While on an artist’s residency at Arte Studio Ginestrelle, I’m getting to know the town of Assisi a little bit more. December seems to be a lovely time of year to do this.
Read moreAssisi in December: bonfires and Christmas markets and things to eat
Europe
Oktoberfest tips for introverts and agoraphobes
Heading into our fifth (and final) Oktoberfest as locals, I’m starting to feel like quite the reluctant expert. Although I’ve had tons of fun at the festival each year, I’ve also had a couple of panic attacks (and more than a couple near-panic-attacks) at the wiesn. I absolutely hate crowds. With more than 7 million people attending Oktoberfest each year, it can be kind of tricky to avoid them. Over time I’ve learned how avoid the parts I hate, and enjoy the parts I like.
Northern Italy Road Trip: Bassano del Grappa
I’m really stretching this trip out, aren’t I? Let’s see, last time we had just spent two wonderful days in Ferrara before getting on the road again to Bassano del Grappa.
Northern Italy Road Trip: Ferrara
Alrighty, back to the road trip before I forget all the delicious details. When I left off we had just stopped off at the Castello di Torrechiara on our way from Parma to Ferrara.
Northern Italy Road Trip: Castello di Torrechiara
There are quite a few castles in northern Italy, I’m realizing as I put together these blog posts. We stopped at Castello di Torrechiara on our way from Parma to Ferrara.
Northern Italy Road Trip: Parma
Now where were we? Ah yes, after two days of gluttony in Sirmione, we hit the road again. One and a half hours later we were checking into the Palazzo dalla Rosa Prati right in the center of Parma.
Urban surfers and other notes from a Munich summer
Before I go back to chronicling our Italian road trip, I thought I’d remind our readers that we do, indeed, still live in Munich, despite the fact that we haven’t blogged about it in months. We’re half-way into our fifth year in the Bavarian capital. Spargelzeit had just come to an end, and biergarten season is in full swing. Every single public place has at least one TV in it, lest a moment of Euro Cup soccer go unwatched.
Northern Italy Road Trip: more Sirmione
After a grueling first day of eating, drinking, and taking in views, we woke up on our second day in Sirmione to a breakfast that looked more like a dessert buffet.
Northern Italy Road Trip: Sirmione, Lago di Garda
After breakfast in Levico, we drove a quick 1.5 hours down to the southern end of Lake Garda to spend two days in Sirmione. While the northern parts of Gardasee are overrun with German tourists, Sirmione is overrun with a healthy mix of nationalities.
Northern Italy Road Trip: Bressanone
We recently rented a car and headed to Italy for 11 days of food, art, medieval cities, wine, grappa, gelato, more food, more wine… you know, the kind of stuff you do in Italy.