Archive for category Italy

Travel to Spain, France and Italy

If you are planning to go on a vacation, you may wish to consider countries like Spain, France or Italy. In each of these countries, there are beautiful cities, towns and settlements. Each city has its own heritage, history, and story to tell. It’s easy to fall in love with the destinations once you get to know the place, the people, and the culture. Here are some highlights of the 3 countries.

Traveling in Spain.

Spain has many major cities that you can consider visiting. Some must see cities include Madrid, Barcelona, and Seville or Costa Blanca. Compared to other major cities, Madrid may not have the same beautiful architecture. However, it is rich in art culture, and is endowed with beautiful natural scenery. If you would like to visit magnificent churches and cathedrals, Barcelona would be a better option. This city started off as a tiny settlement surrounded by a defensive wall. It has evolved into a city that is bustling with activity.

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When In Italy – Twenty Essential Things To Do

Sitting round the dinner table one night , after a few bottles of Chianti with some old friends, most of whom had spent time as European tour guides and backpackers, I asked them to name the best thing to see or do while staying in Italy. There was a lot of loud discussion as some tried to praise the less obvious things over the more mainstream, but there were also plenty of unanimous agreement for others.
In no particular order may I present to you the top 20 things to do in Italy as decided by my mates.

1. Nun Watching in Piazza San Pietro

There is something serene about watching a line of Nuns on tour, especially on specific Saint’s days, taking photos of the façade of St Peter’s or trailing behind each other inside the huge basilica. They are only out numbered by the pigeons, which parents ,who hate their children, encourage to sit on their offspring’s head in hopes they will pick them up and fly away, perhaps dropping them somewhere over the Forum.

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Mi Bella Italia – My Beautiful Italy, The Trip of A Lifetime!

In August of 2009, I was fortunate enough to take my “trip of a lifetime” to Italy. My father’s parents were immigrants from Sicily. They settled in a tiny town in Pennsylvania, and they both died when my father was young. I have never even seen a photograph of my Italian grandparents.

I have always wondered why I like the things I like, why I am passionate but cynical, and why, for some reason, I simply can not talk without the use of my hands. It was during this trip that I was able to figure out what makes me, well, me!

We stayed in Italy for three weeks, and had a whirlwind itinerary. We knew only a handful of words and phrases, and knew something about Italian customs, so, armed with a Blackberry, a phrase book and several guide books, we decided to be intrepid explorers and take nothing but public transportation as we criss-crossed the country. The Italians were pleased that we knew a few words of Italian, and we asked them how to say almost everything in Italian for us. They have a beautiful language and they love to share it. We went into several stores in the small village of Santa Agata and were actually able to make successful purchases-all without the use of English…

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