By Maureen O’Hare, CNN
In this week’s travel news, the Italian village whose residents boast a ‘fat-killing gene’, the man who built an airplane for his family in his garden and the woman who asked a stranger for directions then got engaged with him two weeks later. .
The city with an “elixir” of health
On the shores of Italy’s Lake Garda, there’s a fishing village with a secret: many of its residents claim to carry a special gene that kills fat and cholesterol, making it a medical miracle.
But in another Italian tourist center, Amalfi, an Englishwoman lost weight this week in the old-fashioned way: by stripping. Unfortunately, she chose to strip on the steps of the cathedral and the local police were less than impressed.
One region that offers a warm welcome to (fully clothed) visitors is Friuli Venezia Giulia in northeastern Italy, which pays people just to visit. You have to stay there for two nights and in return they will reimburse you for your travel from anywhere in the country.
And this week, Stanley Tucci visits Puglia—a beach-lover’s paradise nestled in the heel of Italy’s boot. “Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy” airs Sundays at 9pm ET on CNN.
Build your dreams
An engineer in England got his private pilot’s license in 2019 and then built a plane for his family right in his garden. Makes those shelves you put up last year look pretty silly, doesn’t it?
Then there was the Welshman who bought a former movie star’s home in the French countryside and spent $300,000 to restore the pool to its former glory.
And in Sicily, a group of Argentinian doctors are facing one of the toughest resuscitation challenges yet: they have been trained to help turn around the fortunes of an Italian village that is selling dilapidated houses for bargain prices of €1.
Matters of taste
Hong Kong, which is now reopening to tourism, has one of the toughest food scenes in the world. There are skyrocketing rents, expensive food imports, and most important of all, razor-sharp competition. An insider reveals secrets straight from his beating heart.
Mushrooms are popular in food crops around the world, but along with olives and cilantro, they’re also among the most likely to be pushed to the side by certain diners. Why are some foods so polarizing? Experts explain.
Love across borders
French Canadian Rachel Décoste traveled to the West African Republic of Benin in 2018 to explore its history. On her first day, she asked a stranger for directions and it was a move that would change her future as well. Two weeks later, they were engaged.
This is the kind of romance many young Western women hope for when they travel to South Korea, in a social phenomenon called the “Netflix effect.” Disenchanted with the dating cultures of their home countries, they come in search of the cultured and romantic Korean men they’ve seen portrayed on screen. But they believe that fiction must be weighed against reality.
Exceptions with animals
Sure, sometimes it’s great to see a majestic deer or an elegant coconut octopus, like in the Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition. But in a week where the news cycle has become particularly chaotic — hi, Liz — it might be good to take a moment to laugh at an exasperated penguin or some Bulgarian meerkats. Step forward, the finalists of the Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards.
In case you missed this
The Ritz-Carlton’s $6,400-a-week superyacht cruise is finally underway, more than three years behind schedule.
Now that’s what we call trendy late.
A Boeing 747 is set launch a rocket into space next month.
And a whale-shaped Airbus Beluga just delivered a satellite to the Kennedy Space Center. Watch here.
Disney recently increased prices in US resorts.
“We suffer for what we love,” says one theme park expert.
A Brooklyn restaurant tested a robot cat against a human waiter.
Who did the better job? Watch here.
The best sleeping bags
Sleeping bag technology has advanced in recent years, so if your model is getting a little outdated, it might be time to upgrade before your next big camping adventure. Our partners at CNN Underscored, a CNN-owned product review and recommendation guide, have selected 26 of the best on the market, according to camping experts.
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Top image: Limone sul Garda (Jorg Greuel/Stone RF/Getty Images).
