Latest news with #confetti
Forbes
05-08-2025
- Forbes
An Italian Day Trip: Sulmona, Where Ovid And Confetti Were Born And The Food Features The Robust Dishes Of Abruzzo
If you've ever attended an Italian wedding you were probably given a netted bag of white sugar-coated almonds called confetti as a parting gift. And chances are they came from the town of Sulmona in Italy's Abruzzo region, and very probably from Confetti Mario Pellino, which has been producing them since 1783, now in its seventh generation of family owners. Its factory and building were declared 'a Monument of National Interest' by the Ministry of Culture in 1922. Were you ever to visit Sulmona, a two hours' drive from Rome, you'll find it a small, reclusive town with a few touristic attractions that make it a good day trip where you will find dozens of shops selling confetti, brightly colored and knitted into various complex shapes of flowers and wreaths. The Cathedral has a sober Romanesque façade, but its interior was updated to baroque after a serious earthquake in 1706. The medieval-Renaissance Palazzo Annunziata and Church of Saint Annunziata are lovely open spaces, while the Piazza Garibaldi with its large baroque fountain is where at Easter they celebrate the event of the Madonna che Scappa, when a statue of the Virgin Mary is carried by running townsmen in green and white past the remarkably well-preserved 12th century Gothic aqueduct as a brass band plays, while others carry a statue of the infant Jesus there for a reuniting with his mother. Sulmona gave the Catholic world a pope, Innocent VII in the 15th century, but Piazza XX Settembre is the location of Sulmona's foremost historical figure, the greatest of all Roman poets, Ovid, whose bronze statue stands sternly atop a pedestal. As the author of the witty Metamorphoses, he was both an ornery and canny observer of the follies of the Romans, explaining, 'I am the poet of the poor, because I was poor when I loved; since I could not give gifts, I gave words.' Located up a winding road, Sulmona itself is fairly flat and easy to walk through, and there are several very good restaurants that feature the cooking of Abruzzo. Semina Cucina Agricola (Via Manilo d'Eramo 28), whose owners are wholly committed to locality and seasonality in a €39 tasting menu of five courses. A few doors away there's a lavish antipasto table at Ristorante Hostaria dell'Arco (Via Manilo d'Eramo 60 ), and the pasta to have is the tagliatelle with zucchini cream as well as pappardelle with rabbit ragù. On my last visit to the town I ate at the charming, sunny Ristorante Clemente Sulmona (Via Solimo 25), located just inside the town's ancient gate. Begin with some local Abruzzese cheeses from Casari e Pastori, like pecorino, caciocavallo and pampanellagoat's cheese along with salami like salamella di tratturo made from mutton and the locally revered salsiciotto di Guilmi of simply salt-cured pork, all served with puffy warm pizza-like bread. Next came the Abruzzese specialty spaghetti alla ghitarra, cut on a guitar-string-like instrument, served with crispy pancetta bacon and local saffron. Risotto of Canaroli rice also had the aroma of saffron with an addition of anise, along with ricotta and salami-studded lamb ragù. (Half portions are also available.) Pork is braised slowly in Montepulciano d'Abruzzo red wine, sided with salted chicory and creamy mashed potatoes. For dessert the signature sweet here is a pan dell'Orso semi-freddo. The wine list is especially good for bottlings like Montepluciano d'Abruzzo and Trebbiano d'Abruzzo. They also serve good house wines in carafes for €5 to €6. A dinner for two, with wine, tax and service included, runs around $120. The menu has English translations. Ovid, by the way, seems to have been something of a vegetarian, writing, 'O mortals, do not pollute your bodies with food so impious as the flesh of animals! You have the fruits of the earth, you have apples, bending down the branches with their weight, and grapes swelling in ripeness on the vines, you also have sweet herb.' And apparently not much of a drinker, he insisted, "There is more refreshment and stimulation in a nap, even of the briefest, than in all the alcohol ever distilled." He didn't know what he was missing in Sulmona.
BBC News
27-06-2025
- BBC News
Confetti fields in Pershore primed for rush of Instagrammers
Insta-worthy confetti flower fields blooming with thousands of colourful delphiniums have opened to the public for another year, with organisers primed for visitors from across the Confetti Flower Field at Wyke Manor Estate in Pershore, Worcestershire, opens for just 10 days - until 6 July, when the flowers are harvested and turned into "petal paradise" is a magnet for those wanting to be pictured amongst the beautiful blooms, with tourists coming from as far as New Zealand, India, China and said the best time to get "instagrammable" shots was either midweek when it was quieter, first thing in the morning - or even in the pouring rain. "When it's raining, the rain brings out the vibrancy of the colours, they are all refreshed," said Jane Powell, the site's marketing flower field will open daily from 10:00 - 16:00 BST, with tickets priced at £9.95 per person. Ms Powell said she was "amazed" at how far people travelled to view the flowers in bloom and spoke of how one tourist had even taken a day trip from Norway."We had a call two weeks ago from a family visiting from the USA... They wanted to book a taxi [straight to the field] from the station," she added."It's a petal paradise." This year, organisers are also offering special sunset showings between 18:30 and 21:30 BST on 1 and 3 Powell advised photographers or influencers looking to get the perfect Instagram shot to visit early morning or at quieter periods for a "better experience"."The light is better first thing in the morning," she explained. "Beautiful vibrant colours, the flowers [that] have come into bloom are pink, purple, blue and creamy white."It's a riot of colour." Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
Reuters
30-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Reuters
Faizan Zaki, 13, crowned US National Spelling Bee champion
May 29 (Reuters) - Faizan Zaki, a 13-year-old boy from the Dallas area, won the 97th Scripps National Spelling Bee on Thursday, swiftly nailing the French-derived word "eclaircissement," synonymous with enlightenment, in the 21st round of the contest finals. He edged out 14-year-old Sarvadnya Kadam, from Visalia, California, who finished in second place after misspelling "Uaupes," a tributary of the Rio Negro in South America, in the 20th round. Zaki, who was last year's runner-up, had correctly spelled "Chaldee," a dialect of the Biblical Aramaic language, in the 20th round. But under spelling bee rules, Zaki needed to land one more word in a solo round to claim the trophy. He did so in round 21 by instantly and precisely spelling "eclaircissement" - defined as a clearing up of something obscure. He surprised the audience by giving his answer without taking the customary pause afforded contestants to ask the judges for more information about the word's origins, meaning and pronunciation. He was crowned champion in a hail of confetti before being joined on stage by his parents and other relatives, and will receive $50,000 in prize money. Asked what he would do next, Zaki replied, "I'm probably going to stay up the entire night or something." Zaki, a resident of Allen, Texas, had nearly been eliminated in round 18 when he rushed, and stumbled over, the spelling of "commelina," a genus for some 200 species of dayflowers. But his two fellow finalists at that point, including Kadam, likewise fumbled their words, leading to a 19th round in which all three boys returned, but only two - Zaki and Kadam - survived to face off in the decisive 20th round. Sarv Dharavane, an 11-year-old boy from Tucker, Georgia, finished in third place after misspelling "eserine," the antidote of choice for many poisons, with one "s" too many. Thursday's total roster of nine finalists emerged from three days of competition at a convention center outside Washington, D.C., among 243 contestants aged eight to 14 who advanced from regional competitions across the country. Challenged with some of the most difficult and least-used words that English has to offer, many young competitors amazed spectators with their ability to produce the correct spellings with poise and precision. The Scripps media group has sponsored the event since 1925, with three years off during World War Two and one more for the COVID pandemic in 2020. Most competitors were from the United States, coming from all 50 states. Other spellers came from Canada, the Bahamas, Germany, Ghana, Kuwait, Nigeria, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
