winifredcreamer

Piazza Armerina–Roman mosaics at their best

We didn’t know much about Piazza Armerina until we looked for archaeological sites to visit within driving distance of us in Sicily. The guidebook indicated interesting mosaics at the Villa Romana de Casale near the town of Piazza Armerina. The mosaic floors of this villa, owner unknown but possibly the Emperor Maximian (250-310 AD), areContinue reading “Piazza Armerina–Roman mosaics at their best”

Sicily: Landscape, Beach, Archaeology

Sicily—Week One Having a guest really gets you up and going. With my sister Catherine we hit high spots of the region so that she could take away a sense of western Sicily. Three themes emerged, landscape, beaches, and archaeology.Sicily’s landscape is Dramatic. Huge rocky hills emerge from the sea, yet just beyond are broadContinue reading “Sicily: Landscape, Beach, Archaeology”

Welcome to Sicily

We just moved to our October home, a house outside the town of Sciacca, Sicily. We were met by our host Stefania and her mother, who showed us around and helped us get settled. Our flight from Naples to Palermo was delayed two hours, so we were later arriving than we’d planned, but they wereContinue reading “Welcome to Sicily”

Life in Campania: Vacation Paradise, Daily Grind?

Hurricanes have flattened more than one vacation paradise recently. There are many left, and we are just finishing our stay in Salerno, Italy, adjacent to, if not in, vacation paradise (as in Amalfi, Sorrento, Capri). Our current home ground, the province of Campania, was the breadbasket of ancient Rome, and was occupied both long beforeContinue reading “Life in Campania: Vacation Paradise, Daily Grind?”

Two views of Naples

We spent our last night in southern Italy at the Grand Hotel Vesuvio with a sea view room. Our hallway was lined with old prints of Mt. Vesuvius. Buildings facing the waterfront where the Vesuvio is located are all in good repair, recently painted, and punctuated by good restaurants. In the afternoon we tookContinue reading “Two views of Naples”

San Mateo, Patron of Salerno

The story of St. Matthew and the martyrs of Salerno is a triumph of faith over history. Briefly, St. Matthew the Apostle died a martyr in Ethiopia, where he was buried. Three hundred years later, the story goes, his remains were transported by Breton merchants to Legion, a town located in the westernmost part ofContinue reading “San Mateo, Patron of Salerno”

Riding the ferry along the Amalfi Coast to Capri

I’ve been lax on posting lately and will now catch up by posting a few pictures from some of the places we’ve enjoyed this month. Taking the ferry along the coast gave us a great look at Amalfi and Positano from the water. The ferry stops at both places on its way to Capri. WeContinue reading “Riding the ferry along the Amalfi Coast to Capri”

What I love about Pompeii

As an archaeologist, I was amazed, surprised, and delighted by Pompeii. Other sites may be bigger (Tenochtitlan, Mexico), have larger temples and pyramids (Moche, Peru), or more spectacular settings (Machu Picchu, Peru), but more is known and brings the city to life in Pompeii than anywhere else. There are lots of buildings, walls and streets.Continue reading “What I love about Pompeii”

Sorrento

Need I say anything?We ate lunch looking over the Bay of Naples, Vesuvius in the background, a six-masted cruise ship moored nearby and a ferry to Capri at the landing. Sorrento is charming for a stroll, shopping and lunch. We had a lovely day. We did drive to Sorrento from Salerno, parking in the firstContinue reading “Sorrento”

After Ferragosto

Ferragosto is the annual down time for all of Italy. During the two weeks from mid-August until the first of September almost everyone takes a holiday, and every desirable hostelry in the country is jammed to the doors. That’s why we left for Ireland. We returned to Italy when order was restored on Sept. 1.Continue reading “After Ferragosto”