Two years ago I stayed at Villa Belvedere Campoli, a real 16th-century villa in the village of Mercatale Val di Pesa on the Chianti road from Florence to Siena.
On the first evening, during a wine tasting, I spotted this sunset. It was so spectacular I put my wine glass down and went over to stare at it for just a few minutes.
Tuscan sunset
The Palio of Siena will be run on August 16. In honor of that day, when the center of this Tuscan city is filled with a roaring crowd entranced by the medieval horse racing ritual, I bring you photos of my visit two years ago. Be sure to scroll all the way down for the best photos of all.
This is a photo of the center of the city where the horse race is run.
This is famous Siena…with beautiful earth hues of brown….
One should keep in mind that watermelon is in season in Italy in July and August….and it’s delicious.
We came upon this very sweet cat during our stroll through Siena. He really wanted to come out and join us.
Cute cat in Siena
He really did.
Cute cat in Siena
I am not sure how many cats are in this photo. But I think these were the only creatures in Siena who were not concerned about the Palio, which is a true obsession here.
The end.
(All photos by Ruthanne Terrero)
Does anyone know where these young ladies are and where they might be going?
Does anyone know where there photo was taken? Let me know what you think….leave a comment….
The Italian Riviera: http://www.theitalianriviera.eu
Top 10 movies to make you think of Italy: http://www.italy-revealed.com/10-movies-italy/
Brief guide to Rimini: http://www.venere.com/blog/rimini-guide/
Keep up to date with news of Italy: http://www.lifeinitaly.com/news
The official website of Tuscany: http://www.turismo.intoscana.it/intoscana2/export/TurismoRTen/
Personal shopper in Rome: http://www.romeshoppinguide.com/
Angels & Demons in Rome: Tour book and movie sites
10 Italy Experts Meet on Twitter and write this article
All you need to know about making your own Limoncello
The Vatican: 10 symbols to know
Trains from Florence to Milan
Chocoholic heaven in Amalfi
Here are several specialists who can help you with your travel to Italy.
CNN.com referenced them in a story it posted on July 9, entitled “Italy: Six Ways to Spend the Night.”
Italy generalist
Insiders Italy: insidersitaly.com
Rentalo:: www.rentalo.com
CNN’s Advice: Each method has perks: Renting direct gets you greater variety and lower prices, while using an agency will cost a bit more but offers the conveniences of dealing in English with a vetted catalog, the option of paying everything by credit card (direct rentals often require wire transfers), and greater consumer safeguards.
These are mine, I plan to keep adding to this list, so be sure to keep checking back.
Italian Connection
Just read this neat blog on Top 10 Things to Do in Naples, Italy
By Ruthanne Terrero
If you’re traveling to Italy, consider Sorrento on the Bay of Naples. We stopped here this summer on a cruise. This is a beautiful city and we walked and walked through the residential area, the modern area and the old town.
One of the greatest surprises of the day was discovering the Grand Hotel Excelsior Vittoria. It’s set right on the main thoroughfare (Piazza Tasso, 34), or rather its entry way is. As you walk through the gates, you’re greeted with beautiful gardens and archways of flowers. It’s all so elegant, you feel as if you’ve walked into an old world, aristocratic estate.
By Art Terrero
I’m just back from a trip to the Montreaux Jazz Festival; here’s George Benson playing Mambo Inn:
By Ruthanne Terrero
These days, Lake Como evokes thoughts of George Clooney sunning himself in his great villa or driving around Bellagio on a motor scooter. The region, without or without Clooney, also brings about the thoughts of paradiso on a lake too stunning to imagine and a lifestyle too tranquil to even fantasize about.
For a century, the Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni has been an iconic image of the area. We love the suites at this hotel, since they all have separate living rooms and full bathrooms with bathtub and shower, plus a third and a fourth bed can be added for families traveling together.
Here’s what past visitors are saying about their visits to Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni and the wonderfully romantic Bellagio.
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Palazzo Sasso in Ravello has a new waterfront villa for guests to enjoy, Sasso by the Sea. The resort, which sits on a cliff overlooking the Mediterranean, is on the Amalfi Coast of Italy. Its owners acquired the villa recently. It sits right on the water and allows Palazzo Sasso’s guests to spend their summer days at the villa’s salt water pool; there are also two cabanas set up in the gardens, as well as one men’s and one women’s changing room plus two relaxation living rooms.
Just got this press release!
Located on the French Polynesian atoll of Tetiaroa and a product of the late Marlon Brando’s vision, construction on The Brando has officially begun with completion slated for late 2011. Construction of the luxury eco-resort has commenced with the official authorization from the Tahitian government after several years of studying the impact of construction on the environment. The Brando will feature: 47 deluxe bungalow villas (each with private plunge pools), a spa, fitness center, community pool, as well as various island activities including scuba diving and archaeological tours of royal Tahitian sites.
Hotel Raito on the Amalfi Coast of Italy has announced a neat summer events schedule, which guests are invited to take part in for free from July 13-October 31, 2009.
The 77-guestroom Hotel Ratio offers rates for July 13-October 31, 2009 beginning at €300 per night, based on double occupancy.
By Ruthanne Terrero
Taormina in Sicily, a medieval town set high on a cliff is one of the best Mediterranean cruise stops I’ve visited.
Why? It’s authentic. Even though tourists flood its main boulevard, people live here. They stop and greet the gentleman who is sweeping the streets. Mothers walk up and down the streets with baby strollers and cars and motor scooters are everywhere. Everywhere as in, you and your traveling companion having to take turns telling each other to watch your back as vehicles navigate their way down narrow, archaic streets.
The town is filled with coffee shops, pastry shops, pizza shops, nightclubs and full-fledged restaurants. Our first stop was to a little place serving coffee. The host greeted us warmly, let us pick our seat out front and didn’t flinch when we ordered two cappuccinos at 1 p.m. The drinks were excellent. I don’t know how they get the froth at the top to be so creamy. Probably because their cappuccino machine cost a heck of a lot more than the one in my kitchen that I purchased 25 years ago.
In Taorimina, the cappucino is excellent.
By Ruthanne Terrero
Bari, in the Apulia (Puglia) region of Italy, has become an increasingly popular cruise port over the past few years. We stopped there on an itinerary that sailed out of Venice, first visiting Hvar, Croatia and continuing on its way along the coast of Italy.
For some reason, I thought Bari would be a small village, but it’s a big city divided into an old town and a modern area. It’s a university town of half a million people with a thriving commercial port. Our ship, the Seabourn Spirit, was able to dock right at the pier rather than using the tender transport it had to use in other ports we stopped in. Bari is, and always has been, ready for the big-time ships. If you’re looking for Bari on the map, it’s right in the heel of the boot, in the southwestern portion of the country.
Fishing boats in Bari
I’ve actually been to Lipari twice now. I say that as if it’s unusual because it is really quite a small member of the Aeolian Islands in Sicily. My first visit was on a Silversea cruise three years ago and I’ve just returned from a Seabourn itinerary called “Italian Idyll.”
I was more than happy to visit this lovely island twice because it’s quite upscale. It’s very much a living and breathing village; to be honest, it reminds me a bit of Mykonos with a bit less of the stark white buildings. But, it’s still as hilly with a seemingly similar number of surprise cat appearances….well, Mykonos may have a few more cats but in Lipari, you’ll find them in the most unlikely places.
Cat at the top of a steep staircase in Lipari, Italy
Cat overlooking the sea in Lipari, Italy
By Ruthanne Terrero
Are you ready for a new Tuscan villa hotel experience that comes with a pampering spa and a dining provided by Chef Gordon Ramsay?
Castel Monastero in the small medieval village of Monastero d’Ombrone in Chianti, has just opened. It’s just 14 miles east of Siena, set atop a hill, of course, as all good villa hotels should be. But that’s just me. The property is a member of Preferred Hotels & Resorts, which means it’s passed a number of arduous tests to be accepted. That’s a good thing.
What’s cool about Castel Monastero, aside from the fact that it’s set in an 11th-century village, is that its 76 guestrooms and suites are actually spread out among 13 buildings. Local artisans were employed to provide antiques and light fixtures from the area, as well as wall frescos and stone floors. Sounds nice.
Castel Monastero
Something else: It also has a 10,000-square-foot, 10-room spa, so it’s unlikely you’ll have to wait for an appointment. “Urban Retreat” is actually housed in two buildings connected by a glass tunnel, which sounds sort of charming. There are also three outdoor swimming pools that will let you get your “Under the Tuscan Sun” groove on. Another nice touch: Couples can book their own spa suite.
By Ruthanne Terrero
There are few places in the world that make you feel as if you are somewhere magnificently significant; Hotel Splendido in Portofino, Italy, is one of them. It all comes down to location: The hotel sits atop a winding hill in a stunningly idyllic port on the Italian Riviera, overlooking Portofino’s cove and the Tigullio Gulf, where jetsetters glide along in their yachts and sloops. Then there are the exclusive homes tucked into the hills; just across from the hotel is the home of the designers Dolce & Gabbana, which draws its own posh crowd when the duo is in town.
She treats visitors to meals hosted by the Contessa of one of Italy’s ancestral farmhouses, in the home kitchens of celebrated regional chefs, in local trattorie with nary a tourist in sight, and in the hallowed Michelin two-star ristorante, Il Duomo in Ragusa, where the chef is a personal friend.
Her guests learn to make hand-rolled pasta in La Maremma where villagers never heard of George Clooney, and to forage for wild plants, herbs and flowers that are the foundation and adornment of regional cuisines. In Alba they indulge in a white truffle dinner and attend the prestigious Alba Truffle Fair. They cook alongside renowned Sicilian cookbook author Eleonora Consoli, and spend an afternoon in Ragusa learning to make bread from the hard wheat flour grown on tiny organic farms.
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Tuscan sunset
By Ruthanne Terrero
Okay, it wasn’t the entire summer. In fact, it was just for several days in late August/early September in 2007 on a “Taste of Tuscany” program with Adventures by Disney. We started in Rome, where one of our two guides, Marco, met us at the airport, brought us to our car and set us on our way to the Empire Palace Hotel, where our second guide, Cynthia, was waiting. Talk about good first impressions: She stood vigilantly at the front desk until she secured our room keys, an act that got us into our room within 15 minutes of arrival, even though it was still early morning.
By Ruthanne Terrero
Vistiing Rome can be a tricky experience during the summer, when temperatures can rise into the 90s and the baking heat of the city’s concrete and stone sidewalks and streets creates a dry, brick-oven effect. When we docked in Civitavecchia the day after our visit to Sarande, however, we were encouraged by an early morning breeze that wafted over the Crystal Serenity’s decks. Because we’d already been to Rome several times over the past two years, we’d decided to take Crystal’s roundtrip motorcoach transport into the city and enjoy the day on our own.
Note: For those of you who have not been to Rome, I insist you sign up for a shore excursion that treats you to an overview of the city. On our first visit to the Eternal City two years ago, we wandered around the hot city streets in search of some, in fact, any, attractions of note, to no avail. Last year, while on a tour with Adventures by Disney, our group enjoyed an entire day with a guide who showed us nearly everything of note, from the Colosseum to the Pantheon, to the Spanish Steps to the Via Veneto. We even visited the area around the Vatican and managed to have some pizza, Chianti and gelato along the way.
By Arthur J. Terry
These four properties provide a personal touch in Rome and Florence
On a recent visit to Rome, we stayed at the Hotel Mediterraneo, one of four hotels owned by the Bettoja Hotel Group. These properties, which are clustered together geographically, are within walking distance to many of the city’s most famous attractions (Trevi Fountain, the Coliseum, Imperial Forums and the Opera House) and are conveniently close to the Termini Railway Station.
Hotel Mediterraneo guestroom
Salon Suite at the Bellagio, Las Vegas
Here’s a Salon Suite at Bellagio in Las Vegas. Not bad. It’s one big room, super spacious, with a large bathroom with a Jacuzzi bathtub with a picture window.
By Ruthanne Terrero
I saw something new today on the subway. People had shopping bags from stores they’d gone to. They’d purchased new items and the cashier had wrapped up the things and put them in the bags and now these people were walking around in full sight, in public, so we could all see them. They were from some good stores, too. Bally, Abercrombie & Fitch and Saks. None of us, I repeat none of us on the subway gathered around these brazen shoppers and lambasted them for demonstrating conspicuous consumption.
It made me feel good.
I’ve heard other stories, of people taking vacations and not being made fun of by their neighbors for being show offs. Instead, I hear they’re getting a slap on the back and being told they’re pretty smart for getting such a good deal.
I like that.
Want to experience New York’s Greenwich Village like a local? Consider a stay at the Washington Square Hotel, which is giving away a “Village Shopping Pass.” From July 1st through Labor Day, unique boutiques and classic New York shops in the hotel’s neighborhood will offer guest-exclusive discounts or complimentary gifts with purchase. The Washington Square Hotel will give guests a shopping card upon check-in with a neighborhood map, a list of all participating stores and their special offers.
Washington Square Hotel has teamed up with 10 downtown shops – in Greenwich Village, SoHo, and the Lower East Side – where hotel guests can present their “pass” and receive the discounts being offered by each retailer. Shoppers may choose among the delectable handmade confections at Li-Lac Chocolates or the international selection of artisanal wines at Is-Wine.
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