Glimpse the world as a Venetian: Go upstairs to the Loggia dei Cavalli at the San Marco Basilica.
Tag: Italy
The Master Works of the Opera Duomo Museum
Beyond the Uffizi in Florence So much airspace is taken up by the Uffizi Gallery in Florence that a visitor there might overlook a newer museum sited just behind the Duomo. Although the Opera di Santa Maria del Fiori, which runs this new museum, has been around since 1296 when it became responsible for managing…
Romance, Good Food, and History at Ristorante da Raffaele
Eat Like a Local in Venice In a town full of tourists, service at a restaurant can sometimes be a bit aloof, a tad uncaring. After all, everyone knows that you are unlikely to be back after this current meal anytime soon, if ever. Why put a lot into it? Year in, year out, dealing…
If You’re Going to Italy, Bring Delia Ephron
Even if Siracusa Is Not Your Destination, Ephron’s Book Will Delight You I’ve been sucking up just about everything the Ephron sisters put out since I discovered Nora Ephron’s Crazy Salad Plus Nine many, many years ago. It’s no surprise, then, that I pick up Delia Ephron’s latest book, Siracusa, and read it in less…
Should You Take the Kids to Murano?
Do youthful adventurers and glass really mix? Will you and your family have fun in Murano, Italy?
Tea Partying in the Eternal City
A Visit to Babington’s Tea Rooms As if we needed a break from our vino rosso and carb-filled Italian vacation, the Brawny Sherpa and I decide at the bottom of the Spanish Steps that it is time for tea—and carbs of a slightly different sort. Here in the land of espresso and grappa, in we…
Dust, Chariots, Spas, Pompeii
A Visit to the City Buried by a Volcano The first time I go to Pompeii, the journey is work: a missed train from Salerno to Pompei, followed by a train that surely must be the local rather than anything direct, followed by an arrival at a train station a healthy distance from the ruins….
The Mystery of Volcanoes
The Lure of Hot Lava Living in New York State, as I do, I haven’t historically had to worry much about volcanoes and the possibility that they might at some point obstruct my way, or worse. The first time I came across their devastation was on a long-ago trip to Italy where I toured Pompeii,…
Is Pisa Worth the Effort to Get There?
More than 15 Minutes and a Selfie in the Land of Pisans A good way through planning my latest trip to Italy, I wonder, is the Leaning Tower of Pisa really worth the effort, or should I just skip it? On the adventure, there will only be time for, at most, a day trip from…
Meeting Hemingway at Harry’s Bar
Literary tourism lives as the Bashful Adventurer ventures into Harry’s Bar in Venice looking for Ernest Hemingway. Will she find him?