Unless something happens behind the scenes with negotiations between the unions and the “good company” CAI (the “courageous” entrepreneurs who kindly offered to buy all of the good bits of Alitalia), it looks like the “good company” has been ditched at the altar. With less than a week to go, Alitalia is going up for…

The group of investors who were ready to sweep up all the good, productive, moneymaking parts of Alitalia (being a businessman with government connections in Italy is sure a tough job) appear to have withdrawn their offer after they failed to come to an agreement with unions: http://edition.cnn.com/2008/BUSINESS/09/18/alitalia.financial.trouble/index.html The latest, in Italian, from the Corriere…

As I’ve written in the past (spritz), going to the piazza for a “spritz” is one of my favorite ways to spend a hour with friends in the evening. The history behind the spritz is interesting too: after the Napoleonic wars, the Austrians gained control of much of the Veneto. Being a hotter clime than…

Monday, supposedly the day when flights would start being canceled has come and gone. It’s now Tuesday evening, and things still appear to be running. Negotiations with the unions are still going on, even though they appear to not be going well. The situation is likely to be one of these, but only time will…

While tourists flock to Venice because of its uniqueness, unfortunately, the locals have been headed out of the city for years, mostly to the town of Mestre, on terra firma on the other side of the bridge. Indeed, even though Venice maintains its place as the administrative capital of the Veneto, the real business of…

As of Monday the 15th, it looks as if Alitalia might begin to cease operations. Talks between the unions and the “new Alitalia” have not been going anywhere, and the airline simply does not have the cash to go on. The differences between what the unions want and what the new Alitalia is willing to…

In my first article about the Alitalia soap opera, I wrote: In my view, Alitalia is emblematic of the rot that riddles the Italian economy. Which is why I focus on the issue so much. It won’t be the first or last time that politicians do shady deals to the detriment of the populace, in…

Not surprisingly, the various unions involved in the “new Alitalia” deal rejected the contract proposed by the company designated to buy up the good bits of Alitalia. These negotiations ought to be interesting, as everyone is between a rock and a hard place: no pilots, no new Alitalia. No new Alitalia… well, maybe some of…

The Economist is, as could be expected, pretty harsh with the Alitalia situation: On a wing and a taxpayer’s prayer An aspect of the story that has continued to develop in recent days, is that the governor of the Lazio region, and now the president of the province of Milan have both expressed interest in…

“Home” for me in Italy is Padova, in the Veneto region, so that area is the part of Italy I know best. Venice is of course visited by tourists from all over the world, but I think Verona is quite worthwhile too, as a place to spend several days. Venice Truth be told, I don’t…