Posts Tagged ‘Europe’
Wine, lace and beauty in the Marche’s Offida
Every winter, my son and I pass through the Italian region of the Marche so he can take part in indoor races in seaside Ancona. These trips give us a great chance to explore all the picturesque towns in that region. One of those picture-perfect towns that’s long been on my list is the hill…
Read MoreCagliari’s Ancient Roman Theatre
I’ve been writing posts about my recent visit to Cagliari, the capital of the Italian island of Sardegna. There were lots of interesting places to visit in this city, including the ruins of an Ancient Roman amphitheater. This can be found between the neighborhoods of Castello and Stampace. We walked out here on a particularly…
Read MoreCagliari’s picturesque Castello district
I’ve been to the Italian island of Sardegna a few times, but only visited its capital city of Cagliari for the first time this past September. Cagliari has very distinct neighborhoods, including Il Castello, about 100 meters above the rest of this sea level coastal city. When I was flying into Cagliari, a clear view…
Read MoreEuropean destinations to visit for the Christmas light season
It’s that time of year again … short days made brighter by stunning Christmas lights. Since Christmas celebrations in Europe continue through to 6 January, you’re still in time to enjoy those cheery holiday lights. Here’s a roundup of some European cities and towns to consider visiting to enjoy those holiday lights – and much…
Read MoreMalaga – all decked out for the holidays
The first weekend of December, I was for the first time in Malaga, Spain – in the country’s beautiful Andalucia region. It was great to see the city decked out with Christmas decorations on all its streets, palm trees and orange trees, adding a festive spirit to the nightly movida. Although I have traveled a…
Read MoreUp and down the hills of Todi
I’ve already written about the wonderful view from the San Fortunato bell tower , and I’ll have future posts on the beautiful squares and churches of this pretty Umbrian hill town. But today, I want to talk about all the hills a tourist has to climb to visit these picturesque hill towns …. and to…
Read MoreSurrounded by masterpieces in Rome’s Barberini Gallery
As frequent visitors to Italy may know, the first Sunday of the month means free museum access for some museums. We always take advantage of this for getting back to favorites. On a recent visit, my husband and I returned to the Barberini Gallery. We’ve both been many times over the years, but it had…
Read MoreNovel research in San Gregorio da Sassola
My new novel, Rome’s Last Noble Palace, will be releasing 6 December. You can learn more about that novel and see early reviews here. Although most of the novel takes place in contemporary and 1896 Rome, a small portion of the 1896 timeline takes place in the tiny town of San Gregorio da Sassola, specifically,…
Read MoreViews from the medieval belltower, in Todi
I recently spent a lovely day in Todi, a picture-perfect medieval hill town in Italy’s region of Umbria. I have been numerous times, but it’s always fun to get back. On this visit, I climbed the San Fortunato belltower to enjoy stunning views from the top. And what a view it was! This is the…
Read MoreExploring Florence’s Boboli Gardens
I have been many times to Florence, but had never been to the Boboli Gardens of the Palazzo Pitti. I visited recently, and after spending almost five hours in the Uffizi, admiring (for the umpteenth time) many of the masterpieces of art, I went out into the beautiful day and decided it was perfect to…
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