Author:

judithworks

Nordland Port Townsend Ravenscroft Inn State of Washington

PORT TOWNSEND

on
October 15, 2015
Whenever we want a quick getaway from the hustle of Seattle we hop on the ferry to cross Puget Sound and head up the Kitsap Peninsula to the serenity of Port Townsend, a small city located near the entrance to Admiralty Inlet, the main shipping channel to Seattle and Tacoma.
After coffee in Port Gamble on our latest journey we took a detour before reaching our goal by following a wild turkey in the bicycle lane.
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Riace Bronzes Sicily

BETWEEN SCYLLA AND CHARYBDIS – THE STRAIT OF MESSINA

on
September 20, 2015

We arrived in Sicily deep in the bowels of the large ferry that transports the train from the mainland to the island. Now we returned for a day of sightseeing, this time on one of the many car ferries that cross the straits from Messina back to the port near Reggio Calabria.
The straits, so feared by the ancients, are only two miles wide at this point but are still full of hazards: cargo and cruise ships moving at high speed day and night, along with strong tides as the waters flow back and forth between the Ionian and Tyrrhenian Seas.
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Italy Rome Sicily

STRANGERS ON A TRAIN

on
July 31, 2015

The Rome airport was in chaos because of a fire. Our one-hour flight to Catania in Sicily, where Glenn and I were to begin a two-week tour, was cancelled and we were unable to rebook by computer or in person. Our only alternative was to take the train, a ten-hour journey.

After fruitless efforts to book on-line, we headed to the crowded and pickpocket-ridden Stazione Termini to get tickets from an agent who could advise on schedules.
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Italy Ortigia Sicily Syracuse

ICE CREAM FOR BREAKFAST – Syracuse

on
June 30, 2015

Surely it is a breakfast suitable for the Greek gods who formerly inhabited this lovely part of Sicily: gelato in a fresh and soft brioche accompanied by ice coffee – cold, creamy, sweet and strong enough to keep me awake for at least 18 hours.

We sat outside a café on the waterfront near the Fountain of Arethusa along with the locals who were analyzing the latest political and soccer news. I was analyzing a guide to the part of Syracuse known as Ortigia.
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Rome roses

ROMAN ROSES

on
June 3, 2015
One of the pleasures of a sunny Roman day in May is taking a leisurely stroll through the Communal Rose Garden which is open during that month when the blooms from over 1100 plants are exuberantly flourishing.

The ancient Romans were rose fanciers and supposedly the current site was originally home to a temple dedicated to Flora, the goddess of flowers.

Wealthy banquet hosts showered their guests with petals as a finale to the meal. (And in the spirit of excess attributed to several emperors both Nero and Heliogabalus (204-222) were reputed to have suffocated guests by dumping piles of petals from a false ceiling.… Read more

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