PASSPORT CHECK: with Giuseppe Pastorelli, Italian consul general in Boston
We know that diplomats travel a lot for work. They shuttle around the world to various postings like pawns in a global game of chess. But where do these travel savvy nomads like to go to unplug from the whirl of diplomatic obligations?
I asked the Italian consul general of Boston, Giuseppe Pastorelli, to open his passport and share his favorite overseas destinations.
Q. Do you have a favorite place or two where you like to vacation?
A. Italy, of course. Rome, my hometown, is my favorite place in Italy. When in Rome, I suggest you do as the Romans do, stroll around the city center, relax, enjoy. My wife and I love the countryside in Tuscany and Umbria. And when we want to go to the seaside, we enjoy going to the Amalfi Coast.
Q. Do you have a favorite town you like to go in the countryside?
A. A place we really like between Florence and Siena is, in fact, owned by an American. It is called Castello del Nero. It is a beautiful estate on the hills of Tuscany.
Q. What is your perfect day there?
A. You sleep at Castello del Nero, you enjoy the infinity swimming pool overlooking the Tuscan Hills, and you have a spa treatment. Then you take the car on a short trip to the ancient village of Badia a Passignano where you can have one of the best meals ever in a wine cellar, Osteria di Passignano, owned by the Antinori family, one of the oldest winemakers in Italy, and it’s done — you don’t need anything else.
Q. Where do you like to go on the seaside?
A. On the Amalfi Coast, you have a lot of possibilities — most recently we went to a small hotel called Relais Blu, which has a nice atmosphere, in the town of Massa Lubrense. It has a huge terrace overlooking Capri; it looks like you can touch the island.
Q. What is it that you look for in a vacation?
A. I look for a few things. I feel the need to reconnect with my country, to spend some days in Italy to enjoy that kind of lifestyle that I’m used to (even though I enjoy traveling in the US). You need a mental escape, to reimmerse in your own culture.
Q. What advice do you have for New Englanders in terms of international travel?
A. I suggest going to Europe in general, not only to beautiful countries like Italy and France, but also to smaller places, like Krakow, Poland — you’ll see a small, lovely city — or Budapest, where you’ll see the capital of an old empire. Or if you travel to a small town in Provence, you really experience the French lifestyle. In the end, however, I suggest you come to Italy.
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