An Italian home in Umbria is restored with passion.

Italy just may be my favorite place in the world, particularly Rome. But as I start to plan my third trip back I am hoping to venture outside of the major cities (so far I've been to Venice, Florence, Verona, and Rome) and experience the smaller villages, in the Tuscan and Umbrian regions.

When I was reading this month's Elle Decor article about an Italian who restored and  meticulously furnished a 16th-century Umbrian palazzo I couldn't help but smile....he is sooooooo Italian!

"I have a passion for furnishings, design, antiques, architecture, and painting," Antonello Radi will tell you. He will then go on to tell you he also has a passion for carpets, he loves his native land of Umbria, and he loves the sea.

Oh and he loves the beautiful...and he loves living!

He might be passionate about many things, but he is also really talented. His home is absolutely beautiful.

Italians sure do know how to live. Radi says "The quality of life here is very high, simple but very beautiful." Sign me up!!!! A little more research on the Umbrian region...

(According to HGTV.com) The region of Umbria, Italy, is known as the "green heart" of the country. On a map of Italy, you can find Umbria in the mid-calf area of its knee-high­ boot. To the northwest, Umbria borders ­Tuscany, which holds its own as a center for food, tourism and wine making. But if you're wary of tourists and want to avoid the mainstream, just head southeast to Umbria. Sit back, relax and enjoy the sights and scents of one of Italy's smallest regions.