“You’re spending a full week in Milan? But there’s nothing to see there.” That was the common refrain from friends and family when I finalized my Italian itinerary, finishing with a week in Milan, Italy’s second largest city and its economic powerhouse. Sure, people conceded that the Duomo was worth visiting, and maybe even Sforza…
It is like nothing else I have ever seen, like nowhere I have ever visited. From the terraces (rooftops) of Milan’s cathedral, the Duomo di Milano, my view is incredible, both of the building itself and its signature 135 slender spires, and of the city as a whole. Each step, every turn, brings a new…
Florence, the birthplace of the Renaissance. It’s a small city, and unimportant in modern Italy, but a hub for tourism. Along with Rome and Venice, Florence is one of the places on nearly every Italian trip itinerary. And rightfully so. The city is beautiful, and has a lot to do. It also makes a great…
Editor’s note: I love Central America and have visited five of its seven nations. El Salvador is one of the two I have not yet seen, mainly due to its reputation as being unsafe. (Honduras is the other.) I am glad to read through Sam Spector’s experiences that this is changing, and the time may…
Most visitors to Florence make a beeline straight for its most famous sight: the Duomo. The fourth largest church in the world (behind St. Peter’s in Rome, St. Paul’s in London, and the Duomo of Milan), it dwarfs the city around it, although perspective makes it seem a bit smaller from the square immediately surrounding,…
There are few, if any, landmarks on the planet more recognizable than the Leaning Tower of Pisa. It is unique, and not only for its tilt, which is somewhere between 4 and 5.5 degrees after having been stabilized in the early 2000s. It represents a distinct architectural style, Pisan Romanesque. And it caters to one…
Shockingly, Florence existed before the Renaissance. There was a city here before the art and culture that would come out of Florence would change the world. There were buildings; there were people. And while little of that is a draw for tourists, it is important to talk about what Florence was prior to the official…
For years, whenever I was asked if I liked everywhere I traveled, my stock answer was, “Except Naples. Naples sucks.” I spent a single day in Naples in 2009 as part of a western Mediterranean cruise, and while I only really saw the city between the cruise terminal and train station (on my way to…
Editor’s note: I have to admit that my experience in the Twin Cities is rather limited, having only been here for a wedding as an adult, and to visit the Mall of America as a child. Perhaps it is time for a return trip, especially to eat some of the amazing food Sam describes in…
Rome has more than 900 churches. Yes, more than 900! This is the most of any city in the world, and it isn’t especially close. It is an overwhelming number, and given how many of them are considered beautiful or important - or both - seeing churches can become an all-consuming part of a trip…