Last month I wrote a column about time I spent in Rome recently. That column received a lot more response from people than I usually get. I guess writing about one of the most extraordinary places in the world, a place layered with over two thousand years of art and human history, will do that. I really like the place, despite its flaws, but I hope I didn’t sugarcoat it too much in my article. I don’t like it when some place or some thing gets described to me in glowing terms without mention of its warts, creating a sort [...]

If the world didn’t have an Italy, we would have to invent one. It’s just too amazing of a place for us to do without. I recently had the pleasure of a nine day sight seeing trip through Italy with Melody. When traveling there, keep the following in mind: Wear shorts that cover your knees Sometime between now and 1982 when I last visited Europe, the churches gave up on trying to make people wear pants and dresses when they step inside to visit a church. But they do require long shorts that at least go to your knee. This [...]

It’s probably about 4 in the morning and I’m too cold to sleep anymore in the reclined seat of the rental car. At least I got a few hours of sleep after Melody and I drove through the night from Milan, interrupting for two days our sightseeing trip around Italy in order to be in the French Alps on July 12th. You see, this afternoon the Tour de France, the best and biggest bike race in the world, will come through here about an hour’s drive up the road. If you’re among those who follow the tour on TV for [...]