A visit to the Chapelle  Notre Dame du Haut is probably the most important pilgrimage for any Architect as well as a lot of artists.  This singular work has probably been a primary inspiration in any Architect’s first inclinations to become a designer of buildings and spaces.  I well remember as a beginning Architecture student […]

Beaune (pronounced like “bone”) is a refreshing break from the hustle and scale of Paris. Located about 30 miles south of Dijon it lies in the center of the Burgundy region which spreads across the east-central sector of France, just south and east of Paris. With a population of about 23,000, Beaune is small and […]

Once again, famed architect Frank Gehry has  produced a masterpiece of modern architecture.  Located in Paris in the giant Bois de Boulogne Park near La Defense, the Louis Voittron Museum is accessible from the Arc de Triomphe area by means of a quick shuttle bus operated by the Louis Voitton Fondation (1 Euro charge each way). The museum structure […]

They say that Paris is the City of Light…not just physical illumination at night, but of history, culture, art, fashion, literature, entertainment, ideas, and living. What stands out most to me is how, as Paris is large and congested as many cities, this city is very comfortable to live in, and even to just visit […]

The southeastern leg of Lake Como, Italy is actually named Lake Lecco, although this leg of the lake connects directly to Lake Como. At the southern tip of Lake Lecco is the town of Lecco, with approximately 48,000 inhabitants, is about half the size of the town of Como which is located nearby to the […]

While visiting The town of Gravedona on the northern end of Lake Come, I hiked to two small nearby lakeside towns: Domaso and Dongo. For the hike to Domaso, north of Gravedona, I took an inland trail, not on the lakefront, but further uphill. This meant climbing a lot of steps, but the trail passed […]

OK, I apologize for the title, but, I was fortunate to arrive in Gravedona just before the start of their “Spring Party”, an annual celebration which takes place along the picturesque waterfront, and which included several live bands (one of which played excellent blues), food and wine tastings, face painting for the little ones, a […]

One of the my most enjoyable and unique experiences of Lake Como is traveling between the many towns by ferry boats. Compared to trains or buses, I’ll take the boat any time. While the boats don’t stop at all towns on the lake, and although the boats are slower and more expensive than a train […]