A Homage to the Unsung Heroes of Cinque Terre: In the centre of the Riomaggiore village, in front of the very modern Tourist Information Office, is a huge colourful mural by Silvio Benedetto. The mural tells the story of the men and women who over several generations and thousands of years built and maintained more [...]
Uffizi has the Unusual Problem of Having too Many Masterpieces: There are plenty of world-class art galleries in Italy but the Uffizi Gallery in Florence (Galleria degli Uffizi) has one of the finest treasure troves of art anywhere in the world. For art lovers, the Uffizi alone is a good enough reason to visit Florence. [...]
Scuola Grande Di San Rocco – The Best Place to See Tintoretto Paintings in Venice: Next door to the San Rocco Church in Campo San Rocco, the Scuola Grande di San Rocco is a highlight of the Venetian Renaissance. It was founded in honour of San Rocco (the protector against plague) and funded by wealthy [...]
The Gallery of Fine Arts has some of Venice’s Finest Artistic Treasures: One of Venice’s foremost institutions of art, L’Accademia di Belle Arti di Venezia was founded in 1750 by the Venetian Senate. It contains some of the city’s finest artistic treasures and out of it evolved the gallery established by Napoleon in 1807 during [...]
Teatro La Fenice – Venice’s World Famous Opera House: First constructed in the late 18th century, the Teatro La Fenice (“The Phoenix”) was so named because for the opera company responsible for its construction there was a sense of having “risen from the ashes” . Fire had destroyed the original Venice opera house and legal [...]
Orsanmichele – A Chapel for Florence’s Powerful Craft and Trade Guilds: In its former life, Orsanmichele was a grain market (Loggia de Mercato del Grano) on the main road that linked Piazza del Duomo and Piazza della Signoria. Commissioned by the Signoria, the building was converted into a church and used as the chapel for [...]
These Landmark Rome Steps are a Favourite Destination for Many Visitors: Though the name may not be entirely accurate (they were built by the French), the Spanish Steps (Scalinata di Spagna) in Rome deliver true delight to visitors of any nationality. ‘Ah,’ some will say, ‘they are just stairs’. A way to get from the [...]
Michelangelos’ Sistine Chapel Ceiling is a Masterpiece: Though named after Pope Sixtus IV, who commissioned the Chapel’s construction, the Sistine Chapel was given everlasting fame by Pope Julius II. For, in 1508, it was he who commissioned Michelangelo to paint frescoes to cover the 10,000 square foot Sistine Chapel ceiling. But on the way to [...]
Rome’s Foremost Attraction for Pilgrims and Tourists: Formally known by the name Basilica di San Pietro, St. Peter’s Basilica is one of Rome’s foremost tourist attractions. This one site alone has enough to see to occupy an entire day or more. St. Peter’s is among the most well-known and frequently visited buildings inside Vatican City. [...]
St. Mark’s Basilica is an Amazing church with East and West Influences: Venice is an unusual city, a mixture of influences from East and West. Nowhere is the East-West blend of influence more evident than in the Basilica di San Marco (St. Mark’s Basilica), the most famous of the many churches in Venice and probably [...]
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We're Helen and Tony Page, and we love travelling - lucky as we've been doing it for the last few decades!
Tony has long been a professional photographer and writer, but Helen now writes most of the posts and takes a lot of photos herself!
Travelsignposts is our main travel planning site, but Tony also runs the Travelsignposts Photo and Guerrilla Travel Photography web sites, as well as publishing the Take Better Digital Photos and Guerrilla Travel Photography eBooks.
Read more about Helen and Tony or contact them.
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