BEAVERS

BEAVERS

Mar 24, 2025 | ENVIRONMENT, WORLD

Beavers live where there is enough water to dive, they build the entrance to their burrows underwater for greater safety, then if the water level is not sufficient, they build a dam.

We learnt the ‘beaver – dam’ association of thought from an early age, do you remember any cartoons in particular?

I mention cartoons because the beavers I want to talk about are definitely characters.

The beavers I want to talk about live in Brdy in the Czech Republic.

The name of this area: Brdy comes from brdo meaning hill, precisely because it is a hilly/mountainous and wooded area.

The presence of a military zone in this area meant that the area was not affected by any urbanisation, thus preserving the naturalistic aspect: flora and fauna.

Having become an environmentally protected landscape for Brdy, it had become necessary to repair a drainage canal built by the army and restore the wetlands.

Huge and extremely expensive works, the plans for which had run aground under the weight of bureaucracy and waiting for appropriations.

But the beavers magically solved the issue by building a dam!

Zero cost and a great lesson to be learned.

Nature teaches us about life in harmonious balance.

‘Beavers always know what is best. The places where they build dams are always chosen in the right way, better than when we design them on paper,’ these words are from Jaroslav Obermajer, head of the Central Bohemia office of the Czech Agency for the Protection of Nature and Landscape (AOPK). 

What can I say?

I would use the words of Jules Verne:
Nature’s creative power is far beyond man’s instinct of destruction.

Do you know another similar case?

I NEVER FORGET TO CALL YOU LOVE

I NEVER FORGET TO CALL YOU LOVE

Feb 3, 2024 | BOOKS

Non mi dimentico mai di chiamarti amore (I never forget to call you love) is the sylloge published by Parallelo45 for which I surely “won’t forget” to thank Carmelo Cossa and Manuale di Mari. 

February has arrived, the month of Valentine’s Day, the most famous romantic occasion, just as romantic is the author’s soul.

Carmelo Cossa is immediately striking in the way he declares his love: love for poetry.

So Poetry becomes the way for expressing the idealisation of love as a totally harmonising expression of feeling.

The author is like a knight of the dolce stil novo, even though life has taken him far from his roots.

Reading the poems in Non dimentico mai di chiamarti amore (I never forget to call you love) I had a strong sense of how the journey from his homeland to the place that would offer him fulfilment was a key element for Carmelo.

Among my favourite poems:

Con il cuore appeso (With the Hanging Heart) because I found myself in the concept of a night grip and also in the comparison of a shredded cloth stretched out in the sun.

Natura e vita (Nature and Life) because I found the personification of nature in the first person a metaphor capable of giving a powerful sense of flow, vitality and harmony.

Magia di vita (Magic of life) for the concept of the ‘beginning again’ of the cycle of the seasons that repeat, but even more so, relive.

Speaking of his Poetry, Carmelo Cossa also quotes Rita Levi Montalcini:

it is better to add life to days than days to life

thus capturing the mark of what I would dare to call a life mission for him: he lives for poetry and makes poetry alive.

So I invite you to pause on Non mi dimentico mai di chiamarti amore (I never forget to call you love) and to think about to which ‘love’ your life is dedicated.

BUBBLE HOTEL

BUBBLE HOTEL

Jul 22, 2023 | WHO CARES

Bubble Hotel, yes, literally bubble, because that’s what it’s all about.

Summer, vacation time.

Remember I told you about Nest in the Park? 

We are no longer in Lomellina, but we remain in places dear to me without basically straying very far while also staying in the realm of experiential tourism.

Bubble Hotel i.e., a relatively new type of accommodation that has grown in popularity in recent years.

 

These are essentially structures made of transparent material that allow guests to sleep under the stars and enjoy the natural environment around them.

A solution that combines the feeling of freedom and immersion of camping, with the luxurious comforts of a hotel room.

 

Gianluca Torre, with his trademark enthusiasm, explains the features of a Bubble Dome in Borgo Ticino in this video shows the features of a Bubble Dome in Borgo Ticino.

In general, these immersive igloos are scattered a bit all over the world: mountains, desert, northern lights latitudes …

The visual spectacle offered is not limited to stars but ranges over everything Nature gives, even snow for example.

 

What do you think?
Would you like to have an experience “in a bubble?”

Might it seem disturbing or poetic to you?

The sky grew darker, painted blue on blue, one stroke at a time, into deeper and deeper shades of night.
Haruki Murakami

 

NEST IN THE PARK

NEST IN THE PARK

Aug 7, 2022 | ENVIRONMENT, WHO CARES

If I say Nest in the Park, what do you think?

Specifically: Ticino Park, which I have already told you about. 

Could it be a nest in the park for Ibis? 

Or a nest in the park for them?

What about a den?

Maybe for the hare or for some other being that wanders around … 

No: Nest in the Park is an Eco-camp, to be precise it is the first Italian Tentsile Experience Camp.

What does this mean?

It means camping tents suspended in the trees for a total immersion experience in Nature.

What do you think about?

Can you imagine waking up and having a coffee in the heart, in an actual sense, of the Ticino Park?

Or, more generally, what is your ideal vacation?

Journey? 

Adventure or comfort? 

City  or countryside? 

I grew up experiencing camping vacations, not as extreme as the Park Nest, but equally significant enough to occupy a special place among the memories of the heart.

 

Of course, it’s all different now, we no longer talk about camping but glamping, and it seems light years from the time when postcards were sent …

And by the way, I’ve come a long way too, literally.

With my husband, holiday transformed: from the static “camping” to mile-long walks to visit as many places as possible.

Besides Paris I would mention Umbria.

But what about you? What holiday can you tell me about?

THE WITCHES SEED

THE WITCHES SEED

Jul 17, 2022 | A COFFEE WITH, MUSIC, MUSIC, ROCK, ROCK, A COFFEE WITH

The witches seed is a title catching me immediately.

I was struck, as I often am, by the word witches, before I even found out that The witches seed is a rock opera inspired by a true story.

I was struck, as always, by the word rock, before I even found out that the music is by Stewart Copeland.

No need to specify who Stewart Copeland is  right?

After all, there are not very many legendary drummers.

And don’t miss this his I need coffee … Bali coffee rocks

 

sugar aside, I’m happy!!!

The witches seed where could it be represented if not in nature?

Tones theater Nature is great project of Tones on the Stones, which through a path of environmental redevelopment has begun to transform the former industrial site of Cava Roncino into a permanent Theater immersed in nature.

Magical isn’t it?

Yet that’s not all: some of the songs were written by Chrissie Hynde, another name that certainly needs no introduction, yet we can call Chrissie one of us about coffee.

Indeed, in this tweet she writes: as if I realized that over the years I would become a bit of a coffee snob. Easy to do with this new coffee culture we have embraced. But when I read Patti Smith’s tribute to Sam Shepherd, I noticed that she was referring to a cup of Nescafé when Sam called in the middle of the night.It was on my mind for a few months and I realized I was going to be a coffee snob. Surely if it’s good enough for Patti Smith, it’s good enough for me.
Now I make myself a cup of powdered coffee and get on with my day.

What to say?

If instant coffee is good enough for the great …

Speaking of great, the main performer of The witches seed will be Irene Grandi.

Besides year and month of birth, we share
Before to disagree
Try listening a little more ...

Unheard certainly have been all women tried and convicted of witchcraft, and The witches seed is inspired by a true story based on the writing of Jonathan Moore.

So let’s recap the ingredients:

– mix of Ossola Valley and immersive set projections by Edvige Faini

– mix of real-life characters and fantasy enrichments

– mix between rock and opera by the Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Eimear Noone

– mix between the pop rock imprint of Irene Grandi and the caliber of two sopranos: Maddalena Calderoni and Veronica Granatiero

– mix of Manfred Schweigklofer’s direction and Nemo Academy’s digital arts

what do you say, could that be enough?

But no: there are other really special weaves, and they are the Intreccincantiere promoted by Manifattura di Domodossola in collaboration with Lineapelle to enhance Made in Italy design and creative art, which will give a totally unique touch to the costumes.

So: July 22 and 23, The witches seed, save the date. 

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