Ever had a dream where you’re running and running but can’t seem to arrive anywhere? Your surroundings are as unclear as the reason that you’re running and the more you realize it, the more anxious you become, the more out of breath. That’s how trying to navigate the Italian visa system feels. Each and every North American… Read more »

I love northern Italy. I love the location: just two hours in any direction and you can move from plains to jagged Alps to warm sea. I love its mixed-breed history. I love the hardworking nature of the people, the efficiency, the food.  And while Milan and Venice are breathtaking, there are plenty of towns that don’t share the same… Read more »

There are few places better suited to a road trip than the beautiful sun-kissed Val d’Orcia.  On trips to the area I’ve stopped in Siena, Monteriggioni, Buonconvento, Montalcino and Montepulciano. Each are a quintessential Tuscan town: small, gorgeous, filled with wine and perched on a hilltop. Siena being the only truly influential town in the area’s history.  Dodging… Read more »

Last year marked my first ever “Year of The Book.“ Entirely made up by myself, it was my way to bring myself back to my love of reading, to allow myself to “waste” time in the lovely, fulfilling, necessary pursuit. The year before I had read a staggering (for me, at the time) 24 books… Read more »

Nothing embodies the unknown like a new baby. From the moment of conception it’s the most remarkable miracle in all of humankind, and the scariest moment in the universe. The change that comes with pregnancy is constant and inevitable. My stomach becomes sensitive, my head becomes fuzzy, my appetite and taste changes. My will hardens as my body grows… Read more »

Snapshots of Mantova, Italy: A look into one of Lombardia’s most livable cities: Equidistant from Milan and Venice and just next door to Verona, Mantova is an easy-to-reach city chock full of history, culture and absolutely mouth-watering food. Declared the Italian Capital of Culture in 2016 as well as the European Capital of Gastronomy for 2017, it’s time… Read more »

A sinking city of sea and secrets, Venice is known for its inescapable romance, beauty and mystery. Visitors can find all three at the city’s infamous Carnival celebration. Now an annual, three-week celebration, the first Carnival of Venice supposedly started in 1162 to celebrate a military victory of La Repubblica della Serenissima, as Venice was originally called. Known as carnevale in Italian,… Read more »

“If X wins, I’m moving to Y” We’ve all heard it, read it, gagged over the privilege of the statement. I understand, it’s a way to powerfully state your strong opinions about the potential-elect. It’s saying ‘I would hate so much for this person to win that I’d be willing to leave the country, my hometown,… Read more »

A friendly reminder from a courageous, intelligent, loving being: Maya Angelou   “Perhaps travel cannot prevent bigotry, but by demonstrating that all peoples cry, laugh, eat, worry, and die, it can introduce the idea that if we try to understand each other, we may even become friends.” – Maya Angelou in Wouldn’t Take Nothing For… Read more »

There are some tourist sites that are so obvious, you barely need to research them.  Obviously you’ll be visiting the Uffizi Gallery or the Accademia’s David in Florence. Obviously the Vatican Museums and the Colosseum in Rome are important, St. Mark’s in Venice and the Archeological Museum in Naples. It doesn’t seem to be so obvious in Milan. Milan is… Read more »