If I seem a little tired this week, it’s because I spent most of last week climbing trees. Almost 100 trees to be exact. Was I having a childhood flashback? Nope. I was climbing olive trees. As I’ve mentioned before, in Italy, olive oil is special. […]

If you were in Italy yesterday, Sunday, July 30, you would have seen an unusual site on Lago Trasimeno. Lago Trasimeno is the fourth largest lake in Italy. Although it is large, it is a shallow lake which makes it ideal for swimming and boating. […]

I know, it will be my fault if you end up singing the Phil Collins song Sussudio as you walk around Gubbio. I know I do: Gu-Gu-Gubio, whoa-oa! Besides the fact that the name is a heck of a lot of fun to say (Gu-Gu-Gubbio!), Gubbio […]

Hello Vanna, I’d like to buy a vowel…this was my first thought on Sunday morning when I walked up to Lo Scoiattolo. My friend Fran (who, I am convinced, knows everyone in Umbria) had mentioned to me that she was going to Paciano to do […]

  Toronto in the summer is a fabulous place. The weather is nice, patios are in full swing and the city is host to numerous festivals and live music venues. The end of June finds us right in the middle of the Toronto Jazz Festival. […]

In Italy, surprisingly, Good Friday is not a holiday, but business as usual. Easter Sunday (Pasqua) and Monday are the big days with Easter Monday (Pasquetta – “little Easter”) being the holiday. This is good to keep in mind if you’re in Italy for Easter […]

Olive oil in Italy is special. Olive oil in Umbria is very special. Early autumn finds the stores and restaurants closed and people are out in their fields picking olives. Trees are picked by hand or by “combing” the trees to release the olives into […]