Travel by gondola: a centuries-old tradition that is in no way vital to the city's operations...but surely vital to its heart.
Tag: italy
the city of islands: death by tourism?
Venezia is a city composed of tiny islands. 120 of them, spanned by 400 bridges. Wooden or stone, humble or showy, everywhere bridges. Every time you cross a bridge you step onto a new island. Long ago, these borders determined micro-communities, islands like tribes. People didn't know their neighbors across the water. The communities were …
getting to know you…sunshine blogger award
One of the things I've most enjoyed over my year in Cannes has been gradually building up a blog readership. I sat down one day full of ideas and wrote about how speaking a second language opened my eyes to the greater absurdities of life itself. Many of you seemed to relate, sharing humorous stories …
first impressions of an upside-down forest: venice by vaporetto
Not the city that never sleeps (it does), maybe it's the city that's never still. Built on the water, Venice sloshes, splashes, seems to breathe. Venice is sinking. Venice has always been improbable.
snowglobe city: alone in italia, day seven
In my last full day on the Ligurian coast, I found myself far from the crowds, in a village one could reasonably conclude was populated only by renderings of the Madonna and electric green lizards like flashes of light. Maybe it's Cinque Terre, maybe it's Italy, maybe it's luck, but my time here has brought a …
no shoes no service: alone in italia, day six
Monterosso al Mare. I am ready for my second try of the hike between three villages of le Cinque Terre. It's a fine day for a hike, not too hot, and we're getting an early start. We will stop in Vernazza for some pizza and then finish in Corniglia, where the basil gelato is once …
Continue reading no shoes no service: alone in italia, day six
travel notebook, portovenere: alone in italia, day five
I am charmed by this sad, solid, nameless woman in the same color as the sea.
