My children have always loved those little three-wheeled Piaggio Ape trucks which you see all over Italy. Last time we went to Sicily to see the in-laws we had a lively family discussion in the back streets of Cefalù where the kids hatched a plan to import one of the mini trucks to England for […]
Climbing Mount Vesuvius
‘Mount Vesuvius is a time bomb’ says our Pompeii guide, Alfredo. He explains in careful English that 700,000 people live in the shadow of the only active volcano on the European mainland. He leads us to the walls of the ancient city, devastated when Vesuvius erupted in AD 79, for a view of the volcano […]
Ten tips for family travel to Pompeii
The eldest and I were lucky enough to visit Pompeii during the Easter holidays as guests of The Adventure Travel Company on their family tour of the Bay of Naples. Here are our tips to help you make the most of your visit to the ancient ruins with kids. One To find out about Pompeii […]
Sorrento and Ravello
I’m in Italy this week on a fabulous family tour around the Bay of Naples with my teen, as guests of The Adventure Company. I’m missing my husband and the youngest, of course, but we’re having a great time. We started off in the lively city of Naples, are now in the more relaxed Sorrento […]
Driving on ice in Madesimo, Italy
This is Omar, an amazing driver who showed me how to enjoy driving on ice. That’s quite an achievement because I’d had two car accidents on black ice in the year prior to meeting him, and so was very nervous about this experience. Ice-driving When we first arrived at the Madesimo track and saw the car speeding around, […]
How to watch football in Italy
I was lucky enough to be in Italy at the weekend, at Ospedaletti on the mediterranean coast, near the French border. I’m not a football fan, but the males in my family are, and I always get caught up in the excitement of big occasions like the European Championships. When Italy hosted the World Cup […]
La Befana
Today is a holiday in Italy for the Feast of the Epiphany, and La Befana plays a big part in the celebrations. We were in Piedmont for New Year, and saw images of friendly witches alongside more familiar Christmas decorations all over the place. Our Italian friends explained that children leave out stockings before they […]
