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We arrived at our Hotel called Agricola Ederle in Corte San Mattia, a vineyard estate making Valpolicella wine, set in the hills above the city of Verona and overlooking the winding river Ardige in the city centre. www.giovanniederle.it

The Vineyard Estate
It is a working vineyard and since many of its functions are now done by modern machines, the old building that used to house vineyard workers, have now been refurbished and turned into beautiful guest accommodation.
Booking in for dinner her means nothing less than a sumptuous 5 course sitting cooked by their in-house chefs and is very inexpensive. It starts with a typical Italian cheese tart, then the pasta starter, meat dish, vegetable dish and desert. The Chefs can be seen in ‘La cocina’ directly behind the large stone and wooden topped bar area, busy creating the evening meal.

The bar and restaurant has a glass wall that opens out onto a large terrace with tables set underneath rows of overhead vines and with a panoramic view over the city of Verona, directly in line with the winding river. In the evening the twinkling lights of Verona beckon, and a 2 Euro bus ride will take you the 10 minute ride down the hill into the city to explore the night-life. Taxi back at the end of your evening is just 15 Euros, and shared with 5 people, costs no more than the bus ride.

The Wine
Somehow, the Valpolicella tastes completely different to the bottles from a Leicester supermarket… It is a little cloudy, tinged with pink and has overtones of fresh fruit with a palate of sweet cherries, cinnamon and vanilla. The white wine made on the estate tasted of melon, desert apples and peaches, with overtones of ginger and a nose of vanilla, Extremely drinkable and most of the party ordered a bottle instead of messing about with glasses.

The Rooms

The rooms are spacious and the 6 foot bed is dwarfed by the white plaster walls, stone windowsills and giant exposed roof beams; with an ostentatious arrangement of flowers in a large jug that is almost 1 metre across, in shades of burnt amber and yellow. Two ingenious wooden slatted tables for suitcases either side of the room with a desk by the windows and another slatted table, this time with a slatted back inserted into the table top giving you an endless variation of back rest angles, from upright, to relaxation.
There is a separate dressing area with inbuilt wardrobes and off that, a chic modern bathroom with a curved and stylish suite. A flat screen TV is included and the view overlooks the city.

Breakfast
The coffee is heavenly in whatever form you wish, with the double espresso and brown sugar providing an instant remedy to all ailments as the hot black treacle instantly revives both soul and psyche.
Breakfast was meat, cheese and slightly sweet Italian bread, along with glass pots of fresh yoghurt and a selection of cakes dripping with lemon icing and chocolate brownie that melts in the mouth with liquid chocolate.
Then all on to the coach for a visit to the wineries in Soave…. look out for the next post or contact Elaine Vandelli for details, on www.hi2events.co.uk

The first of a series of articles describing four fabulous days in Italy in Sunny September…

A warm Saturday afternoon in September, we landed in Milan Bergamo Airport at 3.30 pm and got on a coach to Verona, passing beautifully manicured, shaped trees set out in regimental rows, which gave our first indication of the inherent style of all things Italian.

Natural Landscape

To the left of the Motorway and following us like an ancient giant, was a row of distant mountains; bare and rising to meet the sky, slightly out of focus in the mists of great height and distance. In front of them were lush green hills and mounds, dense with all manner of trees and bushes in a full palate of greens and browns. The landscape was verdant and rich with green foliage, with a distinct lack of concrete, tarmac and buildings. Random Church towers can be seen standing guard above the trees.

Architecture
The houses we passed set into the countryside, were all the colours of earthenware: cream, ochre, white, olive, sand and yellow; with many small windows framed by painted wooden shutters and almost flat, slightly pitched roofs in colours of terracotta tiles.
Small factories painted in soft shades of powder blue, pales lemon, silver grey and even orange, dotted the side of the motorway, nestled strangely in between fields of crops planted in beautiful straight rows, which looked far more stylish than most English front gardens.
Tall striking Cypress trees are juxtaposed against the random spreading of the olive trees framing the fields of low level crops of maize, corn and of course, grape vines.

Verona
Our first sight of the City of Verona was amazing. Driving off the motorway and rising up from an underpass into a plethora of tall buildings cream walls, stone façades and hundreds of balconies festooned with greenery from potted plants and shrubs. The winding roads through the city were clean and full of interesting looking shops, cafes and bars.
There were many more Church towers set into the skyline, with buttress tops and arrangements of pointed spires. We crossed the River Adige in the centre of the City which reminded me of the Thames in London, winding purposefully through another big City and flanked with tall executive apartment blocks, their balconies spilling with greenery that leaned towards the water.
It was now 5 pm Saturday and traffic was heavy here, which gave us time to take in the historic Italian style of the buildings and the flavour that can only be Italy.

San Mattia

Through the other side of Verona, the coach began to wind its way up into the hills and away from the hustle and bustle. Up and up we went, round another bend taking us even higher. Looking down at Verona, the roofs became like Lego bricks as we climbed up into the hills towards the village of San Mattia.

Look out for the next article about this trip, or contact Elaine Vendelli on www.hi2events.co.uk

Hi2 Events are running speed networking sessions throughout the day during LBE15, where you will have just 60 seconds to sell your business.

On the 29th October 2015, The Leicester Tigers Stadium will be buzzing with the sound of LBE15 and visitors 60 second speed networking pitches. There will be three sessions being held throughout the day and the first session starts from 9:40am.

If you haven’t experienced speed networking before it is similar to speed dating and is a fast and reliable way to meet new contacts and form strong business relationships.

Each participant will have 60 seconds to promote their business and to exchange important information with the person opposite, before moving to the next person. This will be a great opportunity as visitors will leave the session with a range of business contacts.

5 Top Tips for Speed Networking

1. Take plenty of business cards: You want to give out cards as well as receive them.
2. Listen to each individual: You only have 60 seconds to make an impact.
3. Take Notes: There’s a lot to take in, so write details on the back of business cards.
4. Follow Up: Don’t be afraid to call your new contacts or refer them on to someone else.

A business event tailored for business owners, directors and decision makers.

A range of business sectors are situated under one roof, giving time-poor company owners, directors and decision makers everything their business needs within a short travelling time from their offices – creating a total solution.

Keep up to date with new products and services – see the products in action (a working situation) and meet potential business clients or partners face-to-face. Source products and services from carefully selected and diverse business to business companies including HR, Sales, Marketing, Finance and IT.

Exhibitors: Find out more

Visitors: Find out more