Italy Day 14, Monday, October 17, Paestum, Buffalo Mozzarella, Salerno On the drive from Sorrento to Paestum we passed the outskirts of congested Naples again. Despite the high poverty level, 85% of Italians own their own homes, the highest percentage in all of Europe with England coming in second. But the cost of living and taxation is crushing. Around Naples there is nowhere left to build so housing is at a premium. Throughout Italy the houses and apartments are small and many lacking in washing machines so we often see colorful laundry hanging from porches and railings. Vesuvius is beautiful in the morning light displaying soft greens and rust. This area in rural Naples was called the Campania Felix or happy soil, the most fertile earth. Now the Camorra or mafia are taking toxic waste and ... read more

Italy Day 12, Saturday, October 15, Ercolano, Herculaneum, Naples Archaeological Museum Many of us took an optional tour to Herculaneum and the Naples Archaeological Museum. We left early in the morning for the Herculaneum ruins, in order to avoid the expected mass of tour groups. Pompeii sees about 50,000 tourists a day from tours like ours as well as tours from cruise ships. Herculaneum is much less popular but still we needed to be ahead of the crowd to have an opportunity to see the ruins more or less unobstructed. Passing Mt Vesuvius, the only active volcano in mainland Europe, we were reminded that it is a dormant volcano. Each region surrounding Vesuvius is constantly monitoring for seismic activity indicating a possible eruption, very important to the roughly 500,000 people who live in this danger zone. ... read more

Italy, Day 10, Thursday, October 13, Chianciano to Orvieto to Sorrento. Chianciano provided a rosy-pink and blue-gray sunrise over the valley on our last day. We packed a weeks' worth of clothing and purchases into our suitcases for our journey south to Orvieto and finally Sorrento before heading down to breakfast. As we were leaving the hotel, Abdu, the wonderful hotel manager, gave me kisses goodbye. I felt like I was leaving a good friend. As we left Tuscany we headed due south on E35 passing more farms and vineyards under overcast skies before coming into the ancient city of Orvieto in the Province of Terni in southwestern Umbria. Ben described Orvieto as a ‘slow city embracing the slow food movement’, and he said the white wines of Orvieto are particularly prized. The city itself is ... read more

Italy, Day 8, Tuesday, October 11 Assisi in Umbria. Our destination today is Assisi in Umbria. Umbria is the only region in Italy with neither a coastline nor a border with other countries, but it has beautiful lakes, rivers, mountains and iconic green valleys. It also has numerous earthquakes. An earthquake was in Umbria in August of this year that caused more damage but the last big one was 10 years ago. Note: in editing this blog I will note that a 6.5 earthquake devastated Norica in southeastern Umbria on October 30, soon after we left for home. Many agriturismos have popped up throughout Tuscany and Umbria in the past 20 years, likely influencing the farm to table movement that started in Umbria. Black celery, (a specialty of Trevi), red onions and seasonal truffles are top ... read more

Italy Day 6, Sunday, October 9, Pienza On our way to Pienza we stopped at Montepulciano in the Province of Sienna. Sun peeked through the fog on a chilly 60 degree day and I wrapped my scarf tightly around my neck desperately trying to warm up. There are many hot water sulphur baths in this volcanic mountainous region and boy would that have been a great time to try one out! Besides the spas and great water, this region is known for its wine, olive oil, truffles and truffle sauce. We drove up the cypress lined avenue to the Church of San Biagio in Montepulciano, considered one of the finest buildings of the Renaissance. As I stepped out into the brisk but now sunny morning I began to take in the expanding views from this hilltop. ... read more