My bachelor’s degree is in History, focused on medieval Europe, but ancient Rome was a close runner up. I love the history of Rome! So, I write this with great glee as visiting these sites was like living history to me. This is certainly not…
Naples, Italy is famous for its pizza, and as the gateway to Pompeii, Sorrento and the rest of the Amalfi Coast. It’s home to the National Archaeological Museum, which contains many of the Pompeiian treasure. The city has also been called rough, dirty and dangerous.…
Pompeii is one of the most famous ancient landmarks, with it’s often overlooked sister, Herculaneum (Ercolano). In preparing for my visit, I assumed doing both in one day was too much, plus I wanted to climb Mt. Vesuvius. Well, my planned day turned into quite…
Arrivals and Departures Getting to Venice can be as mundane as taking a train or bus to a certain point. However, if you arrive at the airport, start your visit off in Venetian style, and take a water bus, or vaparetto. The water buses run…
Venice is a city known for its aura of mystery, romance and, cha-ching, it’s high prices. Yet, there is plenty to do without breaking the bank. Whether you’re dropping in before a cruise, or allotting several days for Venice, this list of destinations and activities…
Long layovers are a traveler’s blessing! I have experienced several, using various Scandinavian airlines. In this case, SAS provided an 18 hour layover in Copenhagen, on my flight from Rome to Chicago. Transportation We arrived at 11:45pm, with a departure the next day in late…
I look forward to weekend getaways as much as multi-week international trips, and have had the Saugatuck area on my radar for some time. Just about 2.5 hours from Chicago, it’s perfect for a quick escape. We planned our weekend around Holland’s Tulip Time Festival,…
Paris is my favorite city, and during this trip I was able explore beyond the most famous landmarks and spend some time savoring those sites which do not necessarily come to mind when one first thinks of Paris. Over four days, I went from Versailles’…
Kenmare is a lovely town, ideally situated between the Rings of Kerry and Beara. It’s outside the hustle and bustle of Killarney, but still has plenty of shops, restaurants and pubs. We rented a wonderful house a mile or two outside of town, called Dunkerron…
Ireland’s southern coastline is known for three peninsular drives- Kerry, Beara and Dingle. The Ring of Kerry is beautiful, but seemingly the most popular with tours. Read about it here. Dingle has a reputation as the wildest. The Ring of Beara, alternatively, is rugged and…