Monthly Archives: July 2011

Val Pusteria (or in German Pustertal) is full of hiking trails.  In the classic alpine manner there are huts along the trail to feed and shelter the hikers.  We were starting in Italy.  There was a hut in Austria.  We … Continue reading →

I don’t know how the Italians do it.  How can such little towns have such amazing the restaurants?  Bagnolo in Piano has less than 10,000 people in the Po Valley.  It is a farming community with a parmesan factory.  Not … Continue reading →

I should have guessed this wasn’t really Italy.  I mean, look at the name.  Südtirol.  There’s an umlaut.  And look at the map.  It’s as close as you can get to Austria in Italy.  There are Italians who live and die … Continue reading →

A couple of years ago a colleague told me I had a torn meniscus in my knee. It hurts when I don’t take care of it, and before we left I was just too damn busy. I did nothing to … Continue reading →

Cinque Terre is a beautiful area along the Italian coast as it heads west toward France. It is named for the five villages tucked into ravines: Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore.   On the map it looks like the … Continue reading →

When we arrived at the train station in Bologna on July 3, our hosts, Daniela, Paolo, and Gigi were there to meet us.  As we drove to their home in Bagnolo in Piano we were greeted by a large American … Continue reading →