I’m not sure why, but Trapani seems to have had a resurgence during the 18th and early 19th Centuries. There is a section of town where the streets are lined with beautiful palaces (palazzi) and churches, all of which were built at that time. This is one of the many courtyards that one encounters (it is also the site of our Hotel, “B&B Ai Lumi”).

Erice (Er i chay, with the accent on the first syllable) rises over 2400 feet above the western coast of Sicily and provides breathtaking views of the surrounding countryside and the sea (when not enshrouded in fog). When the fog comes in, we concentrate on the medieval architecture and the lovely paved streets.

The province of Enna sits right in the middle of Sicily at almost exactly the same altitude as Bend, Oregon. Enna is also the city where my father was born so it has a special meaning to me. Here is a view of a small hill town about 2 kilometers from Enna.

Like many places in southeastern Sicily, the medieval city of Ragusa was almost completely destroyed by the earthquake of 1693. The citizens chose to rebuild the city on a high plateau above the original site and built the current Baroque-style city of Ragusa. Years later, the old aristocracy reclaimed, and rebuilt the old city down below. Today the two cities are one Ragusa, with the old and new parts connected by three hundred helter-skelter, zig-zagging steps. This is a view of the old town from about halfway down the steps.

One of the most architecturally unique cities in Italy, Matera has existed since Paleolithic times when people carved caves out of the soft sandstone and used them for shelters for themselves and their livestock. Most of the buildings you are seeing are simply cave homes that have been expanded and have had exterior facades added. If you look at the cliffs on the other side of the ravine (left hand side of photo about the center) you can see some of the original caves.

The city of Trani is located on the less-touristed Adriatic Coast of Italy. This is the bell tower of the church of Saint Nicholas. I took it at about 5AM, just before sunrise. I had intended to take a series of photos of the tower but the lights illuminating the tower went off about two minutes after I took this shot.

I love the Southern Italian coast. This area, further south and less visited than the Amalfi Coast, is one of my favorite places to rest and relax in Italy.

Early fall on the Adriatic Coast of Italy. We were just returning home from dinner when I spotted this street scene. The light rain is more inviting in the photo than it is in real life.

One of the most architecturally unique cities in Italy, Matera has existed since Paleolithic times when people carved caves out of the soft sandstone and used them for shelters for themselves and their livestock. Most of the buildings you are seeing are simply cave homes that have been expanded and have had exterior facades added. If you look at the cliffs on the other side of the ravine (left hand side of photo about the center) you can see some of the original caves.

Another view of the cave-homes of Matera. The whole place reminds me of model-railroad scenery.

This was taken, hand-held, from the ferry on our way back from the island of Mozia.

When Mt. Vesuvius erupted in 79AD it destroyed not only Pompeii but also the smaller city of Herculaneum. Because boulders and other debris from the mountain bombarded Pompeii, much of the architecture was destroyed. The buildings of Herculaneum, on the other hand, had an easier time of it. Herculaneum avoided most of the effects of the main blast but was buried by a slow moving sea of molten rock, which encased and preserved even some organic matter. These long-necked jugs (Amphorae) were buried 50 feet below the surface of the present city of Ercolano and survived for over 1900 years before being recovered by archeologists.

This was shot from midway up Tumalo Mountain the morning after the first major snowfall of the season. It is a panorama made from two images. The only other technical information I can provide is that my feet were cold and wet when I took the photos.

I'd never been to this spot before and just happened to be wandering around in the high country not really looking for anything. I came across this scene and just sat there until the light seemed right.

I put this together from a couple of shots I took on Oahu a couple of years back. The foreground was taken off our balcony at Waikiki early one morning. The background was taken on the north shore.