Fict.Travel

Travel

The Joanna-of-Naples Cure

History
I don’t know about you but reading about antique hardships really warms my heart. It’s not Schadenfreude exactly; the pleasure comes not from the...
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Witchery in Piedmont

History
Seeing gleeful clots of tiny vampires and witches at a Turin mall tonight, I was pleased to see the local youth honoring its patrimony....
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Lonely Planet Guide to Eternity, on Foot

Essay
Our Life's Journey   Halfway along the journey of our life  I woke to find myself in a dark wood, For I had wandered from the straight path.   The...
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Catania: Tits Galore in the DBC

History
You know the feeling when a word is repeated so often it starts to lose all meaning? That happened about five minutes into the...
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This is Your Virtual Sicilian Feast

Italy
A couple of friends have requested more detail re. Sicilian dinners. Although I’ve had a few bad meals here— leathery pizza, vomitous ham-and-pea lasagne,...
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Keeping Papyrus Green

Italy
One of the oldest Egyptian hieroglyphs is the papyrus stem wadj , indicating ‘green’, ‘growth’ and ‘youth’. Papyrus groves symbolized fertility and life itself in...
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Death Works at the Techno Park

Italy
The faded sign ‘Archimedes Technopark’ stuck up at a skewed angle but seemed to indicate the little road to the left of me, overgrown...
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Odyssey to Avola

Italy
 “How far will I have to walk?” John asked, narrowing his eyes. “Not far! We just take the train to Avola Station—twenty minutes max—then a...
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How We Got Tragedy and The Persians

Ancient
Some of the greatest works of Greek literature are by-products of a big penis festival.  We tend to think of tragedy as something appalling...
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Sweet-tooth Sunday

Italy
'Golosa' is an Italian word meaning 'greedy for sweets', and one that perfectly defined my mood on Sunday. We headed for the gelateria around...
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September in Sicily

Europe
Exploring new landscapes on foot is one of my favorite activities so, since we’re lucky enough to be in the countryside of Southern Sicily...
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Last Night at the Etruscan Museum

Ancient
The Etruscans are a tantalizing mystery. No one knows where they came from (“or what they were doing” to quote Spinal Tap). They were...
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