Only thirty years ago, two kilometres south of Venice (and a hundred kilometres south of the mosaic travel wonder of Ravenna), Italian cavers stumbled across an extraordinary wonder of the world. Considered by many to be Europe’s finest show cave (though Skocjan Cave in Slovenia is stunning), shining their torches into the first huge cavern must have taken their breath away.

The cavers named the massive cave hall the Ancona Abyss after their nearby home city and from the seemingly endless pitch black hole that they bravely abseiled a descent of two hundred metres. Today an artificial tunnel enters the huge cavern at ground level. Having grown over millennia from dripping water, the huge stalagmites that jut twenty metres into the air are dwarfed by the room able to hold most of the world’s cathedrals.

This room contains unusual formations called palm trunk stalagmites formed from the water dripping from such a height that the drip splashes vigorously creating a roughened exterior like that of a palm tree.

Through the five rooms on the tour, the cave regular uses soft blue lights to complement the standard lighting to highlight the incredible purity of the formations. While coloured lighting in caves is often gaudy and kitsch, the tasteful lighting in Frasassi highlight a number of delicate formations and doesn't detract from the experience.

The tour is littered with the typically imaginative names for formations including Niagara (last photo), Fairy Castle (right) and Organ Pipes that highlight the finest and most unusual of a treasure trove of cave decorations.

A carpet of calcite crystals lies perfectly flat marking thousands of years of growth in an undisturbed lake, the surface marking the height of the lake. The lake level has since dropped leaving a crystalline floor, delicately thin and sparkling as only nature could create.

The third room includes numerous small stalagmites reflected perfectly into a crystalline lake and is appropriately name the Hall of Candles (top photo). The backdrop of this lake are narrow column, albino white in the colour of pure limestone and untainted and with no discolouring by any mineral element. Most traditional cave formations have hints of brown from iron, green from copper and various other shadings from other mineral impurities picked up as the water flows through the soils inside or surrounding the caves.

An hour later, the final cavern, the Neverending Hall, contains a circular path that loops back onto the main path. Visitors peer deep into the Earth trying to view more remarkable formations as the cave fades to an inky blackness, the last vestiges of lighting soaking into the walls.

The late discovery of Frasassi Cave has aided its beauty with early lanterns and candles not tarnishing the glistening limestone and early visitors not sampling the delicate formations. Over a million years with small deposits of limestone from every drip and trickle of water has created a treasured wonderland of formations, reflections and decorations on an unimagined scale.

Other Cave Posts
Caverns, Crooks and Castles (Slovenia)
Underground Fantasy (Skocjan Caves, Slovenia)
Crystal Wonderland (Western Australia)
Waterfall Hidden in a Mountain (Switzerland)

Source: Photos

"O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name", said Juliet looking down from a balcony in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, set in the travel wonder of Verona in northern Italy. This elegant 14th century two storey stone cottage in central Verona was home to the Cappello family that Shakespeare is rumoured to have developed the family name Capulet in his famous play.

Today millions of visitors disgorge from the otels in Verona and flood this narrow laneway to pay homage to the setting of English language's best known love story. Verona has cashed in too with couples able to pay hundreds of Euros to stand on the balcony and take their marriage vows in this iconic location of love.

Ironically, Shakespeare never went to Verona nor was the balcony built when the play was set, but such details spoil a wonderful tale.

A bronze statue of Juliet Capulet stands proudly in the courtyard, her right breast glowing a rich gold from years of gentle rubbing and touching. Good fortune is afforded to visitors who rub Juliet's right breast. Judging by the smoothed area on the statue, many have sought good luck when visiting the historic and grand city of Verona. Some leave their secret desires on small slips of paper tucked into the historic stone wall.

In Verona, spend a few minutes thinking of your loved one as you gaze up at Juliet's famous balcony and massage her chest for good luck.

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet."

Other Italian Posts
Touring the Mosaic City (Ravenna)
Chianti Classico
Hiking the Confection Villages (Cinque Terre)
Tuscan Beauty (Pitigliano)
Top Ten Travel Wonders of Rome

The southern Tuscan town of Pitigliano (about 100 kilometres south of Chianti) perches splendidly on a volcanic plateau, its ancient honey-coloured houses, city gates, aqueduct, churches and fortress built right to the edge of the rocky ridge. Etruscan tombs over 1500 years old dot the hill-face. With some of the more timeless Tuscany hotels, it is a wonderful small town that warrants exploring for a day with typical narrow alleys of houses that date back centuries and tiny hidden wine and food bars serving local wines such as the refreshing and light white, Poggia Al Tufo. In a surprise, along with a cathedral and a number of churches, there is also a Jewish history with a synagogue, kosher butchering area and bread oven which date back centuries.

Check out the first half of the tour of Ravenna before continuing here.

A few blocks away are Ravenna’s oldest mosaics. The octagonal Neonian Bapistery is supposedly a converted Roman bathhouse and contains further superb mosaics including Christ’s baptism ringed by his twelve apostles in the centre of the huge dome. You can get close to some of the mosaics giving a greater insight into the adept work of the artisans. A huge baptismal font big enough to swim in sits to one side.

Across the road is a small museum with further mosaics, a giant intricately carved marble throne and a striking but indecipherable sixth century carved marble Easter calendar.








To get a break from mosaics for a while, the tomb of the famous Italian poet Dante (who wrote Italy’s finest work called The Divine Comedy), exiled from Florence, lies a block east of the baptistery. Despite the stunning mosaics, this is Ravenna’s most popular attraction. Marked as an area for silent reflection, the tomb sits next to an untidy grassy mound where the tomb was hidden during the second World War.

The bustling, neighbouring Piazza Garibaldi is far less serene with some excellent eateries from this food-rich region of Italy. With Parma (famous for its cheese and hams) and Bologna (famous for its tortellini) nearby, there is a mouthwatering range of food. Called a ragú, I settled for a cheap and hearty meat casserole in a rich herby tomato sauce served with crusty bread – superb.

If not yet overdosing on mosaics, Ravenna’s other finest mosaics are two blocks further east. With more a feeling of a traditional rectangular church with stylish columns, the Basilica di Sant'Apollinare Nuovo, contains two long walls of mosaics. One side shows a procession of martyrs and the other shows a procession of virgins led by the Three Wise Men carrying their gifts (top photo). Again, the lighting gives the entire interior a golden green tinge.

It is worth a final quick glance into the Arian Bapistery that makes for an interesting contrast with the earlier baptistery. Similarly octagonal and with much the same mosaic themes, the main work of Christ’s baptism seems less striking and clear.

Though far less celebrated by Italian tourism, Ravenna makes for a superb one-day visit. Without the constant hum of Vespas and manic drivers, replaced by cycling and strolling locals, this UNESCO World Heritage-listed town has a far more authentic Italian feel to it. The quieter streets, atmospheric piazzas and superb food complement the mesmerising religious mosaics that adorn the 1,500 year old Byzantine churches and basilicas.

Other Italian Posts
Chianti Classico
Hiking the Confection Villages (Cinque Terre)
Top Ten Travel Wonders of Rome

In two hundred years of rule between the fifth and seventh centuries, the Byzantines left their crowning glory with a dazzling array of Christian mosaics in the restful town of Ravenna on Italy’s east coast. Without the crowds that infest the travel wonders of Rome, Florence, Pisa, Siena, Venice and the Cinque Terre, Ravenna makes for a superb single travel day wandering between the World heritage-listed cathedral, churches and monuments to admire the extraordinary artistry created in tiles.



At first sight, Ravenna appears to be an historic town of buildings with dull exteriors. It is only when you wander inside these churches and museums that you discover interiors filled with a breathtaking kaleidoscope of glistening mosaics. Most of the sights are central and a single tickets offers entrance into several buildings making visiting hassle-free.

While much of Italy stands adorned with exceptional frescoes, the mosaics of Ravenna create a different feeling with their sparkle when they catch the natural light. Furthermore, unlike the magnificent frescoes, the tiles do not fade with age, ensuring they sparkle today with the same breathtaking majesty, as the populace would have enjoyed around 1500 years ago. The effort by the artisans to carefully cut and place tiny pieces of glass, marble and stones into such massive spiritual images must have been painstaking work.

The most remarkable of all is Basilica of St Vitalus (interior and exterior photos above). A dull octagonal building of darkish yellow stone from the outside gives way to a glowing apse and choir area with natural light streaming through the tiny windows highlighting the dazzling green, blue and gold mosaics of familiar biblical tales. The stunning central ceiling shows Christ at the centre of five figures including St Vitale (top photo) while to give an example of the biblical detail, the chancel photo shows Abel’s sacrifice of a lamb, Moses tending sheep and side images of Matthew and Mark with the lion (Luke and John are on the other side). The arch at the entrance to this area is adorned with Christ and the twelve apostles.

Next door to the basilica is the Tomb of Gallia Placidia. Being only a small space inside, avoid a tour group to fully appreciate this building. The translucent light from the alabaster windows lights a magical luminescent deep blue ceiling of golden stars and flowers. One striking image shows a saint next to a burning grill and a cupboard containing the four gospels.

The tour of Ravenna continues in a second post.

The word Chianti evokes images of tasty light red wines served from strange squat bottles wrapped in straw, marked with the telltale black rooster emblem on its neck. Though most actually come in conventional bottles, these wines are produced among stunning rolling hills in an area between the two pillar cities of Tuscany - Florence and Siena. One of the truly great Italian experiences is spending a few days driving or walking through the Chianti countryside with its quilt of hillside vineyards, olive groves and small forests on a backdrop of ancient churches, medieval walled towns, elegant villas, stone farmhouses and historic Florentine castles - almost unchanged from the superb Renaissance images of centuries ago.

Tuscany is a great place to open the wallet. Blessed with some of the finest hotels in Italy, the region offers opportunities to enjoy beautiful accommodation and sumptuous dining in picturesque surroundings on the grounds of working vineyards and olive farms.

Each of the four main Chianti towns (Greve, Castellina, Radda and Gaoile) have their own charm but the central Radda has best preserved its original character. While a car makes visiting the various small towns and villages much easier than the limited public transport, one highlight is a loop walk of around twelve kilometers between Radda and Gaoile (get a map to assist) through a number of enchanting Chianti villages and wineries.

From Radda, walk past a number of villages dotted on the rolling hills to the idyllic fortified hillside hamlet of Vertine. Walking under the entry arch (top photo) as inhabitants have done for almost ten centuries and past the stone keep and bell tower, the walled village of around thirty houses lining a circular street seems unchanged from the middle ages. There is an austere harmony about Vertine with its roughened wall exteriors built of stones that alternate from white to deep orange-brown. A small bar near the arch offers tasty Tuscan treats washed down with a glass (or two) of wine produced from the vineyards which radiate down the gentle slopes from this charming medieval village.

A little further on is the historic village of Spaltenna with its fortified pieve (rural church) and monastery, built in 1030, and now a hotel and restaurant. Nearby Gaoile is Chianti’s market town with a piazza of restaurants, cafes and wine shops and a good place for lunch.

Returning to Radda, the honey-coloured village of Volpaia is a highlight. Within its ancient walls, the castle was converted into a premium winery and olive press around forty years ago. This village slowly unveils itself as you wander the narrow curved cobblestone laneways, past an unusual eight-sided well and a church, now converted to a cellar. The wine tasting is quite a show including a memorable red with the lyrical name of Balifico.

Wander back to Radda and reflect on a wonderful outdoors day strolling in the Chianti countryside, uncovering historic hamlets while feasting on the centuries old delights of Tuscan food and wine. The travel wonders of Chianti epitomise the Tuscany region and there is no better way to fully sense and experience it than to spend a relaxed day strolling the gentle slopes of this historic region.