Would I turn my father in? That’s the question going through my head as I listen to Angelo Provenzano talk, part of my Sicilian tour’s commitment to controversial topics, this one being on the mafia. Angelo is the son of Bernardo Provenzano, former boss of the Cosa Nostra, the Corleone-based mafia here in Sicily. Would…
A dumpling place on the corner. A bakery a few doors down. A Jamaican take-out restaurant across the street, flanked by a taco hut and a gourmet cheese shop. Down the street, Chilean empanadas, Portuguese cuisine, a cannabis store, a burger place, and at least two hipster coffee shops. If ever a neighborhood could represent…
Editor’s note: the American Deep South is one part of the U.S. I’ve not done justice to in my own travels. When it comes to Alabama, I’ve merely visited Huntsville, not making it any further into the state. But with so much history, as writer Sam Spector teaches us here, it is definitely a place…
Editor’s note: I’ve been to Cambodia, a trip focused solely on the beauty that is Siem Reap and the Angkor complex. Our amazing Dutch writer Hedy took in the entire country, and with it the atrocities of the Khmer Rouge and one of the worst genocides of the modern era. Her story of the trip…
It can be said that the best time to be Brussels is now. Yes, the city has an incredible historic center, anchored around the stunningly beautiful Grand Place (click to read more about Grand Place and historic Brussels). Yes, the city dates back centuries. And yes, this is the capital of Belgium, with all the…
Though connected to the San Lorenzo Basilica, the Medici Chapel has a separate entrance - and a separate entrance fee. Stepping inside, one finds simple entombments of some of the more minor members of one of the world’s more famous families, including that of Anna Maria Luisa de’ Medici, who bequeathed the family’s vast collection…
Editor’s note: On October 7 of this year, Israel was attacked by the terrorist group Hamas, with more Jews slaughtered in a single day than any day since the Holocaust. Since then, Israel has vowed to dismantle Hamas and its networks inside of the Gaza Strip, an area crowded with civilians that the terrorists use…
Some countries are better than others at acknowledging troubling aspects of their pasts. Others pretend those things never happened. Most end up somewhere in the middle of that spectrum, not exactly hiding from their sordid histories, but also not really promoting that those things happened. Italy sits toward the “head in the sand” side of…
Like many travelers, I keep track of my country count. How many countries one has visited is both a source of pride, and also of confusion. After all, the definition of a country isn’t exactly universal across all people. Let’s start with the basics. There are currently 193 member states of the United Nations. All…
If Ireland indeed has forty shades of green, they can’t all be found in Dublin. Rather, to get the true emerald experience, one must leave the city behind and head into the Irish countryside. Here, despite the fact that only about 10% of Ireland’s once pervasive forests remain, the greens really begin to show themselves.…