For those of you who have never had the privilege of visiting Florence and for those who have visited, let me share with you how I feel about this glorious city. My first visit to Florence was in 1971, before Euros, before cell phones, before the number of tourists became overwhelming. I walked the streets…

Writing about a fascination incites to living it twice. Florence (and all Italy) transmits a special magnetism to me, either at night or in the daylight. Indeed, I feel the more you visit a site, the more your identity will be linked to it. Choosing a place is never incidental, but caused by a wish,…

Relaxed and comfortable in our quiet apartment in Borgo Garibaldi. The owner mentioned to us that the agriturismo that runs the palazzo next door also has a restaurant, only open on the weekends. “You should make a reservation”, she said, “but I think they are catering a wedding this weekend so,…I don’t know!?” The restaurant…

Known in Latin as Tauromenium, and founded by the Sicels who gave Sicily its name, Taormina was once one of the island’s most important cities. It remained so for a millennium because of its strategic position high on a hill, and the nearly impenetrable Saracen Castle guarding it from above. This kept the pillaging and…