Italy travel stories
As I checked into the Hotel Bellagio, Daniele Leoni, the manager, reassured me. “You will be fine for most of your stay. No crowds” Then he lifted an admonitory finger. “But at the end. Easter Weekend. It will be like summer.” He raised his eyebrows to underline his...
My thick sweater and blue jeans reflected the London winter I left several hours before. Amalfi’s sun now broke through my warm clothes, bringing out a forgotten stickiness. After nearly twenty-seven hours of traveling with two buses, a plane, and a train ride,...
The ferry boat glided out of the harbor of La Spezia beginning my journey to the famous 5 villages of the Cinque Terra. The weather was perfect and water an indigo blue as we cruised along the Ligurian coast. The famous villages with their small...
"Hear, all ye drinkers! Give ear, and give faith, to our edict divine - Montepulciano's the King of all Wine!" - Francisco Redi, 1685 The Wine Vino di Nobile has been celebrated since Etruscan times, but it was only 50 years ago that the wine was officially classified...
Sardinia is one of the most gorgeous places in the world. The second-largest island across the Mediterranean Sea, it’s got a variety of ecosystems — including steams, rocky coasts, sandy beaches, woods, plains, and mountains. It’s definitely a dream attraction for all...
Places to go in Italy and Tours Most Everyone Misses Everyone knows Rome is amazing. After all, that's why you have to wait in line to visit the Colosseum and stand shoulder to shoulder with other tourists in the halls of the Vatican. But what about the...
On a Sunday morning, I stood in a crowd of tens of thousands, damp and entranced, letting both the rain and the reality of the moment hit me. There I was, celebrating Easter Mass at the Vatican, an experience many only dream of, and one I'd...
Everyone tells me that they simply love touring Italy. I do too. The food, the wine, the undulating roads lined with emblematic cypress trees. Beginning with the Etruscans millennia ago up to today's Republic, it's rich history and beauty have earned a place in my...
Friends often call me a NASA-TV nerd. I watch transfixed by late night filler video of an earth rotating below the orbiting International Space Station, and in the same way I' m fascinated at how Google Earth maps depict the earth from space. I've found it to be my...
Fiesole, Italy The Sights in Florence I sat soaking up the sun in a small walled garden. Tumbling geraniums held the moss-covered stones together as they did most of this hillside town. The drone of bees left the air heavy. Once formal garden paths weaved through one...
