T̶w̶o̶ One p̶e̶r̶p̶e̶t̶u̶a̶l̶ ̶e̶x̶p̶a̶t̶s̶ immigrant settling into home country number five.
Julie 
Technically my first trip to Naples was over a decade ago, but my grandmother refused to let us get out of the bus – too dangerous. My second visit was similarly brief, although it involved a little more foot-to-pavement time. So this time, my third visit, I was ready to soak it all in. Surely all those rumors about crime in Naples were exaggerated?
The activities in my first post about Christmas in Rome were just ways to kill time between meals. I really go to Italy for the food. Christmas Dinner at Osteria Sant’Ana (not affiliated with the guitarist, as far as we could tell) was a welcome feast of everything delicious about Italy. Appetizers of smoked buffalo … Read more
“No one expects the Spanish Inquisition!” is a phrase that has been running through my mind a lot for the past couple days, except in place of “Spanish Inquisition” I put “Icelandic volcanic ash.” Long story short, we are some of the very few European travelers from the past couple days who actually made it … Read more
I’m a bit behind on my travel blogging. I’ll skip over a couple trips all together, but our winter adventures in Italy deserve a little more attention than they have received so far. We arrived in Rome on Christmas Day to find the metro closed. No signs, no information, just a big metal gate closing … Read more
So, I finally got around to moving this blog from Blogger to WordPress. I still have a lot of tweaking to do, but the new site should be mostly functional at this point. Stay tuned for new posts, an updated blogroll, and other exciting new content. And please let me know if you notice anything … Read more
Quick question that I can’t seem to uncover on your blog…. we’re in Munich Wednesday overnight and want to have a superlicious vegan meal. I’ve got a happycow guide to the city but if you had to recommend a veg place, where would you go? Thanks! – C, Futile Diatribes Usually I am lazy and … Read more
Those who were passing through Munich’s Marienplatz on St. Patrick’s Day were treated to a little stealth Irish jigging. The ‘flashmob’ performance was pulled off beautifully, starting with a small line of dancers. Out of nowhere more folks in green shirts appeared and joined in the fun. The group grew and grew; each time the … Read more
Last week my friend Em and I were wandering around London looking for somewhere to quench our thirst. Walking past one particular pub, something caught our eye. A leathery man standing outside with a pint and a cigarette thought it was he. Actually it was the sign next to him declaring all drinks half-price today. … Read more
Oberammergau will return to its once-every-10-year spotlight as they perform the Passion Play for several months during 2010. In my mind this has always been one of those uninteresting overhyped bits of must-see tourism that I am sure I could live without. I lived in Germany 10 years ago, too, and felt not the least … Read more
As seen today in Munich. It took me a few seconds to realize they weren’t misshapen smurfs. In other exciting carnival news, the headliner at Munich’s city center festivities was one Lou Bega. It was basically him, three background dancers, and a copy of his CD being played over the loudspeakers. You know the CD … Read more