When the Sun Shines In Scotland

February 18 – 25 Isle of Luing, Inner Hebrides, Scotland On a late February day in the northwest of Scotland, we had been given a gift.  It came in the form of a radiantly beautiful day, one in which a low-slung winter sun glazed the pastures and seacoast of the Inner Hebrides with a warm,… Continue reading When the Sun Shines In Scotland

Silvester in Vien: The Biggest City-Party of the Year

Fire in the sky at Prater

New Year’s Eve 2012 Vienna, Austria Regarding Vienna’s spectacular New Year’s fête, I can’t say exactly how many times I’ve answered inquiring folk that they simply “had to see it to believe it”, so here’s me finally putting my money where my mouth is. The City of Music’s Silvesterpfad (New Year’s Trail) is the star of our… Continue reading Silvester in Vien: The Biggest City-Party of the Year

Christmas Market Crawl

December 2012 Italy, Slovenia & Austria Throughout the month of December, as we made our way through Northern Italy and into Slovenia before finally coming to rest in Austria for the holidays, we had the occasion to peruse several of Europe’s best Christmas markets – also called Adventmärkte, Weihnachtsmärkte and of course, Christkindlmärkt. While we… Continue reading Christmas Market Crawl

Looking Down the Tyrrhenian Coast

August 31 – September 9 Amalfi & Cilento Coasts, Campania, Italy Twenty minutes into our ascent from Sorrento town up the cliffs near Sant’Agata, and Ollie was puking up his breakfast. Such was the nature of the roads in this part of the country that his delicate tummy was simply no match.  And so we… Continue reading Looking Down the Tyrrhenian Coast

Priceless Series: Bedtime Stories

A Room With a View

Earlier this evening, Ollie and I began reading Dickens’ Oliver Twist. On the second page of the (abridged) book, poor Oliver’s mother dies during childbirth. Ollie (our Oliver) and I were lying on the couch and after I read these lines, he looked back at me and asked, “Oh, is that when they cut the mommy’s… Continue reading Priceless Series: Bedtime Stories

Old Stone Homes and the Art of B&E: Umbria, Italy

November 17 – 18 Renzetti, Umbria Italy Culpability is still an item up for debate.  Who was to blame for closing the front door while forgetting the key inside?  The little stone cottage that sits at a turn in the road eleven kilometers outside of Cittá di Castello, was, in that one instant, completely impermeable. … Continue reading Old Stone Homes and the Art of B&E: Umbria, Italy

Right On Le Marche

October 30 – November 5 Le March Region, Italy Towards the end of October while we were in Rome, between two dovetailing disasters that contributed to one of our more hellacious weeks of travel in recent memory, Ryan made an important discovery. “Look here. This website says this little town claims to be THE HALLOWEEN… Continue reading Right On Le Marche

Bumps and Breaks: Learning Travel Lessons the Hard Way

A Tough Break

October 21 – 25 Rome, Italy We truly were looking forward to returning to Rome.  After several weeks in the sleepy hills and townships all over Tuscany, we were ready to return to a place that had become something of a home to us.  This would be our third pass through the city, and it… Continue reading Bumps and Breaks: Learning Travel Lessons the Hard Way