Are you coming off a pressure cooker week at work?

Just imagine restoring yourself with The “Wave of Bacchus” Sangiovese wine scrub or another luxe viniferous therapy at Spa bellaUve in Torgiano, Italy.

Listen as NPR correspondent Sylvia Poggioli dips into old “Books of Secrets” as she tours this Umbrian spa operated by the Lungarotti winery.

Sharon at the crica 500 BC Greek temple of Ceres in Paestum, south of Naples on the Cilento Coast.

We’re thrilled that the award-winning paid subscription newsletter Dream of Italy is featuring three stories–leading with Paestum and its breathtaking Greek temples and museum–about Sharon’s recent exploration of the Amalfi and Cilento coasts of southern Italy. If you love traveling in the real Italy (or armchair fantasizing that you are!) this is the publication for you.

Subscribe now and you’ll Dream of Italy for days to come.

Best wishes to Tiffany Wells of Macon, Georgia, the winner of a free copy of 100 Places in Italy Every Woman Should Go by Susan Van Allen.

“I just love Italy-–learning about the culture, food and richness of the land! Hopefully, one day I will get to go,” wrote Tiffany in her comment to the original post.

We hope so, too, Tiffany!

Have you gotten in touch with your Inner Italian today?

“Golden Days are easy to come by when you’re in Italy. They’re those days when Italy’s sensual pleasures harmonize, and you just bask in the golden glow of it all.”

—Susan Van Allen

I feel as if I know—and really like—Susan Van Allen, even though we’ve never met. Our lopsided relationship began the moment I opened her book 100 Places in Italy Every Woman Should Go.

Skimming through each enticing destination with Susan is like traveling to Italy with a friend who’s funny, smart, adventurous and incredibly informed. Her ardor comes naturally, born at her Nana and Papa’s dining table Papa in Newark, New Jersey.

Susan—who lives in Los Angeles and writes for travel media as well as television— approaches Italy actively (and not only in her section on biking, hiking, boating and other get-a-move-on recreations.) She leads readers beyond passive tourism into engagement in the culture and with the people.

Author Susan Van Allen

Entries are grouped by special interest sections such as “The Divine: Goddesses, Saints, and The Blessed Virgin Mary,” “Gardens,” “Beaches,” and “Learn Italian Crafts and Culture.”

If you’re in Naples, you’ll be sure not to miss the Venus of the Beautiful Buttocks in the Museo Archeologico Nazionale.

When you’re in Tuscany, you’ll go out of your way to experience the magical Tarot Garden in Capalbio, designed by artist Niki de Saint Phalle.

If you crave secret coves, you’ll find a way to Scopello on the western coast of Sicily. A free horseshoe-shaped expanse of white pebbles and fine sand is hugged by limestone towers and turquoise water. Oh, and Lo Zingaro National Park with its rocky hiking trails and panoramic vistas is next door.

And if hands-on is thumbs-up for you, choose a craft. Making masks or mosaics in Venice . . . weaving and embroidery in Perugia . . . cooking in the shadow of Greek temples in Paestum.

With the destinations, Susan includes tips on lodging and dining to make the experience a “Golden Day.” Recommended books, Web sites, Resources, and Advice from Other Writers are included to amplify the information.

I’ll be savoring the book in a cozy reading chair but when I do pack my bags for bel’italia, I just might want to download the 100 Places in Italy iPhone app. Just hope the olive oil massage at Masseria Torre Maizza in Puglia doesn’t smear the screen.

For a chance to win a free copy of 100 Places in Italy Every Woman Should Go, leave a comment. Please include your e-mail address in the comment box so we can contact you. The winner will be randomly selected on June 1, 2010.

All my gardenista friends assured me that wisteria cannot, actually will not, die.

“Sharon,” they warned, “it will take over your pergola. . . your roof. . .then your entire house. Eventually you will be trapped in a maximum security wisteria prison.”

Boy, were they wrong! The newly constructed pergola behind our sub-division home was sitting on a slab of soil as hard as concrete. Several wisteria plantings succumbed. After I had the brilliant idea to construct planter boxes for new attempts, the voles moved in to pig-out on the all-you-can-eat roots buffet.

Now, 10 years later, I am triumphant. I have not one, but two, wisteria that bloom. How I appreciate them.

Every spring when I gaze at these impossibly gorgeous pendulous blooms, I’m reminded of the film Enchanted April. It starts as Lottie the frumpy post WW I English housewife reads a newspaper advert for vacations in Italy:  “To Those Who Appreciate Wisteria and Sunshine.”

This flick is quintessential posh Brit production.  Lush settings and costumes showcase a tale of British hot house flowers—Lottie and three new acquaintances who  share the villa rental—blossoming under the Mediterranean sun.

Italy works its fatal magic on the quartet, of course.  We’d expect nothing less for those who appreciate wisteria and sunshine.

Directed by Mike Newell, this 1992 film features a stellar ensemble cast including Jim Broadbent, Miranda Richardson, Josie Lawrence, Polly Walker, Joan Plowright, Alfred Molina, and Michael Kitchen. Set in London and the Ligurian coast of Italy in 1922, this gentle comedy is love-and-life affirming.  Rent the film on Netflix or purchase a copy at amazon.