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Trapani - Italy

Trapani – Italy

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Ancient Greek Drepanon

Once again returning to Palermo in Sicily however with a different objective. A year ago this was for properly visiting this incredible city; yet in this occasion the main points were reaching Trapani right after arriving into Palermo’s airport, and the following day for one of the most spectacular cities from the ancient Greek civilization, Agrigento with its Valley of the Temples. All in all, another busy weekend ahead, but no matter how tired I get this all is well worth it and will keep doing it on and on for as long as I can. Also, returning to Palermo will be a reality for sure, with so much more to see west of the island and in the city itself, it’s the perfect gateway.

Often bypassed by tourists, the city has a lot to see and do. Much more that I did originally think and expected. And when saying this, I am also including the nearby mountain top village of Erice which is linked to Trapani by cable car and you can consider another district of the city, and if time permitting, it’s way worth it visit the ancient Greek city of Segesta with its marvellous Doric temple so incredibly well preserved. It’s matter of minutes by train or bus from downtown Trapani, hence as if it would be another city’s district.

The historic city centre in the other hand, is small and easy to navigate, that’s the good news hence why this is a perfect day trip from larger Palermo at the northeast, or Agrigento at the south of the island where tourists prefer to make their main base; myself among them of course by staying in Palermo. (more…)

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Read more about the article Cuneo and Fossano – Italy
Cuneo - Italy

Cuneo and Fossano – Italy

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Among the vineyard landscapes of Piedmont

Our second part for this weekend, coming from our base in Turin was for visiting the small and beautiful Piedmont cities of Cuneo and Fossano. Another two places important to the once rich and wealthy House of Savoy Royal Family. While you will not find in here such impressive palaces as those in Turin and nearby, you can expect to see finely preserved medieval old towns built on top of the former perfect Roman grid of streets, containing countless churches, palaces and mansions, among nice parks, gardens and castles; and all with the perfect background of the Alps mountain range, highly likely with snowy tops during the summer months or full of snow during winter and spring, and among the world famous vineyard landscapes, designated an UNESCO World Heritage Site. Quite an impressive setting!

While you can easily spend an entire weekend in Turin alone, especially if you are planning in visiting all or most of the Palaces of the Royal House of Savoy; then there is no chance you could possibly include anything else however if you are a returning tourist (as we are to Turin), or prefer not to enter to that many palaces, then a day is well enough for visiting everything allowing you an entire extra day to do both Cuneo and Fossano, or if only time for one, then make it be Cuneo.

Both cities are very small, with a compact historic centre where distances are short through every sight. Cuneo is long, but narrow while Fossano has a squared shape and way smaller, famous for its traditional arched streets and the four towers castle towards the highest part of the city. A day is well more than enough for both either if you have your own transportation here or not because both cities lie along the mainline railway from Turin to Savona in the Mediterranean coast. (more…)

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Read more about the article Turin – Italy
Turin - Italy

Turin – Italy

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Automobile Capital of Italy

Once again on a trip returning to a city long time not been. It was back in July 2012, and this was in fact the very first guide I created in my travel blog. Now 5 years after and almost 400 guides later, it was long due for a full remake and edit in order to bring it to the usual standard clear and neat design, with way much more information and description. There are still around 100 guides to eventually keep updating as I return to the cities or merely to revamp them every now and then, but that’s a great achievement I am very proud of, thinking on the countless days and nights I’ve spent in order to maintain such a vast content, backdated to 2009 when I really started with this travel-bug that has seen myself to already 85 countries as of today, hundreds of cities and constantly on the go pretty much every weekend of the year.

Turin, the capital city of the Piedmont region was once the first capital city of Italy in 1861 and home to the House of Savoy, Italy’s royal family. Today it remains as one of the major cultural and economic poles in the country and a very important tourist destination legacy of its superb architecture and elegance combining all of the styles: Renaissance, Baroque, Rococo, neo-classical, and art-nouveau among the Roman foundation of the city with gates, walls and other archaeological remains. Such a vast collection of constructions, especially the grand palaces scattered through the city and nearby villages was the key point for the UNESCO to list it a World Heritage Site under the name: “Residences of the Royal House of Savoy.”

From the 16th century, when Turin twas made the capital of the Duchy of Savoy, the city was one of the major projects in history with the enlargement of the otherwise small city into a big and elegant, with the construction of Piazza San Carlo and Via Roma the major urban achievements coupled with the strengthening of the city’s walls. A second expansion wave came in the 17th century with farther enlargement of the walls, the construction of the Royal Palace, and the famous Via Po linking the riverside to Piazza Castello. This was the last time the city saw such a revival, and for what it owes most of its nowadays enormous cultural heritage. Only during the 1930’s the latest additions was built, the main thoroughfare Via Roma in the Italian Rationalist style.

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Read more about the article Capri – Italy
Capri - Italy

Capri – Italy

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The isle of the sirens

Another of the great yet small destinations we can tick the checkbox for finally being able to visit. However this is not our first attempt if I am to be honest. A year ago, precisely it was also May, we planned our trip to Naples with the intention of getting to the Magna Graecian cities of Paestum and Velia, and the following day to visit Capri. Unfortunately, from a day to the next, the weather situation changed so dramatically that it was raining horribly, with strong winds and so dark it would not make any sense at all making the trip. This is the main reason why another trip here to Naples this year, well, one in between many other reasons since returning to this city is always so great and pleasurable that we will keep with the tradition of returning at least once a year wherever we can.

Capri is one of the top island and not just in Italy nor the Mediterranean, competing with Ibiza, Santorini, Mikonos or the likes; but also worldwide where royalties, celebrities and famous make it their holiday destination or even own a top villa there. This fact is not new and it has always been the case since the Roman times when the island was chosen as the preferred holiday resort of the rich, and specially Emperor Tiberius who built one of the most luxurious villas ever, which remains you can visit today.

This is not a cheap place as you can imagine, and expect sky-high prices for everything, even a bottle of water! Sounds a bit stupid but would be worth it if you bring the water with you from Naples, believe me, it is either paying less than 1 Euro or triple for the same! It is the major downside in the island of course, however it is not that bad as people kept telling us. Just be cautious in making a choice, it will take you a while longer comparing a little bit here and there trying to avoid such horrific sky-high prices and tourists traps, or end up with just some snack keeping yourself for a much well deserved great dinner when you’re back in Naples.
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Naples - Italy

Naples – Italy

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Latin Neapolis: New City

Returning for one more time to what is now, without hesitation, one of our favourites cities in the whole of Italy: Naples. So much to see and not just only in the beautiful and so historic city itself but in the region nearby, that with every trip we do we never have enough time to see it all, but we are always happy to already start thinking in the next visit and which other places can be discovered. This city is by far the one in Italy located at the footsteps of countless world heritage sites and unique places, world-wide known. From spectacular beaches along the idyllic coasts of Sorrento and Amalfi; luxury destinations such as Capri or Ischia Islands; the ever watching Vesuvius Volcano and the literally countless Roman remains, the best and most complete ancient cities buried for almost 2000 years after the deadly Vesuvius eruption: Pompeii, ErcolanoOplontis and Stabiae. And if this is not enough, some further kilometres to the south south you have the ancient Greek cities of Paestum and Velia and the largest cloister in the world, the Certosa di San Lorenzo in Padula; or merely few kilometres north of Naples the largest royal residence in the world in the city of Caserta. This is only to name a few of the many destinations near Naples, now that we’ve been is most of them.

I take this occasion as a good chance for remaking this travel guide continuing to improve by adding as much updated information as possible, since it was already becoming too old. Now with all the links through added to other travel guides for the cities and sites near Naples, I am hoping to give enough details for everyone to enjoy a great holiday and know at all times what to see and do in the most simplest way possible.

Now time for a brief introduction to the city before moving onto the next subjects. Forget these urban legends about Naples as being a dangerous city. Of course, as a tourist, you will not end up going to random neighbourhoods or dodgy places where no one goes right? I’m sure you do not do that either in your hometown. Then all is left is a peaceful, messy and pretty much safe city. We’ve never felt any insecurity, although yes it is true at night around the train stations the situation looks not the best place to be. Too many homeless people everywhere, too dirty, day and night, but again, we’ve never experienced anything wrong.

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Read more about the article Mantua and Sabbioneta – Italy
Mantua - Italy

Mantua and Sabbioneta – Italy

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Most important Renaissance city in Italy

Continuing with another great day in this very busy weekend visiting so many places in such a short time, we move towards both Mantua and Sabbioneta. One complimenting the other, and near each other, both inscribed by the UNESCO as World Heritage Sites for being exceptional testimonies to the urban, architectural and artistic realizations of the Renaissance, linked through the visions and actions of the ruling Gonzaga family. While Mantua is the extension and redesign of the pre-existing city, Sabbioneta highlights the creation of a new city following the most perfect lines of the Renaissance. In both, the large amount of historic churches, palaces and buildings lead to be the main artistic, cultural, and especially musical hubs of Northern Italy and the country as a whole.

Some further notes in history about famous people or facts, we can start with Mantua being the birthplace of Roman poet Virgil, where a square and statue honor his name, Piazza Virgiliana. Not only that composer Monteverdi premiered his opera L’Orfeo in mantua, it is overall, one of the most important centres in the history of opera. As last, for the Shakespeare’s lovers, Mantua is the city where Romeo banished in the play Romeo and Juliet.

Northern Italy, in the same way as is the south, offer countless cities and sights one after another, literally. Just a mere dozen of kilometres apart and you are in a different world. So as we landed in Verona as our perfect base, and enjoyed Vicenza and Padua the day before, one world famous for being pretty much the “birthplace” of neoclassical architecture, and the other containing the world’s first botanical garden dating from the 16th century; today we get to enjoy what arguably has been described as the birthplace of the Renaissance architecture and urbanism. And all of this not even an hour away from Verona’s downtown. (more…)

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Read more about the article Padua – Italy
Padua - Italy

Padua – Italy

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Home to the world’s first botanical gardens

On our second part of this day, after visiting the city of Vicenza, we complete it with Padua, really next door. It’s only 40 kilometres to the east of the former, just 17 minutes by train, a bit more by car or bus, but easy to manage without any rush in the same day. Vicenza is too small, and while Padua has a bigger historic town, it is also very compact and easy to navigate through in a nice sightseeing pace. Include here there is a sight that is not architecture nor monument; it’s a botanical garden. To be precise, the world’s first of its kind, and so beautiful and historic that it made its way to be listed an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Padua is home to the second oldest university in Italy, founded in 1222, where Galileo Galilei was a lecturer in the 16th century. It’s also setting for most of Shakespeare’s play The Taming of the Shrew. And to complete with a further fact where this city has been showcased, there is the play by writer Oscar Wilde, The Duchess Of Padua. Much earlier in its history, the importance, development and power was such that during the 1st century BC it was the wealthiest city in the Italian peninsula only after Rome. Yet since the fall of the Roman Empire, the city succumbed to numerous invasions and rulings,periods of war, destruction and recovery. By when in 1866 it was annexed to Italy, it was the poorest region, only to be hit once again during WWI, WWII and through the fascist era.

So while you might expect from what was one of the important cities in Roman times some nice archaeological remains, scattered through the city, it’s not the case. A lot of of the classical and medieval fabric disappeared, however most of it has been rebuilt, together with the new fascist style buildings from the era; still, it’s an incredible beautiful and pleasant city to visit, and a strong tourist pole. After the fall of the fascist era, the city has boomed in every sense becoming once again one of the wealthiest in Italy. (more…)

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Read more about the article Vicenza – Italy
Vicenza - Italy

Vicenza – Italy

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The city of Palladio

Another return to Italy, and once again to the north just after few weeks since the last trip. Somehow, there is always somewhere else to go and visit, non-stop anywhere you go in Italy, and we are happy with every return. Also in few week’s time, there will be more Italian weekend trips to come! For now, let’s fly once again to Verona, but not for revisiting, instead for making it our base airport to reach Vicenza, Padua, Mantua and Sabbioneta. Sounds a lot for just 2 days, however, these are all small cities and visiting 2 each day worked perfectly.

Vicenza, same as all the other places we will visit this weekend, are inscribed by UNESCO as World Heritage Sites. No surprise! In the country with the most WHS in the world you are never far from one, and for people like us that on top of visiting as much of the world as we can, we are obsessed in being at the most WHS we can, this trips are tick after tick. I can hardly coop with creating the travel guides for every city and place we go yet I try my best, especially after receiving such a good feedback not only from my friends and colleges, but also from 3rd parties as hotels we stay, restaurants we go and other people we engage and we share it with.

Now back to the city, what’s the peculiarity then for being listed UNESCO, and ranking high among the tourists and tour operators who offer continuously day trips from Verona and Venice? Well, it really lies in the middle of both, barely 1 hour distance from any of them, but it’s architecture is the key. Do not expect here Roman ruins or impressive Venetian palaces, but instead, the finest neoclassical architecture of the whole of Italy. You can say such style was born here, and received a name, the Palladian architecture. Not because the resemblance to palaces and as such, palatial architecture; but for the name of its architect, Andrea Palladio. (more…)

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