FS Italiane, an Italian staycation: The June issue of La Freccia goes live online and points towards summer

In June, La Freccia sends out an invitation to savour an all-Italian summer, with a (re)collection of heart-warming postcards. To start is a vintage cover from the Fondazione FS Italiane Archive, as a tribute to iconic Italy. And, for the third consecutive month, it is only being released in digital format.

It will accompany readers and passengers into the arms of a summer that certainly has a different delineation than previous years yet it is no less rich in beauty and the rediscovery of core values such as freedom, mobility and cohesion, even in the ongoing situation that relies greatly on collective sensitivity towards compliance with the COVID-19 regulations.  

The collection of postcards that bring back memories of summer, from the 1960s to the 2000s, are designed to give readers inspiration and ideas for making travel plans for summer 2020. As the cover photo of the ship Scilla reminds us, Italians were ferried to the islands during the period of economic boom. A plethora of other memorable shots capture a Jackie Kennedy Onassis escaping New York for Capri, the bonfires on the beach with the hits decreed by Festivalbar being strummed on guitar, the Tiber River of the 1960s as it has never been seen before, along with the festive National Football Team as World Champions in the summers of 1982 and 2006. The collection of snapshots is completed with the memories of six protagonists from theatre and TV: Federica Panicucci, Cristiano Godano, Giorgia Cardinaletti, Giovanni Caccamo, Valentina Bisti and Alan Sorrenti.

Next comes the suggestions of those who strive each day to enhance our territory, all to be rediscovered after a heavy lockdown. Attention is paid to respecting everyone’s safety and to the environmental, landscape and cultural safeguarding of Italy, with its invaluable heritage of treasures to be preserved. Offering their perspectives are Andrea Carandini, President of FAI (Fondo Ambiente Italiano), Fiorello Primi from the association I Borghi Più Belli d’Italia and Donatella Bianchi, President of WWF Italia and host of the historic Linea Blu television programme on Rai.

The magazine begins with an interview with Massimiliano Montefusco, General Manager of Radio Dimensione Suono, and Gianluca Teodori, head of journalistic editing who, for Medialogando – the column dedicated to the world of information – talk to us about the powers and peculiarities of radio, and the winning mix of entertainment, information and interaction.

The appointment with Alberto Brandani and the Un Treno di Libri renews the invitation to read with the column In Viaggio Con il Prof that in June presents a journey behind the scenes of a secret love story in an enveloping and melancholic Paris, with the book Lean on Me by Serge Joncour.

The travel ideas continue, meandering through Italian gardens, with slow-paced adventures along a 374-kilometre trek in the mountains from Palermo to Messina, surrounded by nature and exploring the hidden corners of green Umbria, the contemplative charm of Ischia, Procida and Capri, the trail of orchids in the Gargano and the magical Gallura, amongst oases of nature, food and wine. There are also itineraries with urban vineyards and farmhouses, for weekend and outdoor adventures, to enjoy in complete relaxation and safety.

Last but not least comes the art of those who allow everyone to benefit from their creativity, to help people live better and in harmony, especially at such a delicate time as this. So it was that architect Raffaele Giannitelli and artist Filippo Riniolo redesigned the arrangement of umbrellas and sun loungers on the beaches post-Coronavirus, inspired by the harmony of nature, whilst Florence’s Palazzo Strozzi reopens its doors for the exhibition Aria by Tomás Saraceno, with a reflection more on point than ever, focused on respect between ecosystems for a new planet. 

For the third consecutive month, La Freccia - FS Italiane’s monthly magazine – can only be browsed online at fsnews.it and on issuu.com, also being accessible via the FSNews Telegram channel and Twitter profiles @fsnews_it and @LaFreccia_Mag.