"Ficcanaso" - Snooping in Lugano

“Smell is a potent wizard that transports you across thousands of miles and all the years you have lived.”
Helen Keller

"Ficcanaso" (Snoop) is a live scientific exhibition - for you and your nose - to discover the sense that is closest tied to memory and desire: the smell.

What are the smells? What purpose do they serve? How important is the sense of smell for us? And of what importance is it to animals? How can one produce a scent and with which substances?

This amazing journey will envelop you with scents and smells in search of memories and feelings. It will take you and your kids through a fun interactive journey to explore the secrets of our nose.

Over 70 scents, devided into three sections, awaken the curiosity of visitors and accompany us on a journey of knowledge through a world made up of molecules that can trigger endless sensations.

We examine human and animal smell and we explore the essences of plants, flowers and fruits. We even get to study how our body produces bad odors? Oh, doesn't THAT sound like fun?!
We also are introduced in to the world of sweet smelling perfumes that transport us to places full of memories by just a drop of precious essence.

All this and more awaits you at "Ficcanaso", a show for young and old to discover one of the more complex senses of our body!

Where: L’ideatorio, presso l’ex asilo di Castagnola a Lugano
When: March14th to June 10th, 2011
Reservation required: 058/866'90'11

The bad news is that this exhibition - due to lack of funds - is not open to the general public.
The organizers are looking for a solution for "Ficcanaso" to open for the public in 2012 on larger premises.

"Ficcanaso" only open to school classes. This is real pity since the idea is brilliant, the programme instuctive and I am sure the exhibition a great deal of fun for the children.

If you live around Lugano and share my belief, why not suggest a class outing. You can print a detailed description of the exhibition here and share it with your children's class teacher. The guided tour lasts about 2 hours and is always accompanied by scientific monitor. It is free of charge of Lugano's Elementary schools.

For more information call the Institute's management school in the city of Lugano: 058 / 866 90 11.