Ceridwyn Parr writes: Nothing could have prepared me for the for the sight of gravestone after gravestone, after gravestone. they belong to boys aged 16,17,18 and for men aged 29, 35, 40, who landed here from 25 April 1915,onwards and mostly died here over the next few months. The marked stones lie tilted to the sun above the cool blue Aegean sea. Nothing can stop the pricking of tears to read this inscription: 1113 Private H J Burton, died 30 … [Read more...]
Silk, Perfume, Music and Food- another side of Florence
Ceridwyn writes: Florence is visual overload! I needed an antidote, and found it on the streets of Oltrano, on the ‘other side' of the river. The huge brick workrooms of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, the ancient Florentine silk factory are just along from the best lunch we ate. Trattoria Sabatini , via Pisana 2/r , is a family run restaurant where the Buccioni family served us with pollo arrosto, patates arrosto, cavolo crude roast chicken, … [Read more...]
Chinked coastline- the Cinque Terre
Sunshine in the morning let us explore the fabled colours and cleverness of the Cinque Terre. From Manarola we took a walk along Lover's Lane, or Via dell'Amore- a paved, gentle walk for twenty minutes to the next village, Riomaggiore. Far below the sea promised excellent kayaking and snorkelling on its emerald water, fringing the rocks with clean white foam. The walkway had seats to admire the view, a couple of cafes in the summer and some … [Read more...]
Beautiful and Prosperous – a few days in Santiago de Compostella
Ceridwyn Writes: There can be few cities in the world as beautiful as Santiago founded on so preposterous a story, so says the Lonely Planet. The legend of St James was the impetus for the growth of this city since 12th century. … [Read more...]
Don’t panic too soon – day three on the Camino de Santiago de Compostela
Ponte Sampaio to San Antoninio 23 kms. Today Danielle joined me for a pretty walk through the tiny steep streets and old Roman roads of the villages, through vineyards and small holdings, to the beautiful city of Pontevedra. We called in at our Lady of the Camino sanctuary,the Shrine of the Virgin Peregrina, again full of beautiful flowers. When the churches are open, they look as though as wedding is about to happen. My afternoon was solo … [Read more...]
A stamp of the foot, a toss of the head – Seville
From the steep hills of the sierra, we drove across the flat red plains to Seville. I had been looking forward to the wide avenues lined with orange trees, and was not disappointed. … [Read more...]
