Pasticcerie (pastry shops) in Sicily are veritable altars of culinary history. One of these “culinary altars” is certainly Pasticceria/Bar Gardenia, a splendid showcase of culinary creations in Cardillo, a nondescript borgata (small suburb, an outcrop)…
Near Pino’s childhood home in Cardillo, a small Palermo borgata (small suburb, urban outcrop), a grandissima pasticceria/bar, Pasticceria/Bar Gardenia, draws in customers from all over. The tempting goodness on rows and rows of shelves does it:…
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…
Over a thousand years old and linked to the ancient Arab souk, Ballaro’ still remains one of the most animated and liveliest Palermo street markets. On an early December day, Pino and…
Many a grandiose villa rises in the borgate (small suburbs) encircling Palermo, majestic summer residences desired by the Palermo aristocracy for their location closer to the seaside than that of their imposing in-town palazzi, noble residences…
Our olive harvest this year in mid-November took a couple of days. And here are the crates of olives after our first day of picking: …and here is the abundance at the…
If you’re in Italy in early November, don’t miss a visit to the local cemetery where autumn bouquets add flashes of color to the tombs and often-grandiose stone family mausoleums. Some relatives…
Gubbio always captivates and the medieval splendor of this Umbrian hill town gem enraptures on arrival… …as recent tour guests, Vicki and Jim, now know. Strolling the winding backstreets, medieval splendor is…
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…