Melissa Muldoon

Gardone, where you will find the villa of Gabriele d’Annunzio, is on the other side of Lago di Garda. To avoid congested and winding streets around the lake, we took the ferry from Torri del Benaco to get to Maderno, …

When I was in Lucca, I took a bike excursion around the walls with Susanna, one of the delightful teachers from Lucca Italian school. As I biked, Susanna a lot of interesting stories about Lucca’s majestic wall, but none more …

Melissa explains a particular Italian expression “Cibo a kilometro zero”. Let’s find out what Italians mean by saying it! What do I mean by “food at zero miles” This expression implies that one can live very well by taking just …

Did you know that S. Giovanni in Laterano in Rome is the official ecclesiastical seat of the Bishop of Rome – the Pope? Infact it is the oldest church in the world! As the cathedral of the Bishop of Rome, it ranks …

Today we are taking a hop over to Florence. We will take a little excursion – a school trip if you like – to the cathedral. We will take a spin around the Duomo and then take a peek inside. …

Lucca, just an hour west of Florence and only twenty minutes by train from Pisa, embraces you immediately with her medieval walls & tree lined paths. She draws you in the moment you pass through one of her impressive portals …

Our Studentessa Matta kicks off the Holiday Season by preparing the “presepe”, the Nativity. Here how she did it!  I’m preparing the house for Christmas. I have just finished decorating the tree with my kids. Over the years I have …

“Bergamo, miraculously beautiful city!” So wrote a 15th century Venetian traveller crossing through Lombardy. Years later this same beautiful town welcomes tourists just as it did during the 1500s. Bergamo, surrounded by ancient Walls, is often considered as a city rich …

Siena is really a magical city that hosts many tourists every year, in which you can still see its medieval roots, but it is also a modern city too, with an important university. Have you ever been to Siena? I …

In Italy it is a common practice to greet someone with a light kiss on both their cheeks. This holds true even if you are just newly acquainted or if you have known someone for quite a long time. At …