Do You Love Salami?

Well, "Salumi" -if we want to be precise. All kinds of sausages.

If you come in Italy, you WILL eat them in any case. There are hundreds and thousands of types of salumi in Italy. And you will remember some of my reports about one of the agricultural shows we visited a year ago. (on the photo)



This time I wanted to write about salumi once more because ther was an other "show" in our zone: one of the largest malls, the supermarket inside it, exposed typical products of an other zone of Italy, I do not remember, what zone but all I bought in the show was excellent. Cheese, salami.

And salami -besides the low quantity of salt- was ...look here how long it was! I've never seen such long sausage! And the low quantity of salt was the other good discovery because my husband has to avoid to eat it. Do you know, that the fresh made salami has completly different taste? Mature is good, but fresh is special. Maybe because we can taste it rarely.



This other is Mortadella. It was about 3 m long but it's not surprising because there are often long mortadellas exposed in the shows.

Looking For Cheap Vacation

Budget travelers and not only they look always more often for cheap vacations. There are different reasons because this phenomena is so popular in the modern world. We work hard and want to have a good vacation, but we are conscious that there are many vendors that have excessive prices thought for unsuspecting tourists. And, from other side, it can happen that we do not inform us about the ways we have to behave in other countries and places we want to visit.

The most evident example from the life. If you go in a bar in a central street of a popular among the tourists town or in one that is near a very popular touristic destination, you can often pay what you order in that bar much more in confront to an other bar that is situating just some steps far from the main street.

Sometimes, I find advises about the airfares. You have to book your ticket choosing a little airport where there are not too many flights, they say. It can be right for some places. But using the air transportation in Italy, I noticed that the best prices I found, were always in the most big and hectic airports like Milan. Personally, I look in all the most important online agencies and carriers sites and choose the best for my intentions price among all them.

Sometimes, cheap means not "less paid". For example, my husband went in Argentina booking a flight for an incredible low price about half a year before the flight. In these 6 months, the company changed the time of departure and other similar things every week. Every time, we had to call their paid call center to confirm that he, my husband, wants to take this flight. Every call's cost was very high.

The other time, I bought an incredibly low cost ticket to fly in Russia about 2 month before the flight. I had an emergency and had to fly there in any case. The company suddenly transfered the flight from the airport near my house to an other, in North Italy just some days before the departure. All the "last minute" flights costed a fortune it that moment, and I had to accept the change of the airport. All the additional expenses raised the price to the business class sum.

That is why you have to read advises of those who just experienced the travel destination you choosed to avoid such bad experiences.

Everybody Loves Dubrovnik

This port in Croatia that visit maybe all the cruise liners and not so big ships, too, is known -and I read about it many times- as the most beautiful town in Europe. It's possible not only come for one day for a short shore excursion, there are many hotels and resorts here. My friends that stopped in this town for a day during their vacation  on board of their own car, told me, there were even wild roebucks that were not afraid of them and neared them so, that they could make photos.


«Дубровник. Хорватия.» на Яндекс.Фотках

As we can see on this photo, the place has interesting history, too. There was a Roman settling and a Slavic settling from both sides of a little river here. With time, the persons conjuncted their towns, burried the river that is the main street today.


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Who knows why we are fashinated by the towns situated in similar places?What is so attractive to make us feel we are in a kind of Paradise? Colors? Our love to stay near water?

By the way, the name Dubrovnik comes from the groves that grew here. As I see on the photos, there are not those groves more. I would plant them...


«Дубровник. Хорватия.» на Яндекс.Фотках

Immersed in Ancient Life: Greeks in Italy

The last week was difficult for me because I was ill. But I decided to take advantage of some suny days we had and went in Paestum.



Paestum is an excavation site not too far from Salerno (about 40 minutes of train) where you can see 3 of Greek temples and some interesting rests of the roman town. Than, there is a museum where you can see many original pieces of the cultures from 40000 years ago till Roman times. Very interesting. If you know what you have to look at.

The 2 temples on the photo are from Vi and V centuries BC. And here is the third of them that is situated far enough and is dedicated to an other deity. This one is from V century. BC, clear.



In this post I want to show you some greek vases. It's something simply incredible, the quality of the pictures!

Here is the rape of Europe (by the way, I've seen dufferent representations of this event but there was no one where Europe showed her disappointment about this crime :0)))





Most tourists do not look at the pictures on the vases. They go away and leave the juice of the exposition. Because these pictures represent the life of those persons. I went in Paestum this time with intention to photograph the pictures to show them to you. So, that you can enjoy it with me.

This is a picture on the vase that was given to the woman for her marriage. I think, the picture shows the moment when the woman was prepared for the cerimony. The most interesting is that these vases were found in the tombs too. So, the woman had to take this "marriage vase" with her in the life after the death.



What has to represent this picture I don't know. What surprised me here were the hairs of the man. Not only all the characters of the vase are blond (?????) but the man has this strange long hair. It was not comfortable to have long hair in the battle, I think, because the ancient fighters used them (on the pictures) to take the enemy. So, why this long hair?



Here is the proof of my doubts



Finally, to have this post not too long (more about Paestum I'll write in my blog "Marvelous World of Travel") I want to show you an other picture from the vase to attract your attention to the vases when you will visit a museum next time.
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By the way, if you plan a trip of a cruise in Italy or in Mediterranean, you can contact me to have a personal guide and travel agent in Italy. Mediterranean Cruises

Monaco, Monte Carlo -one of the Most Beautiful Places in Europe

For many years I thought, Monaco is the most beautiful place I've ever seen in my life.

We traveled with my friends in Liguria and because they have a flat not far from Ventimilia, we visited the not too far situating towns and other interesting places. It was vvery interesting because the French part of the coast was much more illuminated and there was life all the night, there. This way we reached Monaco one of the days.

The road we came in Monaco was high enough, and we could see all the town. Ther is not so much soil between the mountains and the sea, and the buildings grow in high into the air there. And all the amenities like gardens and pools that all "normal" houses have on the ground, were on the roofs there.


«Монако, Монте-Карло» на Яндекс.Фотках

In the little harbour there was an interesting entertaining: you could sail with a little yacht that had glass bottom so that the tourists could see the underwater life of the harbour. But the cost of one ticket was 300 Francs (I don't remember the currency) and we were 4 persons, so we decided to leave this idea.


«Монако, Монте-Карло» на Яндекс.Фотках

We went in the old town where is situating the Palace of the Prince. The square was empty (maybe we came too early, I don't remember now) and we decided to walk there. We found a garden on the rock over the sea. Somebody said us that there is a prison just under our feet there. The prisoners could see only sea from the windows of their cells. Nearby was the Institute of the Oceanography which head was Jacques-Yves Cousteau in that period. We loved to watch his documentaries and felt honoured to stay near the place he worked in (even if he surely was in sea).


«Монако, Монте-Карло» на Яндекс.Фотках

It was clear that the old town was the residential area of the rich families. All the houses that seemed to come from XVIII-XIX centuries were very beautiful.


«Монако, Монте-Карло» на Яндекс.Фотках

In the evening we visited the square of the famous casino where we found different enormous cars that I've never seen from that time more. There were women clothed with long evening dresses, too. But not only these persons, everything there was very beautiful. We entered the building just to see that some persons came to visit theater, others went to casino. Tourists are not allowed in such places. So, we went out.

After that, we walked some steps and found "American casino" opened for everybody. We entered it, too. It was only touristic visit, nothing more. A week before, an other friend of this family left a big sum there. She lived 5 days there and passed all the evenings in this casino to prove that all the stories about the money that persons leave there are not true. Well, she proved it. ;-)))

It was night when we left Monte Carlo. And I could never forget it's beauty.
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Portofino -a Luxury Relax

Portofino is a kind of Paradise for those who looks for luxury relax in Italy. There are different places everybody knows they are from this level here: Capri as an other example. If Capri is more "alive" with it's 2 towns and some brethtaking sightseeings, Portofino seemed to me decisively more isolated from the life. The right place for those who is tired by the great crush of the cities.


«Портофино, кусочек рая на земле» на Яндекс.Фотках

I was in Portofino when I came in Italy as a tourist, and it's about 20 years ago, there was this little village probably built to serve the owners of the villas over it (they tell about Roman origins). The village is lent to the rocks from one side and has a seafront where you can walk (about 300 m long, I think) and sit in one of the cafes.

You can come there with a car and leave it in a garage, too (as we did). Than you can have an excursion. Behind the houses, there is an antique street -very spectacular for those who likes such walks- and you can reach that villa over there (it was the municipality, if I remember it good).


«Набережная Портофино» на Яндекс.Фотках

The little port was full of big and not too big yachts when we were there. People like to pass some time there.In fact, this port is not only isolated from the land but the only road of access is not always open for visitors, too. At least it was so when we were there.

From time to time Italy is shaked up by the stories that happen with the families living in the luxury villas in Portofino, and if you want to write a book, it's probably the best place where to pass a productive vacation. I assure, you will have many inspirational moments when you stay there.


«Бухта Портофино» на Яндекс.Фотках

 If you want to visit Portofino as a tourist, the best decision is to come there with a cruise ship: one day stay is enough to explore the place. You have to choose luxury cruise lines because they have relatively little ships that can enter such little ports.

Medieval Feast in Antique Benedictine Abbey

Benedictine Abbey of Cava dei Tirreni (not far from Salerno and very comfortable to reach from Naples) celebrates it's Millennium this year. This very interesting place I've just wrote before (Reinforce Your Spirituality in an Antique Monastery) has an interesting story to tell to those who likes Medieval Feasts and "alive" shows. In 1092, this monastery was visited by Pope Urban II who consecrated the church built by S.Alferio. Urban II together with duke Roger of Salerno and his court came to the monastery at feet.



In the first weekend of September, today, you can assist a very interesting representation of this important for the Abbey event, when you can see all the residents of the village Corpo di Cava that was built to serve the necessities of monks and pilgrims showing not only the event but the style of live of the population at the time when Normanns ruled the region.



Flag flyers show their art, trombonieri (trumpet players) and jugglers, and -clear- many many tasty things fruits of this earth.



If you are interested to visit the Abbey, you can contact me (liudmila-@hotmail.it) or directly the guides of Badia (Abbey -www.badiadicava.it). You can stay one day or more there or in one of the B&B-s or other structures of the zone. Write me and I'll help you to plan your trip in Italy.

The photos are kindly offered by the guides of Badia di Cava dei Tirreni.

Herbal Teas in a Medieval Villa

Medieval towns in Italy try to re-new their images and to attract interest to them remembering antique traditions, costumes and times of their splendour. Salerno has an unique sign that was very significant for about a millennium, and it's the Salernitan Medical School, the first from the similar institutions in Europe. So, you can find a Virtual Museum of the Medical School and the Antique medical herbs' garden here.



You can read one of the articles I just wrote about it here Medieval Botanical Garden of Salerno /1. This garden has an interesting "attraction": you can ordine a special herbal tea in the tearoom...

 

And drink it then on the terrace of the antique villa, actually a part of the museum "I Giardini della Minerva", the Minerva Gardens, situated in the site of a real  medical herbs garden of XVI century.
The entrance in museum costs only euro 3. I had not time to ordine a tea when I visited it, so I can't tell you the prices here. But it's unpossible that it can be high.

 

Such a splendid suny winter day walk can assume an other glance with a cup of balmy tea, don't you think?
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Christian Pilgrimage to Antique Abbey

Campania (a region) in Italy is an Island of Treasures for Christianity. You can find antique churches, abbeys, reperts coming from the first centuries of the existance of this religion. This year, one of the most antique monasteries, a Benedictine monastery of the Holy Trinity of Cava dei Tirreni not far from Salerno, celebrates it's Millennium.



This abbey was built by a Saint man, S. Alferio, in 1011, other 3 abbots are Saints, too, and 8 abbots of this monastery are Beatifyed. So reach was this Earth of Holy men (specially the first 3 centuries of the existance of the monastery), that the Papst Urban II wanted to walk till the abbey the way that so many Saint men touched with bare feet.

In the cave where the first monks lived is the marble altar with the relics of S. Alferio



A little cloister is so beautiful to take the breath literally. The antique architecture is clearly influenced by the oriental, arabic culture, that came here from Sicily, where the uncle of Salernitan Dukes ruled.



The underground churches and chapels were made with great love, and some frescs remain not only alive but look like new till today. It's an other miracle of this place.

Nobles made rich donations to be posted in the loculos under these churches to be near the relics of the Holy men. Posted -because there were not coffins or something else. Actually, their remains are burried for the hygiene of the place.

Today, everybody can visit the abbey, it's basilica, antique and underground parts. You have to come at 9 in the morning or call the guides to tell them the time when you will come there.

To organize your visit of Abbey or this zone, Campania or Italy, you can contact me ("Travel and Cruise Deals") and I will help you to make your vacation informative, interesting and unforgettable.

Travel Destination: Scandinavia

What country do you think about when you say Scandinavia? Some of us will mention this or that country of the northern Europe, others say, it's about a historical term. You are not right. Scandinavia exists today, too. And it's about 3 countries: Denmark, Norway and Sweden.


«Дания. Копенгаген.» на Яндекс.Фотках

Well, sometimes they ask me: is Russian not the same as Ucrainian or Belosussian? Is Russia not the same as Ucraina or Belorus? Is Italian not the same as Spanish? And other similar questions. The question about Scandinavia is from the same category.


«Norway trip» на Яндекс.Фотках

These three are different and distinct countries that have similar cultural roots. That is why, if you visited only Denmark, you can't say you've seen ALL the Scandinavia. Because you have not seen the Geirangerfjord and other spectacular fjords (UNESCO World Heritage, by the way), you have not seen Skansen's Open-Air museum's festivals and feasts -and many other interesting places and events like the best preserved (in Europe) medieval Old Town in Stockholm, for example.
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The best way to learn Northern  Europe is to book a Scandinavia and Russia cruise -really very best itinerary with the visits of the most important, beautiful and interesting ports.