Travel
Silver mining wealth in Kutna Hora, Czech Republic
Only 60 kilometers southeast from the Czech Republic’s capital, Kutna Hora is an easy day trip from Prague. I can remember visiting here in the days when I lived in Prague over (gulp!) two decades ago. Once, I missed the ‘fast’ train and had to take the milk train – it took four and a…
Read MoreHiking the Graukogel in Badgastein, Austria
I posted last week about my summer holidays in Mitteleuropa. The first place we stopped on our travels is the picture-perfect Alpine village of Badgastein, located in the Gasteiner valley in the Salzburg province. There are kilometers and kilometers of beautiful hiking trails in this pretty Alpine perch. The first day there, we decided to…
Read MoreSummer holidays in Mitteleuropa
I’ve long been a southern European, making my home in Rome, Italy, with its centuries of history, balmy weather, and proximity to the warm Mediterranean sea. But when I was younger, I used to live and work in landlocked European countries farther north. This summer holiday, my family and I drove up from Rome on…
Read MoreMore medieval Tuscany: Sarteano
Ah, more medieval Tuscany. I’ve already written to our visit to some of the small towns of Tuscany’s beuatiful Valdorcia. My son was at a track and field camp in pretty Abbadia di San Salvatore, which I’ve written about in an earlier post. But medieval towns are sprinkled all over this pretty region in the…
Read MoreReason #5381 to love Rome: Snow in August
Snow is pretty rare in Rome. And even rarer in August. But every August, since Ancient Roman times, snow falls over at least one part of the city to reenact the Madonna della neve (Madonna of the snow) tradition. Each August – to be precise, the 5 August – the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore…
Read MoreAlpine Tuscany: Monte Amiata
I’ve already written about my ‘find’ this summer when my son, an aspiring Usain Bolt, went to a track and field camp in the pretty Tuscan town of Abbadia di San Salvatore. The town is on the foothills of Monte Amiata, a volcanic cone that is 1730 meters from sea level. Luckily, this volcano has been dormant for…
Read MoreReason #5381 to love Rome: San Teodoro church
This beautiful church gives its name to a Roman neighborhood – San Teodoro, the neighbohood bordering the edge of the Circus Maximus and the Campidoglio. The San Teodoro church can be found on the street by the same name. It’s a Greek Orthodox church, nestled at the foot of the Palatine Hill. The church was…
Read MoreAmongst the dinosaurs at the Brussels Museum of Natural Sciences
A work conference brought me to Brussels, a city I’ve visited many times. But the location on the conference was somewhere I hadn’t yet been – the Brussels Museum of Natural Sciences. Since my kids weren’t in tow, I felt slightly guilty taking in the exhibition without them. In actuality, I didn’t have much time to…
Read MoreBasking in the sun and scenery on Lake Geneva
Last summer I spent a lot of time in Geneva ferrying my son to camp and back. It was great fun being there with my family for summer weekends, when Geneva is at its best. One of the things I enjoyed doing with my children was taking the scenic ferry boat on Lake Geneva. Geneva…
Read MoreMedieval and Renaissance Alpine splendor in Pescocostanzo, Abruzzo
I’m a big fan of the rugged mountainous region of Abruzzo, a region east of Rome. As an avid hiker/skier/mountain-biker, I bought a weekend home there over a decade ago, and have been doing my best to explore the region. I’ve heard often about the beautiful ‘citta’ d’arte’ of Pescostanzo, at the edge of the Maiella…
Read More