Dream of Italy

What if the place you feel called to live is written into your birth chart before you ever book the flight? Might explain why so many of us love Italy! Astrologer Helena Woods joins Dream of Italy Podcast Host Kathy McCabe to explain astrocartography, a specialized branch of astrology that maps where on Earth your planetary influences are strongest. Helena breaks down what the technique reveals and how it differs from a standard birth chart, then pulls up Kathy's own astrocartography map live on the episode. She identifies three power lines running through Italy, including a Jupiter line through Bologna, Parma, Verona, Venice, Milan and Turin tied to confidence and joy, a Mercury line connected to relationships and social connection, and a Neptune career line linked to media work, while flagging why the Florence and Livorno latitude carries more friction for her chart specifically. The conversation moves well beyond travel planning into how Helena uses astrocartography and geodetic mapping to understand why certain places feel stuck or activating, including her own decision to leave the United States and build her career after relocating to France. She walks through practical tools for anyone curious about applying this to their own life, from finding an accurate birth time through chart rectification to identifying Venus and Jupiter lines on a free astrology site. Helena also shares her read on a major planetary transit affecting the United States this summer. For viewers weighing a move abroad, whether to Italy or anywhere else in the world, this episode offers a genuinely different lens on the decision, one rooted in timing, placement and personal history rather than guesswork. What does your chart say about where you belong? Show notes: http://www.dreamofitaly.com/22

American Joe Reagan bought a 24,000€ house in a hilltop town in Abruzzo with 750 people, moved his wife and four kids from Ireland, enrolled them directly into the Italian school system, and has not looked back. Three years in, they love their life in Abruzzo and are Joe is working to help other families move to their town for a better quality of life in Italy. Dream of Italy Podcast Host Kathy McCabe sits down with Joe to talk about his new initiative to bring families to Celenza sul Trigno, Abruzzo, a town that has lost nearly half of its population in the last 35 years. He talks about the school system, where his kids got dedicated Italian lessons pulled from class for the first year and were fluent by the end of it, and where his eight-year-old daughter now sounds out English words with Italian vowels because that is simply how her brain learned to read. He gets into healthcare, where the pediatrician takes appointments by WhatsApp and the new family doctor was messaging his wife back within minutes of being contacted. He also gives an honest account of what small town tradeoffs look like, the nearest Costco equivalent is thirty minutes away and the bureaucracy moves at its own pace, and why he thinks the mindset shift matters in moving to rural Italy more than any practical obstacle. The conversation ends with Joe describing a Sunday spent picking wildflowers with the other fathers from the First Communion class to make decorations for the street procession. Neighbors knock on the door with fresh cherries. His son who used to be dragged to school in Ireland now has his grembiule on and his lunch bag packed before anyone else is awake. Show notes: http://www.dreamofitaly.com/20

I believe in Italy. I'm betting on Italy. Italy has saved me again and again. It has been my constant. And I believe in dreams and their ability to become reality. As Italy begins to slowly open up and the future still remains uncertain, all we can hold onto these days are our dreams…so let's write about and talk about our Italian dreams! I know Dream of Italy viewers, readers and listeners have had some of the most incredible experiences in Italy. We've published 170 issues of our award-winning travel publication but YOU know about so many hidden gems that I (or the fabulous contributors to our publication) don't know about and what better time to share them!? For years, I have dreamed of putting together a crowdsourced issue of Dream of Italy and now that we also have the Dream of Italy Podcast, for those who don't like to write but can talk (haha), we're compiling a crowdsourced podcast episode as well. I need your help. There's no better time to share our love for Italy and get lost in a little project that has us digging deep into great memories. Please submit a 350-word articles, series of photos, recipe or podcast soundbite up to 40 seconds long on the theme of When I Dream of Italy, I Dream of… to potentially be included in our issue or episode. The deadline is May 20, 2020. For more details, visit www.dreamofialy.com/sharemydream

Have you ever thought about packing up, leaving your life as you know it, and moving to Italy? Frances Mayes, author of Under The Tuscan Sun, did just that when she and her husband Ed purchased a villa in the hilltop Tuscan town of Cortona, resulting in a bestselling book and movie! Frances recently joined Kathy in filming the Dream of Italy: Tuscan Sun Special for PBS Host Kathy McCabe visited with Frances again at her iconic home Bramasole, to talk specifically about the challenges and rewards of the growing trend of moving to Italy. They discuss: + What one thing you must do before deciding to move to Italy + Why restoring a house can help you learn to speak Italian + Where else Frances would live in Italy if not in Cortona + Why "the piazza" is the most important place in Italy + How and why Frances splits her time between the U.S. and Cortona + What Frances enjoyed most about filming the Dream of Itay: Tuscan Sun Special + What you simply must when you visit Cortona + And much much more!

As in most any society, the women have the power – at least in the kitchen. Have you ever dreamed of learning to cook in a traditional Italian kitchen? Tuscan Women Cook, in the small Tuscan village of Montefollonico, brings travelers to Tuscany for hands-on learning in the kitchens of the masters – Tuscan grandmothers or nonni. Host Kathy McCabe pays a visit to Montefollonico to meet owner Coleen Kirnan and nonna Laurello Torresi to learn the secrets of how Tuscan Women Cook. They discuss: + How American Coleen came to own a cooking school in Tuscany + Why Montefollonico is off the tourist map + How experiencing authentic Italian life is the best travel experience + Why Italian recipes usually only have a few ingredients + How Tuscan cuisine (cucina povera) is tied to the region's poor roots + How to make panzanella, gnocchi and riccarelli biscotti + What the secret ingredient is for the best fried zucchini flowers + And much much more! Click here for show notes

Italians simply love children and that's one reason that Italy is an amazing destination for family travel and multi-generational trips. Our friend Rosanne Cofoid of La Dolce Via Travel is an expert at planning family trips to Italy. Host Kathy McCabe and Rosanne really get into some very specific travel tips which you will want to take note of, even if you don't have kids. They discuss: + What age is the right age to take your children to Italy + How to use the pace of the Italian day to plan your itinerary + What to look for in a hotel or villa rental and specific recommendations in Florence, Venice, Rome + How Italy is a great choice for kids who have food allergies + What one thing to keep in mind each day + Whether you should rent a car or not + Why your kids will remember this trip forever + And much much more! You are going to want to review all of the suggestions and tips we share so click here for show notes

You might know Italy travel expert Kathy McCabe from her PBS TV travel series Dream of Italy as well as the award-winning travel publication and membership website Dream of Italy that she founded in 2002. Now Kathy is launching this new podcast to help feed all of our Italian dreams - whether we are dreaming of moving to Italy or designing an authentic, once-in-a-lifetime Kathy explains how her own Dream of Italy was born at a dining room table in New Jersey listening to her grandfather's own dream of seeing his father's hometown of Castelvetere sul Calore in southern Italy. Kathy's mission to fulfill his dream takes magical and tragic twists and turns and leads her to founding Dream of Italy as a travel and living resource for all of us who dream of Italy. Our new podcast will mostly be produced on the road in Italy where we talk to Italians and expats alike.