Past the glamour-NOT of Hollywood, there is natural a side to LA (Los Angeles) worth adding to your checklist of things to do while checking out the Southern part of California. And I have to tell you, I’ve done some of these trails and it is most rewarding and best when explored in the early morning hours of the day.
Here’s what’s interesting today:
A decade ago my hubs and I embarked on a trip to Italy. One town in particular was to Genoa in hopes of finding Portofino. Instead we stumbled upon Rapallo and all other small beach towns in the area. Which wasn’t a bad thing, but I was sad that I didn’t see this beautiful waterfront setting I had first set my eyes on when I received a stack of travel brochures at the travel agency to promote. So, I vowed while at the airport waiting for my flight back to San Francisco, that I would return to Italy and find Portofino. Years later, When we decided to revisit Italy, I decided to do deep research and discovered that besides the train to Rapallo, we needed to take a bus to actually reach Portofino, and so we did and found the gem of a place to this day I still can’t get enough of. And in honor of portofino and our wonderful walks about the small town and the best focaccia ever, here’s a boutique hotel …
My mother gives me a look every time I tell her I am going to Italy. She thinks I’ve explored the country way too much, not realizing that there is more, much more to this wonderful destination. And to prove it, I have listed some of the smaller towns I plan to explore the second I have enough guts to drive a car there:
To me romantic restaurants can be anywhere you and a special person share the most intimate time together, eating, talking, laughing, flirting even and sometimes making even taking a milestone in your relationship. And while you think about that special place, here’s a list from Architectural Digest suggesting the most romantic restaurants in the world. And just in case you are wondering, here’s my favorite romantic restaurant which happens to be in Rome and it is where I based my first novel:
La Villa Sola Cabiati turned Gran Hotel Tremezzo is my choice of late for a week long R&R, simply soaking in everything Lake Como.
Beautiful travel photography I needed to share today from here and here:
A good cup of coffee, pajamas, and a comfy sofa where you can sink into, and explore some interesting travel related topics I couldn’t resist posting here:
This might be an overstatement because, although the list here fairly details some of the worlds most beautiful streets, I can assure you there are so many more worth discovering. And I know we all know this – but for now here are some of my favorites. For the complete list go here:
Recently I am in search of hotels that are tucked away mostly and unique in style or decor, and this property is sure to fit all on my checklist:
rawsilkandsaffron.com 