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Ciao a tutti!
 These days, the streets of Italy are awash in confetti, streamer.. and children in fancy costumes. After all, it's Carnevale and every excuse is good to have fun. The merrymaking season has long roots - its origins go back to ancient Rome's Saturnalia, a festival when masters and slaves swapped places.
Later, though, Carnevale became inextricably linked to Lent, as a time of enjoyment (and sometimes excess) before the days of penitence. By the Middle Ages it had become an official holiday in Venice, which quickly became the capital of the February revels. It is a title the Lagoon city retains to this day, despite the best efforts by both Napoleonic and Austrian rulers to eradicate the festival, which was considered potentially subversive.
 It may be because of the rich costumes of velvet, silk and feathers, the androgynous masks, or maybe the fog that grips the city at this time of the year, but Carnival in Venice has almost an otherworldly quality. Little beats the experience of seeing a Baroque dame and her beau appear suddenly from a calle as a street lamp melts the grey tendrils of mist.
That said, other Italian cities do their best to steal Venice's primacy - Viareggio, with its allegoric floats, or Rome, which this year will be the backdrop to some daring equestrian displays. To help you choose where to go, we have put together a guide to the five best Carnival events in Italy.
 This year, the busiest Carnival weekend - the one between "Fat" Thursday and Shrove Tuesday - coincides with Valentine's Day, providing the opportunity to enjoy the two together (after all, Venice is also one of the most romantic cities on the planet, so long as you don't mind sharing it with thousands of other revellers).
Our Carnival guide recommends some great places to stay that are close to the festival events, but we have also picked three of the most atmospheric hotels for a romantic weekend. From a guest house with a difference in Florence to a 17th century locanda overlooking the Umbrian hills, they are perfect for Valentine's day or any other special time of the year.
 And if you are looking for a romantic present with a difference this Valentine's Day, Pat Eggleton has just the idea - adopt a dolphin. Rubacuori the dolphin has stolen the hearts of the people of Caprera, an island off Sardinia, but the local dolphin conservation centre is hoping that animal lovers worldwide will fall for his charms too and adopt him on Valentine's Day. Money raised through the adoption will help fund the centre's activities and safeguard the endangered cetaceans.
 As an alternative (or in addition to the adoption), Katia Amore has come up with a lovely selection of romantic presents with an Italian twist, and, as a special gift to us all, she gave us the opportunity to discover one of Dante Alighieri's greatest love poems.
I hope you will all have a lovely, romantic settimana.
Carla Passino
Editor
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La Dolce Vita show will return to London from March 11-14, this year at the Business Design Centre in Islington. Expect to find dazzling holiday destinations, some stunning homes, glorious shopping and, of course, a focus on the mouth-watering food and drink for which Italy is so well loved the world over.
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