Italy Here We Come

I know you’ve heard us say that Italy is our second home and it is looking more and more that way. The Italians have had a love affair with Ronn for decades now and he seems to visit that country more than any other. It’s hard to say no to any invitation because there are so many beautiful places to visit in Italy. This upcoming invitation is one that I am extremely excited about because it falls around my big 50th birthday in June and it’s a place I’ve never been in Sicily. 

Ronn has been invited to attend the prestigious 59th Taormina Film Festival held in the beautiful scenario of the ancient Greek-Roman monument “Teatro Antico”, facing the Etna volcano, in the heart of the Mediterranean area. Past actors such as,  Robert De Niro, Oliver Stone, Sophia Loren, Colin Firth have had the honor of being asked to do a presentation at this beautiful theater that is embedded in a rock and only holds about 19,000 people. Here is a link to the festival for more information Taormina Film Festival 2013

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I take this is as another gift from the universe that we are on the right path in our exciting new career ventures and the fact that this invitation falls near my big birthday makes me so happy to again visit another beautiful place in Italy. So here are some pics of the beautiful outdoor theater and the coast of Sicily. I’m imagining my morning cappuccinos now.

A Change Of Season

Dev & Lori at the Tuscan villa

The past few days spent with our Italian friends who are very much family to us felt so surreal.  Our last days in the gorgeous countryside of Tuscany was set in a quaint “Eco-chic” Boutique farm , TENUTA CHIUDENDONE . Our host was Francesco Cavallini, owner of Emilio Cavallini who has been the premier fashion tights company to many designers all over the world since 1972. We got to tour the factory where they make them and was given so many designs to take home. Lori was in sheer pantyhose heaven and Francesco’s father is a true artist in the unique world of fashion tights.

Lori, Dev & Isabella

Lori, Ronn & Dev

Ombu, Francesco, Dev, Ronn & Isabella

Francesco & Ronn

We were treated to the finest  Tuscan wines at a wonderful wine tasting compliments of, Varramista Winery  and then the highlight of our trip there was a visit to the local supermarket with Ronn. I wanted Francesco and his girlfriend Isabella to show me how to cook a whole fish Tuscan style, so we stopped at the market and even the butcher wanted a picture with Ronn! Lori and I laughed so hard at the reaction from everyone,  including grandmothers and children who seemed to be drawn to Ronn for photos. I will show you guys what I learned about cooking a whole Sea Bass later on Ronn’s Garage. We traveled Saturday by train back to Rome for our final two days in Italy so that we could spend some quality time with the lovely Laura Biagiotti and my Italian sister Lavinia.They always make us feel so at home at the Biagiotti Castle. We topped off our evening with champagne at the Biagiotti boutique. Katherine Kelly Lang joined us and then went back to the castle for an amazing home cooked dinner with Laura. It was such a pleasure to introduce KKL to Laura and turns out, it was a special holiday for Italy was honoring St. Raffelle. The moon was so bright and full that we all felt the aura of excitement and anticipation deep into the night as a flutter of rain drops softly kissed us. Soon a pouring rain storm washed away the smoldering heat and humidity of the summer, and a change of season seemed to happen before our eyes with the breeziness of fall that is so welcomed now.  I started to feel a bit of a cold coming on so I decided to rest in between lunch and dinner on Sunday. Ronn and Lavinia went for a walk and to my surprise, Ronn came back with a perfectly small heart shaped rock he found on the Biagiotti property from their afternoon stroll. I was so amazed and surprised to get this from him and took it as an omen to all the wonderful things that are happening in our lives now.

My Heart shaped Rocks

It’s my gratitude rock, a symbol of our rock solid love that has conquered so much in the past few months. As some you may remember, Ronn found a large heart shaped rock walking on the beach in Malibu a few years ago, so now I have that one next to me in our bedroom and this little one with me at all times. I showed Laura the rock and she said with great flair, “Now, let’s go find a Picasso at the flea market!” Because I admire so much Laura’s wisdom, knowledge and sixth sense, I knew our trip to the flea market was something special she wanted to share with us. And there I found the cutest outfit in the latest fashionable color of deep green for this fall that I will can’t wait to wear with pride. Lavinia wanted to take us to the wedding of chef Filippo La Mantia and his bride, Stefania, which was hailed the most elite party in Rome, and such a glamourous end to our  awesome trip. Lori and I got dressed up for the party and made quite an entrance with Ronn, who epitomized Rock Star.

Lavinia, Eleonora & Ronn

Dev, Eleonora, Ronn & Lori

There we met some of the most prestigious people in Rome, including ballerina, Eleonora Abbagnato.  Lavinia grew up watching Eleonora dance and to meet her was an honor, especially since I’ve never seen a ballet. So she invited me to see her dance in Paris! Being at this party was like seeing a fashion show of the most beautiful people, each designer dress prettier than the next and the most delicious food. It was hard to move because everyone was coming to meet Ronn for photos, but Lori and I watched the whole scene in awe of every minute. Lavinia was so proud to introduce Ronn to everyone there and thus put a thrilling end to another memorable trip in our second home. This change of season is looking very promising and bright, so I’m sure another trip to Italy will be happening very soon!

The Rare White Truffle

Lori, Dev, Ronn, Lavinia

We spent a lovely afternoon with Lavinia Biagiotti and Katherine Kelly Lang, who gave me the most beautiful kaftan, literally off her back!

KKL’s Kaftans

Love those girls so much and am grateful to have such friends. Lori was in awe of all the shopping available in the center of Rome, so the whole day was great, although quite hot. Last night we arrived by train from Rome to Florence, which was cooler and rainy and then drove by car to stay with our friends Isabella and Francesco at his bed and breakfast farm. We are in our own spacious apartment surrounded by what seems to be vivid green vineyards. So peaceful and relaxing, it’s just what Ronn needs right now.

Lori & her white truffle pasta

We had dinner at the “Rosso Antico Osteria Moderna” restaurant, which was our best meal so far. I was so impressed with the white truffle sauce that I had to see the kitchen and get the recipe from the chef Claudio Buglioni. Apparently, the rare white truffle is only found in this area and they must be found by special trained dogs because they are deep in the ground. The rare white truffle is very expensive and only in season between September and November. If you haven’t tasted white truffle, it’s delicious and has a distinct taste and smell. This region supplies all the white truffles to exclusive areas of the world from this tiny area and the competition to find white truffle can be fierce because it can make the person who finds it very wealthy.

Claudio & Dev

I find Tuscan food to be some of the very best food in the world and have always adored this part of Italy because of it. Last time Ronn and I were here, we brought the kids and stayed with Ronn’s dance partner on “Ballando Con Le Stelle” Sara DiViara, so we hope to see her today. In the meantime, the quest to find a giant white truffle may be on our agenda.  They have offered to have Ronn as the guest star for the annual, “White Truffle Fair” in November, so we may be back then.

DevRonn

Can’t believe we have only a couple more days left of our trip before heading home. Tomorrow we head back to Rome to visit the castle of Laura and Lavinia Biagiotti. I always look forward to the wonderful talks I have with Laura. I can listen to her all day talk about history, art and her rare finds at flea markets, which she is taking us to on Sunday before we attend a wedding. So our trip is nice and relaxing now and the memories are truly special because everyone makes us feel so at home. It’s funny because every time we come to visit, I have to bring more spices to give to friends that are addicted to it like we are, especially Laura’s cooks. I’m looking forward to perhaps doing a Ronn’s Garage segment from the castle with Lavinia!

Laura Biagiotti and Beautiful Capri

It feels like a dream being here on the most beautiful Island of Capri. I didn’t even know much about this area except that most of the elite come here to vacation and it’s one of the most unique places to visit. So being here feels surreal right now because we are still a bit tired from the trek here. No one is as tired as Ronn. He is like the energizer bunny who can keep going till his battery needs charging again, which is now. He always handles everything and everyone so gracefully and professionally and it’s sometimes hard for me to keep up with his pace. Between interviews, fans wanting photos, shootings and dinners, he hardly ever stops when visiting Italy. So it’s a rarity to just relax and enjoy. I’m watching my friend Lori embrace the whole experience with child-like eyes and wonder.  It’s a beautiful present for me to share this with someone like her. Ronn is so loved here and it was great to see him reunite with Katherine Kelly Lang. She’s always so sweet and fun to be around. They started the commercial shoot today very early, so it was bit of day for them both. So much so, that we are staying in and not going to dinner tonight. Just want to chill in our room and relax so that he’s fresh for tomorrow.  The Biagiotti fashion show yesterday was truly amazing and we loved the whole collection! Bright vintage 60′s colors and fun flowing prints made it so special and right up my alley. We went behind the scenes and watched Laura choose some of the models the day before the fashion show and it was an education to watch how much preparation goes into doing a collection for 15 minutes on the runway. Now Laura and Lavinia will start working for the next few months to prepare for the fall fashion show in March. As you know, Ronn and KKL did an appearance in Naples the night before so poor Ronn got no sleep and manage to fly back to Milan for the Biagiotti fashion show before Lori and I joined him and flew right back to Naples.  Getting to Capri, we had to take this hydrofoil boat for 45 minutes and I felt a bit nauseous.  Needless to say, after dinner with the clients for the commercial shoot, we were all dead tired. Then Ronn had to start today with only 3 hours of sleep. He and KKL are re-enacting a scene from Jackie O and Aristotle Onassis’ honeymoon here in Capri. They were in a million dollar wooden boat on some rough waters today filming.  Ronn is playing a dashing boatman that catches Kelly’s eye during chance meetings and there is someone else playing Aristotle. So it’s a very cute and interesting campaign that I am excited to see. Tomorrow is our 3 year wedding anniversary, so it’s extra special that we are just here in the same spot that so many interesting people have vacationed and enjoyed for centuries, including ancient Romans. I feel blessed to have had a second wedding a few months ago in gorgeous Puglia and now to experience our original anniversary in  Capri is unique and special. And we are so grateful to be here to celebrate our special day and I’m so proud of my husband and embracing every moment of our short time here. 

Puglia, Italy

We are back from Puglia and a bit jet lagged still, but the memories will linger for a while. I had never been to southern Italy and must admit was a bit excited to see this region. We stayed the first few days at the Masseria San Domenico  which was where B&B filmed. The food was absolutely amazing, fresh home grown vegetables were so great that’s all I wanted to eat there. The weather was a lot like LA with sunny warm days and cooler nights. A few miles away from the Masseria San Domenico is another newer hotel called, Borgo Egnazia and both places are owned by the same people. The Borgo Egnazia is so romantic and beautifully decorated with an award winning spa. The cast and crew were made to feel at home at both places since some of the crew were staying at the Borgo Egnazia. We were treated to complimentary massages, facials and body scrubs and the whole atmosphere felt like heaven. Two other location days were spent at this gorgeous little town, Alberobello, where all the homes have cone like roof tops  and the town of Polignano a Mare. Both places were a must to see and the people are so nice. Puglia provides 70% of the world’s olive oil and has so many amazing olive trees everywhere. They also provide 10% of Europe’s wine and pasta. At the end of the B&B shoot, Ronn and I moved over to the Borgo Egnazia to stay in one of the 3 bedroom private villas that had it’s own pool. The villa was like our own private little mansion. We invited some of our European friends like German artist Michael Mobius and designer Lavinia Biagiotti to come and share it with us. Ronn and Katherine Kelly Lang did a commercial in Bari after the B&B shoot was over, so this was an added treat to our final day there. Puglia has become a very special place for us and we will surly return. An upcoming special “Ronn’s Garage” episode will be dedicated to our experiences there, truly a magical place for us!

DevRonn In Italia

It’s been over a week that we have been in our beloved second home, Italy. As always, we feel the love instantly especially with Ronn, as he has always had a big love affair with beautiful Italia. It seems since, “Ballando con le Stelle” he is more recognized as Ronn instead of Ridge, which is quite nice. After all of the press he did for his PLAYER album with Peter Beckett, we celebrated the release of Lavinia Biagiotti’s book, which is a cute and colorful book that displays tips on fashion. Lavinia is like my sister and she and her mom, Laura always makes us feel at home with them. I’m happy to announce that I will be helping them bring back the beloved fragrance, “Venezia” to America. The fragrance has many fans and requests in America and right now isn’t currently distributed there. I love the smell and right away started getting compliments since I’ve been wearing it. Jacqueline MacInnes-Wood who plays Steffy on B&B fell in love with it instantly also. So we are excited to relaunch “Venezia” in the US now. Since we have said goodbye to our friends in Rome, we are now in beautiful Puglia among the olive groves, which feels like heaven. There is an amazing spa that I’m looking forward to trying and the food has been spectacular. Seems like the vegetables are so fresh and flavorful that is all I want to eat right now. The seafood is also amazing and so is the wine. Needless to say we never go hungry in Italia. The B&B shoot is going very well, quite relaxing with gorgeous days and beautiful nights spent with the cast and crew. There are more of our Italian friends coming later this week to visit with us and Ronn and Katherine Kelly Lang are shooting a cute and funny commercial at the end of the week. Italia is always busy for Ronn with shoots, press and trying to fit so much in with friends in such a short period of time. But, we love Italia and their culture and really do think of it as our second home. A home we hope to spend more and more time in future years.

PLAYER IN ITALIA

Here are some of the links to the press that Ronn and Peter has done so far in Italia.

DeeJay

DeeJay Photo Gallery

Scherzi a Parte

Scherzi a Parte (Sexy Part)

Press Release

Player’s Addiction

PLAYER is releasing a new album in Italy and doing press to promote it for a possible European tour. So Peter Beckett is coming to Italy with us tomorrow for some live TV appearances in Milan and Rome. The new album is entitled, “Addiction” and is on the prestigious Frontier’s label. We are very excited about the new released and I’m so happy they used the photo that I took of them! Looking forward to all the exciting things that are happening for PLAYER in the coming year. I know how many fans want to see them play in Europe and now that’s looking like a possibility.  Check out the press release here. Player PR

Ballando Con Te

Ronn opened the show with “Born In The USA” and danced the Quick Step with Sara DiVaira in this opening sequence which was quite nice. We are looking forward to visiting our second home, Italy in the next couple weeks when B&B films in Pulgia. More exciting news coming soon!!

Easter Weekend

Easter has always been one of my favorite times of the year because it marks the blooming of flowers, spring fashion and new beginnings. There is a freshness in the air and after a cold winter, it’s a welcomed change that makes us smile. This Easter was the first time in eight years that Ronn and I have been apart.  Even though I’ve missed him dearly,  I’ve so enjoyed the quiet stillness of our home all to myself. Good Friday I attended a fun party hosted by Michelle Stafford at her gorgeous home that she has decided to sell. I hung out with Nadia Bjorlin, Brandon Beemer and Christian LeBlanc which always spells out, “Good Time.” Then I had a fabulous dinner cooked by renowned drummer, Frankie Banali and his gorgeous fiance’ Regina Russell. Meanwhile, Ronn flew to Rome for an appearance on a new dance show called, “Ballando Con Te” and spent Easter with Laura and Lavinia Biagiotti. I decided to spend Easter with my neighbor Sue who cooked up a fabulous spread of prime rib and turkey. Her daughter Danielle made some bunny rabbits treats, as we hung out and enjoyed a gorgeous day spent by the pool. So I hope you all had a wonderful and blessed Easter. And even though Ronn was missed here at home, he is returning today with many stories from our Italian family I’m sure.