Columns

View of the skene, orchestra and cavea in the Greek Theater in Taormina, Sicily. Photos by Julie Skurdenis

In the shadow of Mount Etna

A few of my favorite trips to Italy have been not to the great cultural and tourist centers of Rome, Venice or Florence but to some of the small hill towns found all over Italy. Over the years, my husband, Paul, and I have compiled a list of our favorites: Volterra and Fiesole in Tuscany; Erice and Ragusa in Sicily; Todi and Gubbio in Umbria, and Positano and Ravello on the Amalfi Coast south of Naples.

On a 5-week trip to Palermo, Sicily, in April-...

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On a headland in Biarritz, France, in June 2015, Randy Keck (right) chatted with the Dutchman Gysbert Haaksman, who was on a 2,500-kilometer pilgrimage from the Netherlands to Santiago de Compostela, Spain, pulling a 30-pound backpack apparatus that had a single wheel.

Europe travel bucket-list considerations and mentoring

In my January 2017 column, in which I wrote about developing a bucket list for travel, I excluded Europe from the discussion, choosing to treat that region separately. This month, I am covering Europe. 

This article is also intended to be used as a primer by any of ITN’s well-traveled readers who are in a position to influence and advise newer travelers. Please digest the following information with that idea in...

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The Great Pyramid at Giza, at its original height of 481 feet, was the tallest man-made structure in the world for thousands of years until the 14th century, when it was overtaken by the central spire of England’s Lincoln Cathedral, which collapsed in 1549, although, by then, other churches had eclipsed the pyramid’s height.

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Dear Globetrotter:

Welcome to the 492nd issue of your monthly foreign-travel magazine.

For the first time since he took the column over from ITN’s founder, Armond Noble, in March 1999, our editor, David Tykol, is not writing the “Boarding Pass.” He needed some time off to attend to family matters, and he gave me the instructions to “write whatever you want.” So buckle your seat belts and please place seat backs and tray tables in their upright...

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In my December 2016 column, I answered questions that readers had after reading the account of my April 2016 emergency room visit in Naples, Italy (Sept. ’16, pg. 51). 

One reader, Joyce Perry of Los Angeles, California, also wrote, “As an 86-year-old, I would like to know my options if I become too ill to be treated by a cruise ship’s doctor. Unfortunately, the article that detailed your experiences in Italy did not tell us how to be better prepared for an...

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Visitors strolling through the glasshouse in Orto Botanico, Sicily, Italy. Photo by Yvonne Michie Horn

This is the third in a series of three articles on gardens in Sicily. I visited the island at the bottom of Italy’s boot in June 2016. (See part one, Nov. ’16, pg 51, and part two, Jan. ’17, pg. 51, as well as the Feature Article, Oct. ’16, pg. 18.)  — YMH 

Palermo’s Orto Botanico

(Part 3 of 3 on Sicily)

It was but a 10-minute straight-shot walk on a street that managed to change its name three times between Hotel Porta...

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Locals are eager to share their culture with an approachable traveler, such as at this “meet-up” dinner in Nice, France. Photo by Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli

I’ve talked to too many people who put off their travel dreams just because they haven’t found a travel partner. The prospect of going alone sounds either too daunting or just not all that fun. 

But traveling on your own can be rewarding, vivid and exhilarating — a gift from you to you. Prepared with a positive attitude and solid information, you’ll thrive in Europe. And you’ll come home stronger and more confident than ever before.

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Mosaic of Noah loading animals into the ark — Monreale Cathedral. Photos by Julie Skurdenis

(Second of two parts)

By the time I had finished visiting the five (arguably) major Norman sites in Palermo, Sicily (Italy), described in my January 2017 column, I was hooked on the Normans and all that still remained of their era even after more than 800 years. I wanted more.

Pleasure palaces

In addition to building churches, chapels and palaces, the Normans built intimate pleasure palaces for themselves, probably to escape the intense summer heat of the city. One such...

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