Called “Hispellum” by the Romans, majestic Umbrian hill town Spello perches on the lower slopes of Mt. Subasio…. …surveying below the Valle Umbra Nord. 500 square meters of the mosaic floor of…
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As we headed from Amandola to Sarnano in the Marches region, rolling wooded landscapes blanketed the surrounding hills: the foothills of the Sybilline mountains: Coming around a curve, the sign in front…
One of the “undiscovered” medieval hill town gems of Umbria is certainly Gubbio. Not on any railroad line, the winding medieval backstreets of Gubbio are thronged once a year: on May 15th,…
Even after living decades in Italy, the discoveries remain endless. And small out-of-the-way hill towns can astound. As does the first site of Toffia: Not long ago, Pino and I headed for…
(Photo above thanks to Assisi News – www.assisinews.it) You might consider St. Francis of Assisi the patron saint of animals but Italians well-know that this honorific appellation belongs to St. Anthony Abbot,…
Time passes quickly as you wait in line for fresh seafood at the stand of Claudio in Palermo. Pino, his longtime Palermo friend, Nino, and I joined the waiting customers there on…
I decided to title this blog note with a phrase from tour guest, Sharon. After our Perugia/Deruta tour with Sharon, her husband Jerry and friends (Linda and Glenn), she wrote me this…
After four memorable days together, I recenty bid arrivederci to Christine and Ivy, Len and Vivien. That Italian farewell literally means “until we see each other again.” Reassuring for me as these apartment guests/tour…
In elegant ancient Roman garb, blonde-haired Greta told me with pride about her performances in Bolsena’s July 24th celebration of the lake-side town’s patron saint Cristina, I Misteri di Santa Cristina (those scenes…
Medieval gem, Gubbio, is a favorite tour destination for me….. – and turned out to be a favorite of the tours I offered Judy and Grady during their late-April week here. As…