Flying with the Kites

February is a month of passage between the winter and the spring. Living in Rome, where it never really gets cold, so it has always felt to me.

Before Covid-19 complicated travel, I took a trip to Rimini just around this time of year to explore its Roman past, eat at a trattoria beloved of its native son Federico Fellini, and to see the kites.

Ever since 1981, kites from all over the world have been gathering on Rimini’s beach, and flying.

Very rarely have I seen anything more exhilarating.

The event is rich in talents and original patterns.

As I wandered, marveling, along the beach I picked up accents from all over Italy, with a generous dose of Tuscan.

The organizers told me that there were many non Italians here too having a wonderful time with their own creations.

Events like this are all carefully noted in our richly filled cultural calendars, and we make a special point of including them in your travel plans.

Children are given instruction on how to make their own kites : no Italian is needed.

Rimini is one of those Italian towns that just feels comfortable. It is especially appealing in the winter, when there are no seasonal crowds on its broad sandy beaches that extend for endless kilometers north and south along the Adriatic coast.

The 27 BC Arch of Augustus is the entry into Rimini when you are coming from the south; it is the oldest of all of the existing Roman triumphal arches.

Like the Bridge of Tiberius, the arch still is central to the urban fabric of the town.  Construction on the Bridge started in the year 14 BC, at the end of the reign of Augustus.  This is one of the few remaining Roman bridges used both by foot and automotive traffic.

Unearthed during excavations under Piazza Ferrari is a beautifully displayed mosaic unrivaled for its display of Roman surgical instruments, the equipment for the preparation of medicines and small medicine vases. All are intricately illustrated in tiny tiles.

Tempio Malatestiana is an extraordinary example of Renaissance architecture and is the unfinished cathedral church of Rimini. Around 1450, Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta commissioned its construction by the Renaissance theorist and architect Leon Battista Alberti.

Rimini was immortalized in the films of Fellini. It was at his favorite restaurant, and at his table, that this picture was taken.  Let us know if we may book for you there.  The food is entirely delicious.

Happy February to you all !  Let’s starting planning your 2021-22 trips !