Granada, Nicaragua 2005

There's no way any other place can take over Granada in my "Best places ever visited" list. It was love at first sight, starting from the amazing, stunning, unreachable, unforgettable and breathtaking "Bearded Monkey".
By those days it was totally the place to stay in Granada; from the mood you could feel at any time of the day, to dinner time when people from all over the town use to start filling the internal patio to taste the wonderful local dishes, pleased by a delicious soundtrack on the background.
It was just a matter of time, and I discovered the beauties the architecture could offer just few steps outside the building. Ancient churches in their decadent look would catch your attention at a glance; visiting the streets where the market takes place is the experience of your life...try to be there right after sunrise, and the light will do the rest!!!
The main square is where you get the real essence of the spanish colonization in town. The cathedral, perfectly restored, is surrounded by a sea of other amazing examples of what the past did offer to the town. Bright colors, smooth curves, fancy ornaments...just a party for your soul and eyes!
Don't be afraid to take walk in the little alleys though!!! Compared to other places in Central America, Granada is relatively safe place...especially during the day! As you get closer to the lake (don't forget to visit "Las isletas"), the town gets more real, loosing that touristic look the very downtown has. I'd rather be a bit more careful at night, but as long as you don't look too much as a gringo (people down there hate Americans pretty much due to the history of the country) you won't have any problem enjoying the Latin atmosphere.
The food in town is quite good everywhere, but as in any place on earth, the more you stick around the main square the more the quality drops down. For a cozy night, surrounded by young people and with a good music in the background (beers are cheep pretty much everywhere), join the "Hospedaje Central" where you can also get a bed to sleep for very little money in a clean environment (even if The Bearded Monkey is waaaay better).
And once you're tired of the city, just few minutes away by bus (actually the bus drops you on the main road, then you have to hitch hike...but it's safe) there's another place I'll never forget:
"La Laguna de Apoyo".
In the middle of nowhere, in this volcanic pot, you have the chance to experience the refreshing joy of the laguna's turquoise waters; and if your clever (or lucky) enough to go there during the week end you'll be able to experience how the locals spend their time with their family and friends delighted by some mariachi live music while eating some good food served by the shores in one of those typical restaurants.
And remember...don't be shy!!! There's sooo much out there to discover! Just ask the locals...they're just lovely!

David Lynch Interview Project

The Interview Project
It's been quite a while this project has been on line, but now that it's getting to its end, you get the chance to watch way more episodes all at once! Enjoy this amazing idea developed by David Lynch and his son (actually it's his idea).

Wasabi Radio

Not so many times you're so lucky to roam in the infinite world of internet, and run into such a cool radio. It happened to me today...and I really want to share this opportunity god has given me!
Ohhhh lord! Ohhh brothers and sisters! Today a voice from the sky is on air...Wasabi Radio

Varanasi 2010

Nothing can stop me from leaving for a vacation I've been waiting for a year! Not even a canceled flight, an endless line (close to my departure time) and the thickest fog an airport has ever seen!
We were supposed to fly through Istambul and then to New Delhi from my hometown (Rome), but the airport in the Turkish capital was closed because of an unusual fog. Only Alitalia (and that's the funny part!) could save everyone from being killed by myself!! But still, between us and the tickets there was the longest line I've ever seen at a check in desk. Careless of everything, I just jumped in fron of everyone and 15 minutes later I came out of the crowed with my trophy and started cheering with Elena. Our holiday was safe...we thought!
Once we arrived in Istambul it was just like hell! The airport had been closed the whole morning, and all the flights were late or canceled...and outside the fog was going up and up. No monitor would tell us where and if our flight was gonna take off from, and everyone was just dazed and confused (How do you like this Led Zeppelin quote!?!?!). All we could do was hanging out, eating at this unpersonalized restaurants every airport has, and every once in a while check for any news.
After hrs waiting, and hrs being on line to get on the plain (just check the pictures, how many people were just goin' off), we finally got on! Cool dude...we're leaving!!! Not even man!!! 4 more hrs on board with no air conditioning and no clue whether we where gonna take off or not, since the fog was so thick outside! The situation was pushing us to the limit, and my girlfriend and I were close to a nervous breakdown.
I was prepared to die, I wanted to give a chance to our vacation to happen...we had to take off!!! Even with the captain blind (for the fog outside) and his hands tied on his back. But finally...the engines did roll!!!





But it wasn't over jet!!!
We had to go from the international terminal to the domestic one to go catch another flight...provided by the low cost (but high quality service!!!) airline company Spice Jet.
And there he was!!! My dear friend Muk, waitng for us outside the Varanasi airport. Smiling as usual, he took care of us right away, telling our driver to stop at a kiosk along the road to get a beer and refresh ourselves a bit before going to the guest house. It was afternoon by the time he dropped us where the car couldn't just keep goin' and shipped the two of us in the hands of a rickshaw driver. Danny boy, Elena and our luggage...the skinny dude was gonna sweat his ass off for a K at least, for a bunch of coins...just worthless for us but incredibly important for him.
The "Gampati GUest House" is just lovely! Within an ancient building, you get to stay for low amount of money (we spent 10 euros for a room...I'm sure you can find cheaper accomodations in India, but this was super worth it) in a super cozy, colorful, wooden room, facing the Ganga river and enjoying the sunrise from it's balcony. And once you're hungry, just go up some steps and you'll get to an amazing terrace, heated by the warm indian sun, where you can enjoy your meal while boats are crossing the river, or some monkeys are jumping from one roof to the other.
Once outside the guest house...it's just India! An incredible amount of people, at anytime of the day, getting busy, chilin' out, trying to sell you almost everything, honking the horn, stuck in the traffic. It's like hell on earth! The streets are just terribly dirty and crowded, there's a awful smell everywhere, and you gotta be careful not to step on a cow shit or something nasty.
At first, this could all just seam crazy and senseless, but once you get into the mood, you make all these inputs your and look at everything from a different angle...that's when you start being amazed.
The banks of the river are full of life, with colors catching your attention at any corner. The streets surrounding that area just look terrible and dangerous, but don't miss the opportunity to take a walk in those alleys, cauze you'll miss the experience of your life. That is where you get the closest you can to the indian culture, lifestyle, and attitude towards their social condition.
The "Sanscrit University" and "BHU", are the two many schools in town. The first one is inside a wonderful and peaceful site, where ancient building coming from the english colonnization have been turned into classrooms and cultural melting pots. There's an amazing laboratory you might be able to visit, where an old man with his assistants work 24/7 to produce Ayurveda oils and tablets using the ingredients nature gives them from the botanic garden right across the street. Everything is boiled and steered for hrs in a huge pan...the tradition, incredible rural tools, and knowledge do the rest.
Varanasi is all this and way more (try to visit all the temples they have if you can!!! The monkey temple is something you can't miss though!), but no words or images can truly represent what your eyes might be able to see or run into. I wish I will be able to go back there again and again, to finally catch the deep essence of such a different culture.

The trash act.

Few words to describe this project:
6 persons;
2 hrs;
100 meters of beach;
18 bags...and much more.

It was a wonderful summer, back in 2006, when my immense friend Franchella and I decided to go camping (illegally) for 4 days on the beach of Capalbio, Tuscany.
It all started as a game, but little by little more and more people joined us and helped us at the end to dump everything in front of the city hall as a protest. A photographer from a newspaper took a picture of us while in action in the last night and the day after we had an article on the "Tirreno".
Unforgettable!

Hotest and latest...

Crescendo from Mothership on Vimeo.

That's when creativity becomes useful... An italian artist, a genius of animation...

VIDEOGIOCO by Donato Sansone from Enrico Ascoli - Sound Design on Vimeo.

Ometepe, Nicaragua 2005

It all started with the cops getting on the bus I was traveling on, and passing by everyone else sitting on the damned bus, and pointing right at me. The sun was going down, and the frontier was just there! Few minutes ahead.
I had to get off the vehicle, go trough all the bullshit they were giving me, and by the time it was all dark, I was in the middle of nowhere, with two cops, trying to get me on a cab (they called) to take me to some cabins where to spend the night.
The room was soo empty of everything! The cockroaches in the shower didn't really help, but outside it was just quite; crickets singing like crazy (how can you complain for them to make their wonderful noise!!!???), fireflies filling the darkness...for 10 dollars I wouldn't matter!!!
Wake up!!! Wake up!!!
The border is just there. Only the day after I realized how those cops were actually saving my ass! Misunderstanding their attitude, the just wanted me to spend the night in a safe place, instead of facing that mass of people. What I faced that morning...I can't even remember very well, but after going trough the bureaucracy, I found my self on a yellow school bus taking me to San Jorge. The bus was not so crowded (it was gonna get soon), but there were people getting on and off the bus to sell you any sort of thing. From fresh made juices to batteries.
Once in San Jorge, I had another problem. I had no money to take the ferry to Ometepe!!!With one big backpack in the back, and a "smaller" one in the front (sooo classic!) I jumped on a bicycle rickshaw that took me to a man a man sitting on the street handling fat quantities of money...at least they looked a lot!
Done with that I headed again to the harbor, where a luxury boat was waiting for me to take me to the cones of the volcanoes Maderas and Conception.
I stayed over the Hacienda Merida, a delicious place at the bottom of the Maderas, in a peaceful spot where you could also see the other volcano in case you'd take a canoe to take a tour on your own!
And off course watch one of the most amazing sunsets I've ever seen...magical!
I spent an unforgettable week over this place, doing any sort of activity, from climbing a volcano, to taking trips with my canoe around the lake, or just have a walk around getting in touch with locals. But the best part was always the end of the day, at sunset, when you use to meet again with your mates and, after taking a refreshing bath in the lake at sunset, share everybody's experience sitting around a nice table filled with fresh homemade food.