10 Days in Italy along the Amalfi Coast
What comes to mind when you think of the Amalfi Coast? La Dolce Vita and Marcello Mastrianni? … Under the Tuscan Sun with Diane Lane and her on screen lover, Marcello, as he winds along that famous road with his other lover … or perhaps Audrey Hepburn and Albert Finney in Two for the Road? Hollywood has long since had a love affair with the 50-kilometer stretch of coastline along the southern edge of Italy’s Sorrentine Peninsula. The legendary Amalfi Coast has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its piercing beauty and unique natural landscape of sheer cliffs and rugged shoreline...
Read MoreThe village of Kastro ~ ancient capital of Sifnos
The village of Kastro was the capital of the island during ancient times until 1836. It is built on top of a high cliff on the island’s east side, and today has extensive medieval remains and is home to the Archaeological Museum of Sifnos, housing a wonderful collection of Archaic and Hellenistic sculptures. The magnificent village of Kastro is perched on a steep hill on the east side of Sifnos, offering stunning panoramic views of the Aegean Sea. The Panagia Poulati Monastery is prized for its beauty, as well as the landscape it surrounds....
Read MoreThe Pearl of the Adriactic ~ Dubrovnik
This trip was an adventure for me. I haven’t traveled solo since before I was married, when I trekked through England, France, Italy, Spain and Portugal at the age of 27. I wasn’t sure what to expect since the language was so different. I expected my greatest challenge to be driving (I confess I was nervous about it, especially with plans to drive the length of the country from Dubrovnik to capital Zagreb, island hopping and car ferrying in between, a new adventure in itself.) The drive was easy, relaxed and scenic along the coast. The only part that was a bit much was the...
Read MoreGallo-Roman Vaison-la-Romaine
Vaison-la-Romaine was inhabited during the Bronze Age, and in the 4th-century BC, the upper city of Vaison became the capital for a Celtic tribe. A place of vital significance in the early history of Provence, Vaision-la-Romaine extends on both sides of the river Ouvèze, with an upper self-contained medieval quarter with the look and character of a hill-village. From the 18th-century, most of the town had moved back down to the plains by the river, thus forming the “new” town. The Ouvèze River flows between the low-lying new town of Vaison and the rocky spur on which the...
Read MoreSeaside town of Cassis
“One who has seen Paris, but not Cassis, has seen nothing!” (“Qui a vu Paris, et non Cassis, n’a rien vu!”) – Provençal writer Alexandre Dumas Located in the département of the Var, the seaside gem of Cassis (not to be confused with crème de cassis, a specialty of Burgundy which takes its name from the French word for black currants) sits on the Mediterranean coast about 12 miles east of Marseille. The village encompasses rolling hills of picturesque vineyards which descend into a scenic port. Cassis produces its own wines, white and rosé, from the surrounding vineyards, but is...
Read MoreAthens, Greece
Home to the most important ancient monument in the Western world, Athens is one of the world’s oldest cities, with a recorded history spanning around 3,400 years. Athens is considered to be the cradle of Western civilization and the birthplace of democracy. Join me in this lively and vivacious city as we explore our past, all the while relishing a culinary journey every step of the way. Our friends in Sifnos recommended our hotel in Athens, their preferred choice when in town. Centrally located in the heart of the Old City of Plaka and the Acropolis, the modern hotel has been...
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