As the world’s most famous opera house, Teatro alla Scala is a mecca for music lovers the world over. What many don’t realize is that visitors can experience Milan’s La Scala in more ways than one costly night sitting on a red-velveteen chair listening to Verdi. Of course La Scala is synonymous with opera, and …
You don’t have to be a child or an animal lover to visit Italy’s Donkey Sanctuary in the Piedmont region, but it helps if you are. Amateur historians, economists, sociologists, and psychologists should also be enchanted. Everyone is welcome – families, singles, couples, teenagers, schoolchildren, special interest groups – and you may see all these in attendance on …
Ötzi is Italy’s most famous mummy and has his own museum to prove it –the South Tyrol Museum of Archeology in Bolzano. One doesn’t normally associate Italy with mummies, but Ötzi — also known as the Ice Man — is exceptional and so is his story. Ötzi, the Ice Man The Ice man emerged in September …
What do you need to know about Malta’s amazing food? Well, the old adage that “you are what you eat” is accurate in Malta when flipped around. “You eat what you are,” which in the case of Malta means a mélange of all the cultures bordering the Mediterranean – Sicilian, Spanish, French, North African, Greek, …
Few visitors to Romania come to Snagov Monastery. Fewer still have ever heard of it, in spite of its connection to the life (actually the death) of Count Dracula, the country’s most famous native. Technically, as a fictional character – and a vampire, Dracula didn’t live OR die. But his real-life counterpart, Vlad Țepeș (Vlad the Impaler), …
Bran Castle vs Poenari Castle To visit the real Dracula’s real castle in Romania, you have to know which castle to visit. Shall it be Bran Castle of Transylvania, beloved by tourists and the country’s tourism board, or Poenari Castle of Wallachia, the historically valid but little-known alternative? >>Check out these amazing “Dracula Tours” in Romania Those who …
Death is no laughing matter in most parts of the world. But things are different in Săpânța, Romania, a small village in the northern part of the country close to the Ukrainian border. For the last 80 years, the Merry Romanian Cemetery has opted to make death a source of amusement, even joy, and a …
The Cinque Terre “used to be a series of fishing villages, but we weren’t founded by fishermen. We are known for our beautiful landscapes, but we have more to offer than a pretty postcard. Tourism increased in 2015 by more than 30%, so we don’t need more visitors, but we want those who come to …
Killer cheeses. Secret caves. Pagan rites. Pirate raids. These are some of the surprises awaiting a visitor to coastal Romagna — the eastern part of the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna, bordering the Adriatic. This area is known mainly for its family-friendly beaches, wide and sandy with shallow coastal waters. But by venturing just north of …
This year, I spent three weeks at a Slovenia Spa. Every day, I was confronted with difficult decisions. Should the oil for my massage be grape seed (antioxidant effect), almond (softens the skin), or herb-infused oil (detox benefits)? Did I prefer classic, Hawaiian, Tibetan, Indian, or Thai style? What was my preference for duration: the …