5 Things to Do in Pisa Besides Climbing the Leaning Tower
The city of Pisa Italy is famous the world over for its Leaning Tower but there's much more to the city. Here are some other things to do in Pisa: 1. Be sure to visit the Duomo and Baptistery next to the tower. Leave extra time (a few hours) to visit Pisa's stunning cathedral as well as the largest baptistery in Italy. 2. Also leave time to go into Museo dell’Opera del Duomo. This museum is where much of the art that was formerly in the cathedral is now housed. See  Giovanni Pisano's ivory carving of the Madonna and Child carved for the cathedral's ...
Things to See in Alberobello
When you travel to Italy, there might be a lot of places that you would want to visit. One destination that definitely calls for a place in your travel itinerary is - Alberobello. Located in the southern part of Italy, it is a UNESCO World Heritage site that is known for its exceptional style of building called Trulli. Trullis are nothing but limestone houses with dry stone walls and conical roof that are known for their mortarless construction. The reason behind these pre-historic buildings was to escape from paying taxes. When the king’s tax collector came to collect taxes, the owner ...
Where To Stay in Rome: The Rose Garden Palace Hotel
One of my favorite hotels in Rome is the Rose Garden Palace Hotel. Just off the famous Via Veneto, and a stone’s throw from the American Embassy, it enjoys one of the best locations in the city. The hotel is partly owned by Steve Perillo, the third generation owner of Perillo Tours, the world’s largest tour operator to Italy. Perillo and his Italian partner bought this 19th-century building in 1998 and named it after the rose bushes in the courtyard. One might expect a hotel owned by a tour company to seem impersonal or ...
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Poet Giacomo Leopardi’s Home ...
Published on Wednesday, February 26, 2020 by Kathy McCabe
Romantic-era poet Giacomo Leopardi’s home will open the poet’s private living quarters to the public on March 21. Casa Leopardi, located in the town of Recanati in the central region of Le Marche, was the noble Leopardi family’s home. Parts of Casa Leopardi are already open to the...
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Researchers Find Mount Vesuvius Eru...
Published on Tuesday, February 4, 2020 by Kathy McCabe
Archaeologists working on the Herculaneum site near Pompeii have discovered that the infamous eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD produced heat so intense that it turned one man’s brain into glass. The remains of the man, whom archaeologists believe was about 25 years old, were discovere... -
Borghese Gallery Starts Crowdfundin...
Published on Thursday, January 30, 2020 by Kathy McCabe
Rome’s Borghese Gallery has started a crowdfunding campaign to raise about $8 million to buy a bronze sculpture by Bernini. The bust is of Pope Urban VIII, who commissioned many works from Bernini and was the Baroque artist’s most important customer. Now, Anna Coliva, the director of t... -
Rome’s MAXXI Museum Named Bes...
Published on Sunday, January 26, 2020 by Kathy McCabe
Italian art newspaper Artribune has named Rome’s MAXXI museum the Best Museum in Italy for 2019. MAXXI, a museum of modern art, stands for Museo Nazionale delle Arti del XXI Secolo. MAXXI, which opened in 2010, showcases contemporary art by Italian and foreign artists. The institution... -
Pompeii Bathhouse Opens to Public
Published on Monday, December 30, 2019 by Kathy McCabe
Newly excavated thermal baths have opened to the public in Pompeii, allowing visitors to see the ruins of what was supposed to be a main attraction in the city. Construction began on the Pompeii Central Baths before the fateful Mount Vesuvius eruption in 79 A.D., but was never completed. ... -
Milan’s Child-Only Gardens Co...
Published on Thursday, December 26, 2019 by Kathy McCabe
For now, the gardens at Milan’s Villa Belgiojoso Bonaparte are open only to adults accompanied by children – but that may change, as the city mulls whether to make the gardens accessible to all. Since July, Milan City Councilor Filippo Del Corno has been pushing to allow adults without... -
Italian Medical Museums Showcase Hi...
Published on Friday, December 20, 2019 by Kathy McCabe
Two Italian medical history museums – the Museo delle Arti Sanitarie in Naples (39-081-440647; Via Luciano Armanni 1; www.museoartisanitarie.it) and the Museo Storico Nazionale dell’Arte Sanitaria in Rome (39-06-6833262; Lungotevere in Sassia 4, Ospedale Santo Spirito) – are collabor... -
Michelangelo’s Florence PietÃ...
Published on Monday, December 16, 2019 by Kathy McCabe
Michelangelo’s Pietà dell’Opera del Duomo is undergoing restoration at the Opera del Duomo museum in Florence. The sculpture is also known as The Deposition, the Bandini Pietà  or The Lamentation over the Dead Christ, and is known for an incident in which Michelangelo became frustr... -
Free Museum Sundays Are Back
Published on Sunday, November 24, 2019 by Kathy McCabe
To the delight of art lovers, Italy’s popular free museum Sundays are back. This popular program, which offers free entry on the first Sunday of the month for both Italian and foreign visitors at state-run museums around the country, was introduced in 2014 by Culture Minister Dario Franc... -
Three Lesser-Known Architectural Si...
Published on Monday, October 14, 2019 by Kathy McCabe
The beauty of Rome is that the city’s vast collection of art and architecture means there’s always something different and unexpected to see beyond the usual tourist haunts. Whether you’re a seasoned traveler to Rome looking to discover new sites or a first-time visitor seeking t...
