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

My Italian Bucket List

I have been very lucky in my travels to Italy. I did a lot of work there and got to see a lot of the country and have lived both in the north and now in the south. I love everything about Italy. In so many ways it has figured out how to live happily. It is no wonder so many people want to go there. There is so much to see.

I have enjoyed its big cities:

• Milan
• Verona
• Venice
• Bologna
• Florence
• Rome
• Naples

I have also enjoyed its diverse areas:

• The lakes in the north
• Tuscany
• The Adriatic Coast
• The Tyrrhenian Coast
• The Amalfi Coast

There are still some places I want to see so this is my current Bucket List:

• Cinque Terra (north) – These five small towns were once very remote and unseen by most tourists. Then the train came and brought many tourists to this region. There is a walking path connecting each of the five villages. You can also take a boat, Life here is simple and enjoyable.
• Portofino (north) – This Italian fishing community and high-end vacation resort is famous the world over. The cove here is very picturesque. When I think of Portofino I can hear Andrea Bocelli singing here.
• Lucca (Central) – A city in tuscany near the sea. It is famous for its intact Renaissance-era city walls.
• The Tulli Homes of Alberobello (south) – These unique homes are round with pointy roofs. This is a very unique architecture that is strongly enforced in this city.

• Matera – Italy’s cave town (south) – Originated in the Paleolithic Period. The cave dwellings here were once slums and have been transformed into luxury housing and rentals. This is one of the most un pique cities in Italy and maybe the world.

• Sicily (south) – This unique island has so much to offer. From the volcano to its magnificent towns to its Greek ruins. Sicily is easily reached by ferry, train or car. All three methods of travel cross to the island on the ferry.

What is your bucket list for Italy?

George

 

Is it Time for you to Take a Trip to Italy?

Have you longed for a trip to romantic Italy? Have you dreamed about eating real Italian food? Do you long to see the museums or architecture? Maybe you have relatives there and just want to reunite old ties. What ever your reasons are, Italy is a great place to spend a vacation. After a week you are feeling relaxed and enjoying life. After two weeks you are totally relaxed, speaking some Italian words and loving the food. Longer periods in Italy will make you an Italian for life!

The northern lake Area offers beautiful scenery overlooking the Alps or maybe Tuscany with its wines and romantic scenery. The large cities of Milan, Venice, Florence, Rome or Naples are great places to see Italians being themselves. They also are great for seeing living history. Look at the buildings the architecture and envision the people that built these great cities. Maybe southern Italy with its Amalfi coast and Capri or farther south into the Cilento National Park. Beauty unspoiled by man and pristine beaches. What is stopping you?

If it’s being afraid of big tours or doing it on your own, we offer an alternative for the selective traveler to see what they want to see and spend as much time as the want. If you find a great Italian spot, the last thing you want is to be taken away by a tour bus. It would be wonderful to change your plans and just stay in your new found location. Italy is all about love, romance, beauty and spontanaeity.

Italy creates many wonderful memories and experiences but you have to touch it! Get away from the crowded tourists areas and meet real Italians. See places that will change you forever. Don’t eat in tourists restaurants. These will be memories you will never forget.

George

Top Places to Visit in Southern Italy

Southern Italy has so much to offer. It is different from the north but has great places to see, great food to taste and wonderful people to meet. First let’s look at some of the differences:

1. Fish – Is the main food in the south. There are meat dishes but great fresh fish is so prevalent.
2. Language – Italy is barely 150 years old. It was formed by individual and warring states (small countries). As the Italian country was formed, Italian became the official language as it was spoken in Bologna. Each small state had their own languages and dialects. To this day the dialect is still spoken.
3. Beaches – The south has many of its cities built on the coast. Beaches are important. Each seaport had a walled castle town in the mountains nearby. These would protect the people from pirates. These have become major resort areas for Italians and other Europeans.
4. Wines – Wines and Olive Oil are a local made commodity throughout Italy. They differ by region and should be experienced as you travel. Always order the local wine.

The main places that should be on your bucket list are:

1. Naples – Modern Naples is trying to clean up its act as a dangerous city. It is very old and poor but there is so much to see here. Most of what we think is Italian in America comes from the south and much of it from Naples. This is the birth place of Pizza and spaghetti with red sauce.
2. Amalfi Coast – This very rich area is the vacation spot of the rich and famous. The island of Capri, Sorrento, Positano, Amalfi and Ravello are very beautiful. Each town is built on a mountain side and worth a visit. This is an area of ferries, steps and steep hills.
3. Casal Velino Marina & Ascea – Two resort towns with beautiful sandy beaches. Ascea has a train station and Casal Velino Marina is very close to the north.
4. Alberobello – A very unusual town with dome-shaped homes. You can not change the architecture of a building in this town. These homes are called Trulli.
5. Sicily – This is a beautiful island with many ruins, great cities and an active volcano. Many Italians argue it is not part of Italy.
6. Ischia Island – This is a beautiful island off the coast of Naples in the Tyrrhenian Sea. Ischia is the name of the main port town on the island. The architecture is old and city is beautiful.
7. Procida Island – Is another island between Ischia and Naples. The architecture is middle ages and a great place to explore.
8. Matera – A town in the region of Basilicata southern Italy. The historical center is well-known and called the Sassi. Homes were built into the side of a mountain. This is one of the oldest civilizations on Earth. It is dated from the Paleolithic Period.

There so many other small mountain and beach towns that are worth a mention but too numerous to list. Just get out and explore each region.

George & Jo Anne

 

South-Eastern Italy

Bari, Italy is located in provence of Bari, southern Italy on the Adriatic Sea. It is at the ankle just above the heel of the boot. Bari is 2 Hr and 45 min south-east of Naples. From Bari you can visit many interesting areas:

• Alberobello – Is a UNESCO site. The Trulli homes are whitewashed conical shaped homes. This beautiful city is about an hour south of Bari.

• Matera – Is the capital of the region of Basilicata. It is located in a small canyon. Homes were built out of the rock on the hillside. It is known as la Città Sotterranea (the subterranean city). The historical center, known as Sassi, is another UNESCO site. Originally built in the Palaeolithic period (The son age – 2.6 million years ago to about 10,000 BC). This is truly a unique place to visit.

• Taranto – Inside the heel of the boot. This on the Ionian Sea. Located in region of Apulia. Known for its beaches. Taranto is 1.5 hours south of Bari and about the same from Matera or about 1 hour 10 min from Alberobello.

It is about 3 hours and 30 minutes back to Naples. Or you can continue 4.5 hours south-west to the toe of the boot, Messina. This is where you get the ferry to Sicily.

Pictures of Palazzo Fizzarotti in Bari in Puglia region of southern Italy.  Watch this interesting set of pictures taken in Bari. Italy has so many diverse settings from its glorious mountains to its majestic seas. Bari is a beach you don’t want to miss. The video below takes you through the area of Bari. Enjoy and visit Bari soon.

Don’t forget to stop at a trattoria order some local food and wine and as you are enjoying it, watch the people go by.

Bari dal Chiringuito (Photo credit: Andrea Giudiceandrea)

George & Jo Anne