Menton was one of the places we had not been to before and specifically targeted for a brief exploration this time. Literally “the last” point on the French Riviera – you cannot move eastward of Menton without crossing the border into Italy – it is a resort town famous for…
The capital of the French Riviera may enjoy continuous fame as “the playground for the rich”, but it is in essence a big city with big-city attractions. Certainly, there are plenty of visual highlights to be found in town, and yet its cultural offerings – museums, theaters, varied cuisine –…
This visit to the Riviera included a number of places that we had never managed to visit in the past. One was St-Paul-de-Vence. It is both a picturesque hilltop medieval village and one big art gallery. A large percentage of commercial establishments in the village core are contemporary-art boutiques. Makes…
I am starting this post with the same panoramic vista of Villefranche Bay that has already been posted a few weeks ago. Utterly mesmerizing! And then, somewhat gratuitously, here are a few other shots taken from the same spot on our apartment balcony, differing by the time of day, lighting…
While in Israel this past August, I ended up with an unusually small quantity of travel pictures to share. Between visits to relatives, the Bat Mitzvah ceremony (for which we hired a professional photographer), beach outings, and chilling in Tel Aviv, I only used my camera in a handful of…
Israel’s national parks system deserves many superlatives, encompassing over 70 historical and natural sites across the country. That includes all non-urban World Heritage sites, so on my first visit to Israel, I purposefully stopped by quite a few of the national parks. Tzipori was one that I haven’t been to…
Israel has ten World Heritage sites – and on my first trip a few years ago, I visited nine of them. The tenth – Bet Guvrin-Maresha National Park, inscribed on the list for its fairly unique conglomeration of distinct-purpose cave complexes – was on the itinerary back then as well,…
This is far from a tremendous addition to my Jerusalem portfolio first started in this post. There are several overlapping reasons for the paucity of my photographic output on this recent visit. I will not bore you with them. A few reasonably good shots are in here somewhere. The doors…
Anyone following my lovely wife on social media would undoubtedly be aware that we have spent the last two weeks on a reasonably significant journey. Structured around our youngest’s Bat Mitzvah, it started with a bit over a week in Israel and then continued for a week on the French…
On my only past visit to Padua some years ago, I focused on at the time its only World Heritage property, the botanical garden. In 2021, Padua acquired another World Heritage designation, an eight-part site exhibiting 14th-century frescoes that revolutionized the art of mural painting. The town is less than…
Every guidebook to Venice out there mentions three lagoon islands – usually sequenced as Murano, then Burano, then Torcello – as fairly unmissable targets on a Venetian itinerary. I hold a potentially unpopular opinion that only Burano rises to a must, while the other two are more of a special-interest…
In a true walkabout manner, let’s start this set with assorted canal views, the majority of which represent sestiero of Dorsoduro. And a few façade close-ups. That last one above is the standout neo-Gothic house known as La Casa dei Tre Oci, the Three-Eyed House, located on Giudecca. The three…
Let’s continue our wanderings around La Serenissima. Starting with yet another elevated viewpoint – the top landing of Scala Contarini del Bovolo. It is not as high as some of the other platforms we already visited. Nonetheless, it offers excellent perspectives toward major landmarks. Close proximity of rooflines provides a…
I walked a lot in Venice. (And occasionally took the vaporetto.) The map of the city on my phone contained well over a hundred various points of interest – museums, churches, squares, bridges, etc. – and every day I followed a route that loosely led me from one to another.…
Hardly anyone who comes to Venice – be it for the first time or the fifth time – does not make a beeline for Piazza San Marco. I can’t claim any immunity from being awed by that monumental public space, so my first full day in Venice was almost entirely…
With all due respect to the Eternal City, which I not long ago declared the most satisfying place to visit, nothing compares to La Serenissima in terms of delightful walkability. People who have been to Venice only passingly do not realize that the city is not mostly water. Instead, it…
Chicago, in my humble opinion, is the most architecturally impressive big city in the US. Walk around its central area and you will come across monumental eye-catching buildings on nearly every block. The Great Chicago Fire that destroyed much of the city center in 1871 gave a huge impetus to…
A couple of weeks ago I was on a business trip in Chicago. This being my first long-distance foray since Austin, I had to incorporate a bit of sightseeing into the itinerary. As may be easily predicted these days, I focused on the World Heritage places that I had not…
I love Rome! Unsurpassed quality of its historic and artistic treasures aside, it is very likely the most satisfying city in relation to my traveling preferences. I like to walk and see what awaits me beyond the next turn, hoping to find something to admire. Central Rome, like practically nowhere…
A few morning hours on our last day in Sicily allowed us to make a couple of brief stops in additional locations. We first drove up to Castelmola, a veritable balcony over Taormina. Here is the view towards Taormina from one of Castelmola’s terraces. Castelmola is the tiniest of villages,…