Initially I was considering a pair of daytrips outside of Rome during our six days there, in addition to the wedding-related activities we were signed up for. After a few busy days, I realized that would be a thorough over-commitment and a surefire recipe for trip burnout. So Naples, specifically Pompeii, landed on the editing… Read More Florentine Diversion
How does one even start to write about Rome? What new or insightful take is there on a city that has been visited for thousands of years, a seat of a republic, then empire, the home of the Pope and his church, the capital of Italy? My only experience here was over two decades ago,… Read More Bread and Circuses
It’s a short flight from Belgrade to Rome. Italy’s capital was the driver for this entire trip: we were here to celebrate the wedding of a long-time (I won’t say old) friend of mine from Oregon. True to stereotype, I arrived at Fiumicino to a frustrating sequence of long airport lines and a disorderly train… Read More Il Matrimonio
The last stop of the trip was Bologna, the capital of Emilia-Romagna. For this leg, we had an AirBnB booked, a great choice as it includes all the finer things in life: a couch, a fridge, stovetop, and even a washing machine (but no dryer). That final item was extremely welcome at this stage, especially… Read More The Italian Jobs
Most visitors to Venice enter through the back door and we were no exception. The famed islands of the lagoon are connected to the Italian mainland by a single hard-working causeway responsible for every car, train, bus and bus-like tram that reaches the heart of the city. Before industrialization, before modernity, travelers were more likely… Read More Janus on the Lagoon
A few hours and one transfer later, Trenitalia deposited us at the station in Bolzano, a small city and the seat of the Alto Adige, a province that climbs up the south face of the Alps and is marked by steep mountains and long, vineyard-covered valleys. The region also straddles different cultures, a mix of… Read More Herzlich Willkommen to Italy
My first and only RyanAir flight came and went quickly, a series of light naps interspersed with views over the wing of the winding course of the Danube, a peek at the Istrian peninsula, and the blue expanse of the Adriatic shimmering in the late morning sun before touching down in Milan. This marked the… Read More Valori Plastici
So Kathleen and I have finished up the last of our travels for the summer, returning late this past Sunday evening from Sardinia, a lovely Italian island lying in the heart of the Mediterranean. The trip was short, only four days, but all together made for a very pleasant and relaxing time. My only complaint… Read More Sardinia
Zak Abroad 