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...
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...
Magical time in Milan before start of Italy garden adventure
MILAN - I’ve come to Italy once again, this time to lead a 14-day Islands and Lakes Garden Tour, starting in Lugano and moving to the beautiful lakes just north of Milan before moving south to Sardinia, Naples and Ischia.
Most of the 35 people with me on this adventure are meeting me here in Milan. We came here two...
Into Naples for pizza and to see more great gardens
We left Cagliari in Sardinia shortly after lunch to catch our flight to Napoli.
The flight was on time and went smoothly and we ended up arriving 15 minutes ahead of schedule.
From the air, I could see we were flying just west of Ischia and Procida, two islands off the coast of Naples. Both islands were easily visible from the...
Back to Milan as we make our way to Sardinia
My first time in Milan was 2004. I remember going into the cathedral and not being able to see a thing; it was so dark and gloomy. The facade, of course, was as glorious as ever with its magnificent spires and sculptural decorative features. But the inside of the duomo was really a disappointment.
Fastward to 2018. Yesterday, I stepped...
