Navigating our 7th Decade
We have visited a fair few cities over the past four decades. Having both been brought up in small rural towns, we are not big city enthusiasts. Most are forgettable while some have a charm of their own. A very few have bowled us over in a glorious, noisy, chaotic rush. Naples is definitely the latter. Situated on the coast beneath the ever present threat of Mount Vesuvius, it’s a …
We found out about Oradour-sur-Glane by pure accident. We were on a train from Paris, heading to Limoges where we were being picked up and heading into the Corrèze. We got chatting with a Frenchman who was heading down to Limoges to visit his parents. When he found out we would be in the area for an extended period, he started suggesting places of interest we might visit. Oradour-sur-Glane was …
Beneath Istanbul’s Streets: Discovering the Basilica Cistern Just a short walk from Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque, the basilica cistern is an amazing place to visit. Also known as the Sunken Palace – for good reason – it was built by the Byzantine Roman emperor Justinian 1 to supply water to the Great Palace of Constantinople. Once we had paid the somewhat eye watering tourist entrance fee, we descended …
A Hidden Gem in Southern Italy When you think of Italy, it’s easy to picture the usual suspects like Rome, Florence and Venice – or even Naples and Sienna. We have visited them all and they are awesome, yet somehow familiar. But every so often, we find ourselves in a place that we have no prior knowledge of and that feels like it’s still a bit of a secret. Aspromonte …
Tucked away in a narrow cobbled street in the heart of Naples’ old city is the Museo Cappella Sansevero. Hidden behind an unassuming façade at Via Francesco de Sanctis 19, this small museum holds one of the most amazing sculptures you are ever likely to see. We’d read about the famous Veiled Christ before we got to Naples, and we had seen the pictures. But absolutely nothing we saw or …
One of the activities that has been on our bucket list for a long time now is picking olives in Calabria, Italy. Despite a few visits to Italy, we have never got the timing right as olive picking only starts late October and goes through until February, depending on the harvesting method that is being used. But this year we got our timing right and late October found us in …
Soncino is an ancient walled village about 35km north west of Cremona. We visited it in early October 2022 during the festival that celebrates the ancient tradition of moving cattle from the Alps to lower lying areas for the winter. This ancient practice is known as Transhumance, and you can read more about it here. We had previously encountered this practice in a very different setting . You can read …
Cremona is a city in the Lombardia region of Northern Italy, situated about a 100km dash down the A1 SE of Milan. It’s not one of the first places that comes to mind when you think of visiting Italy. We had never heard of the place until we hosted an Italian Rotary Exchange Student who happened to come from Cremona. And thus we were introduced to Cremonesi life! We were fascinated …
It Was Written in the Stars Sometimes the stars align, and you just happen to be in the right place, at the right time, to realise a bucket list quest. It’s not planned. A snippet of information becomes an online search. Next thing you know you’re on a train heading through the hills to an iconic destination, to take in a performance that has become a global legend. And all …
We stayed just outside Barga in Tuscany for almost a month in September 2022. It is a delightful hilltop town about 37 km north of Lucca by road. And it can be very Scottish! Weird but true. During the time we were there they had a whole weekend of activities planned to celebrate their Scottish heritage (so perfect timing which we have a happy knack of doing – see our …