As you will discover, Italian coffee roaster Lavazza is still dominating the Italian coffee top ten.  Indeed Lavazza coffee now occupies nine of the ten spots.  The last time I compiled this list, back in September 2011, Lavazza was in eight of the ten spots.  Illy coffee occupied the other two spots.

Coffee roaster Illy appears to be losing a little ground (no pun intended!) to its Turn based coffee roasting Italian rival, Lavazza.

A New Number One

Lavazza Super Crema Espresso whole bean coffee has snatched the number one spot from Lavazza Crema e Gusto ground coffee.

Lavazza Coffee is popular!

It’s interesting to see that coffee drinkers are still happy to grind their own coffee, or else they have one of those clever coffee makers which does the grinding for them.  Also interesting to see is that Lavazza’s Crema e Aroma coffee beans have made it into the Italian coffee top ten.

Another change is the appearance Lavazza Gran Cream coffee pods which have taken sixth spot away from illy Caffe Scura coffee pods.

Coffee pods are one of the most convenient ways to make a coffee quickly, and mean coffee drinkers can spend more time enjoying their coffee and not cleaning their coffee machines.  This is good, is it not?

OK, on to the Italian coffee Top Ten list, the first of 2012.

The Italian Coffee Top Ten

September 2011 Italian coffee top ten ranking shown in brackets.

1. (2) Lavazza Super Crema Espresso Whole Bean Coffee, 2.2-Pound Bag

2. (1) Lavazza Crema e Gusto Ground Coffee, Italian , 8.8-Ounce Bricks (Pack of 4)

Are You A Pod Person? Or Do You Like Your Coffee Ground?

3. (3) Lavazza Caffe Espresso Ground Coffee, 8-Ounce Cans (Pack of 4)

4. (4) Lavazza Qualita Rossa, Caffe Ground Espresso, 8.8-Ounce Bricks (Pack of 4)

5. (New entry) Lavazza Crema e Aroma Coffee Beans, 2.2-Pound Bag

6. (New entry) Lavazza Gran Crema Espresso, Single Dose Pods (Pack of 150)

7. (5) Lavazza Qualita Oro Ground Coffee, 8.8-Ounce Cans (Pack of 4)

8. (6) illy Caffe Scura Coffee, Espresso, (Dark Roast, Black Band), 18-Count E.S.E. Pods (Pack of 2)

9. (4) Lavazza Qualita Rossa, Caffe Ground Espresso, 8.8-Ounce Brick

10. (7) Lavazza Qualita Oro Whole Bean Coffee, 8.8-Ounce Bags (Pack of 4)

Well done to Lavazza for maintaining its Italian coffee top ten dominance.

And You?

What’s your favorite Italian coffee?  Do you prefer ground coffee to whole beans, or are you a coffee pod person?  If you have a moment, do me know via a comment.

All this writing about coffee has me wanting one!  Time for a coffee.

The next Italian coffee top ten will come out in around six months time.

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The recently deposed leader of the Northern League, Italian Senator Umberto Bossi is now formally under investigation for fraud and damage to the Italian state.  In addition to Bossi, the activities of another Northern League senator, Piergiorgio Stiffoni, are also being subject to investigative scrutiny.

Only a few days ago, Bossi was considering a comeback after admitting he made mistakes and misjudged the ability of the party treasurer he appointed.  Bossi’s return ticket was first stifled by the leader in waiting of the Northern League, Roberto Maroni, and now, it looks as if the return ticket may end up being transformed into a one way ride to jail.

5000 a Month Pocket Money for sons

Investigators are still digging, but suspect Bossi had sanctioned the payment of “pocket money” to his two sons, Renzo “the trout” and Riccardo.  The pocket money, it is being reported, amounted to €5,000 a month between 2008 and 2011 and was on top of expenses.

Incidentally, it has come out in Italy that Renzo “the trout” Bossi somehow acquired a degree from a university in Albania, except he does not speak Albanian and never seems to have ever been to Albania either.

Oh how father Umberto loved to denigrate the Albanian immigrants who invaded his beloved Padania area of northern Italy once upon a time.

Guess who is suspected of having funded the pocket money payments to the party leader’s sons?  Why Italy’s taxpayers of course.

Books Cooked to Boost Funding

The same investigators, very busy people in Italy these days, also believe the Northern League cooked its books to ensure a 2011 electoral reimbursement payment was boosted to a cool €18 million.  Well, those pocket money payments were not insignificant, now were they?

More on the Northern League’s more dubious activities is likely to emerge from the now open can of worms, from which, one suspects, all the worms have yet to emerge.

The Northern League party loved to trumpet that it stood for honesty.  Looks as if it might have to drop that innocent sounding word from its party literature, at least until the rot has been cured.

Politics in Italy.  Never a dull moment.  It would be amusing too, but for the fact that while the politicians have been fiddling, Italy has been crumbling.

Further reading – in Italian from Il Messaggero – Lega, Bossi indagato con i figli e Stiffoni
Ai ragazzi paghetta da 5000 euro al mese

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The underground Colosseum tour first opened late 2011 and then was closed right away due to storms.  It reopened in April this year.  Upon my travels to Rome I decided that I would go on one of these Colosseum tours.  Yes, it’s a very touristy thing to do, but if you have not seen the Colosseum I still recommend you do the same.

On the day you decide to go to the Colosseum, I suggest that you either get there good and early or find a company online to buy tickets from, and print the ticket vouchers off.  I suggest these things because the line to the Colosseum is extremely long no matter what day you go.  If you buy tickets ahead of time, you get to go through the fast line.

The underground Colosseum tour is a 90 minute tour which costs about 20 euros and  included entry to The Roman Forum and the Palatine hill.

Where it begins

The Colosseum underground tour begins inside the Colosseum where you meet your tour guide.  The tour guide then takes your group, and brings you outside and around leading you through a gate.

The first stop of this tour is in the arena where gladiators and Christians once battled for their lives.  From the arena you can see what is left of this beautiful monument.  People once sat and gathered around to watch these epic battles take place, just like we now go to a ball game.

After you spend some time in the arena (where your guide will give you a brief history and show you pictures of what it once looked like) you will make your way back inside and down the steps to the basement layers of the Colosseum.

The Arena

Beneath the arena

The underground part is what made this tour for me.  This is where a lot of the things happened.  Beneath the Colosseum there were once chambers cells and tunnels where animals, slaves, gladiators, criminals, and Christians suffered horrible bloody deaths.

The tour guide explains in detail of what took place down in the Colosseum nether regions also known as the hypogeum.   It was really awesome to look in the tunnels and walk around. It was even better that the tour guide has pictures of what the Colosseum once “looked like”, that really gets your mind going.  The tour guide tells stories about the tunnels you walk through and you even hear about the water and sewage system.

Exclusive Access

The last and final part of the tour is the higher levels of the Colosseum.

The tour guide takes you up to the second level where a a brief  few minutes is spent talking about the fans that once sat in these stands and other little details.

Then the tour guide leads you to a set of stairs where they have to use a key to open up and enter.  The stairs lead you to the very top of the Colosseum.  Here you have a wonderful panorama of Rome and another downward looking view of the arena.

View from the Top

The cheap seats as I called them, because they were so high up.  It is definitely worthwhile experience.

Tunnels Underneath

This tour will be closed again in a few months so if you are in the area I suggest that you take advantage of this tour.

Overall I would happily recommend this tour to anyone visiting Rome.

Photos taken by Diana Besser

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Corruption is a major problem in Italy and something urgently needs to be done to reduce it.

Berlusconi’s PdL party politicians know Italy is in very rough seas but they do not seem to want to do too much to calm those seas.  By using delaying tactics to slow down the passing of anti-corruption laws, one can conclude that they do not want such laws to be created.

Why would they not want such laws?  The opposition of the PdL to anti-corruption laws  strongly suggests that the party is corrupt.  Not that Italians would be at all surprised to hear that this is the case.

Corruption is part of the reason for Italy’s current economic mess and huge public debt level.

Opposing anti-corruption laws is irresponsible.  Anyone who opposes such laws should not be allowed anywhere near Italy’s parliament, let alone be able to sit in it.

Opposition parties could make mincemeat of their PdL opponents, although very few have tried.  Why?  Because corruption is good.

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On the youth unemployment front Italy is by no means alone as the following ISTAT/OECD figures reveal.

Europe’s Youth Unemployment in March 2012

• Greece: 51.2%

• Spain: 51.1%

• Portugal: 36.1%

• Italy: 35.9%

While the situation in Italy is nowhere as near as bad as that in Greece and Spain, now that Italy’s economy is officially in recession, the percentage may well increase in the coming months.

Better Management = Lower Unemployment

The youth unemployment situation is much healthier in what are generally regarded as being more efficiently run European countries:

• Germany: 7.9%

• Austria: 8.6%

• Holland: 9.3%

Government Encouragement

Italy’s Prime Minister Mario Monti is trying to make it easier for young Italians to start businesses, although now is not exactly the best time to fire up a new activity.  In the current economic climate, inexperienced entrepreneurs probably will not survive for very long.

Another fly in Italy’s econimic ointment is the predominance of small businesses in Italy.  While small can be beautiful, it is not always strong.

Abandoned Generation

The worrying youth unemployment situation risks creating a kind of abandoned generation in Italy, and elsewhere.

The woes of Italy’s jobless generation will have long term effects on birth rates, consumer spending and tax income for Italy’s government.  Also worth keeping in mind is that the young fund the pensions of the old.

Batten Down the Hatches

Stormy times are ahead, one fears, unless Monti decides to cut taxes in Italy once he’s got all the government spreadsheets set up and can predict, more or less, what effects tax cuts may have.

Tax cuts may be a gamble for Italy, but sometimes you have to take a chance.

Oh and by the way, Italy’s mainstream politicians are still fiddling while Italy burns – they seem to live in another, surreal, world.

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