How To Find Toastmasters In Italy (and worldwide) and translate Italian (and other languages)

Problem
I'm probably going to Italy in the next year and would like to find some people who speak English and attend a social and networking meeting. Are there any Toastmasters clubs in big cities or near holiday destinations? Any point looking now, when I don't yet have a trip planned? (And the same goes for a couple of other countries.)

Yes, because :
1 SAVE TIME & MONEY
When I do plan to go to Italy or another country I shall be in a rush so researching the Toastmasters clubs several months in advance will come in handy. It's a rush at home to research when you are busy at the last minute booking hotels and travel tickets. It's a rush to research on the day when you should be catching a coach tour or co-ordinating meeting colleagues.

2 LANGUAGE PROBLEMS SOLVED
Last time in a hotel I found I had to pay for the three-day internet access to go onto a website in a hotel for three minutes to get a phone number. Finally, the websites assume you are Italian (or German in Switzerland) and send everything in a foreign language so you will wish you researched earlier at home in an English speaking country.

Looking at a website in English, one club has said it meets Giovedi. Help! I know hundreds of Italian words and can read whole pages of Italian and get the gist but I am suddenly stumped. I could be missing breakfast in a hotel trying to check all this before a 15 minutes free internet session times out. Giovedi is Thursday.

I have also learned or been reminded about placenames: that the Italian for Florence is Firenze. Milan is Milano. Rome is Roma. Genova is Genoa. I have noticed some abbreviations. RM is Rome. MI is Milan. TO is Torino. GE is Genova. VI is Vicenza. CO is Como. FI is Florence.

Veneto is not the city of Venice but a region of Northern Italy.

I have picked up some general vocabulary. Costa is not cost but coast. Di is of.

I clicked on some placenames and up came Wikipedia in Italian. No sign of the English flag or the word English which you might see on the top of page one of a tourist site or hotel website or a blog or blog post created in Wordpress.

So I googled 'translate Wikipedia into English'. It said look on the sidebar (on the left of the screen). Nothing useful appeared in the first few lines.  I had almost given up when, at the end of the column, I found:

In altre linge (meaning in other language)
Deutsch
English (Hurray! We found it.)
Hrvatski (I looked that up. It's Croatian.)
Portuguese (It appeared with an accent too small for me to identify so I have given the English.)

2 TRIP PLANNING
It could help you re-route your trip before booking. Just looking at the website has already taught me some handy things, such as that there are four clubs in Milan - which would make it worthwhile staying overnight in Milan on a side trip from Switzerland (which I did to see opera at La Scala).

If I had told my family the days of the week when I could visit Toastmasters, and written to the clubs to find out if they were still meeting, I could have told my family that a Toastmasters meets in Milan on Thursday. Then we could have booked months in advance for expensive opera seats when they were still available at the cheaper price which we were willing to pay, for the in demand day, Friday.

Answer
Using the website Toastmasters International Find A Club I found twenty clubs in Italy. 20! If you are alone in Rome or nervous in Naples, go to a club which welcomes and helps potential speakers. (Do you have to give a speech at a wedding? Here's the place to go for help.) It's great entertainment. In Rome there's one every Tuesday.

How To Make Contact
No need to hunt for the right person in the club to contact. On the Toastmasters International website you just click on email.
That's the theory. Sometimes it works like a dream and if you've included your own phone number they ring back five minutes later!

However, I suggest you do this at least a week in advance, not on the day. You occasionally find a club where the person listed is away on business. Or the committee has just changed and they have not updated the website. You might find the club has closed for Xmas or summer holidays or forever.

If I don't get a reply from a club within 24 hours, I email another club in the area. I sometimes end up going there instead or in addition. You might even hear of a new club which is starting and not yet listed on websites.

I have listed the following in alphabetical order by city:

BOLOGNA
Toastmasters Two Towers, Bologna, BO, Italy. 6.30. One Monday our of three.

COMO
The Como Lakers, Como, CO, Italy. The first and third Thursday of each month at 7.30-9.30 pm.
Lake Como is a tourist destination in summer.

FLORENCE
1 Firenze Toastmasters, FL, Italy. On the second and fourth Thursday at 6.45 pm.
2 Toastmasters Academy, Florence, FI, Italy, 7.30pm -9pm Wednesday. I presume that's every Wednesday and not just one Wednesday a month but you'd better ring to be sure.
Florence, known for art and the bridge.

GENOA
Erzelli Toastmasters, Genova, GE, Italy. First and third Wednesdays from 6 to 8 pm.

MILAN
1 The Milliners, Milan, MI, Italy. Every other Monday at 7 pm.
2 Milan-Easy Toastmasters Club, second and fourth Tuesday at 6.45 pm.
3 Navigli District Toastmasters, Milano, Ml, Italy. 7.30 every other Monday.
4 The Xplorers, MI, Italy. 6.45 Every month, first and third Tuesdays.
MONZA
Next to Milan, 9 miles from city centre of Milan but the outskirts of the two cities are only three miles apart if you are driving. Speaking of driving, Monza is famous as the centre for Italy's Formula one.

NAPLES
Naples Toastmasters Club, Naples, NA, Italy. On the first and third Tuesdays at 6.30 pm.

ROME
1 Toastmasters INAIL, Roma, RM, Italy. 12.30-2.30, 1st and 3rd Wednesday.
2 SPQRs, Rome, RM, Italy. On Wednesday lunchtime, 12-1 pm. Sounds like a company club.
3 Toastmasters Roma, RM, Italy. 6.45 every Tuesday. Contact them through the website.

TURIN
1 Radiant Rhetoric, T o r i n o, on the 2nd and 4th Wednesday at 7.15 pm.
2 Toasting in the Sky, Torino.
3 Trucks and Tricks in Torino.
4 Toastmasters Torino, Giovedi (Thursday) first and third Thursdays at 7 pm.
It took me a while, plus a few searches, to find out that Torino is called Turin in English - and it's famous for the Turin shroud, reputed to show Jesus! Four Toastmasters clubs in a tourist destination.

VERONA
Toastmasters Monza, The Verona, San Massimio, (VR), Italy Milan-Easy Toastmasters Club.; Vicenza Toastmasters Club, Costabissara, VI, Italy, second and fourth Thursday.

Toastmasters in Italy and Worldwide
If you are already a Toastmaster (many clubs many members worldwide, you could start a club with the help of a new members' pack available free from head office if you can muster about twenty potential members from your company or just by advertising and getting everybody together at a restaurant or coffee bar. A good place to advertise is on MeetUp.

If you are on holiday or business anywhere in the world, you can join a Toastmasters club, attend a meeting, mentor a member by Skype, go to the annual contests for serious speeches in autumn and humorous speeches in Springtime.

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, member of HOD and Harrovians in London, England and Braddell Heights Advanced club in Singapore. I am the winner of more than 50 ribbons for Best Speaker, Best Evaluator and Table Topic (impromptu speech). I won three ribbons in one evening this month at Harrovians. I have judged competitions and run workshops on public speaking and attended meeting in China, the Czech Republic, Singapore, Thailand and the UK and attended the world finals in Las Vegas, USA.

Speakers' contest at the Business School near Baker Street station in central London, England.

This post was compiled Feb 2018. Please bookmark this page but update on the Toastmasters website if you wish to attend a meeting. Share your favourite posts with friends. I have several more posts on Toastmasters on this website and on my Toastmasters blogs, and posts on Italy, St Valentine in Terni and waterfalls, and the Osteria Modigliani Restaurant in London, England. Also see my other websites: Luxury for less and luxury travel for less.

See Romantic Italy, St Valentine, waterfalls, wedding chapels and Umbria - Updates

Italy for Romance.

Marmore Waterfalls.

First stop for Valentine's Day or a romantic trip is Terni where St Valentine is buried. Next, off to the waterfalls. If it's been raining recently, never mind, because that means you can be sure of plenty of water at the waterfalls.

Marmore Waterfalls
The magnificent Marmore Waterfalls are named after Marmore, the little town at the top of the falls. 
  Marmore Waterfalls. Balcone degli innamorati.
Marmore Waterfall (in Italian Cascata - Italian for cascade, del Marmore, of Marmore) iWebsite about the waterfall: http://www.marmorefalls.it/?lang=eng  

There's a little anecdote about how St. Valentine created Marmore falls as a bridal veil, by hitting the cliff with his crozier: https://www.umbriatourism.it/-/umbria-itinerari-d-amore-tra-arte-e-natura

ROMANTIC HOTELS
Palazzo Delle Signorine
Cannara
Cannara has the most romantic bedrooms, and so Italian, with paintings above, like staying in a room decorated by Michelangelo, just two guest bedrooms, one overlooking the small public square outside. My contact called the lady at this stunning little place in Cannara, which has not just ornate painted ceilings but also a tiny chapel where you can get  married. The owner says two of her cousins were married in their little chapel (not to each other! Two separate weddings). The B&B is closed for low season but reopens in mid-March. Here's their website:
http://www.palazzodellesignorine.it/Home_En.html

For additional romantic hotels, search the "where to stay" page with the "historic residences" filter (https://www.umbriatourism.it/en_US/where-to-stay?_accomodationsearch_WAR_Tomportlet_seed=1866166402040&_accomodationsearch_WAR_Tomportlet_attribute%5Btype_id%5D=15 )  
The first one on the list, Abbazia San Pietro in Valle, is just a few miles from the Marmore Falls, on the pretty road between Terni, where St Valentine is buried, and Scheggino where we saw truffle hunters trudge uphill with dogs and baskets and come back with huge truffles. The property includes an ancient chapel that can be used for weddings. (My friend in Italy says she has been to a wedding there!). A nearby restaurant or two will serve dishes containing truffles. You might also see truffles for sale in shops. Ask around.

"Country house" is another filter that will produce romantic-type places. (Not all of the listings on the umbriatourism site have been posted in English yet, but mostly if you click through to the hotels' own websites you will find an English version, like this: http://www.sanpietroinvalle.com/en/home-2/). Italian is pretty similar to English, and if you like the look of a place, copy the vital words or paragraphs into google translate.

I saw wedding preparations and the bride when I stayed at Castello di Monterone, a grand castle hotel. 

Terni, where St Valentine is buried.

See Saint Valentine and Other Saints
Put St Valentine on your list if you are going back to Italy. Other saints from Umbria are St. Rita (Cascia), St. Benedict (Norcia), St Augustine (Gubbio), St. Clare (Assisi), and St Francis of Assisi, as well as many less well-known protomartyrs and such. So, if you are looking for Valentine's Day venue, a romantic location, a wedding venue, or your name is Ben for Benedict, Augustine, Clare, Francis, Rita - or Valentine, you know a good place to go in Italy, for romance, weddings, or watching others get married. 

Here are all the handy websites grouped together:
https://www.umbriatourism.it/-/umbria-itinerari-d-amore-tra-arte-e-natura

http://www.palazzodellesignorine.it/Home_En.html

http://www.marmorefalls.it/?lang=eng  

(https://www.umbriatourism.it/en_US/where-to-stay?_accomodationsearch_WAR_Tomportlet_seed=1866166402040&_accomodationsearch_WAR_Tomportlet_attribute%5Btype_id%5D=15 )  
http://www.sanpietroinvalle.com/en/home-2/)
Ciao!

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. See my previous posts on St Valentine and Umbria.

Where to see St Valentine's Relics and Celebrate Valentine's Day with dinner, lockets and chocolates

Basilica of St Valentine, Terni, Umbria, Italy. Wikipedia.

Problem
My first choice would be to go to Terni in Italy on Valentine's Day to see the church with relics of St Valentine. Where else could I go and what could I see and do?

Answers (Countries listed alphabetically)

CZECH REPUBLIC - LOVE LOCKS
1 Valentine. Church of St Peter and Paul, at Vyesehrad, Prague, Czech Replublic.
2 Lovers add lockets to a pedestrian bridge all year. Expensive lockets are sold by vendors nearby. Despite the high prices, so many lockets are put on the bridge every year, that the lockets are reputedly removed every month to make way for new ones! Where is this bridge? It is a pedestrian bridge, (below the famous Charles bridge leading over the river to the castle - at the castle end), near the John Lennon Wall and the Kafka museum.

Many countries have forbidden affixing locks, because the weight can break section of the bridge, cause rust and ruin the historic or aesthetic appearance. In some places signs warn that those affixing locks will be fined. However in the USA one town encourages locks in a designated place.

FRANCE
Relics are in Roqumaure, Gard, S E France on the Rhone river. This is the wine region of quality (Cote du Rhone is a protected name). When the wines suffered from Phylloxera (introduced by buying American rootstock), relics of St Augustine were bought from an auction of relics on Rome in  1868 in the hope that the relics would bring protection. Apparently, within four years the saint's relics worked. (Funny - in northern Spain's nearby Rioja region I was told that the problem was cured by importing American root stock which was immune to the problem.)

Never mind. As the saying goes: 'Why let the truth get in the way of a good story!'

The acquisition of the relics, and their supposed efficacy is celebrated on the weekend nearest St Valentin'es day by a one day Saturday festival, yes, by a kissing festival! (Read to the end of this post. Then see next post.)

GREECE
Relics of St Valentine on the Island of Lesbos, Greece.

IRELAND
St Valentine in Whitefriar Street, Dublin, Ireland.

St Valentine shrine in Dublin, Ireland. Photo by Blackfish from Wikipedia.

ITALY - RELICS AND CHOCOLATES
1 Valentine in Savona in Luria, N Italy. Savona, near Genoa.
Savona was also where Christopher Columbus farmed and you can see his cottage.
2 Valentine in Rome, flower-bedecked alleged skull displayed in Basilica of Santa Maria in Cosmedin, Rome, Italy.
3 St Valentine in Church in Terni, Umbria, Italy.
If you are in Perugia, buy the local chocolates, Baci Perugina, chocolate kisses  containing hazelnuts which come with love messages in four languages. Not cheap, but several sizes and styles. The more chocolates you buy, the cheaper they are.

St Valentine's Relic in Rome, Italy. Wikipedia.

POLAND
Fragment of skull in St Mary's Assumption, Chelmno, Poland.

SINGAPORE - COMMERCIAL SUCCESS
This successful, modern skyscraper city, like New York and America, celebrates anything which can be celebrated with cards, flowers, chocolates, gifts and dinners, before, during, the weekends before and after, and on sale the day after.

SPAIN
Remains in St Anton's Church, Madrid, Spain.

UK
England
Chaucer made the story of St Valentine popular.
Shakespeare mentioned the custom of young unmarried girls getting up early hoping that the first man they saw on the day would be the one they would marry.
Relics are in the Reliquary in Birmingham Oratory, England.
Scotland
Remains are in Blessed John Duns Scotus Church, Gorbals area, Glasgow, Scotland

USA: CARDS & LOCKS
Valentine's Day cards simply expressing affectionate love, not necessarily romantic love, can be sent to all sorts of people by all sorts of people.  For instance, diy cards are made in schools in arts and crafts lessons for primary school children to send to their teacher and / or their parents. Get everybody addicted to Valentine's Day while they are young. ''The business of America is business,' said an American President.

According to Wikipedia:
 People are actually encouraged to leave their locks on chains strung between posts at Lover's Lock Plaza in Lovelock, Nevada.^[18] The name of the town is unrelated to the love locks, it was named after a family that settled in the area in the 1860s. The town didn't adopt the practice until much later. In San Angelo, TX, the city has erected a sculpture "Forever Love" inspired by other "love locks" such as (formerly) the bridge in Paris.^[19][20]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Love_lock

AMERICAN JEWS (& ISRAEL)
Do Jews celebrate Valentine's day?
https://reformjudaism.org/practice/ask-rabbi/do-jews-celebrate-valentine’s-day-there-jewish-holiday-similar-valentines-day
This answer from reform Judaism is, as you might expect, in favour of harmony and modernisation.
As the old English saying goes, 'If you can't beat them, join them'.

A more traditional answer brings in a Jewish festival to echo Valentine's day's origins in courting and / or matchmaking on another date, Tu Bav, with a full moon.
https://forward.com/sisterhood/347404/8-quirkiest-facts-about-tu-bav-the-jewish-valentines-day-you-never-heard-of/ 

Useful Websites For Your Travels

But what did St Valentine look like? Forensic scientists have made a reconstruction, just as they do trying to find the identity of murder victims when remains are found. Right now, it's a novelty, quite a shock to see the reconstructed face of somebody, based on their skull. However, one day it will be commonplace, and no more unusual than looking at an old photo of painting or statue. Meanwhile, here's St Valentine, still influencing as today.

Português: Reconstrução facial forense de São Valentim. Cícero Moraes, José Luís Lira, ABRHAGI, Santa Maria in Cosmedin, Marcos Paulo Salles Machado.
Date	26 October 2017
Source	Own work
Author	Cicero Moraes

Author
See my previous posts on Valentine's Day, Umbria, Italian chocolates, and Osteria Modigliani.
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please share links to your favourite posts.

What You'll See If You Spend Valentine's Day in Italy, Seeing St Valentine's Relics In Terni, the city of lovers!

Problem
Was St Valentine a real person? If so, where is he buried?

Answer
St Valentine of Terni was a bishop in the 3rd century AD, in Italy. Here's a map of Italy showing Umbria, the heart of Italy.

St Valentine
St Valentine was in Italy, in Terni, which has his relic. What a lovely idea for Valentine's day or any anniversary. A trip to Italy to the city of lovers to see St Valentine.

You can see places associated with two romantic saints. St Francis of Assisi, who preached to people and talked to birds and animals, used to visit Terni to give sermons, on his way from his home in Assisi to Rome in the years 1208-1209.

A third saint is of interest to romantic travellers! In Terni, outside the church of St Christopher, (patron saint of travellers!) St Francis used to stop to preach. The statue of St Francis is outside on a stone column.

Murals about St Francis and his life are on the cloister walls of the Santa Maria Della Grazie church.

Basilica of St Valentine in Terni, City of Lovers, Italy. Photo from Wikitravel.

List of Sights To See In Or Near Terni
1 Basilica di San Valentino.
(Basilica of Saint Valentine.)

2  Marmore Waterfalls. Balcone degli innamorati.
Marmore Waterfall (in Italian Cascata - Italian for cascade, del Marmore, of Marmore) is one of the highest in Europe and your destination is the balcony of lovers. Paths lead you to two areas of the waterfall (heeled shoes not advised, nor ballet pumps) including the balcony behind the falls (like Niagara) where the spray will soak you, so leave a change of clothes in your car.

It is about 8 km (5 miles) outside the city centre. The city of Terni as a 17th cathedral, a 12th century church of St Francis, and several more churches and grand buildings.

Terni - city hall
Photo author Starlight in Wikipedia:

What do these round-topped, tall arches on Terni city hall remind me of? Etruscans in Perugia. (See picture below.)

Archaeological museum, Terni, Umbria, Italy. Photo in Wikipedia is public domain.

Roman reamins are on the outskirts of the city of Terni.

Terni was an important industrial area, once known as the Manchester of Italy. The result of wartime bombing means it is now known for postwar architecture as well as the old sights which attract tourists.

Terni and Umbria Hotels Highly Rated, Look Good, On My Shortlist
Hotels with Swimming pools and Spas
Borgo Brufa Spa Resort
Via del Colle, 38, 06089, Brufa di Torgiano, PG, Italy.
(In Feb 2018 offering one night b and b for 2 persons including spa from £191; about £226 for one night, 2 persons half board.) Modern hotel with indoor-outdoor pool with underwater jets - terrific. I loved it.
Amusing or Amazing
Converted prison in Terni.

Check out Terni on Wikipedia and Wikitravel. Wikitravel is not an extract but entirely different. Another useful source is Tripadvisor.

Also in Umbria visit Perugia, a hilltop city with a huge Etruscan gate against the cliffside.

Impressive Etruscan Gateway to Perugia, capital of Umbria. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

Perugia, Italy. Murals are on walls and ceilings all over the Umbrian region in religious buildings, civic buildings and museums, depicting local characters and saints, especially St Francis of Assisi. 

Perugia city in Umbria, Italy: underground city of the Etruscans. Wikipedia.

Side Trips And Two Centre Holidays
If you have lots of time and money, stay in Perugia, go north in Italy to Verona to see Juliet's balcony, and to the West coast in Tuscany to see Florence, or north to Rome.

Where To Marry In Italy?
If you want to get married, or renew your vows, two venues might appeal:
Small - smallest working theatre: Teatro Della Concordia, at Monte Castello di Vibio.
Grand - restored castle, Castello Di Monterone, Perugia.

Perugia, Umbria

Romantic hotels in Umbria include the Castello (castle) di Monterone, Perugia, is on the hilltop outside overlooking the city of Perugia. Perugia is on a series of peaks like many hilltop cities.

Assisi

You can see two major sights connected with St Francis in Assisi, his birthplace and his venerated burial place.

Another two-centre option would be combining a tour of Umbria (including Terni, Perugia, Assisi,  a St Francis trail by car, bike or on foot, and the wine and olive museums in Torgiano) with a tour of Tuscany (Florence for David statue and art gallery, Pisa's tower, Sienna horse race city, Chianti wineries).

UK Italian Restaurant Alternatives
If you have less time and money and are in London, England, can't afford a trip to Italy, London is full of Italian restaurants. Consider Osteria Modigliani in Pinner, Middlesex (see my two posts). Another three in nearby Hatch End include Dona Teresa (see other posts).

Tips
Today I clicked on the En sign next to the alternative IT sign on the Terni Italian language website and realised that 'en' on the end of a website name does not mean encyclopaedia but English!

How To Get There
I flew on Ryanair from Stansted, England, to Perugia International Airport, Umbria (code for airport PEG). You might as well see Perugia before moving on to Terni.

Alternatively, via Rome.

Ideal Accommodation
Luxury Spa Hotel
Burgobrufa Spa Resort

Castle Hotel
Castello de Monterone

B & B Under £100
Palazzo Delle Signorine, Cannara, Province of Perugia, Umbria, Italy.
Originally a palace with antique frescoed ceilings. Tiny exquisite chapel next door to the bedrooms where you could get married or renew your vows. Only two rooms. One of the two rooms overlooks the little square outside. Renovated with up to the minute shower rooms. Closed for low season. Opens March.

Helpful Websites
Great simplified version of the story of St Valentine here:
http://www.deliciousitaly.com/lazio-rome-itineraries/origin-of-saint-valentine-s-day

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terni
https://wikitravel.org/en/Terni

http://www.turismo.comune.terni.it/en (Lovely video of the waterfall.)

https://www.umbriatourism.it

Rooms
https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g635638-d656395-Reviews-Borgobrufa_SPA_Resort-Torgiano_Province_of_Perugia_Umbria.html
castellomonterone.com
https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g664988-d2693195-Reviews-or10-Palazzo_delle_Signorine-Cannara_Province_of_Perugia_Umbria.html

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please share links to your favourite posts.

Valentine's Day Made Simple: St Valentine's Souvenir Site in Terni, Umbria, Italy

Problem
After reading the Wikipedia article on St Valentine, there were so many saints called St Valentine and so many places associated with him that I can't remember any.

Answer
Simplify the whole thing with bullet points. I can't find them in blogger so I shall use stars.

Story
I first heard that St Valentine was associated with Italy which actually has his supposed relics, when I went to a promotion for Umbria and adjacent Tuscany, at a hotel in London. I was later invited on a press strip to Umbria, which I loved, all those little hilltop towns which from a distance remind you of Medieval paintings from the National Gallery in London and picture books. I saw several wonderful places associated with St Francis of Assisi (who was born and buried in Assisi but is in paintings or visited places all around Umbria). If I ever go back, either on a press trip, or on my own, I shall try to include St Valentine on my trip.

I was puzzled for a long time by the number of places which claim to have relics of famous people and saints. When I went to Greece, the mystery was solved. A guide showed us a chapel which had the body of the holy person. A few hours or days later we visited another place, with a relic of the same person. I challenged the guide about this. She explained that when a person deemed holy is buried in or under of beside a holy place, that is then a place which becomes consecrated (blessed and deemed an official holy place by one of the designated officials of the church.) The mother church is the one which has the association with or body of the deceased saint who did good works or miracles during his or her life or after death. When another church is established, nearby or in a far off place, a fragment of the bones is taken to the new holy place. Since a body has numerous bones, this can go on for a long while, with many spin offs. That explains why one place has the head and another has the body. It is not a bizarre accident. It is the system.

Dividing Skeletons and Souvenirs?
The ideas of dividing up the body of a saint, or anybody, makes me frown and raise my eyebrows.

No!
For those of us accustomed to the idea that a body should be intact, (either ready to be resurrected in one piece, or because a body should not be tampered with, or suspicion that something awful happened to the living person if the skeleton is separated,) it sounds weird.

Yes, please!
On the other hand, I understand the desire to keep anything related to a deceased person. You want to save their hat, their clothes, their letters, record their words, keep their own treasured items, including the body and the bones. Yes, for those of us accustomed to the idea that everybody, whether family or friends, should share a cake or souvenir, split a dinner service or fortune between each of three children or between children and grandchildren, the idea of splitting a body between the buildings and people is logical and makes sense.

So the church or temple with just the finger, or the skull, or the heart, or the head, in whatever religion, is following a tradition of spreading the goodwill, from any part of the holy person, or anything they touched.

Here's a map of Italy showing Umbria.

* St Valentine was in Italy, in Terni, which has his relic.

Tips
Great simplified version of the story here:
http://www.deliciousitaly.com/lazio-rome-itineraries/origin-of-saint-valentine-s-day

https://www.umbriatourism.it

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker