11 July 2006

An Italy travel nightmare

On the one hand it's reassuring to read about other travellers' holiday nightmares ... but if you're a pessimist or a nervous traveller they only add to your fears.

Read a funny article in the Times by Giles Coren, whose hire-car problems marooned him in the staggeringly expensive Hotel Splendido in Portofino (no, we've never heard of a meal that expensive in Italy either... although it could have been the cocktails which pushed the price up).
>Hotel Splendido: "Two bowls of pasta, a pizza and a bottle of the house white for a hundred and fifty quid!"
> More about posh Portofino

9 July 2006

JOY FOR ITALY: World Cup victory at last


After years of heartbreak Italy have finally won the World Cup! For once, a penalty shootout has gone Italy's way. It may not have been the most fulfilling or artistic way to win, but Italy have earned these celebrations. Fans of Italian football can now spend a few hours rejoicing before the home scandal takes over the headlines tomorrow. Congratulations to the whole squad for some superb perfomances throughout this tournament.
> BBC World Cup final match report
As the Italian anthem echoes around the stadium in Berlin, we're all off to celebrate.