“Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.” -St. Francis of Assisi — I invite you to sign my guestbook, and to join me on Facebook. This post first appeared on Prayers and Piazzas.
Author: Stacy Pollard
Prayers & Piazzas: part travel guide, part travel journal, celebrating all things Italy.
Palazzo Life
This Italian proverb translates literally to “in his house, each is king”, and is similar to the English saying “king of the castle.” I stumbled upon this little gatto at Florence’s Boboli Gardens a few years back, and immediately thought that he might be the luckiest cat in the world, living under the Florentine sunshine in the…
Strolling Mona Lisa’s Florence
This time last year I found myself waking up in Florence — strange for a Southern California resident — the chimes of the Duomo’s bells drifting through my open window. For me, every morning in Italy feels full of opportunity and ripe with undiscovered memories. But this particular morning promised a once-in-a-lifetime gift. On a whim,…
If Doors Could Talk
Florence, Italy, on shadowed, smelly and eerily silent Via Squazza: Not a spot frequented by tourists, and, in fact, my tiny tour group makes up the only people on this narrow street. But if this door could talk, it would tell you that it was the first home to Lisa Gherardini, born June 15, 1479….
Bottling the Renaissance
“You cannot miss the Farmacia!” urged my friend Rachel a couple of years ago in Florence. We finished our caffès and then she expertly guided me through Florence’s cobbled streets to Officina Profumo Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella. The “pharmacy”, which today is really more of a fragrance museum, still sells formulations which were popular among…
My Crazy Journey to Learn Italian: A Guest Post by La Studentessa Matta
If you are an Italian language learner, surely you know the work of my friend Melissa, otherwise known as Studentessa Matta. She shares her love of learning Italian with passion and enthusiasm, and right now, several of her sites are up for awards at Top 100 Language Lovers. In honor of her, and to encourage…
Through the Medieval Wall
Monteriggioni, Provence of Siena in Tuscany. I invite you to sign my guestbook, and to join me on Facebook, where I share often about Italy! This post first appeared on Prayers and Piazzas.
Lovely Lecce
“If Puglia were a movie, Lecce would be cast in the starring role.” — Lonely Planet Also called “the Florence of the South,” Lecce is a gorgeous gem in the heel of Italy’s boot. Above is an irresistible vicolo (alley) I stumbled upon while wandering Lecce with my cugini. This post first appeared on Prayers and Piazzas.
Scenes from inside the Duomo
I never meant to climb to the top of the Duomo in Florence, but then I did. And, as often happens while traveling, this accident turned into a very special memory. I wandered the same tight turns and corridors as Duomo’s mastermind Filippo Brunelleschi and his workers. I even saw tools — some of them…
For the love of La Bella Lingua
Congratulations to Dianne Hales and LA BELLA LINGUA, her memoir documenting her love of Italian and all things Italy. Seven years after its release, LA BELLA LINGUA this week sits at #8 on a New York Times bestseller list. “Italians say that someone who acquires a new language ‘possesses’ it. In my case, Italian possesses me.” Auguri,…
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