John Henderson's Travel Adventures in Rome and Beyond

March 2, 2021

Palestrina: A Rome day trip back 2,200 years ago to the powerful Roman Republic and a massive sanctuary

PALESTRINA, Italy — Before the Virgin Mary there was Fortuna Primigenia. She was the Roman Goddess of Fate, the oldest daughter of Jupiter. In 204 B.C., as the Roman Republic flexed its muscles, the largest sanctuary on the Italian peninsula was built in her honor. Stretching 1,300 feet at the base and crawling up the […]

February 23, 2021

Naples Underground: an eerie walk through 2,500 years of dark history

Naples Underground covers 2,500 years of Naples history dating back to the Ancient Greeks.

February 17, 2021

Valentine’s Day in pandemic Rome: A romantic hotel and tracing Spartacus’ footsteps on the Appian Way

The Appian Way is Rome’s road of blood. The other day Marina and I walked nearly six miles of arguably Italy’s most famous road, a hike always shrouded in violent history. It was on this road that Spartacus and his 6,000 slaves were crucified (See “Spartacus: Failed Labor Revolts”) in 73 B.C. It was on […]

February 8, 2021

The Torlonia Marbles: Ancient history with a view as Rome museums cautiously open in middle of a pandemic

Italy is crawling with yellow fever. I am. It’s all over me. From my head to my toes to my senses all the way to my taste buds and brain. But I’m not suffering. No, I am wallowing in bliss. Going against the grain set by the rest of the European Union, on Feb. 1 […]

February 2, 2021

When in lockdown Italy? Here are my 10 favorite recipes

Hello again from post-lockdown Italy where Monday I finished my second quasi house arrest in the land that Covid first engulfed. I was in lockdown so long I started a 10-part Netflix series on blood clots. I walked past pubs, long closed, and got weepy at the mere sight of a Peroni sign. My mask […]

January 26, 2021

Italy’s government collapses so when do I get vaccinated?

It took only one week for my adopted country of Italy to have a more screwed-up government than my old country in the United States. On Tuesday, Italy’s government collapsed. Prime minister Giuseppe Conte, the popular political outsider who steered Italy from the most Covid-bashed country in the world into calm seas, turned in his […]

January 19, 2021

Covid Italy 2021: Tougher restrictions until March 5 means my life is in quasi lockdown as government nears collapse

Anyone got a good recipe? Something simple? Something different? I’m going to be homebound a while. No, I don’t have Covid. I’m not in quarantine. But I’m retired in Italy where our latest Covid numbers pushed the cautious government to up my Lazio region’s restrictions Sunday from yellow to orange. It’s the second highest in […]

January 11, 2021

Seven years in Rome: My anniversary in a pandemic provides another list for reasons why I love living here

I’m very thankful I survived one year of the Covid pandemic. I’m even more thankful I made it seven years in Rome. That anniversary is today. Yes, on Jan. 11, 2014 I landed in Rome on a one-way ticket with three bags and many dreams. The dreams have been fulfilled and the nightmare that is […]

January 5, 2021

10 awful destinations I’ll never, ever visit again — Or do you enjoy giant wharf rats invading your hotel room?

Nightlife-in-Cancun-at-Mandala-Beach-Club

Buon anno, tutti! (Happy New Year, everybody!) Has anyone’s level of optimism risen above the Mariana Trench? Come on. Cheer up. Vaccines have arrived and so has a regime change in the U.S. The ice caps haven’t melted from neglect — yet. It’s time to travel in 2021. I’ve already written about my bucket list […]

December 29, 2020

Underrated Italian towns for 2021: It’s a shorter list but still worthy as our hope for more travel next year takes flight

So through this long, oppressive year, has that picture of the Amalfi Coast remained on your computer or is it bent beyond recognition from too much fondling? Is the postcard of a Tuscan vineyard at sunset still on your refrigerator, teasing you daily as you mark another “X” on your lockdown calendar? Relax. Rejoice. […]

December 23, 2020

My Christmas gifts 2020: Lousy presents for a lousy year

For all the evil in the world, Santa Clausini in Italy is here Never has the world needed Christmas gifts more than this year. Too bad hardly anyone can afford them. That’s where I come in. This time of year I change my name to Santa Clausini, grow a long white beard and hammer out […]

December 15, 2020

Christmas in pandemic Rome: Quiet nights and strict rules as Covid-19 plays Grinch

The man selling roasted chestnuts on the corner near the Spanish Steps looked as bored as a stuffed reindeer. He glanced at his watch. He looked at me. I looked at his pile of smoking, browned chestnuts and smelled the glorious aroma that always makes Christmas in Rome so sweet. But no one was buying. […]

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