Travel
Early morning jogging in Rieti
In the late spring, my youger son and I spent a weekend in Rieti – a small city in Lazio’s northernmost region. While there, I rose early on Sunday morning to enjoy a short jog in the eerily deserted city. I started off at out hotel, at the top of this medieval hilltown and jogged…
Read MoreRestorative hiking in Abruzzo
My weekend escapes to the mountains of Abruzzo are always pleasant. But my most recent weekend jaunt was especially satisfactory. My younger son and I could both (finally) get away from the city, and with the scorching temperatures in Rome, and so the Apennine mountains in nearby Abruzzo was an excellent plan. Even more so…
Read MoreEverything’s coming up roses – in Rome
Rome is always beautiful in the spring and early summer. One the things I love about the season is how colorful the blooming flowers look against the city’s imposing monuments. Nothing beats the city’s beautiful roses when they are in bloom. Each year, I make a visit to the city’s Rose Garden, just off the…
Read MoreAn imposing castle surrounded by olive trees in Nerola
Returning from a track race in the town of Rieti, about a 1.5 hour drive from Rome, my son and I decided to stop off an explore the little medieval hilltown of Nerola. Nerola sits on a hilltop 453 meters from sea level. Its name is believed to be derived from the ancient Sabine language…
Read MoreMeandering along Rieti’s Velino River
I was with my younger son for a weekend in Rieti, a town in northern Lazio – about one and a half hours from Rome. He was there to run, but since we were staying for the weekend, we had lots of time to wander around the town we know quite well, and we also…
Read MoreOn the shores of Central Park’s Harlem Meer
The Harlem Meer is a picturesque artificial lake at the northeastern corner of Central Park. I enjoy this small lake, lined with benches, in all seasons. This artificial lake was constructed with the creation of Central Park, on what used to be a tidal marsh fed by a creek that led into the Harlem River.…
Read MoreA spring stroll in seaside Sperlonga
Like many, I’m thoroughly sick of the semi-lockdown mode that has kept my family so close to home. Therefore, on Mother’s Day, my younger son and I decided to take advantage of the spectacular, summer-like weather to go visit one of our favorite beach getaways – Sperlonga. I’ve written many times about pretty, whitewashed Sperlonga,…
Read MoreLonely tourists in the Marche’s Ancona
I’ve already written about weekend trips we made to Ancona, in Italy’s Marche region, for my son’s indoor track season. Previously I wrote posts about the city’s bustling port, its Duomo perched at a panoramic point and its indoor track. Since we were here in semi-lockdown state, we wandered this strangely deserted city, almost entirely…
Read MoreA springtime stroll along Rome’s Tiber River
Springtime is one of the most beautiful seasons in Italy’s capital. This year, with so many exhausted from endless lockdowns and COVID-weary, the tempting spring warmth is beckoning, and Romans are eager to get out an enjoy a walk through the city. Not surprisingly, the walkways along the Tiber River are full in these days.…
Read MoreMore Big 10 Football at University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
I can’t write about one pillar of Big 10 Football without writing about its rival. Last week I wrote about Columbus, Ohio’s campus of Ohio State University, tremendously famous for its impressive football team. As luck would have it, its biggest sports rival is just a three hour drive due north in Ann Arbor, Michigan.…
Read More