Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
TOUR THE CHIANTI VINEYARDS (TUSCANY)
These vine-covered hills
between Florence and Siena have dozens of wineries you can tour, usually for free
(tippling of the product included), as well as plenty of picturesque hill towns
where you can pick up picnic supplies to accompany the bottles you buy directly
from the source. See p. 168.
RIDE THE
VAPORETTO
DOWN THE GRAND CANAL (VENICE)
For a
fraction of the cost of a gondola ride, you can ply the Grand Canal on the
vaporetti
no. 1 or 82—the motor launches that act as the public bus system in this
city built on water. It's like watching a scrolling postcard of hundreds of Gothic
and Byzantine
palazzi,
redolent of the days when Venice was a powerful maritime
republic. Angle for a seat on the open-air deck up front. See p. 272.
LEARN THE SECRETS OF THE DOGES (VENICE)
The “Secret Itineraries
Tour” of Venice's Palazzo Ducale takes small groups of visitors into the many
rooms in the palace normally locked to the public—and often hidden behind false
walls, tapestries, and Renaissance paintings. This warren of secret rooms, passages,
and stairways allowed the vast, often shadowy machinery of the Venetian state to
continue to operate for 900 years behind the pretense of unhinged luxury that still
greets visitors in the official spaces of the palace. See p. 314.
SKI THE DOLOMITES (CORTINA D'AMPEZZO)
Italy's top ski resort is a
thoroughly Italian medieval village coupled with access to excellent slopes and
top-notch facilities. For winter visitors, Cortina has eight ski areas; there are
another ten within easy reach of the town. In summer, there's mountain scenery
and great sports facilities to keep active types engaged. See p. 375.
ATTEND THE OPERA (VENICE, MILAN, NAPLES & VERONA)
Italy is
home to some of the grandest opera houses the world has ever known—and two
of the greatest each emerged in 2005 from many years of restoration. Venice's
Teatro La Fenice (The Phoenix) has risen from the ashes of a disastrous fire to
reclaim its status as one of the world's most spectacular operatic venues. Milan's
famed La Scala opera house—where Verdi was the house composer and Toscanini
once waved the baton—has also finally reopened following years of restoration.
Then there's the Teatro San Carlo in Naples, where the term
prima donna
(which
just means “first woman,” or, in other words, the female lead) was born, and the
magnificent 2,000-year-old Arena in Verona, the world's third-largest amphitheater,
which has long since replaced gladiators with divas and become world-renowned
for its productions of
Aïda
under the stars. See chapters 7, 8, 9, and 12.
HIKE THE CINQUE TERRE (ITALIAN RIVIERA)
While away your time
on the southern end of the Italian Riviera by strolling from one lovely fishing
village to another along old goat trails through terraced vineyards, gardens, and
scrubby mountaintops with breathtaking views over the Mediterranean. See chap-
ter 11.
EXPLORE THE ISLANDS OF LAKE MAGGIORE (THE LAKES)
Ferry-hop
your way from Isola Bella, with its ornate gardens; to Isola Madre, where peacocks
stroll the exotic grounds around the Borromean palace; to Isola Superiore, a fishing
