Articles by Margaret Cowan on ArticleSnatch.com

Aeolian Island of Stromboli: More Than Its Five Star Active Volcano

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Most tourists go to the island of Stromboli, in the Aeolian Islands off Sicily's north east coast, to hike its paths and watch its incredible, live volcano hurl its fire into the night sky. They stay only one night or even worse, take a boat trip to see the volcano from the sea and return to their hotel on another island. A big mistake! Stromboli offers much more than its flamboyant volcano and merits a longer stay. It's a feast for the senses: hills with spectacular views and wild roses in May, black sand beaches, clear, blue sea, picturesque Aeolian white architecture and excellent seafood. Perfect for hiking, swimming, snorkeling, boating, photography, dining well or doing nothing at all. Ever since I explored Stromboli on a day trip in 1995, I've been enchanted by it and returned for longer holidays. A visual person, I love contrasts of colours, textures and shapes. Approaching Stromboli by boat, you see a huge black cone rising out of the blue sea. From the air, you see white buildings of San Vincenzo (population about 400) stretching along the east coast and a cluster of white houses in Ginostra (population about 27) on the west coast. **End Summary** Topics: Sicily travel]]> Aeolian Islands travel]]> Stromboli]]> travel in Sicily]]> Stromboli tourism]]> ]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Since 1995 Margaret Cowan has owned a tour company, Mama Margaret & Friends Cooking Adventures in Italy. For a free report on finding the right Italy cooking school tour for you, see http://www.italycookingschools.com

How To Find Affordable Italian Cooking School Tours

Thu, 14 May 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Many frugalista foodies and wise wine lovers are now taking advantage of cheaper airfares and traveling to Italy despite the strong Euro. They want to indulge this year in an Italian cooking school tour but at an affordable price. How? Here are two tips. 1. Ask for what you want. If you see a cooking school tour you like, but the price is wrong for you, ask the tour operator for what you want. Their yes answer may surprise you! Here's a true story. A Canadian couple was attracted to a four day cooking, wine and walking tour in Piedmont's Barolo wine country in north west Italy. Even though the tour was based at a historic hotel and was for just the two of them, the price of 1620 Euros a person (about $2187 U.S.), was beyond their budget this year. They told the tour operator they liked the tour but wanted to pay half that price. The tour operator asked them what was most important to them on their tour. **End Summary** Topics: Italian cooking schools]]> Italy cooking schools]]> budget travel in Italy]]> affordable tours in Italy]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Since 1995 Margaret Cowan has owned a cooking and wine tour company, Mama Margaret & Friends Cooking Adventures in Italy. For a free report on finding the right Italy cooking school tour for you, see http://www.italycookingschools.com

How To Experience Local Family Life On Your Trip In Italy

Fri, 20 Mar 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Today on vacations in Italy, travelers want to experience real, local life in a meaningful ways with families, to visit their homes, share pieces of their lives, learn new things and even make new friends. Four ways to get to know locals are cooking with families in their homes, taking a course and renting a room in a local home, staying at a farm B & B, and dining with families in their homes through Home Food. 1. Take a cooking class or cooking school tour with a family in their home kitchen Here's an example of a delicious cooking school in Bologna, Italy's gastronomic capital. For your cooking week you live in an independent apartment in the medieval centre, next door to your host family's home, so you live like a local and have local friends nearby. With the mother and daughter, both excellent home cooks, you cook full menu dinners hands on for about three hours in three lessons in their kitchen. Then you gather around the dining table to eat your creations with the father, sons and your two cooking teachers, sharing laughter and good conversation. You soon feel part of the family! **End Summary** Topics: culinary travel in Italy]]> meet locals in Italy]]> cooking class in Italy]]> Italian cooking schools]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Since 1995 Margaret Cowan has owned a tour company, Mama Margaret & Friends Cooking Adventures in Italy. For a free report on finding the right Italy cooking school tour for you, see http://www.italycookingschools.com

Favourite Florence Experiences In My 35 Years Of Visiting

Tue, 10 Mar 2009 00:00:00 -0400

I fell in love with Florence's art, architecture and views as a backpacker in the early 70s, lived and fell in love with a Tuscan there in the late 70s and now revisit Florence every year. Here are some of my recent old and new favourite experiences for lovers of wine, shoes and beauty in my favourite Italian city. 33 Years Of Amazing Shoes In The Salvatore Ferragamo Museum When I arrive in Florence, one of my first pleasures is browsing the shoe store windows and occasionally buying a pair. In all these years, somehow I didn't got to the Ferragamo Museum until 2008. The Ferragamos' 700 year old Palazzo Spini Feroni on Via Tornabuoni at the Arno River houses their retail store and museum downstairs. The museum shows you an amazing array of shoes Ferragamo made from 1927 to 1960, the year he died. He was the "shoemaker of the stars" with clients like Audrey Hepburn and the Duchess of Windsor. **End Summary** Topics: Florence tourism]]> Florence attractions]]> Ferragamo Shoe Museum]]> Florence iris gardens]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Since 1995 Margaret Cowan has owned a tour company, Mama Margaret & Friends Cooking Adventures in Italy. For a free report on finding the right Italy cooking school tour for you, see http://www.italycookingschools.com

Italy Trip Planning Tips: Save Time, Get The Best Value & Fun

Wed, 04 Feb 2009 00:00:00 -0500

Researching and planning your trip to Italy can be a monumental, time consuming task, especially if you lead a busy life with never ending To Do lists. An article I read said that lack of time to research and plan a trip prevents many people from traveling so they stay home. Here are seven steps and tips on how to reduce your Italian trip research and planning time. Life is too short not to enjoy Italy! 1. Ask yourself, "What is most important on this trip to Italy?" For example, if you want to focus on wines, spend more time in the Piedmont or Tuscany wine country and less in the big cities. If this is your first trip to Italy and you want to visit Venice, Florence and Rome, plus a cooking tour, and all are equally important to you, you could plan on two or three days in each city and a four day cooking tour. Focusing on what you really want will shorten your research time. 2. What if you don't know what regions you want to visit and what you want to do? **End Summary** Topics: Italy travel planning]]> Italy trip research]]> Italian trip planning]]> planning Italian trip]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Since 1995 Margaret Cowan has owned a tour company, Mama Margaret & Friends Cooking Adventures in Italy. For a free report on finding the right Italy cooking school tour for you, see http://www.italycookingschools.com

Less Known Aeolian Island, Filicudi: Unexpected Food And Soul Pleasures

Tue, 27 Jan 2009 00:00:00 -0500

On a late May morning on the hydrofoil in the Aeolian Islands off the northeast coast of Sicily, we were approaching the remote little island of Filicudi that looked like a rustic outpost with its tiny port. One street overlooking a stony beach ran between a high mountain and its foot hills on the right and a skinny peninsula with a lower hill on the left, all covered mainly in green Mediterranean scrub. I'd traveled to the bigger, busier Aeolian Islands of Stromboli, Vulcano, Salina and Lipari. My curiosity about the smaller, outer islands led me to explore Filicudi, a haven of tranquility of 250 residents about one hour by boat from the main island, Lipari. Little did I know Filicudi would give me unexpected pleasures. The tourist season started in two weeks, so a handful of people got off the boat. Some restaurants and bars at the almost deserted port looked closed. In the Rough Guide to Sicily, I'd discovered three star Hotel La Canna with 10 rooms in typical Aeolian style, brilliant white houses with big shaded patios overlooking the sea and a restaurant. I reserved three nights online at lacannahotel. **End Summary** Topics: Sicily travel]]> Aeolian Islands]]> Filicudi]]> travel in Sicily]]> tourism in Sicily]]> Hotel La Canna]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Since 1995 Margaret Cowan has owned a tour company, Mama Margaret & Friends Cooking Adventures in Italy. For a free report on finding the right Italy cooking school tour for you, see http://www.italycookingschools.com

Amalfi Coast Little Jewel Town, Praiano

Fri, 09 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Most tourists exploring the magnificent Amalfi Coast just south of Naples stop at the two big diamonds, Positano and Amalfi and ride right through little jewel town of Praiano, about half way between Positano and Amalfi. What a mistake! Why not stay in beautiful Praiano like I did? It's smaller, less crowded and feels less touristy than its more famous neighbours. This September I wanted to hike the mountainside pathways between Positano and Amalfi (another story for another time!) so chose Praiano as a good point between the two. A three day stay full of delights! My single room in Hotel Perla on the edge of Praiano opened on to a sunny, little balcony with good views of the coast of dry, brown and green steep mountains falling to the blue sea. Perched above the Amalfi Coast road the hotel is quiet, but you walk only a few steps to the bus stop for buses to Sorrento, Positano, Amalfi or Salerno. I enjoyed a good buffet breakfast on the sea view terrace and the convenient Internet service in the lobby. Hotel La Perla, perlahotel.it Phone: 089-874246. Doubles range from 100-150 Euros. **End Summary** Topics: Italy]]> Italy travel]]> Italian travel]]> Amalfi Coast]]> Amalfi Coast travel]]> Praiano]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Margaret Cowan of Vancouver, BC owns a tour company, Mama Margaret Italian Cooking Holidays at http://www.italycookingschools.com. They ran their first Italian cooking, wine and walking tour in 1995. Margaret and her local Italian tour partners offer tours all over Italy from Piedmont to Sicily.

How To Enjoy Your Italian Cooking School Tour To The Max

Fri, 31 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0400

You're off to Italy on a cooking school tour you've been dreaming of for years, perhaps in the magnificent Barolo wine country in Piedmont or on the east coast in Sicily with views of the Mediterranean and snow capped Mount Etna. You want to enjoy your sensual experiences in Italy to the maximum: the beauty, the countryside, food, cooking lessons, wine tastings, sightseeing excursions and visits with local people. Here are four detailed tips on getting all the joy possible out of your Italian cooking school tour, gleaned from my 12 years of experience creating and leading cooking tours in Italy. 1. Many cooking school tour members tell me, "I've eaten too much! There's too much food. I'm a food lover so how can I discipline myself when everything is SO delicious." Find out what is on your lunch or dinner menu so you can pace yourself. That way you avoid eating a lot of one course only to find three more courses are coming and you don't have room for all the wonderful food. **End Summary** Topics: Italy travel]]> Italy cooking schools]]> Italian cooking schools]]> Italian cooking tours]]> cooking schools]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Margaret Cowan of Vancouver, BC owns a tour company, Mama Margaret Italian Cooking Holidays at http://www.italycookingschools.com. They ran their first Italian cooking, wine and walking tour in 1995. Margaret and her local Italian tour partners offer cooking school tours all over Italy.

Family Business Wins Government Battles Twice: A Family Victory in Sicily

Tue, 21 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Imagine a villa set high on the hillside in Taormina, Italy on the east coast of Sicily. It's been your family's home and hotel property for generations, a villa with gardens full of hibiscus, roses and lemon trees, with magnificent 180 degree views of the Mediterranean and snow capped Mount Etna. What would you do when the government took your home and business away from you not once...but twice? This is the story of how through fierce determination the Schuler family won two battles against governments who confiscated their property in Taormina, Italy. While on an Italian cooking and volcano walking tour with Mama Margaret in Sicily recently, we stayed at lovely, pink Hotel Villa Schuler in Taormina and were awestruck by the colour and beauty surrounding us. The present hotel owner and manager, Gerhard Schuler is a quieter man, but when I said to him, "This property looks like a historic building beautifully renovated. What's the story behind it?" his face lit up. "I'll give you our book." I read "The One Hundred Year Story Of Villa Schuler" and the hotel took on a whole new character and depth. **End Summary** Topics: family business]]> entrepreneurs]]> hotel]]> Italy]]> Sicily]]> Taormina]]> cooking school]]> cooking tour]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Margaret Cowan of Vancouver, BC owns a tour company, Mama Margaret Italian Cooking Holidays at http://www.italycookingschools.com/sicily.html They ran their first Italian cooking, wine and walking tour in 1995. Margaret and her local Italian tour partners offer tours from north to south in Italy.

How To Wow The Love Of Your Life

Fri, 03 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Janett of New York City wanted to give the love of her life, Ron the surprise of his life to celebrate his 60th birthday that October. She asked him, "Would it be OK if I gave you a trip for your birthday?" Of course, it was! "Would it be OK if I didn't tell you where you were going, if I just gave you the list of things to pack?" Sure, he was happy to play along! In 2000 she'd had a fabulous time on a cooking and wine tour in Italy's Barolo wine country. The same tour company was offering a cooking, wine and walking tour in Sicily. Ron, a food importer, former Italian restaurant owner and avid cook, would love a Sicily cooking tour. In May she contacted the tour company and booked a tour in Sicily with three cooking lessons in restaurants by the sea, in the Mount Etna foothills and on the island of Stromboli. They'd also walk in the exotic, black and green volcanic foothills of Mount Etna and Stromboli, both with active volcanoes. They'd drink good Sicilian wines, eat lots of seafood and enjoy a historical tour and shopping in beautiful Taormina. **End Summary** Topics: love relationship]]> romance]]> travel]]> Italy]]> Sicily]]> cooking]]> food]]> wine]]> surprise party]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Margaret Cowan owns a tour company, Mama Margaret Italian Cooking Holidays at http://www.italycookingschools.com. They ran their first Italian cooking, wine and walking tour in 1995. Margaret and her local Italian tour partners offer tours all over Italy.

Italy Cooking School Tours: How To Choose The Right One For You

Thu, 12 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Cooking school tours in Italy and around the world have multiplied like zucchinis in a summer garden. This article tells you how to sift through the overwhelming choice of Italian cooking tours and find the right one for you, so you experience a feast for your senses, heart, mind and soul, a trip of a lifetime and avoid disappointments. A cooking holiday in Italy can add up to a big investment of time and money. Maybe you've been dreaming for years about a cooking school tour in Italy. Maybe it's a special trip to celebrate a 40th, 50, 60th birthday or a big anniversary with family and friends you love. How to choose an Italian cooking school tour that gives you the joy and value you expect? How to protect your investment in your trip? Ask yourself these 10 questions. 1. What is important to me in my Italian cooking tour? List what's important to you in your cooking tour. Read tour itineraries critically with the mind of a detective. If an itinerary seems vague, ask the tour operator detailed questions. Here are some examples of what may be important to you and what to look for in tour itineraries. **End Summary** Topics: Italy]]> travel]]> cooking tour]]> wine tour]]> culinary travel]]> cooking schools]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Margaret Cowan wrote "Your Guide to 133 Decadent Cooking Holidays in Italy", owns Mama Margaret Italian Cooking Holidays company, has run cooking tours since 1995 & has traveled to Italy for 30 years. For more questions to ask, click "Free Report" at http://www.italycookingschools.com

How To Meet Local People in Italy and Celebrate Life's Milestones In A Special Way

Sat, 30 Jun 2007 00:00:00 -0400

An Italian cooking tour is actually a cultural immersion adventure for your mind, senses and soul. You get to know a wide variety of local people and experience a range of places off the tourist track. You cook with restaurant chefs or good home cooks right in their kitchens. In private visits, you learn about and taste wines, cheese, olive oil or balsamic vinegar with the producers in their cellars, small factories or gardens. You look for truffles with hunters and their dogs in the forest. You dine with families on their farms. You can also shop for treasures in medieval hill towns, walk magnificent country paths by the sea or vineyards, admire Byzantine architecture in Ravenna, relax on a boat ride on the Riviera or watch an active volcano in Sicily spew its fire into the night sky. A Sample Of Experiences On Italian Cooking Tours Imagine yourself on a warm evening out on a deck in Piedmont in north west Italy, surrounded by vineyards spilling down slopes at all angles, covering green hills fading into the distance, drinking young, fruity Dolcetto and laughing with friends. **End Summary** Topics: Italy]]> travel]]> cooking tour]]> wine tour]]> culinary travel]]> cooking schools]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Margaret Cowan of Vancouver, BC owns a tour company, Mama Margaret Italian Cooking Holidays at http://www.italycookingschools.com. They ran their first Italian cooking and wine tour in 1995 and now offer tours all over Italy.