Brissago’s peaceful island garden is a gem on Lake Maggoire
We bid farewell to Lake Como and headed back over the top of Lake Lugano and down to Lake Maggiore and to the little town of Brissago, Switzerland to visit the beautiful garden on Isola Brissago.
There are two little islands off the shore in Brissago; the biggest one, San Pancrazio also known as Grande Isola, has a beautiful botanical...
Cagliari is Sardinia’s lively capital and a foretaste of Naples
We left Olbia reluctantly because we had such a nice time there.
We were even able to see a local folk parade through the town when all the local groups parade in their unique traditional costumes.
From Olbia, we made our way south to Cagliari, the capital of Sardinia, which we were told is a good foretaste of what we can...
From Milan to the beautiful lakeside Swiss town of Lugano
Before leaving Milan, we made a quick stop so I could give everyone on the Islands and Lake Tour a close up view of the Bosco Verticale, the amazing green-garden tower high-rise designed by Stefano Beori.
I had seen it - stumbled upon it, actually - the day before and was so impressed that I felt compelled to take...
Rediscovering love for Isola Bella and Isola Madre and more
Twenty years ago, I picked up a book by Penelope Hobhouse and read about a fantastic garden called Isola Bella on Lake Maggiore.
I remember looking at the beautiful pictures of this garden, and saying to Loraine, “Wow, how I would love one day to stand there.”
Who knew that just a few years later, my dream would come true and...
Falling in love with Como’s beautiful villages, Menaggio and Bellagio
There have been thunderstorms pretty much every day since we arrived in Italy.
The sky suddenly turns dark in late afternoon or early evening. There is a great crash of thunder followed by a downpour.
In Lugano, we were swimming in the lovely outdoor pool with blue sky above us and warm sunshine pouring down.
And then slowly, big, billowing...
Discovering the rugged, raw beauty of Sardinia
The Sardinia Project was news to me.
I never knew that Sardinia was once a mosquito-infested land where malaria killed hundreds of people every year.
When we arrived in Olbia, the city on the northeast coast of the island, we were shown around by our Sardinian guide, Matteo Pisu.
First, he explained some of the history of the island, starting...
