The Olympics is one of our favorite events; we love to watch the best in the world compete at all kinds of sports. The place where that concept was born is the site known as Olympia in Greece. While it…
Visiting Chania, Greece: A Yellow Van Travel Guide
While we were on our Mediterranean cruise, one of the stops we made was to Chania (pronounced HAN-ya) on the island of Crete. We were interested to see how this port would go because when we researched it online, we…
Venice, Italy Travel Guide
We absolutely adored Venice. As soon as we got off the bus, we were amazed at how dream-like it was. It is a city that is frozen in time and reminded us of Disneyland in the way that it is…
Murano and Burano Italy
Just outside of Venice, on a less than an hour vaporetto ride, lay the islands of Murano and Burano. Known for their glass, lace and colorful houses, Murano and Burano are great places to visit and make for a great…
St. Mark’s Square: Piazza San Marco
St. Mark’s Square or the Piazza San Marco in Italian is the main center of action in Venice. It is where a lot of historic places come together like the Doge’s Palace, St. Mark’s Basilica, the Campanile and the Museo Correa.…
The Frari Church in Venice
One of the great artistic secrets of Venice is the Frari church, formerly known as Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari. It really is hidden and we wouldn’t have known about it at all if it didn’t have a dedicated track…
The Doge’s Palace and Venetian Prisons
St. Mark’s Basilica is arguably the most famous site in Venice, but right next to it, actually connected to it, is the Doge’s palace, and just across from the palace via the Bridge of Sighs are the historic prisons of…
St. Mark’s Campanile
When you are looking at St. Mark’s Square in Venice, the most apparent building in the square is St. Mark’s Campanile (or bell tower). It is tall, slightly crooked, and a beautiful red color and stands out amongst the white…
Rick Steves Audio Europe App Review
I am a big fan of using audio for learning experiences. As an instructional designer I understand the efficacy of this approach and as a tourist I appreciate its convenience. So when our friends, who were with us for part…
Visiting Saint Mark’s Basilica
While getting lost and wandering around the beautiful streets of Venice was one of my favorite things we did, Saint Mark’s Basilica is definitely a main attraction to this seaside city. Located in Saint Mark’s Square, and also known as Basilica San…