Category: Vacation

  • Vlad the Curious

    Vlad the Curious

    Second day – Romania. This six-day voyage on the Orient Express is really three nights on the train. And a couple of days on the ground. For showering, refueling, and such. The train has no showers – so “modern” conveniences are built into the trip. Five-star, mind you. Our first such break is in Bucharest.…

  • Istanbul: The Start of My Journey

    Istanbul: The Start of My Journey

    Two Nights at the Pera Palace Hotel in Istanbul. It can be overwhelming to consider who has walked the halls of this historic hotel in the Beyoglu neighborhood of Istanbul. I immediately searched out the “Agatha Christie” room. She apparently preferred Room 411. I have imagined that her room was similar to mine because I…

  • Kindness, Part Two

    Kindness, Part Two

    I spent my second to last day in Vienna — of this trip anyway — visiting the summer place of the Habsburg clan: the Schönbrunn Palace. Marie Antoinette spent her summers there, Mozart played a concert at the palace when he was 6 years old. The Google will fill you in – but wait: my…

  • Vienna: In the Park

    Vienna: In the Park

    All summer, Vienna holds a free Film Festival in the Park behind its city hall (“Rathaus”). Dozens of food stands snake around the park – in the center high, and low, tables where people eat their dinners. On plates with real silverware. And beverages in glasses. Filmgoers leave their dishes and cutlery when they’re done.…

  • I Puffi

    I Puffi

    Or, How I Fell in Love with the Kilogram Scale I burst out laughing when I saw that the Italians call “Smurfs” “Puffi”. Or, to take the grammar to its proper usage. A “smurf” would be a “puffo.”  Or, “puffa” (feminine). It became the leitmotif of my culinary – how you say – overindulgences.  You…

  • Fathers Day

    Fathers Day

    I have decided to take full advantage of Easter in Roma. I do not usually travel to la Bella città this time of the year. And, as with all my vacations, I generally don’t choose the dates for any other reason than “it’s been long enough without a break, pick some dates from the calendar”. Which is…

  • Everywhere You Look

    Everywhere You Look

    I cannot believe it has taken me this long to visit Lake Como. I guess I thought it was only for the elites. Certainly, it has a rich history of being the relaxing playground of the rich. But, Varenna – where I am staying — has its own history. Once a fishing town, its only…

  • Still Moving

    Still Moving

    I am on vacation and I have yet to stop moving.  24 hours door to door with a 7-hour layover in Bruxelles – turns out there is a cost to a $500 round trip to and from Roma. Oh, did I mention, I had a center seat to BRU and no seat – in fact…

  • An Afternoon with Signora Maria

    An Afternoon with Signora Maria

    Visiting the cugini in Bologna, I had two missions: to enjoy the company of family, and to get my very own Signora Maria! Anyone who calls Signora Maria a terra cotta figure has clearly not met this delightful, whimsical character. Her creator is Anna Tazzari, an exquisitely talented artist in Bagnacavallo (outside Bologna).   My first…

  • Little Tiles of Ravenna

    Little Tiles of Ravenna

    What a lovely little Italian town is Ravenna. My Italian friends say “oh, che belli mosaici!!” (pronounced moh-ZAI-ih-chee). And yes, the mosaics here are unbelievably beautiful.  The little tiles of Ravenna are abundant and extant. Colorful and glimmering – golden little chips festooning the ceilings, the walls. Beautiful, indeed. Ravenna has it – and it knows it.…