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NEWS

Finds, fakes, and fines

  The street trader scoops up posters from the ancient, cobbled streets of Florence like a black-jack croupier; lifting the cards in one fell swoop–each tiny shard of stiffened paper ...

COMMUNITY

The ‘Grassroots Mission’ of the U.S. Consulate

Most people who have spent some time in Florence are aware of the existence of the U.S. Consulate here. Some may have even used it for official reasons; for reporting lost passports, obtaining visas for entry into the U.S., for voting abroad in U.S. elections, etc. Or,

NEWS

Lurking in the shadows – Italy’s other economy

Italians call it the economia sommersa – the ‘submerged economy.’ There are umpteen methods for calculating it, just as many definitions and pseudonyms for it, and a variety of takes on its significance in the bel paese. With most estimates pointing at a value in the range of

COMMUNITY

Everybody outdoors

If you are anything like me you will have taken a look through your Florence guidebook on the flight over. Trying to be ‘good,’ I start with the section about the history of the city, but eventually the temptation to skip straight to the section on shopping or

NEWS

Organized crime still a force in the south

A wave of tit-for-tat executions has recently engulfed Naples, southern Italy’s main metropolis. The Camorra, the mafia-like criminal organization that controls large swathes of the city and other towns in Campania has been wracked by internal conflict since a splinter group of “Scissionisti”

NEWS

Vatican trivia

Vat Stats The Vatican became a city-state on February 11, 1929. It has 900 citizens and 3000 employees, including 100 Swiss Guards. One third of the Vatican is covered in gardens. Facilities include: a helipad, train station, hotel, radio station and post office.   Over 60 popes are buried

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