Majestic Sassi di Matera, Italy.
Another perspective of Sassi. Old houses built into the side of the cliff.
There weren’t to many places to enter into but a few gave a good impression of the time to dig out.
A bizarre church covered in skulls and symbols of death.
Sassi is still home to many people.Some really old frescos and a home built right in the rock face.
If you find yourself wandering this part of the world, dont miss this beautiful world treasure.
Rome is a city to behold! It is a living testament to the glories of ancient empires, religious leaders, brilliant artists, and forges on as a modern western capital.
We spent a good week in Rome and enjoyed the many historical sites and churches. The Vatican was quite amazing, especially St. Peter’s Basilica, the Vatican Museums, and the Sistine Chapel. In the corner of St. Peter’s Square, there’s a portable type building that serves as a Vatican Post Office. This is run by the Swiss, so the service is much more efficient than the regular Italian postal system. Some stereotypes are true… in any case, be sure to send your mail from the Vatican instead of the Italian post!
We made the rounds to the main destinations, including the Pantheon, Roman Forum, Palatine Hill, etc. These are all quite fantastic! We also hit our fair share of beautiful Cathedrals, Basilica’s, and churches. I’d say my favorite was St. Paul’s Outside the Walls. It’s worth the metro ride out!
Well, this is the end of the Euro trip! The next destination is Bangkok, Thailand. It’s hard to believe that half a year has already passed on this journey. We’ve met so many amazing people along the way, and had some fantastic experiences!
A whole new set of adventures await in Asia! Onward and eastward!
Cheers, Shawn
Half way to the fortress top .Being cheap or frugal I opted hiking up the side of the fortress entering in a hole for free.
Some pictures of the hike to the fortress. Kinda domesticated mountain goats enjoying some salt; one goat staring me down; pomegranates are plentiful along the way.
The hole to the fortress, free of charge.
Finally mission accomplished on top the fortress. Only thing left is to purchase a cold beer from a old guy with a cooler, conveniently at the fortress.
Pictures of our day trip to the mausoleum of Montenegro’s treasured Petar Petrović Njegoš. Great view of Kotor and area; the crypt; Montenegro fasion.
Rainy but worth it
Above view and sea level of the lovely Kotor.
Florence is truly amazing, and one of my favorite destinations so far! There is a charm about the city that makes you feel welcome, and the architecture is a joy to take in. The city has a sizable population, but is very easy to get around and explore. Even the street signs are fun to check out. Florence has a tradition of turning boring street signs into entertaining forms of expression – check out the photo below.
It goes without saying that Florence has one of the best art collections in the world. Highlights include Michelangelo’s David, Botticelli’s Birth of Venus, the Dome of the Cathedral, and much more. It’s worth taking your time to explore the many museums and galleries to fully appreciate their magnificence!
We learned about the city’s history, such as how rivalling medieval lords would compete by building ever larger/taller defense towers. Throughout the old city, you can see many of these towers still standing – but are now part of apartment buildings, shops, and restaurants! So cool!
All-in-all, Florence was a blast. I’m kind of sad to leave, but have Rome to look forward to next!
Cheers, Shawn
We traveled from Shkoder to the remote Valbona. Here’s some of the captured journey. Koman lake ferry trip had spectacular views along with random stops to exchange goods and drop people off. Like literally jump off to this random looking spot.
Valbona side of the hike, pretty much all cloud covered; blanketed in this eery evil Disney feel.
Passing over to Theth side where the sun was hiding. Climactic.
Always meeting and making friends.
At the bottem heading to the villge of Theth. Last attempt of evil trying to claw over the ridge. (top left)
Next mornings sucessful pursuit of the water fall. Bonus berries.
Why, you may ask, did we camp in this most exquisite destination? The reason – Venice is insanely expensive! Our camp site was off the island of Venice, about a 15 minute bus ride away.
I had mixed feelings about Venice. On the one hand, it is a beautiful city and a definite must see for any traveler. On the other hand, much of modern-day Venice is built solely for tourists and is priced for visitors wanting (or at least willing) to unload an obscene amount of cash. Perhaps a few more cities like this and the European economic crisis could be solved!
Enough of the soap box! It was a lot of fun to hop a water taxi and zip around the canals. There are multiple islands to explore, each with its unique flavour. I’d also recommend taking a day to walk around the main islands on foot. You have a 98.7% chance of getting lost, but that’s half the fun! Take in one of the few cities left where the water rules over the road!
The journey goes south – Florence awaits!
Shawn
There is no city on the planet like Naples! The chaotic buzz of the city has such an energy, and was at first unsettling after the tranquility of Matera. But we embraced it, and took a walking tour to check out this metropolis bathed in history!
Naples is unique in that many of the ancient buildings were not destroyed – instead, new buildings were just built into the old! Walking down a street you can see a multitude of architectural styles, and a Roman gate overarching a modern street. I’ve never seen anything quite like this before!
And the food! I’ve eaten the best pizza and ice cream in my life while in Naples. Hmmm, so good! Another very interesting sight is the Greek/Roman aqueduct underneath Naples. You can wander around the aqueduct and get an insight into ancient civil engineering. A fun fact – this aqueduct was also used as a giant bomb shelter for the city during World War II.
While in Naples we took a day trip to Pompeii. This is the Roman city that was destroyed and buried by the volcano Mt. Vesuvius. It’s quite a feeling to wander around the streets of a city that was destroyed nearly 2000 years ago. In one of the photos below, you can see a plaster cast of one of the victims of the eruption. It goes to show the respect we must still have for Mother Nature!
Next stop is Venice. Until then!
Shawn
Below are a few images of the Tirana, Albanians capital. Anti smoking sculpture; Canadian education add; beer festival; “offical” mini-Disney land and others.
Spent some time rummaging around the large market in Tirana. Imagine a mall but no walls and you can haggle to your hearts content.
This bleak B-class horror movie set is the neglected and empty mansion of the fomer dictator. No one seems to know what to do with it.
The ferry ride from Croatia to Italy went smoothly. The seats were reclining and allowed for a pretty good rest. We landed in Bari, and found the train to bring us to Matera.
Matera is a magically distinct place – it’s an ancient city built right into the mountainside, has the relics of medieval monasteries, and has such a distinctive aura that modern-day film makers seek this area out to capture some of the magic! Check out the photos.
We checked out several cave churches with medieval frescoes painted by monks. It was really fascinating and felt like stepping back in time. One day I wandered around the hiking trails surrounding Matera, and took in the views of the valley. Very nice!
And obviously, the food is fantastic! The pasta, pizza, and ice cream here in Italy are to die for! As Matera is off the mainstream tourist grid, the prices in Matera are very reasonable. You will have to plan your eating and shopping schedule, though, as the riposo (siesta) is taken very seriously. Plan to eat lunch from 12pm-2pm, and dinner from 8pm-10pm. With this knowledge you’ll do just fine in this beautiful city!
Cheers, Shawn
For our last stop in the Balkans, we arrived in Dubrovnik. Like Kotor, Dubrovnik is based on the Adriatic Sea and is surrounded by a city wall. Unlike Kotor, Dubrovnik is much larger and has a long-standing history of being an independent nation-state. Obviously nowadays it is part of Croatia, but from 1382 to 1804 it maintained independence.
Dubrovnik actually competed against Venice as a key naval trader. Back in the day, the Ottoman Empire (current day Turkey, more or less) gave Dubrovnik full trading rights within the Ottoman realm. This gave Dubrovnik a unique advantage compared to other Christian nations in Europe.
For most of our time in Dubrovnik, we were pelted with quite a bit of rain. We were able to get some good weather on our last day and could enjoy the views. I spent time wandering around the city, enjoyed a local dancing show, and met some good friends at the local Irish pub. Good times had by all! On our last day we hop on a ferry and cross over to Bari, Italy. This is an eleven hour boat ride. Hopefully the seats are comfy!
The Wandering Shawn
Freely Wander 