Movery – An Italian Travel planner

Movery is a platform designed for travel planning. It is an intuitive and easy-to-use portal where you can create your own journey by choosing the destinations to visit. On the website you can easily find all the information about the points of interest in the area, including the lesser-known ones that are outside the usual tourist routes. The content is created by authors who know the area well, so that using this portal is a bit like having a trusted friend who recommends to you the best places to visit, allowing you to experience the area as a true local.

Their claim is “Movery amplifies your travel experience”, and their intent is precisely to assist travellers in creating and managing their personal tour.

The first step is to create a profile with your travel preferences, so as to start immediately the search for the best points of interest to add to your itinerary. In this way you have the opportunity to optimize the time to organize your journey.

The recommended destinations on the portal can be viewed both on the map (in order to plan the itinerary also based on the distance between one point of interest and the other) and through the “Destinations” section, divided by city.

To give further ideas in the planning of the itinerary, the Movery Blog offers recommended routes divided by theme:

• Travel for All: recommended routes for travellers with specific needs: those travelling with a 4-legged friend, those travelling with children or those who need information on routes without architectural barriers.
• Typical Tastes: itineraries dedicated to the discovery of the food and wine excellence of the territory.
• Settings of Endless Stories: collects paths inspired by films and books.
• History Travellers: paths dedicated to history enthusiasts, in order to retrace the places that have acted as a backdrop to great events or the passage of great personalities.

It will soon be possible to share your itinerary created on Movery with your travel companions (and in general with friends, via social channels). At the moment the project is dedicated entirely to the Campania region, but they aim to gradually expand it to cover the entire Italian country.

My YouTube channel. My aim in my BLOGs and VLOGs is to provide quality information on Italy to make your trip easier and more fun. Movery meets these goals.

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Ciao,

– George

How to See Italy – What to see First

Italy has large major cities, medium size wonderful cities and unlimited small villages. The major cities are a must to see. They have wonderful museums, sites and architecture. The medium ones also have things to experience. The small cities are wonderful finds to explore. This video tells you how to see Italy and enjoy it. The YouTube video below shows how to make a memorable visit to Italy.

-George

Watchtowers of Southern Italy

Southern Italy has Watchtowers all along the coast line. Watch the video below for the story about these towers:

Title: Italy – Watchtowers in Southern Italy

Countries: Southern Italy

What are Watchtowers? They are towers usually built of stone high enough to be seen by the next tower along the coast. When Saracens (pirates) were spotted, they would light a fire in the tower to warn everyone along the coast. The next tower would see it and light theirs and so on along the entire coastline. You might say this was the Internet of their time. Some towers had a bell as well that was rung to warn locals of the pirates coming.

The locals would gather their families and valuables and head to their sister town usually high up on a hill. These towns were fortified castle like structures that prevented the pirates from entering.

 

Ciao,

George

 

How I would See Italy

People always ask me, “What order would you see places in Italy?” All of Italy is great! You can not make a bad decision! Everyone that has been there has an opinion. This BLOG/VLOG is mine. I would see the famous big cities first because they are important. So the order would be:

• Rome
• Florence
• Venice
• Naples

But Milan, Siena, San Gimignano, Positano, Capri … are also important places to see.

The only rules I have are:

1. Take your time in each place. Don’t rush and try to see all of Italy in a single trip. You will only see the inside of busses and trains.
2. Sit at outside bars or trattorias and observe the people (non tourists) around you. Begin to understand Italian life.
3. Try to communicate with locals.
4. After the big cities, go to small resorts and mountain towns.
5. Eat where the locals eat. DON’T EAT AT TOURISTY PLACES!
6. Stay in small Italian hotels.
7. Go on your own not with large tour groups. If you must use a group, keep it small.

Traveling to Italy is meant to be fun. So enjoy it! Watch our YouTube video below for more tips:

– George Febish

Ravello, Italy

Ravello is a beautiful mountain town above the Tyrrhenian Sea & Amalfi on the famous Amalfi Coast.Ravello is a 13th century city built-in Moorish style. The gardens at Villa Cimbrone are beautiful and provide the best panoramic views of the sea far below. Villa Rufolo is another beautiful estate visited by many tourists.

From Amalfi take the bus by the ferry docks up to Ravello or a taxi. The road winds itself up a steep incline to reach the city at the top. As you get off the bus or taxi you are outside the city walls. Walk through a tunnel in the old wall to reach the city center. Villa Rufolo is on your left. The main piazza and restaurants are straight ahead. The tourists information is to the right and Villa Cimbrone is to the left at the very end of the city.

Ravello is easy to navigate as it is not very large and there are only a few streets. Allow time for the two villas. Plan on luck outside in the piazza. On a hot day have a gelato in the piazza. As you leave Ravello and travel back down to Amalfi, you know you have just left a very special place. from Amalfi you can catch a bus to ferry to Positano, Sorrento, Naples or Salerno and a ferry to Capri.

Come walk with us through beautiful Ravello and Villa Cimbrone in our YouTube video below…

– George

Amalfi, Italy

Amalfi is located on the Amalfi Coast between Positano and Salerno. It is a major stop on the ferries from Naples, Sorrento, Capri, Positano and Salerno. The city is small and surrounded by mountains. The seaport is where the ferry or bus lets you off. You walk through the ancient walls into the main piazza. Your first site is the steps leading up to the cathedral and the fountain in the piazza.

Amalfi can easily be seen in a half day to a day. Many tourists then take a taxi or the bus up the mountain to Ravello, our next vlog. Now come walk with us around the town of Amalfi in our YouTube video below:

– George Febish

Campania, Italy

Campania is in southern Italy below Rome. It includes famous areas like Naples and the Amalfi Coast. Campania has wonderful Blue Flag Beaches and some very interesting mountain towns. You have everything thing here including: museums, beaches, mountains, great food & wine and friendly people.

We chose this area to have a second home and have fallen in love with it. Come walk with us through several towns in the great region.

– George

How to properly see Italy

I get asked all the time how to see Italy so you don’t miss anything? What should I see on my first trip? How is the food? Is it safe? So this BLOG is to answer these questions and state some rules:

1. There are no rules
2. I don’t believe in tours. They take you to the worst restaurants in Italy and move you along from site to site too fast. Most people take tours because they are afraid of getting lost, Can’t speak the language or don’t want to miss anything. Use your smart phones GPS to get around. Search on top things to see.
3. The big cities are a must but the real Italy is in the small cities. Don’t miss these.
4. Italy can’t be seen in one trip. Plan several trips and enjoy it more.
5. If you are seeing 10 cities in 7 days, you have not visited or seen Italy.
6. The food, outside touristy places is fantastic. Eat with the Italians in small Trattoria.
7. Museums are important but the art in Italy is all around you everywhere you go.
8. Stay in small hotels not big American ones. Don’t worry about your points, you are in Italy.
9. Learn a few key phrases in Italian and use them.

OK you are on your first trip and don’t know where to go. Plan Naples and Rome or Florence and Venice. Spend time in each city. You win nothing by running from site to site and then moving to the next city. In fact you lose a lot! Italy is a country that moves slowly. Sit and observe it. Walk with the Italians at lunch time (la passeggiata). It is not enough to see the famous art and buildings but the people who live here. Communicate as best you can. Use simple 2-year old talk or charades.

Tours normally work against these goals. They force you to eat where they make the most money. They rush you from one site to the next. You see Italy through a bus window. This is not much better than seeing it on TV. If you must take a tour, find a small walking or biking tour. Find something in a van not a huge bus. Make sure you have a few days on your own to explore as you want to. Don’t be afraid to take trains between cities. They go almost everywhere. Within cities the metro is clean and efficient.

Rome is a city of architecture and history unlike any other in the world. Naples is old and many Americans came from this area of Italy. Florence is the capital of art and the Renaissance, Here you will find unbelievable art and the beginnings of modern thinking. Venice is the most unusual city in the world. Here you will explore a large city made up of sidewalks and canals. There are no roads or cars. Enjoy these cities but take time to understand the history, the people and the food.

Plan more trips to visit places like Verona, Bologna, Capri, Amalfi Coast and the millions of small wonderful sea port and mountain towns. We love driving south from Rome on the A1 to our home. We see an interesting town high up on a mountain side in the distance. We use our iPhones to identify it and plot a course to it. After exploring the town we have a café at a bar or lunch in a small local restaurant. This is enjoying Italy and getting to know it.

Food and wine are a national pastime in Italy. Everyone is an expert. The truth is most food comes from farms in the vicinity, wines and olive oil are made locally.  The food is made from ancient recipes handed down over time. No-one cooks pasta as good as an Italians mom!

Hotels are for sleeping after a long day touring. You don’t need a resort type hotel. Pick local small hotels. We always prefer a room with its own bath (not all come this way). These small hotels are often family run. You get to know them as friends if you take the time.

Learn how to say some Italian phrases like Buon Giorno (Good day), Buona Sera (Good Evening – at sunset and beyond). Arrivederci (Good Bye) and Ciao (Hello and Good Bye). You might also want to ask How much? (Quanta Costa?). Jo Anne’s favorite is Quanta costa le Scarpe? (How much are the shoes?). Simply saying Buon Giorno to someone you pass will bring a smile and a Buon Giorno in return. Italy is a friendly place.

This brings us to How safe is Italy? Italy is very safe. There is almost no violent crime. There are pick pockets in large cities. Beware of you purses and wallets. Italians drive very fast so beware of cars speeding by you. We are never fearful walking around large cities like Rome. You are in Italy to learn and enjoy life. Just do it and enjoy a gelato.

Italy is the most romantic place on Earth!

Ciao,

George

 

 

Sorrento, Italy

Sorrento is a popular tourist destination on Italy. Sorrento is on the Tyrrhenian Sea and the Gulf of Naples. You can see the Isle of Capri looking south-west and Naples looking north. Mount Vesuvius, the famous volcano, can be seen to the north as well. Sorrento is the western gateway to the famous Amalfi Coast Road. Salerno is at the other end with great cities in between like Amalfi and Positano.

Sorrento has beaches at the bottom of cliffs, a seaport where you can catch a ferry to Capri, Naples, Positano and Amalfi and great shopping areas. There are great bars and restaurants around this city. So sit back and enjoy Sorrento in our video below:

-George

The Magnificent Views of Italy

It doesn’t matter where you are in Italy. There are views and eye-catching sights everywhere. You can be in a big city looking at a famous monument, on a small street, looking at a small city high up on a mountain, at the beach, climbing stairs or sitting at a small trattoria. Italy is all about its architecture. It has a personality all to itself. Here you stand on ancient roads, some dating pre-Roman. You feel and see its history. At the same time there is a modern culture all around you. iPhones, iPad and computers are everywhere. Most bars have free wi-fi service.

We come to Italy for the food, the people and these views. I love the feeling of being in an ancient place. Thinking about those ancient people and what they did, what they felt. Was their life that different from ours? These views can talk to you! Just listen and hear what they are saying. This is not a country to be rushed. Stop, relax and take in these views. Listen to them. Imaging yourself back in those times. Soon your modern problems give way to an appreciation of this great history.

My wish to all my readers is to be able to travel. experience another culture. Enjoy life more. There is so much to experience and learn. Pick a place you are passionate about and visit it. Put it on your bucket list. life is short but memories are forever.

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My passion is Italy, what is yours?

George