ITALY | Thursday, 23 Feb 2012 | Views [1657]
The archeologists who “discovered” it in the 18 th Century can be forgiven for naming it the Temple of Ceres after the Greek goddess of agriculture. Its columns glow like golden sheaves of wheat in the morning sun. More ... Read more >
ITALY | Tuesday, 21 Feb 2012 | Views [1170]
On the surface Matera seems to be a new (for Italy) town, built in the 1960s. But there is an old town where any building could date back to the 8th Century, or earlier. We had the slippery, narrow streets and steep stairways to ourselves ... Read more >
ITALY | Monday, 20 Feb 2012 | Views [2318]
Driving from Sorrento to Caserta was tedious, tiring and, frankly, disgusting. Once away from the coast the road is a tour through one dirty, potholed town after another, seemingly in circles. Once out of the populated areas the roadside ... Read more >
ITALY | Saturday, 18 Feb 2012 | Photo Gallery
See all 71 photos >>
ITALY | Friday, 17 Feb 2012 | Views [1966]
If you lived in Pompeii, August 24 in the year 79 AD would have been a good day to be out of town. Around noon, Mt. Vesuvius began pouring tons of ash into the sky. It had been rumbling for a few days but no one thought much of it. As the ash piled ... Read more >
ITALY | Friday, 17 Feb 2012 | Photo Gallery
See all 42 photos >>
ITALY | Thursday, 16 Feb 2012 | Views [3133]
Naples is the most densely populated - and supposedly one of the most corrupt - cities in Europe. The guidebooks post warnings, fellow travelers spin tales of woe and even the public address system at the station remind passengers to be cautious of ... Read more >
ITALY | Tuesday, 14 Feb 2012 | Views [1046]
It was closed! And the Colosseum. And the Palantine Hill, too. They were still closed five days after the "Blizzard of 2012" dumped one centimeter of snow on Rome! I guess we can understand the reasoning. The temperature hasn't risen ... Read more >
ITALY | Saturday, 11 Feb 2012 | Views [894]
It's always good to have a backup plan. With snow in Friday's forecast, even the single centimeter predicted, Hizonner, the mayor, still smarting from last week's surprise snow, virtually closed Rome. "Chiuso" as they say for schools, government ... Read more >
ITALY | Thursday, 9 Feb 2012 | Views [2593]
Cameras are not permitted in the Borghese Gallery, which is a pity. The gallery is home to three of the most striking marbles, all by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Gothic successor to Renaissance Michelangelo. If both were sports sculptors, Michelangelo ... Read more >
VATICAN CITY | Wednesday, 8 Feb 2012 | Views [1840]
Michelangelo's paintings in the Sistine Chapel are the most spectacular I have ever seen or ever will see; arguably the best art ever created by man.
Not yet 30, Michelangelo considered himself a sculptor, not a painter, when he was coerced ... Read more >
VATICAN CITY | Wednesday, 8 Feb 2012 | Views [3337]
The Vatican is a nation within a city, and is a world unto itself. It is the center of Catholicism and home to His Holiness, Pope Benedict XVI. St. Peter’s Basilica is the centerpiece of the Vatican and is the largest church in ... Read more >
ITALY | Tuesday, 7 Feb 2012 | Views [843]
do as the Romans do. Dress warmly! Unlike friends who complained about the sweltering summer heat, we have been freezing. And we are not alone. Even the statues are are dripping icicles. Yesterday's train ride from Milan looked more like a scene ... Read more >
ITALY | Monday, 6 Feb 2012 | Photo Gallery
See all 130 photos >>
ITALY | Sunday, 5 Feb 2012 | Views [1062]
While much of Italy - and most of the rest of Europe - is under a blanket of snow and sub-zero temperatures, we are hunkered down in our room at Aviano Air Base, watching crime show reruns and Super Bowl hype on the Armed Forces Network. It's cold ... Read more >
ITALY | Sunday, 29 Jan 2012 | Views [1462]
Travel guru Rick Steves has hyped the Cinque Terre so much on his Europe TV program (check your local PBS station for times) that it almost seems like we had already been there. And when we arrived at Sestri Levante near the Cinque Terre coast, ... Read more >
ITALY | Saturday, 28 Jan 2012 | Views [839]
We met John Potter a couple of years ago in Singapore. His Explorers Club credentials were impressive, his personal story was touching, his interests were varied and his British accent was charming, like listening to Hugh Grant. He and Caroline sailed ... Read more >
MONACO | Wednesday, 25 Jan 2012 | Views [1468]
The two towns could hardly be more different. Monte Carlo, with memories of Prince Ranier and Princess Grace, the famous Gran Prix race and the Grand Casino, is home to the beautiful (and oh-so-wealthy) people. Gardens, fountains and sculpture trail ... Read more >
ITALY | Tuesday, 24 Jan 2012 | Photo Gallery
See all 38 photos >>
ITALY | Monday, 23 Jan 2012 | Views [1061]
Mark Twain and Horace Greeley popularized the Grand Tour in the United States but it was already a right-of-passage for upscale Europeans in the 19th Century. One could hardly be considered cultured without having visited the capitols of Europe to ... Read more >
< Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 Next >
