Category: Italy

From Fiesole – September 25, 2026 

  • Monteriggioni: Day 1 (Travel Day 16)
  • Weather 55-80° / sunny & winds 2-10 mph

I joined Sarah and Fredéric in Fiesole for a picnic on their patio before a backroad excursion.

Lunch on their patio.
Picnic view overlooking Florence.
Cappella dei Pesci, Chapel of the Fishes
In 1510 two fish were miraculously caught to feed the Pope.

Style – September 24, 2026 

  • Florence: Day 2 (Travel Day 15)
  • Weather 55-80° / partly cloudy & winds 2-10 mph

Over time painting style went from flat two dimension to three dimension showing fullness of the body. Uffizi.

Earlier two dimension…flat like paper dolls.
Later three dimension with full figures.
Botticelli: Allegory of Spring
Three dimensional.
Da Vinci: Annunciation, Adoration

Four with Six – September 22, 2026 

  • Cortina d’Ampezzo: Day 4 (Travel Day 13)
  • Time: 4 hours / 6 miles / 1,300’ elevation gained
  • Weather: 40-65° / sun shine & winds 5-10 mph

Four hours hiked.  Six people encountered.  How different from the previous splendid ranked hikes that attracted innumerable hikers.  Today’s hike had solitude plus required no buses or gondolas.

Cortina with Olympic ski courses in background.
Lower elevation woods.
Through the woods.
Above the timber line.

Two and Two – September 21, 2026 

  • Cortina d’Ampezzo: Day 3
  • Time: 2 hours / 2 miles
  • Weather: 45-65° / sun shine and clouds mixed & winds 5-10 mph

Two hours.  Two miles.  How can that be?  You stroll around the lake stopping to take in the view. Why rush?

Rookie rowers looked more like an assault by bumper cars.
This New Yorker wins wagers skipping pebbles. The water is so clear.
Team America. The Chinese, English, Germans, Israelites, and Italians are well represented.

Lago di Braies #01 – September 21, 2026 

  • Cortina d’Ampezzo: Day 3
  • Time: 2 hours / 2 miles
  • Weather: 45-65° / sun shine and clouds mixed & winds 5-10 mph

Deep emerald-green crystal clear waters, bleached stone beaches, and sheer cliffs make Lago di Braies a jewel in the Dolomites. 

Kudos to iPhone 15’s camera.
The lake is alpine streams and underground springs fed. Always too cold for a dip.
Alas white stone and not snow beaches.

Lago di Misurina #11 – September 20, 2026 

  • Cortina d’Ampezzo: Day 2
  • Time: 6 hours / 6 1/2 miles
  • Weather: 45-65° / partly cloudy & winds 5-10 mph

All that is missing are the Boston Common Swan Boats. A couple was walking seven Dachshunds. I feel sorry for their other four Dachshunds left at home.

No swan boats…just wooden row boats.
EZ stroll.
Care to check in?

Walking – September 20, 2026 

  • Cortina d’Ampezzo: Day 2
  • Time: 6 hours / 6 1/2 miles
  • Weather: 45-65° / partly cloudy & winds 5-10 mph

Walking the Three Peeks. 

Joined by New Yorker who enjoyed the path less traveled.
Rifugio Locatelli. On rock face were WWI gouged caves. In military tactics take the high ground.
Pausing was as enjoyable as discovering. Kristen’s Whippet, Sully, would burry his nose in this cup of whipped cream.