A bit of a sleep-in this morning as we had a later departure time. Today we headed off to Isola Bella (the Beautiful Island) in Lake Maggiore, then to Lake Como (a 1.25 hour drive from Lake Maggiore), then back to Isola Madre (Mother Island) in Lake Maggiore for a very special dinner. After breakfast we boarded a Water Bus for the short trip to Isola Bella and a tour of the Palace and it's magnificent gardens. Isola Bella is one of the Borromean Islands of Lago ...

Early start as we left Venice, the canals, the glass works, the churches, the shops etc behind for Verona, Milan and Lake Maggiore. We arrived into Verona and the annual street marathon was being held with a number of streets closed for the event. We left the bus and walked around the ancient roman amphitheatre and up some alleys to Juliet's Balcony, made famous in Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet'. There was a mass of tourists and sightseers in the square. After...

Another- albeit bleak and cold - day in Venice. But this did not dampen our resolve to see more of the sights and do a little shopping. We set off by River Bus this morning for a demonstration of glass blowing and sculpting at a Murano glass factory. It is believed that Murano glassmaking originated in 8th century Rome, with significant Asian and Muslim influences, as Venice was a major trading port. Murano's reputation as a center for glassmaking was born when ...

On the road again heading to the Basilica of Sant'Apollinare at Classe in the Provence of Ravenna (one of Italy's oldest active churches) then onto Venice. Every moment is an event- as we were getting ready to board the coach in the morning Allen saw the Pope's chopper fly over on his way to Assisi. He hadn't realised what he was seeing until the locals told him. The Basilica of Saint Apollinare in Classe is an important monument of Byzantine art. UNESCO cited...

Well our trip to the south of Italy ends leaving behind Naples, Sorrento, the Amalfi coast, Capri and Mt Vesuvius. We traveled north-east firstly to Cassino and the Commonwealth War Memorial & Cemetery then onto Assisi. We arrived in Cassino mid morning and had a walk around the Commonwealth War Memorial and Cemetery erected in memory of those members of the Commonwealth armed forces who died in the the fight to regain Italy which was occupied by the German ...