Visiting Haarlem… the ‘original’ one in Holland

When my family and I are back in America, Harlem, New York City, is home. So on a recent trip to Amsterdam, we couldn’t resist taking a short train ride to see Haarlem, the New York neighborhood’s namesake from back in the days when the Big Apple was New Amsterdam and a Dutch colony. Haarlem,…

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I’ve signed up for the Matera Women’s Fiction Festival

Last September, I went to my first-ever writer’s conference and I enjoyed it so much that I’ve signed up for this year’s event. The Ninth Annual International Women’s Fiction Festival will take place in Matera, Italy, 27-30 September 2012. The Fiction Festival is a wonderfully relaxed atmosphere, filled with writing workshops, brainstorming sessions, pitching sessions…

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Reason #5,357 to love Rome – The Rose Garden

Every spring I make a point to visit Rome’s lovely Rose Garden (Roseto Comunale di Roma).  The garden’s location is perfect – on the Aventine Hill with stunning views over the Circus Maximus and the Palatine Hill. Yet a short stroll in this oasis of tranquility is an enjoyable respite from the hectic pace of…

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Keeping the romance alive…

… for your writing, that is. I have other friends who write and share their experiences, so it’s good to see I’m not the only fickle one out there. Still, it’s frustrating that even when I love a project, by the time I arrive to the mind-boggling, head-scratching, going-blind-from-all-the-revisions stage, that I’m ready to toss…

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Montenegro’s Durmitor National Park

I’ve already written about Perast, my favorite Montenegrin seaside town. But the tiny Balkan country of Montenegro has much to offer to visitors willing to stray from its more developed Mediterranean coastline. For Montenegro’s rugged, wild interior attracts fewer visitors, but  it’s well worth the effort. The Montenegrins tell a story about the creation of…

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My story will be published in the WriteFrance publication

A few weeks back, I saw a contest announcement for the WriteFrance spring competition. Hopeless Francophile that I am, I couldn’t resist the prompt to write a short story of up to 4000 words on a French-inspired theme. I have been writing a collection of short stories that take place in Italy, but I decided that the…

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The Renaissance Villa d’Este in Tivoli

This small city to the west of Rome, once an important stop on the “Grand Tour” of Europe,  is today a bedroom community of Rome, yet it still maintains its distinct character. It makes a wonderful daytrip from Rome, either by car or with frequent trains leaving from Rome’s Tiburtina train station. If you are…

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Building up a writing resumé

Suddenly, I’m feeling like a teenager again. Alas, not physically, but mentally. At least when it comes to building up a writing resumé. Remember back when you applied to colleges and you had to fill out a whole application explaining why you were such an outstanding 18–year-old and why the college should select you over thousands…

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Nairobi National Park and Elephant Orphanage

On a business trip to Nairobi, I had the luck to have a Sunday free. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough time to fly to one of Kenya’s spectacular game parks, but it did provide enough time to see all the big game, all within the city limits. The 117-square- kilometer Nairobi National Park is mere kilometers…

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