Kathy with Trudie Styler and Sting ___ The Land The land gives life and inspiration here in Italy. Italians are strongly connected to the earth, which bestows both beauty and bounty. Italians eat and drink well because the land and coastline provide the fertile sources to harvest the building blocks for the healthy Mediterranean diet. The rich soil produces grapes for wine, olives for oil that is also known as "green gold" and fresh fruits and vegetables of all shapes and sizes. The soil and sea provide sustenance for animals and fish. Sting and his wife, actor/producer Trudie Styler, were drawn to live part-time at Tenuta Il Palagio, south of Florence, where they witness the power of the land firsthand and produce their own wine, olive oil, vegetables, honey and eggs. There's something more to the land here, a calm and beautiful energy, and I ask Sting why? "Everything is related: the wine, the way it's grown. It all helps the environment. There are more insects here, more birds here. They treat [the land] kindly. Nature pays you back a hundredfold," Sting says. While wine has been produced on this property since the 1500s, Sting and Trudie led a replanting of the vines in 2000. When they moved in, the vineyards had been neglected for years, but thanks to their efforts, the grapes now go into a variety of award-winning red, white and rosé wines that are exported worldwide, including a red named Roxanne for Sting's famous song. "I would call ourselves stewards in that we're here to look after [the land], to protect it and, if we can, to make it better than it was when we found it. So far, we've managed to do that," Sting says. "We wanted to treat the land in an organic way and not put chemicals on it. It's amazing what happens to nature when you allow it to just be nature. It actually revitalizes itself; it heals itself and you see stuff growing out of the ground. I mean, I'm a city boy, just to see something that you plant bear fruit is still a miracle to me," he adds. Trudie and Sting appreciate the opportunity to share their bounty with their neighbors. "We have a farm shop that serves the local community," Trudie notes. "They're very grateful for organic vegetables, and our eggs are really good organic eggs, as well as all the wine." And what is it about that inextricable bond between wine, the land and Italians? I ask local Tony Sasa, who works for Il Palagio. "It's essential to the food. That means for Italians, beside that it's part of the culture and the history, is something that, it's a part of our life. When I taste the wines from Palagio, talking about Sister Moon, Casino delle Vie, When We Dance or Roxanne, they're reflecting really beside the soul, but even the personality of Trudie Styler and Sting, who are artists, musicians, but they are smooth, we can say like water. They are like wind. This is what our wines are; they're transmitting your personality and they're giving you the music and the words," Tony says. Author Frances Mayes also made her part-time home in Italy because of the land. "I felt like I wanted to put down roots here because I saw how amazingly close to the land the Tuscans still are," Frances says. Her purchase and renovation of the villa Bramasole in Cortona was made famous in the book and movie Under the Tuscan Sun. "Bramasole" means "to yearn for the sun" and the sun of course is an essential element in the alchemy of nature. Not only do Frances and her husband Ed enjoy the colors, beauty and scents of the land in the exquisite flower-filled garden at the front of their villa, but they also enjoy its nourishment, particularly from the olive trees. Fall is the time when Italians feel a particularly strong connection to la terra. "Everyone will soon be out hunting mushrooms and truffles and each season has its own foraging things," Frances says. "You enter into this ancient agricultural cycle that's been going on forever, and it really makes you feel close to the land. It's quite something to participate in an olive harvest," she adds. I ask Ed when they know it is time to harvest. "Exactly whenever they tell you that they are getting a little darker, they're ready to be picked off the tree. All of our olives are handpicked by poets," he laughs. Ed tells me that the FDA recommends Americans consume two tablespoons of olive oil per day to improve health and lower the chance of heart disease. It is easy to see that Italians and those who live like Italians likely consume even more. There's a reason Italians call olive oil "green gold." I tend to think my friends who produce and consume olive oil also look younger than everyone else! As Frances alludes to, the land also gives Italians a strong sense of place and connection through time. Italy as a unified country is a relatively young concept, only becoming a nation-state in 1861. Italians can trace their families back hundreds of years or even more than a thousand years to a specific borgo, town or city, and feel incredibly tied to the swaths of soil they hail from, even if they now live in other parts of Italy or have emigrated. It was that little speck on the map that brought Francis Ford Coppola back to his roots, his grandfather's birthplace of Bernalda. "Everything originated from the fact that we came from a part of Italy known as Basilicata, previously known as Lucania, in the town of Bernalda bella," he tells me. Perhaps it is because so much of Italy has a rich rural past that Italians appreciate nature and make time to enjoy it. Italy has 24 national parks that in total cover 5% of the nation's land. Urban Italians make good use of city parks like Villa Borghese in Rome (which is one of the biggest parks in Europe) and venture into the countryside for regular nature refills. Even the day after Easter, Pasquetta, is set aside for a picnic or jaunt into nature. Italians are onto something when it comes to their love of nature. Spending as little as two hours a week in nature improves health and feelings of well-being, according to a study in the journal Nature. Among the benefits of spending time in nature are lower blood pressure, higher self-esteem, lessened anxiety and lower stress. Those who live close to the land have even better outcomes. The Journal of Environmental Health Perspectives found that those who live around greener areas of vegetation actually live longer than those who live in cities. There are so many opportunities for travelers to experience the magic of the varying Italian landscapes. Plan time on a farm, in the mountains, on a lake, in a national park, at some hot springs. Staying at an agriturismo is a must for those who wish to experience how Italians and the land interact. This is a working farm that welcomes guests. The owners often host farm-to-table cooking classes as well as a plethora of outdoor activities, like participating in an olive or grape harvest, on or near the property. THRIVE TIPS Put spending time in nature on your calendar; even two hours a week can make a difference in your emotional well-being. Walk on the grass with your bare feet, a practice known as "earthing" or "grounding." Plant your own small garden in your backyard or even on your apartment balcony. Join a hiking group to explore the areas around where you live. Help clean up local parks and waterways. Visit a local farm to appreciate what the earth gives us and buy their products. Photograph or paint landscapes to preserve and enjoy the beauty of the land. TRAVEL TIPS Plan a farm stay in one of the many agriturismi, where you will see how the land provides us such bounty and how everything is connected. Add nature to your itinerary. For those who love mountains, check out the Dolomites. Sicily's beaches are perfect for coastal fans. There's something for everyone. Take a hike! Hiking is a perfect way to explore Italy. Explore the Cinque Terre by foot, take a trek on a volcano on the island of Stromboli in Sicily, hike and take in the views on Il Sentiero degli Dei (the Path of the Gods) on the Amalfi Coast. Visit one of Italy's 24 national...
