The mayor of Venice, Luigi Brugnaro, thinks that insisting that daytrippers cough up €5 for the privilege of entering the city on certain dates next year is going to have them all heading to Verona or Padua instead. Is he for real?
Do the Christmas ads make you cry? Of course they do. That’s the point when it comes to selling you something by way of emotional manipulation at the most sentimental time of the year.
In Istanbul last weekend, I found myself pondering the notion of permanence. It was there, of course, in all the incredible sights as old as time, but this stunning city is also like a mirror reflecting modernity. So when you stroll the retail streets of central Istanbul there, they all are – the Zaras, the H&Ms, the Starbucks and all the other international shops.
Day in and day out, I take the sea route around my town. From my apartment home on its hilly northern edge, I venture forth like morning clockwork to tramp the pathways that run by the road and lead me down to the sea.
With its stunning medieval architecture, some 40 kilometres of elegant porticos offering shelter from sun or rain, and its reputation as the gastronomic capital of Italy, Bologna is a gem.