Browsing CategoryItaly

I don’t remember the name of this town that I wandered into after visiting ruins in Sardinia. It doesn’t matter, really. But I do remember that I spent a lovely few hours all by myself in this town. After eating a crummy sandwich at the only restaurant open on a Sunday, I meandered. I found a path that led up a hill overlooking the town and paused to take a photo of this interesting wall. The point was: it was one of those moments where I revel in the joys of solo travel. To go somewhere with no agenda, no…

Last week, I had a dream come true: I got to hear Frances Mayes, author of Under the Tuscan Sun and a dozen other books about Italy, speak about her new book, See You in the Piazza. Years ago, before I’d ever been to Italy, she made me fall in love with it, as well as with the idea of living in another country. Her tales of renovating a crumbling villa, while romantic, didn’t inspire me to do the same! Too much work! But the idea of immersing myself in a tiny town somewhere, of learning the culture and language, now, that…

So many monuments in such a small area. While most people go to take dumb pics of them holding up the Leaning Tower (yes, I took one, too), the other landmarks in Pisa are beautiful, too. The Leaning Tower took almost 200 years to complete (starting in 1173 and paused for a few wars). The Duomo uses gray and white striped stonework unique to Tuscany. The Baptistry is a symbolic crown at the forefront of the Campo dei Miracoli. Beyond that, there’s a walled cemetery with some beautiful sculptures. I couldn’t imagine a nicer place to be buried.  

Whenever I see this photo in my slideshow, I immediately exhale and feel relaxed. It takes me back to the Italian yoga retreat I attended just outside of Lucca in Tuscany. Each evening, the 10 or so of us would walk up to this grassy spot nestled among grapevines and lay out our mats. While I tend to practice yoga with my eyes closed much of the time, I kept them open because the Tuscan hillside was simply breathtaking, particularly at sunset. This photo is a reminder to me that I don’t have to be on a mat in Tuscany…