Posted by Adam

Monday June 22, 2009

George Clooney loves escaping to his Italian bolthole — because it gives him the chance to properly relax.

The Hollywood star owns an 18th-century mansion beside Lake Como.

“In Italy you eat and drink well. You celebrate lunch time. You are supposed to take your time with lunch and think about what you are eating. You see people go home for lunch with bread and flowers. I love it,” Clooney told a Scottish newspaper.

“People in Italy live their lives better than Americans do. It’s an older country and they’ve learned to enjoy their meals, whereas we Americans sort of eat as quickly as we can to get through it.

“We’re constantly going — work, work, work. Italians have taught me about stopping to celebrate life.”

The 48-year-old also remembers how he fell in love with the 25-room Villa Oleandra in the tranquil village of Laglio.

“I found my villa when I was motor-cycling through the Alps,” he said.

“It was the most beautiful house I’d ever seen.

“It’s the best thing I’ve ever done in my life in terms of lifestyle.

You’ve got to disappear sometimes. It’s an unbelievably romantic place.

“I’m in love with four geese that wander through the house all the time, often ending up in my bedroom.”

Tags: george clooney