Lake Garda Research Articles

Metabolomic and Lipidomic Analysis of Manganese-Associated Parkinsonism: a Case-Control Study in Brescia, Italy.

Excessive Manganese (Mn) exposure is neurotoxic and can cause Mn-Induced Parkinsonism (MnIP), marked by cognitive and motor dysfunction. Although metabolomic and lipidomic research in Parkinsonism (PD) patients exists, it remains limited. This study hypothesizes distinct metabolomic and lipidomic profiles based on exposure status, disease diagnosis, and their interaction. We used a case-control design with a 2×2 factorial framework to investigate the metabolomic and lipidomic alterations associated with Mn exposure and their link to PD. The study population of 97 individuals was divided into four groups: non-exposed controls (n=23), exposed controls (n=25), non-exposed with PD (n=26) and exposed with PD (n=23). Cases, defined by at least two cardinal PD features (excluding vascular, iatrogenic, and traumatic origins), were recruited from movement disorder clinics in four hospitals in Brescia, Northern Italy. Controls, free from neurological or psychiatric conditions, were selected from the same hospitals. Exposed subjects resided in metallurgic regions (Val Camonica and Bagnolo Mella) for at least 8 continuous years, while non-exposed subjects lived in low-exposure areas around Lake Garda and Brescia city. We conducted untargeted analyses of metabolites and lipids in whole blood samples using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) and mass spectrometry (MS), followed by statistical analyses including Principal Component Analysis (PCA), Partial Least Squares-Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA), and Two-Way Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA). Metabolomic analysis revealed modulation of alanine, aspartate, and glutamate metabolism (Impact=0.05, p=0.001) associated with disease effect; butanoate metabolism (Impact=0.03, p=0.004) with the exposure effect; and vitamin B6 metabolism (Impact=0.08, p=0.03) with the interaction effect. Differential relative abundances in 3-sulfoxy-L-Tyrosine (β=1.12, FDR p<0.001), glycocholic acid (β=0.48, FDR p=0.03), and palmitelaidic acid (β=0.30, FDR p<0.001) were linked to disease, exposure, and interaction effects, respectively. In the lipidome, ferroptosis (Pathway Lipids=11, FDR p=0.03) associated with the disease effect and sphingolipid signaling (Pathway Lipids=9, FDR p=0.04) associated with the interaction effect were significantly altered. Lipid classes triacylglycerols, ceramides, and phosphatidylethanolamines showed differential relative abundances associated with disease, exposure, and interaction effects, respectively. These findings suggest that PD and Mn exposure induce unique metabolomic and lipidomic changes, potentially serving as biomarkers for MnIP and warranting further study.

Taxonomic and functional metagenomic assessment of a Dolichospermum bloom in a large and deep lake south of the Alps.

Untargeted genetic approaches can be used to explore the high metabolic versatility of cyanobacteria. In this context, a comprehensive metagenomic shotgun analysis was performed on a population of Dolichospermum lemmermannii collected during a surface bloom in Lake Garda in the summer of 2020. Using a phylogenomic approach, the almost complete metagenome-assembled genome obtained from the analysis allowed to clarify the taxonomic position of the species within the genus Dolichospermum and contributed to frame the taxonomy of this genus within the ADA group (Anabaena/Dolichospermum/Aphanizomenon). In addition to common functional traits represented in the central metabolism of photosynthetic cyanobacteria, the genome annotation uncovered some distinctive and adaptive traits that helped define the factors that promote and maintain bloom-forming heterocytous nitrogen-fixing Nostocales in oligotrophic lakes. In addition, genetic clusters were identified that potentially encode several secondary metabolites that were previously unknown in the populations evolving in the southern Alpine Lake district. These included geosmin, anabaenopetins, and other bioactive compounds. The results expanded the knowledge of the distinctive competitive traits that drive algal blooms and provided guidance for more targeted analyses of cyanobacterial metabolites with implications for human health and water resource use.

Altitudinal variation of microplastic abundance in lakeshore sediments from Italian lakes

Microplastic (MP) contamination represents an issue of global concern for both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, but only in recent years, the study of MPs has been focused on freshwaters. Several monitoring surveys have detected the presence of a wide array of MPs differing in size, shape, and polymer composition in rivers and lakes worldwide. Because of their role of sink for plastic particles, the abundance of MPs was investigated in waters, and deep and shoreline sediments from diverse lakes, confirming the ubiquity of this contamination. Although diverse factors, including those concerning anthropogenic activities and physical characteristics of lakes, have been supposed to affect MP abundances, very few studies have directly addressed these links. Thus, the aim of the present study was to explore the levels of MP contamination in mountain and subalpine lakes from Northern Italy. Fourteen lakes dislocated at different altitudes and characterized by dissimilar anthropic pressures were visited. Lakeshore sediments were collected close to the drift line to assess MPs contamination. Our results showed the presence of MPs in lakeshore sediments from all the lakes, with a mean (± standard deviation) expressed as MPs/Kg dry sediment accounting to 14.42 ± 13.31 (range 1.57–61.53), while expressed as MPs/m2, it was 176.07 ± 172.83 (range 25.00–666.67). The MP abundance measured for Garda Lake was significantly higher compared to all the other ones (F1,13 = 7.344; P < 0.001). The pattern of contamination was dominated by fibers in all the lakes, but they were the main contributors in mountain lakes. These findings showed that the MP abundance varied according to the altitude of the lakes, with higher levels measured in subalpine lakes located at low altitudes and surrounded by populated areas.

Slow response of surface water temperature to fast atmospheric variability reveals mixing heterogeneity in a deep lake

Slow and long-term variations of sea surface temperature anomalies have been interpreted as a red-noise response of the ocean surface mixed layer to fast and random atmospheric perturbations. How fast the atmospheric noise is damped depends on the mixed layer depth. In this work we apply this theory to determine the relevant spatial and temporal scales of surface layer thermal inertia in lakes. We fit a first order auto-regressive model to the satellite-derived Lake Surface Water Temperature (LSWT) anomalies in Lake Garda, Italy. The fit provides a time scale, from which we determine the mixed layer depth. The obtained result shows a clear spatial pattern resembling the morphological features of the lake, with larger values (7.18± 0.3 m) in the deeper northwestern basin, and smaller values (3.18 ± 0.24 m) in the southern shallower basin. Such variations are confirmed by in-situ measurements in three monitoring points in the lake and connect to the first Empirical Orthogonal Function of satellite-derived LSWT and chlorophyll-a concentration. Evidence from our case study open a new perspective for interpreting lake-atmosphere interactions and confirm that remotely sensed variables, typically associated with properties of the surface layers, also carry information on the relevant spatial and temporal scales of mixed-layer processes.

Celto-Venetica: Indo-European Names from North-Eastern Italy and the Dialectal Classification of Venetic

This work tries to cast some light on a number of indigenous names of north-eastern Italy. It specifically addresses a selected number of names from Brixia and its environment, which lies in the west of Venetia et Histria, and close to the border of the Gallia Transpadana, covering an area that runs from the Oglio to the Adige rivers, around the Garda Lake. Most of these names have one thing in common: they are hardly ever found anywhere else, and, as a consequence, they have obtained a label: Jürgen Untermann called them Brescianisch, thus tacitly paving the way for considering them as a trace of an independent, unknown and unclassified dialect. That these names are not attested outside this area is not necessarily diagnostic of their not being Celtic or Italic, though the path leading to their classification may prove winding and indirect. Their etymology and attribution to either Celtic or Venetic will be thoroughly discussed. The study of the Venetic name fersimo comes to confirm the evolution of the complex superlative suffix *-is-m̥(H)o- &gt; -izʊmo- &gt; -īmo- is common to Sabellic and Venetic, where only the name meitima provided evidence for this change. Some misidentified or overlooked derivational and compositional patterns are addressed, such as the superlatives in -umus, the Celtic compounds in -gassi- and the probably both Italic and Celtic compounds whose first member is an Indo-European root-noun *ḱlu- ‘hearing.’ The personal names qverra, dievpala, endvbro, rvtvba, rvtvmanne, barbarvtae, aprofennivs are Venetic and decidedly bely the widespread notion that Italic did not preserve Indo-European compounds as personal names. The Celtic personal name vorvodisivs and the personal or divine name boxarvae are considered as belonging to a very ancient layer of Indo-European composition and, when possible, are connected to other compounds belonging to the same “semantic paradigms.” The analysis shows that it is premature to label these forms as Brescianisch — a new Indo-European dialect not attested in indigenous sources, which is in fact little more than a label for an onomastic landscape whose members are otherwise unattested but can be unproblematically linked to Continental Celtic and Italic.

Multidecadal analysis of Lake Garda water balance

Lake Garda, the largest in Italy, is a major source of water supply inserted in a trans-regional area, sustaining an ever-increasing variety of water interests since the XX century. We perform a multidecadal (1928-2020) water balance, estimating the long-term evolution of the input and output components under changing anthropogenic and climatic stressors. First, we present our hydrometeorological database, assembled through a consistent effort of collection and digitization of data from different sources. Then, we analyse the annual water balance, assessing the magnitude of the residual term, i.e. the unknown term that embeds uncertainties and potential sources of error, closing the water balance equation. Uncertainties are investigated by applying a multi-method analysis for over-lake evaporation and basin evapotranspiration. Land use evolution, contributions from the Mount Baldo area as well as the potential role of groundwater fluxes are additionally analysed. Eventually, we compute a sensitivity analysis to delineate the role of each component on the lake’s level and outflow variations. The long-term analysis allows for distinguishing some trends in the input and output components of the water balance. Differences emerge in the periods before and after the lake’s impoundment (1951), and some effects of climate modifications appear in the last decades. Precipitation over the basin has a major influence on the water availability within the basin, a result confirmed by the sensitivity analysis. The entity of the residual term, which represents the unaccounted contributions, calls into question the role of the groundwater fluxes and the time scale of the analysis. The multi-method analysis highlights the dependency of the different lake evaporation and basin evapotranspiration methods on the amount of data available.

‘Feel at home’ on vacation: exploring homeyness as a driver of tourists’ loyalty and pro-environmental behaviours

ABSTRACT Tourism research has increasingly highlighted the importance of encouraging tourists’ pro-environmental behaviours (PEBs), also because people’s PEBs are generally different at home and on holidays. Home, however, can be experienced also away from home, and ‘homeyness’ is a multidimensional concept which involves familiarity, authenticity and security of a place. Although recent research has shown the positive effect of home-like experiences on tourists’ satisfaction and loyalty, the link between homeyness and tourists’ PEBs has been substantially overlooked. Moreover, most research on tourists’ PEBs has been conducted addressing tourists’ attitudes and intentions, therefore, failing to consider possible attitude-behaviour gaps or social desirability bias. Given the relatively little research on homeyness in tourism, and its role in eliciting tourists’ PEBs, more research is needed. To fill this gap, this study explores the role of homeyness as a driver of tourists’ loyalty and PEBs, adopting tourist managers’ and operators’ perspectives. Qualitative research was conducted through in-depth interviews with a sample of 17 key stakeholders of the tourist destination of Lake Garda, Italy. The results show that familiarity, authenticity and security are key dimensions of the tourism experience provided at Lake Garda. Tourists who experience homeyness, in turn, develop destination loyalty and display higher PEBs.

Draft genome sequence of the anatoxin-a producing cyanobacterium Tychonema bourrellyi B0820 isolated from the epilimnion of the deep Alpine Lake Garda.

We report the draft genome sequence of strain B0820 of the cyanobacterium Tychonema bourrellyi isolated from the epilimnion of Lake Garda and assembled from a metagenome of a non-axenic culture. The strain analyzed was shown to produce anatoxin-a, a potent neurotoxin that can cause fatal intoxication in exposed organisms.

First Report of Proteocephalus longicollis (Zeder, 1800) in Alosa fallax lacustris (Fatio, 1890) from Lake Garda (Italy): Morphological and Molecular Study.

Twaite shad (Alosa fallax) includes two subspecies, the anadromous Alosa fallax nilotica, and the landlocked species Alosa fallax lacustris, representing the only Clupeidae inhabiting Lake Garda. Study of the parasitic fauna of this species in this area is still limited. For this reason, the aim of the present study was to evaluate the presence of tapeworms from A. fallax lacustris sampled in Lake Garda. Sixty-six A. fallax lacustris specimens were collected at the Milan fish market (Lombardy, Italy); specifically, an evaluation of the gastrointestinal contents was carried out for the presence of helminths. All parasites found were fixed in 70% ethanol and transferred to the laboratories of the University of Messina for morphological and molecular analysis. Parts of the parasites were stained with Semichon's carmine red technique. Molecular analysis was carried out using LSU rRNA and ITS2 region genes. Eight specimens out of sixty-six (12.1%) were positive for adult cestodes within the pyloric caeca. Morphological and molecular analysis could to identify the parasites found to be Proteocephalus longicollis. This parasite species is not considered a zoonotic agent, representing a low risk of parasitic fish-borne zoonosis for consumers of this appreciated fish from Lake Garda.

High-resolution local seismic zonation by cluster and correlation analysis

Site response analysis is essential for seismic hazard and risk assessment and for providing useful data for land-use planning. However, current regional site amplification models do not always have the resolution required for sites such as alpine valleys, in which site response is characterized by complex effects. In addition, even in local studies, site response is usually computed at a limited number of sites because it requires the recording of earthquakes through the installation of seismological stations. To spatially extend the site response to a denser grid of points inside the investigated area, we used k-means cluster and correlation analyses and Voronoi tessellation. The method was applied to the evaluation of the site response of the lower Sarca Valley on the northern shore of Lake Garda. Earthquakes were recorded at 19 sites to calculate site response in terms of amplification and duration functions of ground motion. The results show high amplification values (up to 10) at low frequencies (at about 0.7 Hz) in the center of the valley, where the sediments reach a thickness of about 420 m. Moderate amplification values and duration lengthening of several seconds in the range of 1–10 Hz are found instead at the edge of the valley on the sedimentary deposits, while a lack of amplification is observed for the sites located on the bedrock. Both the amplification and duration functions were assigned to the area covered by the single-station noise measurements to obtain a zonation of the study area, resulting in three zones to which Fourier amplification factors can be assigned for specific frequency values. The results obtained can be used directly for hazard and risk scenarios and to improve regional maps with lower resolution at the local level.

From the Exclusive to the Excessive. Lake Garda's Long History of Tourism from the Belle Époque to Overtourism

https://www.athensjournals.gr/tourism/2023-10-3-4-Pasini.pdf

Pilot survey reveals ophidiomycosis in dice snakes Natrix tessellata from Lake Garda, Italy.

Ophidiomycosis is an emerging infectious disease caused by the fungus Ophidiomyces ophidiicola (Oo). To date, Oo presence or associated disease condition has been recorded in wild and/or captive snakes from North America, Europe, Asia and Australia, but the data is still scarce outside the Nearctic. Although Italy is a country with a high snake biodiversity in the European panorama, and animals with clinical signs compatible with Oo infection have been documented, to date no investigations have reported the disease in the wild. Therefore, a pilot survey for the Italian territory was performed in conjunction with setting up a complete diagnostic workflow including SYBR Green-based real-time PCR assay for the detection of Oo genomic and mitochondrial DNA combined with histopathology of scale clips. Oo presence was investigated in 17 wild snake specimens from four different species. Four snakes were sampled in a targeted location where the mycosis was suspected via citizen science communications (i.e. North of the Lake Garda), whereas other ophidians were collected following opportunistic sampling. Oo genomic and mitochondrial DNA were detected and sequenced from all four Lake Garda Natrix tessellata, including three juveniles with macroscopic signs such as discolouration and skin crusts. From histopathological examination of scale clips, the three young positive individuals exhibited ulceration, inflammation and intralesional hyphae consistent with Oo infection, and two of them also showed the presence of arthroconidial tufts and solitary cylindrical arthrospores, allowing "Ophidiomycosis and Oo shedder" categorisation. For the remaining snake samples, the real-time PCR tested negative for Oo. This pilot survey permitted to localise for the first time Oo infection in free-ranging ophidians from Italy. Ophidiomycosis from Lake Garda highlights the need to increase sampling efforts in this area as well as in other northern Italian lakes to assess the occurrence of the pathogen, possible risk factors of the infection, its impact on host population fitness and the disease ecology of Oo in European snakes.

Assessment of Rainfall Risk in a Financial Perspective: An Application to the Wine Industry

Climate change is an increasingly critical phenomenon in agriculture, which includes wine production. Rainfall appears to be extremely important for wine production; however, it can become a disaster in large quantities. Given the nature of external risk to the enterprise, rainfall financial risk, that is, the risk of decreasing revenues due to persistent rain is difficult to forecast, manage and monitor. Therefore, it is crucial for wineries to assess such a risk to safeguard their business performances. This study adds to the literature on wine, weather and risk assessment by developing an assessment method of rainfall financial risk for small- and medium-sized wine enterprises. In particular, starting from the result of applying the proposed method, that is the assessment, or not, of rainfall financial risk, it is possible to make recommendations to a winery on the adoption, or not, of mitigation measures of such a risk with the final goal of preserving profitability and solvability. The proposed method was empirically applied to a selected group of wineries located near Lake Garda (Northern Italy), during the period 2010–2019.

Mapping bathymetry and shallow water benthic habitats in inland and coastal waters with Sentinel-2

Accurate determination of the water depth and benthic macroalgae composition in coastal and inland water bodies is important due to the high commercial and ecological value of these regions. Benthic habitat mapping by conventional methods provides good accuracy, but these methods are very expensive and limited by manpower and time factor, which is necessary for mapping large areas. Remote sensing methods significantly complement contact measurements and give additional information about the hard-to-reach areas. The usefulness of free Sentinel-2 data in bathymetry and habitat mapping has been demonstrated in clear oceanic waters. The aim of this study was to further test the suitability of Sentinel-2 imagery in creating maps of dominant benthic types, as well as in estimating bathymetry in optically complex marine and lake waters. Two study sites were selected to cover a representative range of optical variability - Lake Garda in northern Italy (an intermediate between clear ocean and optically very complex waters) and Viimsi peninsula on the Estonian side of the Gulf of Finland, in the Baltic Sea. The results show that Sentinel-2 imagery with 10 m spatial resolution is suitable for bathymetry and habitat mapping in optically complex inland and coastal waters. Our results show that bathymetry mapping is sufficiently accurate in waters less than 4 m deep in the case of the Baltic Sea and up to 7 m deep in Lake Garda. In such depths, the R2 was above 0.93 in all four Sentinel-2 images used in the study. Bottom type mapping accuracy was in all cases over 73%, which is considered to be good, but due to the limited number of sampling points in both test sites, further studies are needed. The Sentinel-2 data quality and no cost of the imagery for users make it very useful for mapping bathymetry and shallow water habitats over large coastal areas or high number of lakes, especially in hard to reach by in situ methods areas. Moreover, the frequent revisit time allows moving from one-off maps to monitoring of temporal changes happening in dynamic shallow inland and coastal waters.

The Venetian Warships of Lake Garda. News of the Benacus Project: What If Fresh Water Is No Longer Protective?

With the French at the door, on May 31st of 1509, the Head of the Venetian Garda fleet received the order to burn and sink the ships and come back to Venice: the war on the lake was temporarily lost. The small fleet, whose base was at Lazise, was formed by one light galley and two fustas, so the commandant sunk the galley and one fusta in front of the town and went with the third ship to the northern lake to take a safe trip to Venice on horseback. One shipwreck was discovered in 1960 and was studied in several campaigns, but it was not clear if it was a small galley or a large fusta. New research was started in 2018 with BENĀCUS, a project of the Department of Humanities and Cultural Heritage of the University of Udine, in a joint venture with the Trieste and Firenze Universities, and under the Superintendency for the Archaeology, Arts and Landscape of the provinces of Verona, Vicenza and Rovigo. The aim of this project was an historical research and geophysical survey to map the underwater cultural heritage (UCH) of Garda Lake.

PALEOCLIMATE AND PALEOENVIRONMENT IN NORTH-WESTERN ITALY (SOUTHERN ALPS) DURING THE LAST GLACIAL STAGE: THE SMALL-MAMMAL RECORD FROM THE BUCO DEL FRATE CAVE (PREVALLE – BRESCIA)

The palaeoclimatic and palaeoenvironmental data obtained by the study of the Buco del Frate cave small-mammals indicate that, around 40,000 years ago (MIS3), the eastern part of the province of Brescia, immediately to the west of Lake Garda, was characterised by the presence of open taiga environment and watercourses crossing the plain facing the cave. Specifically, the palaeoclimatic conditions of this part of north-western Italy around 40,000 years ago – compared to climate data for the years 1960-90 measured at Ghedi, 20 km southwest of the Buco del Frate cave – involved average temperatures some 4° C cooler and rainfall some 30% lower. Based on the collected data we show that the western part of the Po Valley, west of Lake Garda, was characterized by a steppe-like environment, not too different from the almost contemporaneous site of Settepolesini di Bondeno (Ferrara), defined as "mammoth steppe". We also note that the western Po Valley, if compared with deposits from high- and medium-mountain contexts in the same area, was characterized by a more steppe-like environment. Indeed, the mountain settings, in perhaps more sheltered areas, indicate the presence of environments with more trees (or, at least, bushes).

Effect of multifunctional irrigation on grape quality: a case study in Northern Italy

In recent decades, worldwide wine-growing regions have been affected by increasingly more frequent effects of climate change, such as long period of droughts during the growing season, summer heat waves, and late spring frost events, thus causing concern for the grape quality and production. In this context, it is necessary to develop innovative agronomic practices to counter the various negative effects from those extreme weather events, by equipping the vineyards with effective and reliable multifunctional systems, which are also economically sustainable. Particularly, a multifunctional irrigation system can be used to reduce the risk of extreme weather events and, at the same time, to improve quality and quantity of grape production, reducing their inter-annual variability as well, by providing an optimized plant water nutrition. In a vineyard situated south of Lake Garda (Northern Italy), a multifunctional irrigation system equipped with drippers and mini-sprinklers (the latter to protect from both late spring frost and summer high-temperature event) was assessed. The results obtained for the growing season 2020–21 showed that the optimized drip irrigation reduced water consumption without affecting the grape yield, both in quantity and quality. The frost protection operated by mini-sprinklers increased the air temperature at bud’s level of about 1 °C, suggesting a positive effect on plant production. Finally, in 2020, must quality was positively affected by summer sprinkler irrigation, increasing the levels of malic acid and titratable acidity of over 0.7 g L−1 while lowered total soluble solids. Further activities in the 2022 season intend to better assess the water use efficiency of this promising multifunctional system.

Microplastic pollution in the food web: observation of ingestion by the talitrid amphipod Cryptorchestia garbinii on the shores of Lake Garda

Plastic pollution in the environment has become a much-discussed issue worldwide. In recent decades, the contamination of all environments has become increasingly evident, in particular, that of water is highly concerning. Ingestion by different animal species under natural conditions has also been demonstrated. Among these is the Talitrid Amphipod Cryptorchestia garbinii, which lives on the banks of the internal waterways and lakes’ shorelines. As detritivores species, it is very exposed to microplastics that can be ingested, probably mistaking them for food. Aiming to highlight the microplastic ingestion and the role of this species as an entry point for the food web, we analyzed 80 specimens from 4 sites along the shores of Garda Lake, one of the first lakes in Italy to be studied for this type of contamination. The microplastics ingested were observed and quantified through the Nile Red staining method. We were able to verify the presence of ingested microplastics in all the samples analyzed and, therefore, in the food web. This species could serve as valuable natural models of plastic exposure. Microplastic sentinel species can be used as a proxy for environmental exposure and ecosystem monitoring tools to quantify and assess the impacts of microplastic contamination.

“Dolce vita” and Italian Anxieties (Social Chaos, Emigration, Revolution) between the 1910s and early 20s

Lawrence’s travel book, Twilight in Italy offers a good introduction to life in Italy before WW1. That is when, for the first time abroad, he and Frieda stayed in Gargnano by Lake Garda, (3rd September 1912 - 11th April 1913). Observing people there excited Lawrence’s interest in national character both in comparison with other Europeans and southern Italians. Lawrence had a particular instinct for perceiving the mood of Italy and its people as they were experiencing a major economic crisis which was soon to lead to the political unrest and the social turmoil of the “biennio rosso” (1919-1920). Indeed, there was a growing conviction on the part of the Italian working class that a socialist revolution was inevitable. However, in March 1919 Mussolini launched his Fascist movement and, in the autumn of 1920, his Fascist squads began their punitive expeditions resulting in an absolute social chaos. A number of Lawrence’s writings reflect his disillusion with post-war Italy. He did not miss the frustration that people showed, following the “unfair” treatment Italy received in the Versailles Treaty (1919). The emigration issue emerges too when the chauffeur of the bus he and Frieda are travelling on begs him to find him a job as a driver in England. Lawrence thinks then that emigrating had become some sort of disease, “Andare fuori dall’Italia. To go out of Italy. To go out-away—to go away—to go away. It has become a craving, a neurasthenia with them.” (“Sea and Sardinia”).

The disputed lake: Lake Garda between tourism and nationalism on the eve of the Great War

AbstractThis article reconstructs the heated – local and national – debate around the consistent and pervasive foreign presence in the border territory of Lake Garda on the eve of the Great War. Here, the growing nationalistic tensions that preceded the conflict intertwined with the emerging hospitality industry. Tourism, seen as a social phenomenon, can thus offer a privileged perspective on the transformations of the general context of the time. Introduced by Austro-Germanic inhabitants of the lake at the turn of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the hospitality industry on Lake Garda flourished up to the eve of the Great War. There were, however, also opponents to this model of development. The dispute escalated to the point that, in the perception of the locals, the ‘outsiders’ turned into ‘enemies’ and Lake Garda increasingly became a disputed area: a symbol of the tensions of the time.