Central Italy has a special place in my heart. It’s where I learned Italian and fell in love – both with Italy itself and my own Italian. Read: How to Marry an Italian. Every chance we get Marco and I make our way south of the Po River to explore Tuscany or hop among the… Read more »
Shaped like a half moon in the northwest of Italy, Liguria’s coastline stretches for more than 186 miles. Along that distance you can find imposing cliffs, minuscule bays and insanely elegant towns. It’s spunky and rich, greedy but attractive. It’s also the closest sea that anyone in northern Italy can get to, and on the… Read more »
Liguria is a boomerang-shaped region hugging Italy’s Mediterranean coast in the north. Occupying the strip of land between the sea and the Maritime Alps, Liguria has colorful seaside villages, lush, flower-filled vegetation and richly salty food. Its capital city, Genoa, was a large maritime republic, wealthy and powerful thanks to its port and trade. Today, the region’s historic… Read more »
I’ve gone to Lake Como dozens of times. I’ve crisscrossed the lake on the ferry, enjoyed spritz’s lakeside and even popped a bottle of prosecco in a fishing boat offshore of Bellagio after a day on the water. And yet I had never actually visited the city of Como. We live much closer to the Lecco… Read more »
Italy’s geography is something special. A long peninsula, it has miles and miles of coastline and just happens to be crowned by the Alps. The Apennine Mountains run its length like a spine and in-between you have centuries of ruling city-states that have created totally unique cities. I always preach that there’s something for everyone… Read more »
Maybe you’ve been to Florence four times and want to branch out. Or you fell in love with the mosaics of St. Mark’s Basilica and want to explore more. Whether it’s your first trip or your 18th, there’s always a new place to see in Italy, always a place beyond your original itinerary, always a… Read more »
The long, winding country roads, fields and fields of grapes separated only by cypresses and the nearly deserted hill towns in Tuscany lend themselves perfectly to a classic road trip. But it’s not the only way to see the Tuscan hills. Though the smallest towns are difficult to reach by public transportation, some of Tuscany’s most famous… Read more »
Ideally, you’d have at least a week to visit Palermo and the west coast of Sicily. Or if you’ve already seen Palermo you could fly directly in to Trapani to tour around the area – maybe with a few extra days tacked on to visit the Egadi Islands! But I also know that that’s not always… Read more »
Sicily is a big island with a big history and a big personality. It deserves some planning and it deserves some time, but it won’t be offended if you don’t have either. Here time runs slower and the days longer. And though the stereotypes of carefree islanders doesn’t always work here – unemployment and corruption… Read more »
Palermo has long had a bad reputation. Ground zero for the mafia, they say. Dirty. A port city only good to take you elsewhere. Gone are those days. Now Palermo is a favorite for hipsters throughout Italy. Curious Italians are giving it a second chance and international travelers choose it as an introduction to Southern Italy – the… Read more »
