, reading Susan Van Allens book almost guarantees a return tripa delightful book youll only put down long enough to check the flights to that fascinating country.

Carol Coviello-Malzone, author of
Flavors of Rome: How, What & Where to Eat in the Eternal City

Part guidebook, part history, and part manual to the good life in the land of La Dolce Vita, Susan Van Allens magnum opus on all things Italian is essential reading for women (and men) who either want to get the most out of their next trip or want to be spirited back to their last.

David Farley, author of An Irreverent Curiosity

That old Freudian chestnutWhat do women really want?! has been answered once again. Susan Van Allen has romped through Italy and picked the very best, mixing dreamy delights with drops of dainty decadence. She suggests readers: treat this book like a cookbookand make a full meal of it. you couldand you should.

David Yeadon, author of Seasons in Basilicata

Copyright 2020 Susan Van Allen. All rights reserved.

Travelers Tales and Solas House are trademarks of Solas House, Inc.,

Palo Alto, CA 94306.

travelerstales.com | solashouse.com

Cover Design: Kimberly Nelson

Author Photograph: Johanna Jacobson

Interior Design and Page Layout: Howie Severson/Fortuitous

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.

978-1-60952-186-8 (paperback)

978-1-60952-187-5 (ebook)

Tenth Anniversary Edition

Printed in the United States

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

To my mother

who opened the door to Italy

and always told me:

Do what you love!

Whenever I go anywhere but Italy for a vacation,

I always feel as if I have made a mistake.

E RICA J ONG

A decade ago, when this book first hit the shelves, I couldnt imagine the joys that would follow. Im so grateful for the many travelers whove reached out to tell me that my advice added happiness to their Italian vacations, with new discoveries and enriching experiences. Its been thrilling to open emails to find photos of women waving to me from a winery in Tuscany, enjoying chocolate at my favorite shop in Venice, or biking Romes Appian Way.

All this enthusiasm inspired me to see my words in action and create Golden Weeks in Italy: For Women Only tours. Its been wonderful to share My Italy with women and for all of us to fall under that magic spell the country has on us females, which is what inspired me to write this book in the first place.

Its been a pleasure to refresh and expand this book, adding new places Ive grown to love over the yearsfrom charming small towns to artisan shops, restaurants, and spas. As the beautiful journey continues, lets keep in touch through www.susanvanallen.com and the ever-expanding channels our world of social media brings us.

With heartfelt gratitude to all you readers and travelers, I send you all my best wishes for your adventures in Italy.

S USAN V AN A LLEN

I fell in love with Italy at a dining room table in Newark, New Jersey. It was Nana and Papas dining room, my maternal grandparentsimmigrants from Southern Italy. The walls were painted in a pale-rose stenciled pattern, the table spread with an ivory-colored lace cloth. On the mahogany sideboard sat a soccer-ball-sized jar of wild cherries marinating in syrup, next to a Capodimonte lamp, with porcelain figures of fancy ladies in flouncy dresses fanning themselves under the shade. A soprano on the hi-fi sang Un Bel Di Vedremo One Beautiful Day Well See Each Other.

Nana, with her apron tied up under her marshmallow-baggie arms, lit the candles. My mother and aunts carried in platters heavy with mozzarella, roasted peppers, shiny black olives, steaming bowls of macaroni. I sat propped up on a telephone book, clinking my tumbler of half-red wine/half-water along with the grown-ups toasting, Salute! By the time the feasts were finished, the candles had burnt to their bottoms, dripping onto the lace cloth. Papa poured Strega, a golden liqueur, into curvy glasses, and sliced a dome-shaped, slathered-with-whipped-cream rum cake.

This was my first Italy: a big, delicious, loving heart.

Every August Papa would get on a ship to visit his sisters who still lived near Naples. Hed send back postcards of statues and churches. Hed return after Labor Day with beads from Venice, rosaries blessed by the Pope, rocks from Mount Vesuvius.

Italy became magical and mysterious, beckoning mea billowy cartoon finger wafting out of a pot of bubbling tomato sauce.