I truly believe that Palermo is one of the most underrated cities in Italy. It has a mishmash of architectural styles, plenty of crumbling corners, sunburnt Sicilian colors, and a complicated but intriguing history. And the Palermo Cathedral manages to package all of this into one. The Palermo Cathedral was built in 1185, which is […]
Category Archives: Explore Italy
You know you have eaten well when you can pull up the memory of a meal as vividly as when you first sat down to enjoy it months earlier. I think back to my lunch at Trattoria Serghei in Bologna whenever a craving for handmade pasta strikes. The traditional wood-paneled dining room is truly tiny […]
I am a big fan of rooftop bars in Rome, so I was on a mission to find a great rooftop in Venice on our recent trip. The city has a well-deserved reputation for being touristy, but it is such a unique destination with its canals and waterside palazzi that I can never resist a […]
I hadn’t left Rome since October. And there is nothing wrong with Rome, but six months might be the longest I have ever gone without so much as a day trip. After a winter of snow (!) and never-ending rain, we were itching to get out of the city. Bologna is my favorite eating city […]
Taking a day trip from Rome to Anagni puts you in good historical company. When the city temperatures rose, Rome’s emperors would decamp to this hilly town and other nearby breezy villages such as Palestrina. With a breeze flitting through the green countryside, it is a decided fresh escape from Rome. After the emperors came […]
I like to describe Naples as chaos incarnate. It has a life of its own, that seems to head in every direction at once, but then comes together into a sort of untouchable harmony that energizes your soul. And because I would love to know more about the city, I collected together my favorite quotes […]
I myself am guilty of becoming enamored with Naples’ constant chaos. But as truly maddening the city can seem to be, it also has serene and stately attributes – most notably the stunning palace known as Palazzo Reale. The history of Naples’ Royal Palace is complicated because the region itself was ruled by so many […]
From Monday through Friday, the Catania Fish Market takes over the streets behind the city’s duomo and puts on a raucous seafood show.