The Way of the Lodging

The Easy Jet flight delays due to heavy fog were no ones fault but Zeus. Easy Jet refuses to be held responsible for the Zeus meddling. Once conditions cleared, Easy Jet's rescheduled flight with a smaller plane couldn't carry all of the ticket holding mortals, so 45 people were denied passage.

Not Easy Jet's problem that their schedulers sent too small a plane. No money back after numerous forms were filled. Oh to be a cheap carrier and dally with those powerless bargain hunters...

Packing a colossal bag of patience helped with the last minute lodging scramble and a 5 am flight call to another destination not on our agenda.

Train Travel

Our Interrail pass gives us access to 33 countries in 3 months so our goal was to travel by train as much as possible. I'm loving trains even more than before, it that's possible.

Northern Italy

What is the difference between Northern and Southern Italy? From our viewpoint both have stunning coastlines and charming villages to visit and the weather warmed up the further south we traveled. I prefer the Southern comfort diet with more fresh fish and vegetables, less pork and meat of the North.

Turin - Piedmont region

Turin, where cars and coffee (Lavazza) hold the power. The 2 suitcases and 2 backpacks for our 3 month trip would probably fit into either of these classic cars we found in the Automotive Museum in Turin.

A bit of everything in this Northern city, the scenic snow capped Alp views top it off with their majesty.

Bologna - Emilia-Romagna Region

Bologna's covered porticos make it distinct from other Italian cities. Their porticos have been added as a new addition to the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

When the University of Bologne was founded in 1088 (the first in the Western World), additional housing was needed for academia and students. Upper stories on buildings were expanded and simultaneously columns were added for support creating porticos. They were useful for the community: they allowed people to walk protected from rain or excessive heat; artisans could work outside rather than being confined to the dark and humid environments of the ground floors displaying their products for the public to see; houses on the ground floor were less likely to have the dirt and sewage from the streets; and students without a place to stay could find shelter. They also had to measure at least seven feet, room enough for someone on horseback.

It's a beautiful remnant of architecture and forward city planning. Bologna has a lot of street art inside the porticos to surprise the viewer.

Bologna has a beautiful Basilica, Madonna di San Luca which makes for a nice 6+ mile pilgrimage under a covered portico.

Verona - Veneto Region

Shakespeare was no stranger to borrowing from previous writers for his own literary use. His love story, Romeo and Juliet, is based on Arthur Brooke's 1562 poem entitled The Tragical History of Romeo and Juliet. The tragic love story theme goes back to Thisbe and Pyramus by Ovid.

People come from far and wider to further their romantic pursuits in Verona by visiting Juliet's house and the balcony where Juliet would emerge for Romeo's wooing. Rubbing Juliet's breast is supposedly the magic elixir to romance.

Besides Juliet, Verona has many interesting historical buildings, old city walls and Roman amphitheater.

Arezzo - Tuscany Region

We spent Easter in Arezzo.

"Life is Beautiful" was filmed in Arezzo. The movie is an unusual treatment of the horrors of life in a concentration camp when the Jewish father tries to shield his son from the grim conditions with humor and imagination.

One of Arezzo's many charming viewpoints used in filming.

Arezzo is known as the city of gold for its jewelry making and another city that celebrates an artistic side in wall art. Guido of Arezzo was known as the inventor of modern musical notation.

The bronze chimera unearthed in 1553 highlights the Etruscan art made in 5th BCE. The Etruscan civilization, widely recognized to be influential in Italy's development, were before the Romans. They created the first great civilization on the peninsula.

Florence - Tuscany Region

Stephen Matini, a friend of Youssef's for 27 years, whom he had never met in person, invited us to Florence for the big greet. They met through their leadership coaching certification. It was such a pleasure to meet him. We hope it won't be the last in person.

Florence is a lovely city but TOO many tourists. Found a few parks to enjoy the vistas.

Assisi - Perugia Region

When we selected cities to stay in Italy, we based it on train access to and from other cities, while staying away from the usual touristic touch points. We wanted to see areas we had never spent time exploring. Bigger cities with airports tend to be inundated with tourists whose flights take them directly to one destination. Traveling by train for 80%-90% of our trip was our goal.

The Basilica of St. Francis at sunset

Assisi was a beautiful addition to that goal. The city is built around the memory of St. Francis and the Franciscan order he founded. Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone came from wealth and gave it up to follow a life of poverty and preach peace. St. Francis is a revered mystic in numerous religions and countries.

View inside the Basilica, a nun from the order of the Poor Clares, beautiful evening lighting, Assisi chalk art, the hermit caves at Ermero delle Carceri a marvelous hike in the mountains where St. Francis and his followers spent months in meditation living the life of a hermit.

St. Francis is the kind of guy you instantly like with a connection to animals, an early ecologist, and an itinerant preacher like my grandfather. The city is tranquil, close to amazing hikes and trails and you can feel its spiritual essence.

We made some friends in the spirit of St. Francis. Frank (a name we gave the mystical spirit posing as a dog) took us as wayward tourists in need of saving. Journeying with us through the city until we worried he would never return to his former role, whatever that may be. Suddenly as in a sniff of something newer and needier, he disappeared.

We were glad the donkeys had a fence around them so they didn't feel the need to save us. Can you imagine being followed around by 2 asses?

The tree where St. Francis communed with the birds

Assisi is a bit of a St. Francis industry for the Catholic church, one I am not sure Francis would approve of considering his pledge to poverty.

All Praise to the Suitcase

More often than not, suitcases are rolled, pushed, cajoled like young children to obediently follow the path of most resistance or the way of the lodging. Zipper teeth are aligned in military precision like the closing of the castle portcullis forming a safe enclosure for our worldly possessions. Wheels are rolled over cobblestoned streets, across grills, through all manner of previous nights remains, uphill - downhill - sideways - front facing. Luggage casings are jammed onto plane overhead bins, slid over/under/between train seats, pulled up and down stairways to get to scheduled train platforms.

Their loyalty is admirable and is the recipient of my silent praise every time the magical container expands its stomach to hold all that I coerce into it. When emptied it deflates itself with a sigh until called upon to refill its vessel like a sacred chalice. My suitcase knows I love it, an integral partner on a gratifying expedition.

Give your suitcase the love the next time you travel.