Speaker 1: Have you ever thought about the reasons why you travel?
Speaker 1: Are you motivated by history, new experiences, or all of
Speaker 1: the above. In today's episode, I'm sharing the philosophy that
Speaker 1: we bring to Untold Italy. It's an approach that has
Speaker 1: been developed over time and it's something that we reference
Speaker 1: to help you plan your trips to Italy so that
Speaker 1: you feel part of the country, not just passing through.
Speaker 2: Tawatuti and Benvenuti Tuan Told Italy the travel podcast to
Speaker 2: where you go to the towns and villages, mountains and lakes,
Speaker 2: hills and coastlines of Beli, Italia. Each week, your host
Speaker 2: Katie Clark takes you on a journey in a search
Speaker 2: of magical landscapes, history, culture, wine, gelato, and of course
Speaker 2: a whole lot of pasta. If you're dreaming of Italy
Speaker 2: and planning future adventures there, you've come to the right place.
Speaker 1: When you're to chow, everyone you are listening to the
Speaker 1: Untold Italy podcast, I'm your host, Katie Clark, and it's
Speaker 1: my absolute pleasure to take you on a virtual trip
Speaker 1: to Italy each and every week with my friends old
Speaker 1: and you who are based in Italy or who travel
Speaker 1: there often. Our goal is to help travelers move beyond
Speaker 1: the checklist so they really feel part of Italy and
Speaker 1: that they're not just passing through. Today, I wanted to
Speaker 1: share something a little different that was triggered by a
Speaker 1: conversation that I had recently where someone asked me, what
Speaker 1: is your travel philosophy, Katie? And to admit that initially
Speaker 1: I was a little bit taken aback and lost for words,
Speaker 1: which is not really like me, as you can imagine,
Speaker 1: but that's only because I hadn't really taken time to
Speaker 1: consolidate my thoughts. And I'm so glad that I was
Speaker 1: prompted because it made me stop and consider that I
Speaker 1: wanted to communicate this travel philosophy and what I would
Speaker 1: like Untold Italy's impact and legacy to be, which is
Speaker 1: kind of a lofty statement, but I think when you've
Speaker 1: created over three hundred podcasts, then it's something that I
Speaker 1: really wanted to consolidate and really communicate as a proper philosophy.
Speaker 1: So if you've been listening for a while, I think
Speaker 1: and I hope that the values and beliefs that I
Speaker 1: have and that Untold Italy has around life and travel
Speaker 1: are very clear. But today I wanted to really spell
Speaker 1: out what those values and beliefs are, how I got
Speaker 1: to the place that I understood them, and how they
Speaker 1: drive the way that I travel in Italy and around
Speaker 1: the world, and also how we approach everything that we
Speaker 1: do at Untold Italy, from this podcast and all the
Speaker 1: free resources on our website, to our Untold Italy app
Speaker 1: our trip planning services and of course our tours in Italy.
Speaker 1: In a nutshell, this philosophy can be distilled into the following.
Speaker 1: Exploring Italy or any other place for that matter, is
Speaker 1: a relationship. It's not a destination. Your trip is personal
Speaker 1: and it's part of your journey as an individual, and
Speaker 1: it's not a checklist to complete.
Speaker 3: We see, our job at.
Speaker 1: Untold Italy is to open the door to the version
Speaker 1: of Italy that belongs to you, so that you come.
Speaker 3: Home changed and craving more, rather.
Speaker 1: Than just having seen a bunch of places. And we
Speaker 1: do this the best way that we know how, and
Speaker 1: that's through respecting the land, the culture, traditions, language, and
Speaker 1: most of all the people of Italy. So the first
Speaker 1: principle that I want to share is around the art
Speaker 1: of travel. I believe the art of travel is putting
Speaker 1: yourself in situations that help you see the world through
Speaker 1: a different lens. The great thing about travel is that
Speaker 1: it tends to trigger feelings that are overwhelmingly positive. But
Speaker 1: there's sometimes there's challenges, and that's okay too, But in
Speaker 1: any case, over coming these challenges helps build confidence and perspective,
Speaker 1: which I think is overwhelmingly positive for me. Travel is
Speaker 1: not a list of places or experiences to be checked off.
Speaker 1: It is not a checklist, and I have to admit
Speaker 1: that it has taken me a little while to get
Speaker 1: to that point, and I'll talk a little bit more
Speaker 1: about that later, but here is where I'm at right now.
Speaker 1: The art of travel is the rush of delight when
Speaker 1: you turn a corner and find a little piazza with
Speaker 1: a table waiting just for you in a small village
Speaker 1: somewhere in the countryside, and even better, just as the
Speaker 1: church bells toll, Or when you taste your first proper
Speaker 1: bite of proper napoli pizza.
Speaker 3: It's feeling of awe and wonder.
Speaker 1: When you walk down the Via Appia in Rome in
Speaker 1: the footsteps of senators and generals Julius Caesar or Augustus,
Speaker 1: or when you're looking out of a window from the
Speaker 1: Palazzo Vecchio in Florence at Brunelleski's Dome, just as Cosmo
Speaker 1: de Medici had done hundreds of years, or as you
Speaker 1: take in the natural beauty of the alpine meadows of
Speaker 1: Alpa Diseusi, or the stunning coastline of the Amalfi Coast.
Speaker 1: It's the sense of pride that you get when you
Speaker 1: order your first gelato or you tell your first joke
Speaker 1: in Italian. And it's also the feeling of relief when
Speaker 1: you work out how to get to your hotel when
Speaker 1: you got off the train at the wrong spot in Naples.
Speaker 1: It's also the sense of aberration you feel as you
Speaker 1: watch someone who has spent decades perfecting a technique to
Speaker 1: make the most beautiful jewels, or as a community comes
Speaker 1: together to celebrate their local traditions and produce as they
Speaker 1: have for centuries now. Our daily lives have similar moments,
Speaker 1: but I think when we travel, these feelings are heightened
Speaker 1: and more intense, and that's why so many of us
Speaker 1: love to travel to capture those feelings and that sense
Speaker 1: of excitement. But there's one thing that I really want
Speaker 1: to say. There is no right or wrong way to travel,
Speaker 1: and your travel style is an evolution and it's a
Speaker 1: journey of its own, its own right that no one
Speaker 1: has the right to critique. It really bugs me when
Speaker 1: people judge others for how they want to see the world.
Speaker 1: Everyone is working from a different baseline in terms of
Speaker 1: availability of time, financial resources, and experiences. And you know,
Speaker 1: my approach has changed over time based on my maturity
Speaker 1: and experience in the world. As a young woman in
Speaker 1: my twenties, I had a totally different outlook on the world.
Speaker 1: I wanted to soak everything up and experience everything that
Speaker 1: I could.
Speaker 3: I was in a rush and it was exciting.
Speaker 1: These days, I've got less time, but I've now got
Speaker 1: more resources and I prefer to take things slower and
Speaker 1: enjoy the moment. And I've accepted that I cannot and
Speaker 1: we'll never see and experience everything. I have definitely been
Speaker 1: a budget traveler in the past, and I had so
Speaker 1: much fun traveling that way. But in this season of
Speaker 1: my life, I prefer to spend a little more on
Speaker 1: accommodation and experiences. Neither is better, it's it's just different
Speaker 1: now and untold Italy, we have a preferred style of
Speaker 1: traveling and I'll share that with you in a few minutes.
Speaker 1: But we will never judge you for the way that
Speaker 1: you want to see the world. There is one thing though,
Speaker 1: that I think is really important for everyone to do,
Speaker 1: regardless of their travel style, and that's to think about
Speaker 1: the reasons why you travel. So it's much more important
Speaker 1: than the speed or the pace at which you go.
Speaker 1: I think if you really stop to consider the reasons
Speaker 1: you travel, you will have a more deeper trip. And
Speaker 1: once again, this is intensely personal, or it should be.
Speaker 1: I love talking to people about this and justice. Last
Speaker 1: weekend I chatted to one of the other moms at
Speaker 1: my son's soccer match who had just returned from Rome.
Speaker 1: She was just so excited about the history and architecture
Speaker 1: and art of the city, and she said that three
Speaker 1: days was just not enough for her. She wanted to
Speaker 1: go back soon and really delve into some of the
Speaker 1: lesser no museums and sites that brought the ancient and
Speaker 1: Renaissance city to life. Feeling part of history and understanding
Speaker 1: its context in our modern world is a big part
Speaker 1: of my personal wife. I love admiring architecture and art
Speaker 1: from a time where details and symbolism were valued. Some
Speaker 1: people couldn't care less about this, and you know what,
Speaker 1: that's absolutely fine. About ten years ago, I was shocked,
Speaker 1: i have to say, at that time a little bit
Speaker 1: outraged when a fellow travel blogger who was going to
Speaker 1: Florence told me she was not really interested in art
Speaker 1: and history. Shout out to you, Laura, because I have
Speaker 1: never forgotten that conversation. Laura is a travel blogger who
Speaker 1: loves food and wine. That is her passion. And when
Speaker 1: I took the time to think about that's more. After
Speaker 1: my initial outrage and shock, I had to really respect
Speaker 1: that she was true to herself and not moving to
Speaker 1: the beat of anyone else's drum. She was going to
Speaker 1: Florence to taste the food and the wine.
Speaker 3: And you know what, there's worst places in the world
Speaker 3: to do that. For sure.
Speaker 1: Florence has got some amazing restaurants and some really delicious
Speaker 1: local dishes. I'm sure everyone knows Bisteka a la Florentina,
Speaker 1: which is the classic that you have when you're in Florence.
Speaker 3: And I also travel for food and wine.
Speaker 1: I love hearing about the provenance of dishes, how they
Speaker 1: relate to the local lendscapes the history and the culture
Speaker 1: and in Italy, the pride people take in their region
Speaker 1: is something that I find so inspiring. There is not
Speaker 1: one place that you will go to that they will
Speaker 1: not champion their local olive oil as the absolute best
Speaker 1: in the world. I love that they are hyper competitive too.
Speaker 1: One of my favorite conversations from the past five years
Speaker 1: was with a young balsamic vinegar maker from near Moderna.
Speaker 1: He is shaking up the traditional world of the consortium,
Speaker 1: which is the local group that manages the quality and
Speaker 1: output of the balsamic vinegar. And how he's doing that
Speaker 1: is he's trying out new and I find quite exciting techniques.
Speaker 3: The traditionals are a little bit.
Speaker 1: Shocked by Francesco and some of his antics, but they
Speaker 1: could never say that he doesn't respect the traditions that
Speaker 1: underpin this experimentation. It's a really fun and interesting way
Speaker 1: to understand the culture of a country by talking to
Speaker 1: people like this. We will return in a moment with
Speaker 1: the rest of the episode. For daily travel tips and
Speaker 1: behind the scenes content from our tours, make sure to
Speaker 1: follow us on Instagram at Untold Italy Tours. Other travelers
Speaker 1: love nature hiking, and biking, or they travel for spiritual
Speaker 1: reason and of course this can change over time. I
Speaker 1: know I've got a lot of friends' parents that love
Speaker 1: going to Italy to paint, and that's another wonderful way
Speaker 1: to see the countries, to go and indulge your artistic passions.
Speaker 1: So if you know your why and what you love
Speaker 1: to experience, making decisions about where to go and what
Speaker 1: to do become so much easier instead of reaching for
Speaker 1: someone's lists must season doth. Really, it takes some time
Speaker 1: to think about what you want out of your trip,
Speaker 1: and that way you will have the most wonderful time ever.
Speaker 1: So how all of this informed the way that we
Speaker 1: help you travel at Untold Italy. One of the concepts
Speaker 1: that I'd love to explore is the concept of slow travel.
Speaker 1: At Untold Italy, we do believe in a slow travel approach.
Speaker 1: Slow travel is a bit of a buzzword, so what
Speaker 1: does that mean practically?
Speaker 3: For us?
Speaker 1: It means taking the time to get to know a
Speaker 1: place beyond the obvious checklist of highlights. We advocate for
Speaker 1: a minimum of three nights at every stop where possible.
Speaker 1: But as you've heard from my friend who recently visited Rome,
Speaker 1: that would not be enough time in the eternal city
Speaker 1: for her. The second point is to plan what is
Speaker 1: necessary and leave lots of space to explore. There is
Speaker 1: no doubt that some things need to be planned these days,
Speaker 1: but that does not mean you need to schedule and
Speaker 1: book every minute of your days. Yes, you will need
Speaker 1: to book your coliseum tickets and the villa that you've
Speaker 1: had your eye on to staying in Tuscany or down
Speaker 1: in Pulia well in advance, but you should also equally
Speaker 1: leave room for serendipity, curiosity, and time for exploring. I
Speaker 1: just love hearing from you, our listeners, about all your
Speaker 1: new discoveries and the delight that you have in them.
Speaker 1: It is simply not possible for one person, or even
Speaker 1: a team of people like we have here it Untold
Speaker 1: Italy to cover every little nook of the country.
Speaker 3: So I just love it.
Speaker 1: When you share them with me too, and you're always
Speaker 1: so excited. The next point that I love to make
Speaker 1: is except that mistakes will be made, and that they
Speaker 1: actually can be quite fun. Most people who have a
Speaker 1: long history of traveling to Italy have a crazy car
Speaker 1: driving story or two.
Speaker 3: We all learned and laugh a lot about those now.
Speaker 1: Or maybe you ordered the awful pasta completely by accident
Speaker 1: but discovered it was quite delicious. It's happened to us,
Speaker 1: and these are the moments that you always remember, and
Speaker 1: I love to recount them and laugh about them with
Speaker 1: my family. Another major principle that we have at Untold
Speaker 1: Italy is seeking out local insights and experiences. This is
Speaker 1: core to everything that we do in fact and the
Speaker 1: way that we like to travel now. The terms like
Speaker 1: a local and authentic are completely overused in travel writing
Speaker 1: and marketing, in my opinion, so we try to use
Speaker 1: them here. And that's because the reality is our experience
Speaker 1: as travelers is really nothing like the everyday experience of
Speaker 1: most Italians. I always say, if you want authentic, go
Speaker 1: to Roma Tamany or Milano's Centale station on a Monday
Speaker 1: morning and immerse yourself in the weekday commute. It's not
Speaker 1: that different to ours. I mean, there are some differences.
Speaker 1: Everyone's standing at the bar drinking a coffee, but you
Speaker 1: get the idea. We're not all wandering the countryside just
Speaker 1: sitting in piazzas all day. People have jobs and they
Speaker 1: have things to do. What I do think is important
Speaker 1: is hearing from local Italian voices where possible.
Speaker 3: Many of the people.
Speaker 1: Online who talk about traveling and living in Italy are
Speaker 1: native English language speakers like myself, and there's nothing wrong
Speaker 1: with that. But an immigrant or a traveler's perspective is
Speaker 1: completely different to that of someone who has grown up
Speaker 1: in a culture and in a place. My friend Andrea
Speaker 1: is from Piedmont in the north of Italy, and he's
Speaker 1: a really smart and educated person. But if you get
Speaker 1: him talking on the subject of rivalry with the Milanaires,
Speaker 1: in the people from Milan, he shows a passion that
Speaker 1: is rooted in centuries of fighting and animosity that might
Speaker 1: seem a little bit over the top to a foreigner,
Speaker 1: and definitely coming from someone as gentle as kind as Andrea,
Speaker 1: especially when he gets his hands and arms moving as
Speaker 1: part of his expression. This is a sense of culture
Speaker 1: that evolved from history and as foreign as we can
Speaker 1: intellectually under standard perhaps, but we don't feel it in
Speaker 1: our core. And this is the experience I love to
Speaker 1: have when I'm traveling. Understanding the pride, the passions, and
Speaker 1: even the prejudices of local people can help us appreciate
Speaker 1: places in a much deeper way.
Speaker 3: In our case.
Speaker 1: Here at Untold Italy, we choose to raise the profile
Speaker 1: of women in the travel and food industry as much
Speaker 1: as we can. That's because it is very difficult for
Speaker 1: women to run businesses in Italy compared to many English
Speaker 1: speaking countries. Not that it is easier for women in
Speaker 1: our countries, but there is an additional layer of struggle
Speaker 1: that happens in Italy, which is a highly patriarchal society.
Speaker 1: So that's why we try on this podcast to introduce
Speaker 1: you to local, mainly female voices, so you have their
Speaker 1: perspective and insights. After all, this is their country and
Speaker 1: they know it best. We carry that same principle on
Speaker 1: our small group tours, where our goal is to support
Speaker 1: as many female run local businesses as we can. So
Speaker 1: if you join us on tour, we'll visit a lot
Speaker 1: of female run wineries.
Speaker 3: We will have.
Speaker 1: Many female tour guides, and this is the way that
Speaker 1: we can show our support for the people that make
Speaker 1: the country the brilliant way that it is. Hiring local
Speaker 1: guides for our tours and recommending them to our clients
Speaker 1: is an important part of our services, and if you
Speaker 1: have the means, a local guide will bring your experience
Speaker 1: to life, especially if you are curious and you ask
Speaker 1: a lot of questions. Italians love to tell stories, especially
Speaker 1: about where they grew up, so make sure you do
Speaker 1: us lots of questions, get curious and you will find
Speaker 1: a whole new world opens up to you. We also
Speaker 1: prefer smaller family run businesses to internationally own corporations. Our
Speaker 1: friends that Live Tours are a great example of this.
Speaker 1: Based in Rome and run by an Italian family. The
Speaker 1: profits stay in the country and they support local people.
Speaker 1: Italy also has upwards of sixty thousand small we run hotels,
Speaker 1: and we love to recommend those two. These places are
Speaker 1: focused on delivering great hospitality and they're not always so
Speaker 1: good at marketing, and so they may not have the
Speaker 1: best up to date or even working websites, especially in
Speaker 1: the budget category. So in this case you might find
Speaker 1: us giving you booking dot Com recommendation or link so
Speaker 1: you can take a deeper look at the properties. But
Speaker 1: you can always book direct via email or WhatsApp if
Speaker 1: you are comfortable with that. The next principle that I'd
Speaker 1: like to discuss is about treading lightly and being curious.
Speaker 1: As travelers, we believe in showing the utmost respect to
Speaker 1: Italian culture, nature.
Speaker 3: And its people.
Speaker 1: This could be as simple as learning a few words
Speaker 1: of Italian before you go, trying new dishes outside of
Speaker 1: your comfort zone when offered, and making sure that you
Speaker 1: understand cultural norms. I discussed this in more detail with
Speaker 1: my friend Nazim in last week's episode of the podcast.
Speaker 1: If you'd like to take a listen, Italians love of
Speaker 1: both culture and nature, so it's important to show respect
Speaker 1: for those two. Sadly, every year a tourist decides to
Speaker 1: do something really silly like jump in the Venetian Canals
Speaker 1: or a centuries old fountain in Rome, or cut their
Speaker 1: name into a priceless building, or not dealing with their
Speaker 1: rubbish or treasure appropriately.
Speaker 3: I'm quite sure.
Speaker 1: Anyone listening to this podcast is not doing any of that,
Speaker 1: but you get the idea. Let's always show respect, and
Speaker 1: I think if we are curious travelers that we naturally
Speaker 1: show respect. And as I've said before, Italians love to
Speaker 1: share their passion for the small patch of Italy where
Speaker 1: they are from through stories, food and wine, so make
Speaker 1: sure to ask lots of questions of your local guide
Speaker 1: and ask for the dishes of the day when you're
Speaker 1: in a small village somewhere in the countryside. In that way,
Speaker 1: you will have the best opportunity to soak up the
Speaker 1: magic that is Italy. So, my friends, that is the
Speaker 1: untold Italy way. Travel slow, seacout and support locals, tread lightly,
Speaker 1: and stay curious. It's the way that we like to
Speaker 1: see and explore Italy and the world. And if that
Speaker 1: resonates with you, you're in the right place. We have
Speaker 1: hundreds of free podcast episodes and articles to explore and
Speaker 1: ways to work with us if you're looking for more
Speaker 1: personalized support. At the end of the day, we simply
Speaker 1: want all travelers to experience your own version of Italy,
Speaker 1: be inspired, and travel a little deeper each time that
Speaker 1: you leave.
Speaker 3: Your home country.
Speaker 1: Traveling internationally for leisure is a gift that is not
Speaker 1: open to many people in this world. Maybe only ten
Speaker 1: to fifteen percent of people can do this. So I
Speaker 1: always say, if you can travel, go see the world.
Speaker 1: Can't a DM seize the day, open your eyes and
Speaker 1: keep an open mind and take every opportunity to see
Speaker 1: the world, connect with people and challenge your ideas, your beliefs,
Speaker 1: and go on an evolutionary journey that will have the
Speaker 1: biggest most positive impact on your life.
Speaker 3: That's all for today.
Speaker 1: If you enjoyed this episode, it will be be wonderful
Speaker 1: if you shared a rating or review in your favorite
Speaker 1: podcast app that helps us reach more thoughtful Italy loving travelers.
Speaker 3: Just like you.
Speaker 1: Next week on Untold Italy, we are headed back to
Speaker 1: Pulia to hear some of the local stories, myths and
Speaker 1: legends that are an important part of local culture.
Speaker 3: But until then, it's chow for now.
Speaker 1: The Untold Italy podcast is an independent production podcast editing,
Speaker 1: audio production and website development by Mark Hatter, Production assistance
Speaker 1: and content writing by the are they Kat Clark?
Speaker 3: Yes, there are two of us.
Speaker 1: For more information about Untold Italy, please visit Untold Italy
Speaker 1: dot com