Meet Pizzaiolo Peppe from Ristorante Villa Verde!

Da buon pizzaiolo napoletano, Peppe, Villa Verde’s renowned pizzaiolo, gives me a little insight on making the perfect Neapolitan pizza. Pizza making is an art and the pizzaiolo, the artist but what I found to be most captivating is how these guys can stand in front of a burning oven, while its 90 degrees outside and not even break a sweat! I was told several times, their bodies have just become “adjusted”, something mine was not. So I stood next to Peppe and his burning oven as I watched him make my pizza for only about 6 minutes, I sweating profusely while he was cool as a cucumber!

As we already know, the freshest ingredients make a world of difference from the tomatoes and mozzarella to the double zero flour and even the water!! Peppe made us 2 different pizzas to try, one with Pomodorini del Piennolo del Vesuvio (tomatoes that grow in the southern region of Campania around Mt Vesuvius), Mozzarella di Buffala also from the Campania region, arugula and shaved parmigiano. The other was with salsiccia (sausage) and friarelli which is a special type of broccolini that only grows around the base of Mt Vesuvio, closest described as a sweeter version of broccoli rabe. Peppe makes between 150-200 pizzas per night but when I asked which was his favorite, he responded “La Margherita”! He said he’s tried them all, but plain and simple, you can never go wrong with a classic!

Capri's good taste,Enchanting flavors and intriguing aromas delight the senses.Villa Verde is one of the islands oldest and liveliest restaurants on the island. Loved among celebrities and locals. My friend Simone worked at Villa Verde for over 15 years so we walked in and felt right at home!

COVID - 19 Travel To Italy Guidelines

Traveling to Italy during COVID in 2021 takes the normal stresses of traveling to a whole new level. The anxiety of making sure your bags are under 50 lbs, not knowing whether you’ve done the right antigen test and whether or not you have the proper paper work filled out may just get you sick quicker than the virus. Although now that I’ve made the voyage once, I have to say, it really wasn’t all that bad!

Regardless of whether or not you are vaccinated, you must show proof of a negative antigen test which can be rapid or PCR within 48 hours of departure. I went to a local urgent care center for testing the day before our flight and within an hour I had my results. Secondly, you must fill out a Digital European Passenger Locator Form (dPLF) (which you can find here )

Passenger Locator Forms (PLFs) are used by public health authorities to facilitate contact tracing in case travellers are exposed to an infectious disease during their travel. You must have your negative test results printed to present at check in and the completed PLF QR code available on your phone. You will be asked to show both again before boarding the plane. Lastly, the airline will provide you with a self-declaration form ( which you can access here here

Returning to the US, you must get a negative antigen test in order to enter the country. We simply went to a local pharmacy the day before departure and in europe mostly all pharmacies are administering the test. Same rules apply coming home, so just have your negative test and PLF QR code available and you’ll be good to go! This was my experience traveling beginning of July 2021 but as we are in a volatile state, things can change from day to day so just be sure to check the Italian embassy website ( https://it.usembassy.gov/covid-19-information/)

It may sound stressful but I promise you the second your feet hit the ground you will forget all about it!

Bar Turrisi

This is Castelmola. A quaint little town perched on the Mount side above Taormina. Famous for more than just it’s almond wine and architecture...a unique bar where everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, is shaped like male genitalia 😳 It is a cultural experience like no other. From the outside, this bar looks quite pleasant with its multiple balconies and red sun umbrellas pushing towards the sky. But from the minute you clutch the handle of the side door it dawns on you that this bar is a tad bit different from other Sicilian ones. From the artwork on the walls, to the napkins on the table down to the tiles on the floor, all are have a common thread, they are shaped like a p*enis!

The decoration decisions of Bar Turrisi did not come about because the owners are sex-addicts. Instead, there is actually some meaning behind it. Built in 1947, the phallic decor symbolizes fertility. To quote the owner of the bar, “Having had three sons within five years, there was one particular symbol that could represent it all.” The p*nis became the defining symbol of Bar Turrisi and a famous landmark of Castelmola! In the mid-19th century, Taormina, and in general this area of Sicily, was far more progressive than many other parts of the country and even Europe. The furniture and objects displayed were all commissioned by the family and carried out exclusively by Sicilian carpenters and blacksmiths. The owner revealed that an even larger collection remains behind closed doors. "Certain valuable objects are best not displayed. You'd be surprised to hear how many people try and steal objects here. I even had to install cameras last year". Although this special find may not be everyone's cup of tea, adding it to the agenda of a trip to Eastern Sicily may just be the perfect plan!