Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Italy Traveling
Walk the cobbled streets of Rome, Florence and Milan. Drive through Umbria or stay in a villa in Tuscany, take a gondola ride in Venice. Walk the Cinque Terre, see the ruins that is Pompeii. Take a ferry to Sicily and see Mt. Etna and more or sample true Italian cuisine like mamma used to make. Sun Island Tours can take care of your Italian needs.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Tuscany on a bicycle
It is just over 40 miles from Siena to Florence by the direct route, but who wants direct when you’re in Chianti? We divided it into four stages – three nights, three hotels, three dinners – a slow progress northward on the skinniest roads, some paved, others dirt tracks.
How much cycling we tackled was a matter of debate over breakfast each morning. There was always a choice of routes – on day one they varied between 11 and 28 miles. And the one we chose was invariably a little longer than planned, thanks to wrong turns and detours. But distances were not the point. We were cycling through some of Europe’s most delectable countryside, crossing steep hills and blessed valleys, sloping vineyards and rocky scarps – and passing some of the most coveted real estate in the world. It is easy, with all that has been said and written about Tuscany, to forget just how seductive the place can be. It was a delight to be reminded.
How much cycling we tackled was a matter of debate over breakfast each morning. There was always a choice of routes – on day one they varied between 11 and 28 miles. And the one we chose was invariably a little longer than planned, thanks to wrong turns and detours. But distances were not the point. We were cycling through some of Europe’s most delectable countryside, crossing steep hills and blessed valleys, sloping vineyards and rocky scarps – and passing some of the most coveted real estate in the world. It is easy, with all that has been said and written about Tuscany, to forget just how seductive the place can be. It was a delight to be reminded.
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Choose Bari over Brindisi if you're heading to Puglia in Italy
Palm trees and benches line the pedestrian shopping street Sparano da Bari, which sports Gucci, Nike and Benetton. There's a spiffed-up and well-lighted waterfront park and public beach, and the centro storico — old Bari — is a colorful residential neighborhood in the heart of the busy commercial city.
Be sure to visit the Church of St. Nicholas, an Orthodox Catholic church and major European pilgrimage site where the relics of St. Nicholas were brought from Turkey in the 11th century.
You could make your way to Lecce, but there are many pretty little towns along the coast north and south of Bari. You'll need a car — it might be worth renting one for a day or two and exploring.
Be sure to visit the Church of St. Nicholas, an Orthodox Catholic church and major European pilgrimage site where the relics of St. Nicholas were brought from Turkey in the 11th century.
You could make your way to Lecce, but there are many pretty little towns along the coast north and south of Bari. You'll need a car — it might be worth renting one for a day or two and exploring.
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