Alberto Manzi Convinced Italians That “It’s Never Too Late” To Learn (Cool Weird Awesome 1123)
Today in 1924, the birthday of Alberto Manzi, who taught millions of Italian adults to read and write through a TV show.
Sometimes Coffee Isn’t A Beverage, It’s Coffee Jelly (Cool Weird Awesome 1098)
It's National Coffee Day, and while most coffee fans prefer to brew and drink the stuff, there are other options. For example, have you ever tried coffee jelly?
Italy’s “Festival of the Ugly” Reminds Everybody That Looks Aren’t Everything (Cool Weird Awesome 1078)
The first Sunday in September is typically the time when a village in Italy holds something called the Festival of the Ugly - which, when you learn more about it, actually sounds kind of nice.
The Leaning Tower Of Pisa Is Straightening Out (Cool Weird Awesome 919)
We have some good news early in this new year: the Leaning Tower of Pisa isn’t leaning quite as far as it used to!
Gino Bartali Was A Champion And A Hero On A Bike (Cool Weird Awesome 812)
Today in 1914, the birthday of Gino Bartali. The Italian cycling star won the Tour de France in 1938, and won a second time a decade later. But what was even more impressive was what he did in between those two wins.
The Fiaccole of Abbadia San Salvatore Literally Make The Holiday Season Bright (Cool Weird Awesome 679)
Every Christmas Eve, at 6pm, the people of Abbadia San Salvatore in Italy light pyramids of wood called fiaccole they they've carefully collected and stacked for weeks. On what's one of the coldest and darkest nights of the year, the work together to celebrate with heat and light for everyone.
The World Shuts Down, But “Art Doesn’t Stop” (Cool Weird Awesome 259)
Staff at a museum in Turin, Italy called Castello di Rivoli have been working marathon days to digitize their entire collection so that art lovers who can't see the pieces in person can still enjoy them online. Plus: volunteers at a thrift shop in North Carolina spot something unusual in a stack of paintings - a work by none other than Salvador Dali!