How Italy stole my heart...
A beautiful early morning shot
of Vesuvious taken from
Sorrento by my dear
friend Hector
Needing to escape the stress from work, some of it self imposed, and as a birthday gift to myself I decided to escape to Europe on a three week solo trip in May 2011. A co-worker recommended that I booked a tour with Rick Steves, as she travels with them every year. I booked the Best of Europe tour that covers four different countries in 14 days, and I finished my vacation with an extra week in Spain. During this trip I fell in love with Italy and everything the country has to offer, the people, the food, and the sights. As soon as I came back from the trip I started learning italian with the hopes of returning in 2012.
For May 2012 I booked the Italy Villages tour, and this time it was a family affair, as I was accompanied by very close friends that I consider family. This trip deepened my love for the country and the hopes of one day being able to live there. As I sit here planning my 2013 trip, which will include a tour of Sicily and an extended stay in Florence, I decided that I will share with you via this website some of the fantastic experiences I've had in my travels as well as what's to come.
2014 Update...
2014 has been an interesting year so far, I celebrated my birthday with a two week vacation took me back to the North of Italy and then South to the Puglia region for the first time. During that trip I couldn't keep updating the website as I was having internet connection issues. I'm slowly catching up with it. It was a great trip and I visited some fantastic places.
And it seems that it was written in the cards that I'll be back in Italy for a second time this year. Quite unexpectedly and unplanned, but sometimes the best adventures start that way...
I had the opportunity to return to Italy, in October 2014, and stay for a month. With Rome as my home base, living outside the city center, I was able to experience the day to day life of using bus and metro to get where I needed to go. I did a few day trips and weekend trips, met a wonderful family and was able to immerse myself in the culture speaking only Italian for a month, and I have to admit that I felt totally at home with the Roman dialect.
2015 update...
Sadly no trips across the pond this year. Visited Boston for the first time, to celebrate my birthday with friends, had the best pizza this side of the hemisphere at Regina's in the North End, went to Fenway Park... Life is good!
2016 update...
2016 started with a bang! Three weeks in Italy from end of February to March 17th. The journey started in Lecce and ended up in Piemonte. Learning about the wines of each region, I visited, in preparation for my Italian Wine Specialist Certification. The more I explore the Sud (south) the more I like it, I love Puglia and everything it has to offer.
In the Nord (north) I was most impressed with Torino and how nice the city is, many locals told me that the city has developed a lot since the winter Olympics were held there and it continues to grow. I will definitely go back to Piemonte and continue to explore its wine regions, that will be a trip on it's own. There's so much to see, explore and learn.
I hope my pictures and comments will inspire you to visit Italy as well as other fascinating parts of the world...
“Certainly, travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living.” – Miriam Beard
Disclaimer
All photos taken by me unless otherwise indicated. I do not receive any compensation or perks from any touring company, hotel, restaurant or business I mention or visit during my travels.