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Deep fried globe artichokes likely have their origins in the Jewish Ghetto. Yet you will find this regional specialty on menus all over the city, including at Flavio al Velavevodetto where carciofi alla giudia (Jewish style artichokes) are only served in season, in winter and spring. Flavio serves all sorts of typical Roman cuisine, including stewed tripe and braised oxtail. Like many Roman venues, it has its ups and downs and isn’t always consistent, but on a good day the food is phenomenal.

North of the harbor on Lavender Bay, Clark Park is an ideal spot for a picnic away from the bustle. On the western end, curious visitors discover the garden Wendy Whiteley created from a landfill. 5- to 10-minute walk from Luna Park. This appeared in the August/September 2013 issue.

The area of gently rolling hills just to the northeast of Lucca is famous not only for its impressive villas, but also for olive oil and wine. A perfect gastronomic stop-off between visits to the magnificent Villa Mansi and Villa Torrigiani, the 30-hectare farm estate Colle di Bordocheo produces both, and offers tastings and tours for visitors. Estate wines such as the complex, spicy Picchio Rosso (a blend of sangiovese, merlot, and cabernet grapes) and the white Bianco dell’Oca (chardonnay, vermentino, sauvignon) marry well with the house extra virgin and platters of local cheeses and foccaccie. Book ahead and you can add lasagne and cold cuts to the basic €15 per head package, making a fine, rustic lunch. There are also apartments for rent on the estate, which lies in a strategic position for visits to the coast, the lush, mountainous Garfagnana region, Florence, and, of course, Lucca.

Drink Kong is the neo-noir, Manga-meets-Blade Runner–inspired bar created by Rome’s Patrick Pistolesi. A labyrinth of dark-colored lounge spaces, with long bars, neon lights, and harlequin-patterned floors, Kong is both hang-out and experiment. Pistolesi, who has curated some of the city’s best bar menus and is one of the key players in Italy’s cocktail evolution, created an instinctive menu based only on flavors: bitter, sweet, dry. Either peruse the menu for a Kong signature cocktail like “Big Trouble in Oaxaca,” a spicy and slightly fruity tequila and mezcal drink or chat with Kong’s expert bartenders who can craft cocktails customized to your tastes. Or take a leap of faith in the Omakase Room, a Japanese-influenced wood-paneled room for private tastings in the omakase style—your drink will be whatever the bartender chooses for you.

Wandering down the small via S. Chiara I spotted this shop that makes vestments for the Pope. I was tempted to go in and order a pair of red shoes but thought better of it. Since 1798 the Gammarelli family have been outfitting popes, bishops and cardinals. In 2000, Gammarelli was included in the list of Rome‘s historic shops, and is probably the most ancient shop in Rome, still managed by direct descendants of the founder. They have an online catalogue where you can learn all about ecclesiastical vestments. Take a walk by and peek into this historic shop.

The English novelist D.H. Lawrence came to New Mexico to recuperate after being diagnosed with tuberculosis. This 160-acre ranch, gifted to him by Mabel Dodge Luhan, is where he started work on his novel The Plumed Serpent. He wrote underneath a tall ponderosa pine, immortalized by Georgia O’Keeffe in her painting The Lawrence Tree. Take a tour of Lawrence’s estate, including the famous tree, “standing still and unconcerned and alive,” as Lawrence once wrote.—By Edmund Vallance

In the center of the Founder’s Chapel of the Batalha monastery of Santa Maria da Vitoria, you will find the tombs of King John I and his wife Queen Philippa of Lancaster. Their sons’ tombs are also there.

One of their sons was Prince Henry the Navigator. Henry was born in Oporto in 1394 and I visited his birthplace while in that grand city which is Portugal’s second largest.


Henry was always interested in the sea and navigation. His father appointed him governor of the province of the Algarve and he founded a school of navigation and an observatory in Sagres. Sagres is located at the south western tip of the Algarve. It is a wild and beautiful rocky outcrop. There are remains of Henry’s school there.

I stood on the grounds as the wind whipped the area on a sunny day. You could almost see the caravels coming into the near-by ports their sails snapping in the wind.

The maritime trade started by Prince Henry the Navigator enabled Portugal to become a wealthy world power (14th to 16th centuries). The ship he designed called the caravel was lighter and faster than vessels of the time. Because of Henry’s work, other navigators explored the seas and discovered many new sea routes.

The Prince died in 1460 and left a very impressive legacy. Henry’s tomb is a large marble structure and is marked. I went up to the tomb that is beautifully preserved in Batalha’s chapel.

There is a lot of history in that chapel. When in the monastery, don’t miss the Founder’s Chapel.

The Swiss-born modernist giant was many things: architect, painter, sculptor, graphic artist, furniture designer, and writer. This museum, also known as the Centre Le Corbusier, is located in the Zürichhorn park, and offers a chance to view examples of his work across all these realms—the most striking of which is the building itself, Le Corbusier’s last, a steel-and-glass masterpiece marked by multicolored enameled panels.

The doorway of the Portrait Roma is one of a growing number of blink-and-you-miss-it boutique hotel entrances behind which contemporary luxuries await. Tucked behind an unassuming facade on a side street off the busy Via dei Condotti, the Portrait Roma is part of the Lungarno Collection, a small group of boutique hotels owned by the Ferragamo fashion house. Opened in 2006, the property prides itself on customized service, and each of the rooms comes with a Lifestyle Manager, or 24-hour concierge, who provides personalized holiday management throughout the stay based partly on the guest questionnaire completed before arrival.

All 14 rooms are suites, and each is classically decorated and designed to mirror the prestige of the Ferragamo brand. Rooms are accented with linen, leather, and cashmere, as well as artwork that evokes the beauty and spirit of Ferragamo. Weather permitting, the rooftop terrace hosts food and drink service and offers views of the historic center.

A visit to Tokyo wouldn’t be complete without seeing the scramble of thousands of people at Shibuya Crossing, the city’s busiest intersection. It must be experienced, but also viewed from one of the nearby restaurants or cafés that overlook the space. A statue of the dog Hachiko, an Akita that famously returned to Shibuya Station daily to wait for his master long after he had died, is a popular meeting spot. Shibuya draws young Japanese with its many fashion shops and cheap eateries, while music fans come to check out the used-record shops. Coffee shops, including About Life Coffee Brewers, Fuglen, and Little Nap Stand, are good places for a rest from sightseeing.

About 20 kilometers (12 miles) south of Trapani, and just north of Marsala, acres of salt flats stretch in shallow lagoons, punctuated by crumbling windmills. This region has been producing bright white salt with intense flavor since Phoenician times, and a Museum of Salt lays out the process in a restored windmill, with everything from diagrams of the Archimedes screws used to pump water between flats to the wide, straight shovels used for skimming the salt into towering white mounds. Bags of the stuff can be bought at the gift shop, so you can take home a taste of Sicily.

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This natural soup-n-burger joint lies far from the tourist hordes, on a quiet residential street in the San Frediano neighbourhood. The kitchen and takeaway operation (open lunch and dinner) stands on one side of the road while opposite there is a pared-down modern restaurant (open for dinner only) with a tiny courtyard. Organic vegetables and herbs and locally produced beef go into tasty, seasonal soups (creamy cauliflower with truffle or earthy lentil and kale) and juicy burgers and there are gluten-free, vegetarian and vegan options too. Don’t miss the delicious desserts such as the rich flourless chocolate cake. The drinks list features excellent organic wines from the owner’s estate, craft beers and organic fizzy drinks.

Requiring some expert navigating through the graffiti-covered back alleys of town, it’s not easy to find the restaurant/pub Osteria del Sole. But like most tricky things in life, this one’s worth it in the end. Lorenzo, the owner, has just recently returned to Genoa to open Osteria Del Sole after 13 years of running restaurants in New York City (thus, he speaks incredible English), and brings a metropolitan feel to his space (I love the couches in the front). Come early to grab a seat at the bar (a real rarity in Genoa). With a great liquor cabinet, feel free to order your favorite cocktail, and then stay for dinner. Lorenzo has a fabulous kitchen.

If you want to meet the kindest cheesemonger in Rome, visit Roberto at Antica Caciara in the ‘you-must-cross-the-Tiber’ Trastevere section of town. Stock up on Pecorino Romano (that amazing hard grating cheese used in the standard Roman fare Cacio/Pepe pasta) and sliced cured meats. And if you are still hungry, you can grab a bag of handmade pasta before Roberto kisses you ‘buonasera’.