Posts Tagged With ‘ Italy ’

Joanna McIsaac-Kierklo in Dublin Many retirees, freed from their work obligations and looking for adventure, dream of living overseas. Edward Kierklo and Joanna McIsaac-Kierklo don’t dream. They just do. In May 2021, the couple, feeling trapped by the pandemic in their sleepy town in the Sierra Foothills east of San Francisco, decided to break out and trade rural life for 11 months in London. Joanna’s always been a risk-taker, starting at 22, when she moved to Idaho to be a Vista volunteer. London was her idea. “Joanna says, ‘I’m tired of looking at these floors and cleaning an 1,800-square-foot... Continue Reading

Today was our final day in Italy before returning home to the States. Our mid-afternoon flight to Milan gave us time to do a little exploration, so we were up and out early. Leaving wasn’t as painful as it might have been because the sky was a leaden gray with no sun predicted. Monreale, a UNESCO world heritage site, is near Palermo and only a little off the route to the airport. On my last trip… Source Originally Published on https://karengershowitz.com/ Continue Reading

This morning the sky was nearly identical to Crayola’s version of sky blue. The temperature was warm, and we had no plans. It became our morning to go swimming. The pool at the Hapimag resort looks out over the sea. The contrast of the turquoise pool, deep blue sea and sky blue seemed like a painting or fantasy, not reality. But it was very real. I know this because when I dipped a toe into the… Source Originally Published on https://karengershowitz.com/ Continue Reading

Our big activity for the day was scheduled for 5 PM. With a full day ahead of us we headed to Termini Imerse, a city within Palermo. Much of it is industrial, but there’s also an old section that has Roman ruins and what is described as a fantastic museum. The first segment of the way there was a tranquil drive along the water. As we neared the city Ditzy (the GPS) started getting confused. Source Originally Published on https://karengershowitz.com/ Continue Reading

Weather.com forecast rain for today. But what they didn’t say was whether it would be a drizzle or a downpour. I woke up to a slate gray sky and fine mist. That wouldn’t stop us from our plan to tour Palermo. While sipping my morning coffee the rain began, first gentle then steadily increasing to epic proportions. Okay, today would be washout. A day to catch up on laundry, emails and the like. Source Originally Published on https://karengershowitz.com/ Continue Reading

On my previous trip to Sicily, I happened upon the town of Santo Sefano di Camastra. It was difficult to miss, it was on the main road heading towards Palermo and along every street in town there were dozens of shops selling locally made ceramics. Today we returned. As we exited the new autostrada, I saw a building surrounded by gigantic pots. I pulled into the parking lot. Kathy and I spent time… Source Originally Published on https://karengershowitz.com/ Continue Reading

We were up and out early this morning, largely because we didn’t trust Ditzy, the GPS. We were scheduled for a food and walking tour of Cefalu. Giving ourselves a lot of time was a good decision because Ditzy misdirected us several times. We finally found a parking lot on our own. Ambra, our guide, is a lovely young local woman. She met us and the only other tour participant, an Australian woman… Source Originally Published on https://karengershowitz.com/ Continue Reading

Kathy and I were both awake for the sunrise show—the sky morphed from pale blue to deep pink to orange. After that, we had a lazy morning–breakfast on our terrace, laundry, drawing (Kathy), writing (me) and both of us reading intermixed with short periods of dozing off. We set off through the resort property towards the beach. Along the way there were prickly pear cacti, palm trees, hibiscus… Source Originally Published on https://karengershowitz.com/ Continue Reading

Taxi to train station, scurry to buy tickets and find seats while toting luggage, make our way through Malpensa Airport which required taking a bus to the plane, finally climbing the stairs (with luggage) onto our flight and departing Milan. This was the first gray morning we had, so perfect for relocating to a sunnier location. I was hoping to take photos of Milan from the air… Source Originally Published on https://karengershowitz.com/ Continue Reading

For the past four days Kathy and I have mostly spent our time exploring Milan’s historic sites. Today we did the opposite, looking at modern day Milan, even taking a glimpse into the future. We spent hours at the Trienalle Milano, described as Italy’s foremost institution for design and contemporary culture. I don’t know if it is truly the top museum in the country, but it is definitely cutting… Source Originally Published on https://karengershowitz.com/ Continue Reading