I have found it necessary to take interim breaks from the onslaught of information coming at us about the Coronavirus especially this past week. It is a difficult time with everyone struggling to figure out how best to “socially distance” ourselves while continuing to live reasonable lives. There is no “normal” right now. A writer for The Atlantic went so far as publishing a piece entitled Cancel Everything. I’m not quite in that camp, yet anyway, but for some those words are ringing true.
I am incredibly sad for anyone who has been personally affected by the Coronavirus, illness or quarantine. I feel especially distraught for all the college kids, especially the seniors whose schools have effectively cancelled residential life for the rest of the semester. Not to mention all of the individuals worldwide whose livelihoods are at stake. It is beyond where our imaginations might have taken us as recently as last weekend. This is serious folks and nobody is immune because, well, none of us are immunized.
Having said that, it is my prayer that for most of us this will just mean disruption to our daily lives which, while inconvenient, is not life threatening and easier to recover from. I am keeping that mantra in my head as we face the coming days, weeks, months, who knows really?
My “inconvenience” is the cancellation of a trip to Sicily at the end of the month. It was set to combine an epic, week-long food tour with Elizabeth Minchilli and a subsequent week with my husband. My friend, Jane was traveling with me on the food tour and this has been planned since late September. My husband and I have been dreaming of a visit to Sicily for almost a decade so needless to say this is disappointing, but this too shall pass as my mother used to say. Sicily will be there and I still hope to get there one day.
I am so concerned for Italian citizens as the restrictions on their daily life is unimaginable and hopefully will not get to that level here in the United States. I love Italy, and have had the good fortune of traveling there on multiple occasions. First as a student, then as a newlywed, as a parent and daughter on a multi-generational cruise and as a parent of a junior year abroad kiddo who had the most spectacular five months of her life in Florence. I think there is something especially magical about Florence for my family as two cousins have made it their home.
And so today, I thought we could all enjoy a little “armchair travel”. I’ve compiled and edited some of my photos from past trips. It did my heart a little good (and distracted me from worry) at least for a little while. A little love letter to Italy if you will.
So with that, let’s go and please, stay safe during these challenging times…
First, I love the people of Italy. Warm, welcoming, full of life and love.
Of course, there are many magnificent cathedrals and churches like this one in Orvieto (Umbria)…
Some up close details…
Spoleto…
Santa Maria della Scala in Siena…
Basilica of Santa Croce in Florence…
The Duomo in Florence…
Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi, Umbria…
And some famous monuments and piazzas like Il Vittoriano, Rome…
St. Peter’s Basilica, Rome
Trevi Fountain, Rome…
The Leaning Tower, Pisa…
Piazza San Marco, Venice
Piazza del Campo, Siena
On our last trip, we visited Volterra, a walled town southwest of Florence…
A number of years ago, I went on a cruise with my mother and one of our daughters and was able to visit Capri and Pompeii as part of that trip. The port of Capri…
The lemons on Capri are enormous and everywhere!
A distant view of Faraglioni (the famous rocks off Capri)…
All of my Pompeii photos had a million tourists in them so this is what I can offer!
But maybe what I love most about Italy are the vistas. Gorgeous views in all directions…
Volterra…
Looking out to Montepulciano…
Cortona (Umbria)…
Pienza (Tuscany)…
Florence…
Looking back at Florence…
And over the rooftops of Florence…
San Casciano dei Bagni (our home base at an agriturismo during out last trip)
Spoleto…
And then there are the simple things like road signs…
Herds of sheep that contribute to delicious pecorino cheese!
Flowers everywhere, how they are grown and displayed…
Windows, their shutters, their boxes…
Crates of lemons…
Aperitivo…
Stairways…
Pedestrian only towns…
The markets…
Espresso…
And the little friends you are bound to make along the way, like Patricia and Milo who were the resident doggies at our agriturismo…
You didn’t think I’d forget about the restaurants or the food did you? It’s a list too long to mention everything, but here are just a few in all shapes and sizes…
Gusta pizza in Florence where our daughter took us for slices that we joyously ate outside in Piazza Santo Spirito on a glorious sunny day…
Trattoria Sostanza in Florence…
Trattoria Cammillo in Florence…
Giostra in Florence…
La Porta in Monticchiello (Tuscany) where we enjoyed the most delicious artichokes and pici pasta, the regional specialty…
And Il Lecchio in Sant Angelo in Colle (Tuscany). We were late (thus the empty tables) and the server said we could only have antipasti and pasta, and then we proceeded to eat like kings…
Pasta!
Pizza in Todi (Umbria)…
Fried dough, straciatella, proscuitto at Antinori…
Panforte…
Cheese!
We shared an insanely delicious porchetta sandwich in Cortona and were sad we didn’t get two!
And our daughter took us to another student favorite, Pino’s for panino in Florence. We ate these in Santa Croce square…
Let’s not forget about the ceramics. This photo is from our honeymoon. We visited my cousin and she advised us to drive to the end of the Amalfi coast to the town of Vietri sul Mare to find the best ceramics. We shipped home a boat load and have enjoyed those plates, bowls and mugs for almost 30 years…
But let’s face it. It’s all about the romance of Italy and I couldn’t finish the post without a few flashbacks. This is mostly for my husband – thank you for teaching me to be calm in the storm. I can’t wait until we someday get to Sicily together 🙂
Two kids on their honeymoon, somewhere in Tuscany…
We revisited one of the places we stayed at during our honeymoon, on our last trip to Italy. La Chiusa is in Montefollonico and while they weren’t really open for the season just yet, we peaked our heads in and told them we had been there a long time ago. They gave us a glass of wine and some beautiful cheese to enjoy while we looked out at the scenery…
And us on our last night in Rome at the end of our honeymoon. I think we were on our way to have the fried artichokes at Piperno…
Well, I hope you’ve enjoyed this little love letter to Italy.
Stay safe everyone and let’s try not to let the stress get the better of us. As Ellen Degeneres likes to say, “be kind to each other”.
Until next time…
One Year Ago: Cherry Tomato and Eggplant Curry
Gorgeous photos Val! So sorry your trip is cancelled – I feel your pain. So disappointing:) xo
I think you need to include a photo of the restaurant where Steven Stills took us out to dinner…if I recall correctly, it overlooked the Spanish Steps! Sorry about your trip. And yes, such “babies” in those photos!!
Thanks for sharing these beautiful photos, especially the ones from your honeymoon! They made me smile and reminded me to take a deep breath because, as your mother used to say, this too shall pass. And when it does, you will go to Sicily!
Thanks Val! You look like a baby in your honeymoon photos!
Bittersweet, Val! Love seeing all of these beautiful images, and especially the photos of you two honeymooners. xoxo
Gorgeous pictures! So sorry you had to cancel Sicily!
Thanks Val. This is just what I needed. As you say, Italy “will be there.” For now, I will continue my Babel Italian lessons and enjoy your beautiful photos xo