Flashback Friday — this is the first of a series of Friday posts about memorable events from recent travels. They are a collection of writings that didn’t quite get published while we were on the road. Our plans to visit Cinque Terre (‘Five Lands’) on the west coast of Italy Continue Reading
Italy
Capuchin Crypt
One of the most shocking things on our trip thus far was a visit to the crypt under the church Santa Maria della Concerzione dei Cappunccini in Rome. I’ve seen human bones before, but nothing like this. Sue and Martin had strongly suggested that we go see this atypical attraction, so Continue Reading
A Funny Thing Happened on the way to the Forum
Our 2nd day in Roma (Rome) didn’t go as planned. It was sunny and hot, very warm to be touring the monuments. From our campground outside the city we caught the bus, then train, then metro to the famous Colesseum, a 2000 year old amphitheatre, the largest in the Roman Continue Reading
Crazy Driving in Southern Italy
Driving in Southern Italy is challenging and exciting. It requires me to be on my toes, constantly ready to react. It stresses Diane out. I’ve written previously about driving in Europe, but driving near Naples takes this to another level and is not for the faint of heart. Here are Continue Reading
Ghost Ship – Our Semi-Private Cruise
We didn’t book a private cruise, but we had the entire ship virtually to ourselves. It was a pleasant surprise, but strange nonetheless. In each room the staff stood around attentively, watching our every move in the hopes that we might need something. They outnumbered us 10 to 1. Each Continue Reading
The Greek Debt Crisis – What really happened?
We’ve been hearing so much on the news recently about the Greek and European debt crises, the decline of the Euro, and of protests across Europe, especially on the streets of Athens. The European Union and its common currency appeared for a while to be a great success, a major Continue Reading
Impressions of Italy
We spent the last 3 weeks in northern and central Italy, arriving in the south of France a couple of days ago. Here are some of our impressions of Italy. Much of the landscape appears dry and rocky, but it’s still green. Not the rich, dark, rainforest green of British Continue Reading
No good deed goes unpunished
We arrived in La Spezia on the north-west coast of Italy in a rain storm at 5:30 PM. A British couple that we’d met the night before had recommended a camping site in an industrial area near the port. As best they could figure, it was on land used by Continue Reading