Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Info on Notice

NOTICE

It is taking me longer to migrate my previous blog entries from Moving2Italy2 to this blog. I regret this delay. Therefore, I am asking my readers to go to Moving2Italy2 for current blog entries about Tuscany and Italy.

Here are two blog entries from that blog that I am updating on a regular basis:
  1. Info on 2009 Events and Festivals (feste or sagre) in Toscana (Tuscany)
  2. Info on some of my blog entries (URLs) for Tuscany/Toscana, Italy

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Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Info on webcams in Tuscany/Toscana, Italy

Here are some links for webcams in Tuscany/Toscana, Italy:

WEBCAMS IN SOME CITIES OF TUSCANY/TOSCANA
WEBCAMS ACROSS TUSCANY/TOSCANA
  • Tuscany – views from 60 webcams (+ or - on any given day) in Tuscany – Source: Webcam Galore – In English, German, Italian
  • Tuscany – "WebCams Weather Forecasts" – views from 95 weather webcams (+ or - on any given day) in Tuscany – Source: Italy section of The Globe Holidays Project – In multiple languages
  • Webcam in Toscana – This portion of the web site is In Italian Only – Source: intoscana.it – "Official Tuscany Web Site" – In multiple languages
MISCELLANEOUS
* = Blog entry has been updated.

For your specific interest, please search the web for further information using Google .

The above links as of this date are/were current. If anyone has any suggestions for any other additional web sites and/or links for reference, please feel free to post your comment and I'll update this blog entry.

Please note: If you want me to reply to your comment or request any further information by email, please include your email address in a separate comment. I will NOT publish any comments with an email address in it.

Broken links: Since November, 2005, I have written over 300+ blog entries with 1,000's of corresponding links/URLs for Moving2Italy2, covering a varied and wide range of topics. In the event that you come across a broken link or a non-functioning link/URL, please post a comment and report the non-functional link. I wish to thank you in advance for assisting me in the ongoing maintenance and the updating of this successful and informative blog.

That's it for Wednesday, 9 September 2009: mercoledì, 9 settembre 2009

Ciao, Ben

Moving2Italy2 – #1 source of links About, For or On Italy for those individuals moving, traveling or already living in Italy.

Today’s quote is an Italian proverb, author unknown.
"Dimmi chi sono, no chi era."
"Tell me who I am, not who I was."

Please read my wife's blog about our life with photographs in Italy:

Friends and Family in Italy

Going to Spain, read my new blog:

Info About, For or On Spain – a source of links About, For or On Spain for those individuals traveling or already living in Spain.

Please note: The time listed below for this posting is Central European Time (CET)/ GMT+1.
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Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Info on outlets in Tuscany/Toscana, Italy

Here are some links for outlets in Tuscany/Toscana, Italy:

OUTLET CENTERS/MALLS – MULTIPLE STORES
  • THE | MALL – LOCATION: Exit Incisa off of the A1, direction Pontassieve/Leccio – south of Firenze/Florence – In Arabic, Chinese, English, French. German, Italian, Japanese, Russian, Spanish
    • From the Home Page, please click on "THE LOCATION"
  • McArthurGlen Barberino Outlet – LOCATION: Exit Barberino del Mugello off of the A1, direction Barberino del Mugello (FI) – north of Firenze/Florence – In English, Italian
  • Valdichiana Outlet Village – Please check web site for hours of operation – LOCATION: Exit Valdichiana off of the A1, direction Foiano della Chiana (AR) – south of Firenze/Florence – In English, German, Italian
INDIVIDUAL OUTLETS
  • Prada (I Pellettieri d'Italia) – Please scroll down to store name – Location: Levanella (AR), località of Montevarchi – Source: Tuscany shopping subsection of TUSCANY within the DESTINATIONS section of concierge.com – "inspired travel starts here"
  • PRATESI – Men and Women's shoes
    • Locations in Tuscany: Ambra (AR), Radda in Chianti (SI), Monteriggioni (SI)
LISTS
BLOG ENTRIES/DISCUSSIONS
MISCELLANEOUS
* = Blog entry has been updated.

If anyone has any suggestions for other sites and links for reference, please feel free to post your comment and I'll update this blog entry. For your specific interest, please search the web for further information using Google

Please note: If you want me to reply to your comment or request any further information by email, please include your email address in a separate comment. I will NOT publish any comments with an email address in it.

That's it for Wednesday, 26 August 2009: mercoledì, 26 agosto 2009

Ciao, Ben

Moving2Italy2 – #1 source of links About, For or On Italy for those individuals moving, traveling or already living in Italy.

Today’s quote is an Italian proverb, author unknown.
"Ogni medaglia ha il suo rovescio."
"There are two sides to every coin."

Please read my wife's blog about our life with photographs in Italy:

Friends and Family in Italy

Going to Spain, read my new blog:

Info About, For or On Spain – a source of links About, For or On Spain for those individuals traveling or already living in Spain.

Please note: The time listed below for this posting is Central European Time (CET)/ GMT+1.
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Info on outlets in Tuscany/Toscana, Italy

Here are some links for outlets in Tuscany/Toscana, Italy:

OUTLET CENTERS/MALLS – MULTIPLE STORES
  • THE | MALL – LOCATION: Exit Incisa off of the A1, direction Pontassieve/Leccio – south of Firenze/Florence – In Arabic, Chinese, English, French. German, Italian, Japanese, Russian, Spanish
    • From the Home Page, please click on "THE LOCATION"
  • McArthurGlen Barberino Outlet – LOCATION: Exit Barberino del Mugello off of the A1, direction Barberino del Mugello (FI) – north of Firenze/Florence – In English, Italian
  • Valdichiana Outlet Village – Please check web site for hours of operation – LOCATION: Exit Valdichiana off of the A1, direction Foiano della Chiana (AR) – south of Firenze/Florence – In English, German, Italian
INDIVIDUAL OUTLETS
  • Prada (I Pellettieri d'Italia) – Please scroll down to store name – Location: Levanella (AR), località of Montevarchi – Source: Tuscany shopping subsection of TUSCANY within the DESTINATIONS section of concierge.com – "inspired travel starts here"
  • PRATESI – Men and Women's shoes
    • Locations in Tuscany: Ambra (AR), Radda in Chianti (SI), Monteriggioni (SI)
LISTS
BLOG ENTRIES/DISCUSSIONS
MISCELLANEOUS
* = Blog entry has been updated.

If anyone has any suggestions for other sites and links for reference, please feel free to post your comment and I'll update this blog entry. For your specific interest, please search the web for further information using Google

Please note: If you want me to reply to your comment or request any further information by email, please include your email address in a separate comment. I will NOT publish any comments with an email address in it.

That's it for Wednesday, 26 August 2009: mercoledì, 26 agosto 2009

Ciao, Ben

Moving2Italy2 – #1 source of links About, For or On Italy for those individuals moving, traveling or already living in Italy.

Today’s quote is an Italian proverb, author unknown.
"Ogni medaglia ha il suo rovescio."
"There are two sides to every coin."

Please read my wife's blog about our life with photographs in Italy:

Friends and Family in Italy

Going to Spain, read my new blog:

Info About, For or On Spain – a source of links About, For or On Spain for those individuals traveling or already living in Spain.

Please note: The time listed below for this posting is Central European Time (CET)/ GMT+1.
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Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Info on venues for "English" language movies and cinema in Tuscany/Toscana, Italy

(LAST EDITED/UPDATED: 5 September 2009)

Here are some links on venues (places to go) for "English" language movies and cinema in Tuscany/Toscana, Italy:

LOCATIONS
MISCELLANEOUS
* = Blog entry has been updated.

For your specific interest, please search the web for further information using Google .

The above links as of this date are/were current. If anyone has any suggestions for any other additional web sites and/or links for reference, please feel free to post your comment and I'll update this blog entry.

Please note: If you want me to reply to your comment or request any further information by email, please include your email address in a separate comment. I will NOT publish any comments with an email address in it.

Broken links: Since November, 2005, I have written over 300+ blog entries with 1,000's of corresponding links/URLs for Moving2Italy2, covering a varied and wide range of topics. In the event that you come across a broken link or a non-functioning link/URL, please post a comment and report the non-functional link. I wish to thank you in advance for assisting me in the ongoing maintenance and the updating of this successful and informative blog.

That's it for Wednesday, 19 August 2009: mercoledì, 19 agosto 2009

Ciao, Ben

Moving2Italy2 – #1 source of links About, For or On Italy for those individuals moving, traveling or already living in Italy.

Today’s quote is an Italian proverb, author unknown.
"Essi sincero e vai con Dio."
"Be sincere and go with God."

Please read my wife's blog about our life in Italy:

Friends and Family in Italy

Going to Spain, read my new blog:

Info About, For or On Spain – a source of links About, For or On Spain for those individuals traveling or already living in Spain.

Please note: The time listed below for this posting is Central European Time (CET)/ GMT+1.

(LAST EDITED/UPDATED: 5 September 2009)
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Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Info on food and grocery stores (chain) in Tuscany/Toscana, Italy

(LAST EDITED/UPDATED: 17 August 2009)

Here are some links for food and grocery stores (supermarket retail chain operation) in Tuscany/Toscana, Italy:

FOOD AND GROCERY STORES (AKA SUPERMERCATI)
  • LISTS
    • Business - Grocery shopping – Source: intoscana.it – "Official Tuscany Web Site " – In Chinese, English, French, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish
    • Hyper, Super and Minimarkets – Source: Tuscany Net
      • NOTE: The lists above and the following section titled, "GROCERY STORES" are for medium to large chain food retailers in Tuscany and Italy. They are NOT an "alimentari" which is a small neighborhood grocery store (mom and pop or independent grocery store operation).
    • Supermercati - Centri Commerciali – This listing is In Italian Only – Source: TuscanyPass.com – "Getting the most out of Tuscany" – English version / Saimicadove.it – "Il Portale per Vivere la Toscana" – Italian Version
      • NOTE: This specific listing contains grocery/food stores of all sizes and some are not associated with medium to large scale retail chain operation. This listing is from the Italian version of the web site.
  • GROCERY STORES IN TUSCANY/IOSCANA: MEDIUM TO LARGE SCALE RETAIL CHAIN OPERATION – Please note: The physical size of the store ranges from small (store front) to very large either stand-alone building or located in a commercial center
    • Carrefour Italia – In Italian Only – Subsidiary of Carrefour
      • On the main page, please click on the "Carrefour" logo at the bottom of the page and then on the next screen, please click on "Dove Siamo" (Where we are) on the dark blue information bar. On the next screen, position your cursor over the Toscana (Tuscany region) and click once. Please position your cursor over the flashing "Carrefour" logo for the address, map location, hours of operation, driving directions, etc. of the Carrefour store in that city.
    • Conad – In Italian Only
      • On the main page, please click on "Scegli la tua provincia" (You choose your province)
    • COOP, iperCOOP (COOP Italia) – In Italian Only
      • On the main page, please click on "Scegli la tua provincia" (You choose your province)
      • PLEASE NOTE: Not all COOPs are the same and it can be confusing because the name is the same on all the signs you see and products that you buy in the specific store read COOP. Each COOP or iperCOOP belongs to a cooperative group, e.g., Unicoop Firenze, Coop Centro Italia, etc. and the various COOPs issue loyalty cards for their specific cooperative. Which means if you paid a one-time fee of €25 for a loyalty card for just one person at the COOP (Coop Centro Italia) in Cortona (AR), it is not valid at the iperCOOP (Unicoop Firenze) in Arezzo less than 32 KMs (20 miles) away. Be sure that if you purchase a COOP loyalty card, it is from the COOP that you do the most shopping at. Unlike in the USA, where you get multiple loyalty cards for family members and they are valid across the State or the nation, in Italy, it is entirely different situation.
    • DESPAR centro italia – In Italian Only – DESPAR ITALIA – part of SPAR INTERNATIONAL
      • Includes DESPAR or EUROSPAR stores
      • From the DESPAR centro italia web page, under "punti vendita" (sale points AKA store locations), please select the "province" in Tuscany/Toscana that you live in and after the screen refreshes, please select the "comune" that you live in, then a page of stores (results) will appear. Please select the store closest to you or the one that you want to go to.
    • DIMEGLIO – In Italian Only –
      • On the main page under "Trova il supermercato più vicino", please enter your "Comune, località..." and press "Trove" (find)
      • In the event it doesn't find your location, another screen will appear with the words "TROVA IL SUPERMERCATO DIMEGLIO PIU VINCINO A CASA TUA" on it and a map of regions where DIMEGLIO has stores located. Please enter your "Regione" (region), "Provincia" (province) and "Località" (locality) OR "Comune/Località" and press "Cerca" (ENTER/RETURN on your keyboard).
    • Esselunga – Primarily in Italian with some pages in English
      • On the main page, please click on "Punti vendita" (sale points AKA store locations) and then click on "Dove trovarci, quando siamo aperti" (Where to find to us, when we are open)
    • EuroSpin Group – "is the largest Italian group in the discount food channel."
      • On the main page, please click on "DOVE SIAMO" (Where we are). On the next screen, position your cursor over the Toscana (Tuscany region) and click once. Please position your cursor over the city on the Toscana region map and click once for the address, hours of operation, map location, driving directions, etc. of the store in that city.
    • LIDL – In Italian Only – discount supermarket chain, originated in Germany
      • For stores close to where you live, please click on "Lidl più vicino" on the lower right-side of the Home Page and enter your city and/or your C.A.P. AKA postal code (zipcode)
    • Pam – In Italian Only
      • On the main page, please click on "dove siamo" (Where we are)
    • Penny Market – In Italian Only – discount supermarket chain, originated in Germany
      • On main page, please click on Negozi (Stores)
    • Midal S.p.a Distribuzione Alimentari – In Italian Only
      • Includes Gusto sidis, sidisMini, sidis, MaxiSidis, superSidis , Ipersidis, IPERSHOP, Pantamarket
    • CEDI SISA CENTRO NORD – part of SISA – In Italian Only
      • On the main page, please click on "Supermercati" (Supermarkets). On the next screen, with the words "Punti Vendita" (sale points AKA store locations) on it. under the word "PROVINCIA", please select the Italian province you want to go to and press "Conferma" (Confirmation). When the name of the store appears on the next screen, click on the red button with the words "Vai a Scheda" on it, the address and phone numbers for the store will appear on the screen.
    • Sma S.p.A. – In Italian Only – part of Group Auchan – In English, French
      • On the main page, please click on "I nostri Supermercati" (Our Supermarkets). On the next screen, position your cursor over the word "Toscana" (Tuscany region) and click once. Please position your cursor over the name of the province on the Toscana region map and click once for the address, hours of operation, etc. of the store in that province.
        • Includes Punto,
    • STANDA SUPERMERCATI – In Italian Only
      • On the main page, please click on "punti vendita" (sale points AKA store locations in Tuscany and other regions in Italy). On the next screen, position your cursor over the word "Toscana" (Tuscany region) and click once. Please position your cursor over the red ball with the letter "i" in white on it next to the city in the province for information about the store, which days the specific store is open and hours of operation
RELATED INFORMATION
MISCELLANEOUS
* = Blog entry has been updated.

If anyone has any suggestions for other sites and links for reference, please feel free to post your comment and I'll update this blog entry. For your specific interest, please search the web for further information using Google

Please note: If you want me to reply to your comment or request any further information by email, please include your email address in a separate comment. I will NOT publish any comments with an email address in it.

This blog entry is about supermarket retail food chain operation. These stores come in a variety of sizes.

That's it for Wednesday, 12 August 2009: mercoledì, 12 agosto 2009

Ciao, Ben

Moving2Italy2 – #1 source of links About, For or On Italy for those individuals moving, traveling or already living in Italy.

Today’s quote is an Italian proverb, author unknown.
"E' piu facile sposarsi male che mangiare bene."
"It's easier to end up in a bad marriage than to eat well. "

Please read my wife's blog about our life with photographs in Italy:

Friends and Family in Italy

Going to Spain, read my new blog:

Info About, For or On Spain – a source of links About, For or On Spain for those individuals traveling or already living in Spain.

Please note: The time listed below for this posting is Central European Time (CET)/ GMT+1.

(LAST EDITED/UPDATED: 17 August 2009)
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Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Info about refueling your rental car in Tuscany/Toscana and the rest of Italy

(LAST EDITED/UPDATED: 16 August 2009)

Here are some links for refueling your rental car in Tuscany/Toscana and the rest of Italy:

REFUELING RENTAL CARS
  • Be sure to use and select the right fuel for your specific rental vehicle. If you have any doubts or questions (even, if you are at the right type of fuel pump for your rental car), please ask the service station attendant. In Italy, the attendant may be male or female.
    • The words at the service station for diesel are gasoil or diesel. There is a super and pricier diesel but your rental car does not usually require it unless specifically stated.
    • The words for lead free gasoline are “senza piombo benzina”.
  • Along the Autostrata, the service stations usually have an attendant that will operate the appropriate fuel pump. However, it is your responsibility to insure the attendant is pumping the right fuel type into your rental vehicle.
  • If you see the words, “Fai Da Te”, it means self service and you operate the fuel pump yourself. There is a "cassa" (cashier) located inside the service station and they can answer most questions. However, these individual may only speak Italian.
AFTER HOURS AND SUNDAY OPERATION AT SERVICE STATIONS
  • Depending on where you are, please be aware when refueling the rental/lease car on Sunday and after 7:00 PM (19:00) or there abouts at night, your American credit may not work. If you are on the Autostrada (Italy), there should be no problems. The fuel pumps at the small to medium size town service stations switch over from a international credit card validation to a local one. This has happened to us when we have traveled in France and Italy on Sunday and after closing hours (no attendant on duty).
  • You may see a service station with its lights on and a sign that has the words "APERTO" (open) or "APERTO SELF-SERVICE" or "24 ORE (hours)" on it but there is no service station attendant or "cassa" (cashier) on duty. However, these pumps usually have a central payment machine/device that will accept Euro (€) bills and Italian credit cards or European "smart" credit cards only.
  • Please be aware that many European credit cards have an embedded "smart" chip on the credit card in additional to the magnetic strip on the backside of the credit card. This "smart" chip technology allows European credit cards from outside of Italy to be used at service stations after hours and on Sunday. At this time, neither my wife nor myself have the newer credit cards now being issued in the USA that have the embedded "smart" chip technology.
  • If you have Euro (€) bills, the central payment machine/device will accept them. PLEASE NOTE: It has been my personal experience that most of these central payment machines/devices will NOT refund any overpayment for refueling. This means that if you only have a €50 (Euro) bill and only use, let say €35, out of the €50 to refuel you car, you will NOT get any change back!
MISCELLANEOUS
* = Blog entry has been updated.

If anyone has any suggestions for other sites and links for reference, please feel free to post your comment and I'll update this blog entry. For your specific interest, please search the web for further information using Google

Please note: If you want me to reply to your comment or request any further information by email, please include your email address in a separate comment. I will NOT publish any comments with an email address in it.

That's it for Wednesday, 5 August 2009: mercoledì, 5 agosto 2009

Ciao, Ben

Moving2Italy2 – #1 source of links About, For or On Italy for those individuals moving, traveling or already living in Italy.

Today’s quote is an Italian proverb, author unknown.

"Per anndare d'accordo co il vicino - devi stare con un-occhio aperto e l'altro non serrato."
"To get on with your neighbours - you must go with one eye open and the other not closed."

Please read my wife's blog about our life in Italy:

Friends and Family in Italy

Going to Spain, read my new blog:

Info About, For or On Spain – a source of links About, For or On Spain for those individuals traveling or already living in Spain.

Please note: The time listed below for this posting is Central European Time (CET)/ GMT+1.

(LAST EDITED/UPDATED: 16 August 2009)
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