Remember those James Bond movies where the hero or villain is speeding by in a motorboat on a lake…read morepast some European town? Could be Monaco on the French Riviera. Well couldn't make it to Monaco, but did make it to the waterfront of Baveno, Italy. Elected to spend extra days here in Baveno, rather than go on walking tours of Milan in 100 degree heat in July. Every day for 4 days before breakfast, I jogged the half mile long waterfront on Lago Maggiore, Italy's second largest lake, bordering on Switzerland. Even roused the wife out of her beauty rest to see the sights. Did this before the crowds arrived, with the sun rising over the deep blue lake, with mountains in the background. The water wasn't that blue, due to the high humidity in the Italian lake district in the air under cloudy skies and temperatures in the mid 80s at 7am, over cold waters of the 1000 foot deep mountain lake. Numerous restaurants, hotels, and small businesses, like the coin operated self service washer/dryer, line the road on the other side of the waterfront. A wide paved pedestrian pathway goes all along the promenade, with a separate sidewalk next to the roadway. There is a ferry area, boat docking areas, a child's playground, restrooms, and various monuments, along the immaculately landscaped promenade. They even have a defibrillator and emergency phone, along with toll machine for paid parking. Street sweeping machines running for both the road and the promenade pathway, so no litter on the ground. Tourist information building is right next to the ferry building, with a free public bathroom in the back, complete with toilet tissue and toilet seat, something not always found in Italian bathrooms. I had to jog the half mile long waterfront 4 straight days to get rid of excess weight from eating all that chocolate and cheese in Switzerland during our 10 day tour, so that I could fit in the 18" wide seats on the 14 hour airline trip back to California, via Atlanta!

You are walking around the center of town, like most dutiful tourists do... you have marvelled the…read moreColonne Di San lorenzo (one of the vrey few Roman remains still "intact"... you are probably either looking for a great place to eat, or are lost... and... You stumble upon a white wall decorated with old dolls pinned on the wall... DO NOT FEAR. .. you are not partaking in the latest horror sequel of SAW... It is simply a permament exhibition, to which you may choose to give your personal contribution. All dolls up on the wall represent a woman who has been killed (by a relative or an ex lover/husband). YES. .. i realize many may think this is a bit GORY, sending a chill down your spine... but, life is not not all fairytale like... AND if you have stopped and thought about how in Italy a woman is killed every 3 days, then.. this exhibit has served its purpose. .. I will remember, one of these days, to pin my own doll up on the wall, symbolizing how lucky i was to survive my own demon and live to tell my story.

Interesting and creepy same time. No need to make a trip to see the wall but you can reach it…read moreeasily from Duomo if you really interested.

You know how they say that in the past, rivers were the "interstate highways" of the time? Well,…read moreit's true. And even though this isn't a river, this canal was used to transport goods from Pavia to Milan. This one is the Pavia Canal and was not completed until the Napoleonic period. It begins at the canal basic known as the Darsena, under the so-called Trofeo Bridge. Locks enable it to negotiate differences in level at various points along its 33 kilometer route, culminating in the visually striking sequence where the canal flows into the Ticino River. When the canal opened to navigation in 1819, Milan was finally connected via the Ticino and Po rivers to the Adriatic Sea. This project, which began in the 15th century with the construction of the Bereguardo Canal and the Martesana Canal made the city a crossroads between continental Europe and the Mediterranean. [Review 10677 overall, 445 of 2019.]

The Naviglio Pavese (some may NOT be aware) is not a natural river flow. Its construction dates…read moreback to 1564, though interrupted 20 years later and completed only ib 1819. It was (once) a 33 km long navigable river that linked Milano to Pavia and, through the flight of six locks to the River Ticino. It has been closed to navigation back in the 1960s, but has recently been considered for restoration to full navigation, connecting Switzerland to Venice via inland waterway. Those who love biking will be extremely pleased with the cycle lane that promises to lead you from the Darsena (downtown Milan) to Pavia. To those who want to enjoy some live music or some happy hours (drinks and food for competitive price) many are the options (La Sacrestia, Maya, Movida (i would strongly NOT recommend this one) King, puentoalegre are but a few choices). For those who just want to stroll around... just take a few moments to yourselves, and stroll around this minor naviglio. It is just as cute at night as it is during the day.

L.O.V.E. While…read morewandering from the Museo del Duomo to San Maurizio al Monastero Maggiore, I needed to find something besides another cathedral, which is what I wanted to see, to capture my husband's attention. After checking out the Starbucks Reserve Roastery around the corner, we stumbled across this monumental sculpture by Maurizio Cattelan. Also known as Il Dito, or The Finger, it is a giant hand with all of the fingers cut off except for the middle finger sculpted from Carrara marble. L.O.V.E. The name L.O.V.E. stands for Libertà, Odio, Vendetta, Eternità, which translates to Freedom, Hatred, Revenge, Eternity. It is located in Piazza Affari in front of the Italian Stock Exchange, although it did not start there originally. Coincidence?? Art brings the world together. While talking to the manager of Tavola at a Wine and Food Event in The Woodlands, he actually told us a story about Maurizio Cattelan, whose piece The Comedian sold for $6.2 million. Interesting to learn more about this self-trained Milano based artist who uses humor and satire in his works of art. My husband did share our Milan photos with that manager. We bonded over L.O.V.E.

L.O.V.E. aka Il Dito (Italian for 'the finger') is a sculpture consisting of a hand with the middle…read morefinger. The name L.O.V.E. is the acronym of "Libertà, Odio, Vendetta, Eternità" ("Freedom, Hatred, Revenge, Eternity"). The sculpture is placed in front of the Italian stock exchange. It's a fun art piece to check out that wasn't too out of the way.

When in Zermatt, be sure not to miss out on this little street. Even though it's just one left turn…read moreaway from the "Bahnhofstrasse" and right smack in the middle of the village, you might easily miss it, since the first few meters do not look like you might picture it. But then after a few steps the old wooden buildings will pop up. They are dated back to the 16th Century....making them around 500 years old. Mostly they are made from larch wood, containing lots of resin, which makes them very strong and also keeps away parasites. Many of the buildings are still inhabited and used. So be respectful to the buildings and its owners and keep the noise level low. Between some buildings you even can catch a great view of the Matterhorn (on your right when walking down). Of course there are always visitors present, but if you're just a bit patient and wait a few minutes you can get some pics without anybody on it. Most visitors rush through this place. But if possible, take your time to fully appreciate this part of Zermatt.

On another of my days explorations I set out to find the flamingo's of Milan!…read more It wasn't far from the Natural History Museum really. How uniquely unexpected. I highly recommend seeing this amazing group of pink flamingos! I heard them before seeing them!

This is definitely special. I traveled halfway across the city just the fine this and almost missed…read moreit. Because it's such a small fountain. However, take the time to zoom into the pictures.And you'll get to see why it's such a special fountain.

I read about Kindlifresserbrunnen in my guidebook for Switzerland, listed as a must-see…read morearchitecture in Berne. Aside from Zytglogge and Bärengraben, this structure topped my list of things to see during my day trip to the city. Kindlifresserbrunnen translates to "child-eater fountain," and it depicts exactly that: an ogre eating babies by the sack full. Not only was I enthralled by this concept, but I was amazed that it was actually a long-standing public structure and not a form of avant garde art. This would never be erected in The States... but I would love to see one appear anyways. Berne, keep staying awesome.