lunedì 20 luglio 2009

Email to a Canadian friend Bergamo hotels recommedations

Hi Richard you would probably like to be in Citta Alta, have you visited there before?

Citta Alta Hotel Piazza Vecchia, right in the centre of the old city, dates from 1300ad, but I believe they have running water and maybe a phone now costs €158 per night for the dates I believe you will be in town more or less?

>http://www.hotelpiazzavecchia.it/eng/hotel.htm

Citta Bassa still good for the centre so if your wife would like to take a wander on foot while we are in meetings this one is also good, it’s the Hotel Capello D’oro, (Dan Dixons favourite hotel in Europe apparently) it’s a Best Western and in the centre of the shopping district with advanced payment this one come in from €112 a night http://book.bestwestern.com/bestwestern/productInfo.do?propertyCode=98166

We have the Hotel Donizetti, this is about 3kms outside Bergamo and bang in front of the old Eicon/3 Continents/Dialogic offices.

http://www.hoteldonizetti.com/eng/index.html

€67 per night. They offer a good breakfast in the price and the hotel restaurant is also up to good Trattoria standard in the evening.

Binge drinking Teenagers have arrived

I assume this is the start of that time of year when strange things happen, and the strangest thing was the Italian ones hit the UK press first and visa versa.

I heard about the Milan ban on the under sixteens drinking on Saturday on BBC radio 4, with the warning of dire cosequences for the parents :-( instand fines, gaol forced to watch Atalanta play next season etc:) but caught up with the same in La Repubblica only published the 19th, well Bellusconi thinks it's a fine idea, and the parents will get a ticking off during the 40 day trial, a bit less Draconian. I think I must agree with him on this one.

We had first hand experience of this "new to Italy" experience that I have seen to my horror in UK. Around the 10th of June schools out, working from home in the quiet residence where I live, we were all rather concerned to see an Ambulance arrive at the door to our block.

Net curtains were twittering ike semaphores all expecting that one of the older Nonna's had kop it.

But no!

A hairy pair of legs uder the blanket of the stretcher indicated a male casulaty. Infact it was, the 15 year old so of a friend downstairs who had had 10 too many and collapsed.

Yup Binge drinking is almost alive and green in Provincia di Bergamo!

Uk to Italy, so I was chatting to Luca our Portinieri (Janitor) this evening and explaining how England had thrashed the Aussies at Lords for the first time since 1934, and wasn't it wonderful, and what did he think of cricket? could we form a team? He told me an umpire had been killed by a strike from a ball in the UK, and now they may have to wear helmets.

After that he drew the positions of everyone involved it was a throw by a fielder killed the poor chap Alcwyn Jenkins 72 years old in a League of Wales game. Regarding our new team Luca's opinion is it's to dangerous, and lasts too long, and he would rather stand with the Inter supports during a derby with AC Milan (His team) to feel safer :-(


. He may not know much