Assisi, Italy — One more thing about vagabonding. You don’t have to turn into a hobo to do it. Sure it’s nice to have a couple of months to explore a destination but only students, some educators and insanely wealthy people can swing this. Bill Gates would probably be a great vagabond but he seems otherwise […]
Olbia, Sardinia — I’m here in repose in our cabin on the ferry bound for Genova and I can’t get the theme music from Looney Toons out of my head. This is not because of some lovely childhood memory. The music was blasting through the entire ship while we boarded and got settled. An odd choice […]
Porto Cervo, Sardinia — Ancient legend tells that way back in 1961, the Aga Kahn was aimlessly wandering the Mediterranean in his yacht and stumbled across the picture perfect bay of Porto Cervo. He liked it, he bought it, he built a luxury resort on it and the coastal culture of Sardinia would never be the […]
Oliena, Sardinia — Here in Oliena, it seems that the femina agabbodora have modernized. Apparently, “a sharp tap on the head with the hammer” just doesn’t cut it anymore. I have always heard that Oliena is Sardina’s true spiritual heart, the village where the Sard’s independent, quarrelsome and reclusive nature is most strongly on display. Yes […]
Luras, Sardinia — We checked into a lovely, isolated B&B the other night, Lonely Planet recommendation, very nice, my compliments. While chatting with the owner, she said that we might want to check out the Museo Etnografico Galluras in Luras. I have to say that they have one of the most unusual exhibits there that we […]
The Gallura, Sardinia — My Goodness. Was it just yesterday that I was sitting in traffic, raging in Sartene? Indeed it was and today has been a stark and comforting reminder that things can also go well. This morning we made our first foray into the Sardinian countryside and from that first kilometer forward we basically […]
Chiavenna, Italy — My apologies. As you may have noticed, nothing’s been posted for the last couple of weeks. It is not that there was nothing of interest to note. In fact, quite the opposite. Traveling the hidden corners of Corsica and Sardinia, it swiftly became apparent that wireless Internet access is a mainland phenomenon. One […]
Savona, Italy — So here we are at 10:00 p.m., standing under the harsh lights of the port of Savona along with a few hundred other confused travelers. No one really has a clue as to what is going on and it takes an hour before we realize that our ferry hasn’t even shown up yet. […]
Alpe Grande, Italy — It is the quintessential Italian Sunday outing. Everyone piles into three cars and promptly becomes separated. This is only a problem because only one car knows where we’re going. We drive for an hour surrounded by hordes of dueling motorcyclists and stop at a cafe for an espresso and to phone our […]
Capitan’s Blog, Camogli, Italy — I’m very happy to report that little has changed here in this charming fishing village just south of Genoa. There are no chain stores or luxury boutiques and the cafes and restaurants remain firmly in local hands. In the late afternoons, I like to stroll down to the port cafes and […]