In a time when practically everything is virtual, it makes the tangible sentimental things like my travel journal have more meaning. I thought it would be fun to make you laugh with a look into my diary during a milestone moment of my life.

When you visit the land of Barolo in Piemonte, red wines, prized white truffles and hazelnuts (home to Nutella) might come to mind. What you wouldn't expect to find though is gourmet snails!

The word “celebration” has its origin in the latin Celebrò. We can translate that as “gathering together” or “an assembly,” both of which are precisely the type of activities that Covid-19 is preventing us from doing! This prohibition inspired me to reconsider the subject of celebrating from an alternative point of view—religious celebrations.

After spending a majority of the year pruning, meticulously trimming and caring for each vine as it grows, the critical moment of picking the grapes arrives. The “vendemmia” (harvest) is like the birth of a healthy newborn baby after waiting nine months. The winemakers only feel relief once the grapes are in the cellar! Phew!

The American Myth was still alive in my mind until, married to an American, I finally visited the States and slowly, by living there, came to realize how much that myth—like all myths—existed more as a vehicle for escapism from the pains of daily life. And despite its power and influence over popular culture, it didn’t necessarily correspond to reality. 

Travel being a significant expense for most people, gives us incentive to find a return on our time and money. It’s helpful to examine the biases that hooked me to the story, to crack them open, and call them out. Myths and legends work this way: they require not just a willing believer, but a wanting one too. They are very much chicken and egg.

Here are some ideas for those wanting to check out more than just a country’s top 3 or most known sights and cities. Not that these are totally off the radar, but many folks probably know about these places and figure they’ll give’ em a miss. If you are in that camp, then here are a few reasons to reconsider these destinations next time you make your travel plans. 

The mayor of Dronero, not knowing what to do anymore, decided to ask the devil for help: "Devil, can you build a bridge for us that the waters of the stream do not carry away?" "Certainly, I can, but in return, the first soul that crosses the bridge is mine."

For him, a democracy is relevant only if the rules that the people have created are respected by them, it is not enough just to write them in a constitution. A constitution must be alive in the hearts of the citizens who live under it.

I came to the realization that not all Italians lived “la dolce vita” but instead, struggled with many hardships of everyday life. Political chaos, poverty and corruption have been major issues that are deeply embedded in this country. Actually, Italy made a significant impact on the film industry during the Neorealist movement at the end of World War II.

As Filippo came into the living room and registered who he was being called to talk too, he immediately stood up straighter and said hello. He later told me his mind was racing about what he might have done to provoke a visit from the police, this officer, who everyone calls “Jackson”, once scolded him for skateboarding along the road, but nothing he had done recently came to mind. Then from Jackson’s bag, came an envelope which contained…

In 2016 the Accademia had a special exhibit of the Flemish painter Hieronymus Bosch, who apparently spent some time in Venice. He was a successful late 15th-century Flemish artist. That success seems to defy all reason for me. It’s not that his art is not fascinating, arresting, and thought provoking (all good things in art), but rather that it was successful 500 years ago.

In Italian the word for “bread” is pane, the etymological root for which is pà meaning “nourishment.” We find the same root in the translation of “meal”, pasto. I personally love our idiom for describing a very good, honest, humble and true man: “buono come il pane” (“as good as bread').

It is that time of year again when the garden is full of tomatoes and it is time to make la conserva, the base for most of our tomato sauces that we learned from Mauro’s parents. It is truly a labour of love. We enjoy good food and knowing what is in our food. In this case, it takes some hard work.

After years of organizing wine tours in the Piedmont region in Italy, I still have to warn travelers about traveling in August. From an Italian’s perspective, Ferragosto lasts for almost the entire month, although the official date is August 15th. Italians traditionally take the whole two weeks off surrounding this day.

There’s something so evocative to me about pictures of food and the power they have to vividly remind me of mouth-watering meals and moments that I’ve had on my travels.  I can look at my culinary photos and remember exactly where I was, the scent of the dish just placed in front of me, and the way the flavors open up on my pallet. 

As a guide for Rick Steves’ Europe, I have been through Florence Italy quite regularly over the years.  I had noticed the funny artistic additions to Florence's street signs over the years without really taking a close look. In 2016, I started to get the joke. Clet Abraham, a street artist, had been secretly adding clever images to the street signs in Florence for the previous half decade or so.

Italy can be a wine lover’s paradise! With every region having their own unique varietals and so many small family run wineries, it is not always easy to access these wines in your own country. So how do you bring wine back from Italy?

The idea of traveling gluten–free in Italy might seem like a nearly impossible task (carb city!) but it is actually much easier than you think. Many Italians themselves suffer from Celiacs Disease and it is more and more common to find bakeries and pizzerias offering gluten-free alternatives.

The end of summer vacation in Italia was here. Finito—the endless days of sun and laughter of young and old. Over are the unorganized days spent together with family and friends. It was time to go  home. Back home again, back north, to the other side of the Alps.