My 15 minutes of fame and drinking wine
Okay, it was more like 30 minutes for an entire TV show. Some of my readers may remember when I did this and watched it when it came on HGTV or since then when it has been syndicated. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, I’ll tell you now.
Stephanie and Alfonso meeting the real estate agent
Back in May 2017 I was featured on HGTV’s House Hunters International. A spin-off show of their popular reality TV program House Hunters. It is the same concept as the original show except the difference is that featured star can also be renting (instead of only buying) a place internationally. The format shows 3 different options during the program and the dilemmas the person/family faces to achieve all of their desired requirements during the house hunt with the big reveal at the end of the show.
As a single woman looking for the home I didn’t have a good guy-bad guy partner situation to play off of to create the drama the show likes. They asked if I knew someone in the location (who speaks English) that could be a friend to help me with my search and play this part. These shows are “based on reality” and aren’t necessarily the whole truth of the situation. However, I told the producers that I had the perfect friend and in the end I’d say his performance was way more entertaining than mine.
Alfonso and Stephanie walking through the vineyard
The producers focused on one portion of my multi-faceted life story and his role worked in beautifully. In reality, my friend, Alfonso Mauro, is a tour guide at a beautiful winery located on the Amalfi Coast in a cliffside community just above the town where this show featured my move from Rome to Vietri sul Mare. Alfonso speaks English at a very high level (way higher than most Italians) and also French (I can’t vouch for his skill level there as I’m a beginner myself and I’ve not heard him speak French).
The winery, Le Vigne di Raito, is one of the few woman-owned wineries in Italy founded by Patrizia Malanga. They mostly export their organic wines to the American market. When visiting Italy you can tour the winery and Alfonso explains in detail the process of wine making. Included during the tour, of course, is a tasting of their wines and depending on the tour you book you can also stay for lunch or dinner. The food and the views from the winery are exceptional. For any of my jewelry making readers who are considering to attend one of our Sogni d’Oro jewelry workshop retreats, this wine tour with lunch is one of our featured outings during the week. You’ll get to meet Alfonso, see the amazing views from the cliffside vineyard while drinking wonderful wine, and dining on delicious local dishes.
view from Le Vigne di Raito vineyard
Be sure to book your spot to participate in our inaugural workshop soon as spaces are limited and we only have 2 opportunities in September for this year. Otherwise, we are currently working on building our program for 2025 to feature more instructors and workshops for jewelers of various skill levels. If you’re not a jewelry maker, but are planning your own trip to the Amalfi Coast or nearby area be sure to book your tour in advance at the vineyard as they fill up quickly during the busy summer season.