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Author Archives: lillatravels
Until next time
Yesterday was our last full day in Pico which meant cleaning, eating what remained in the fridge, packing and preparing the house to be vacant for another year. We took some final measurements of a few spaces to research items … Continue reading
Posted in Italy 2026, La Casa Pico
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Feast of St Rocco
The town of Pico, and towns throughout Italy, celebrate the feast of St Rocco on August 16. St Rocco is a healer who traveled across Europe caring for people with the plague. Legend has it, St Rocco himself was also … Continue reading
Posted in Italy 2026, La Casa Pico
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Ferragosto
August 15 is the Assumption of the Virgin Mary and in Italy, they celebrate Ferragosto along with the feast day. It’s national holiday with Latin roots with “feraie” meaning “day of rest” and “augusti” nodding to Emperor Augustus who granted … Continue reading
Posted in Italy 2026, La Casa Pico
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Our first dinner guest
This morning Miss M and I walked through the center of town while Paul drove to Frosinone to pick up a package. We saw Pepino Marchetti who remembered first meeting Miss M when she first visited Pico at age 8, … Continue reading
Posted in Italy 2026, La Casa Pico
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Attempted delivery
Despite being a citizen, owning a home, paying bills, taxes and possessing a Codice fiscale (Italian tax number), having a package delivered to Pico has been a challenge. We decided to try Amazon.it delivery this year knowing Paul would be … Continue reading
Posted in Italy 2026, La Casa Pico
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What’s in our fridge: Italy edition
We love going to supermarkets in other countries. Yesterday I shared photos from the small market in Pico. Now that we have a refrigerator that’s larger than what you’d find in a college dorm room, we’ve been able to grocery … Continue reading
Posted in Italy 2026, La Casa Pico
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Rome in a day
Today Miss M took the train to Rome for the day. After taking her to the train station, we grabbed a cappuccino and croissant from L’Angolo Bar. On our walk down the hill we saw Biaggio who asked how we … Continue reading
Posted in Italy 2026, La Casa Pico
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Festa Della Gnocchi
This morning Paul and I broke down two pieces of living room furniture that were left in the house when we bought it. The wood remnants are now in the cantina along with a wardrobe, dresser, a futon frame and … Continue reading
Posted in Italy 2026, La Casa Pico
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Air conditioning
Our neighbor Marino, and his plumber friend Pasquale, arrived to install air conditioning “after breakfast” which ended up being at 8:40am. Pasquale must live nearby because he arrived with the AC unit and everything he needed for the day, but … Continue reading
Posted in Italy 2026, La Casa Pico
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Sorrento day trip
Today we spent the day in Sorrento, take two from our train experience last week. The traffic was fine with the exception of some local dynamics: at one toll booth area a bunch of the lanes were malfunctioning, cars were … Continue reading
Posted in Italy 2026, La Casa Pico
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Buona domenica!
Happy Sunday! Paul and I started the day with a walk into the center of town for cappuccino, plain and cream-filled croissants. I counted 22 men standing, sitting and conversing with each other at the bar and one table of … Continue reading
Posted in Italy 2026, La Casa Pico
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Shopping Rome’s outskirts
If you look at a map of Italy, there’s a ring road that surrounds the city of Rome. Fiumicino airport would be at the southwest spot, just outside the ring. Today we drove 90 minutes to the northeast part of … Continue reading
Posted in Italy 2026, La Casa Pico
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Best laid plans are on the mountain
Today Miss M and I planned to take the train into Sorrento while Paul picked up a few things at IKEA and waited back in Pico for our couch to arrive. At 8:30a we began the journey: Paul drove us … Continue reading
Posted in Italy 2026, La Casa Pico
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Wake up call
After midnight last night, while sitting on the terrace, we heard rustling in the backyard. Assuming it was India (the dog next door) or some type of critter, we ignored it. But at 6:30a, India started barking. And barking. And … Continue reading
Posted in Italy 2026, La Casa Pico
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26 years
Last year Paul and I were separated by 4,160 miles on our 25th wedding anniversary. It’s just the way the summer panned out between traveling to multiple countries, scheduling a pre-college tonsillectomy, and navigating new home ownership in another country. … Continue reading
Posted in Italy 2026, La Casa Pico
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Beach life
Over the years I’ve shared on this blog how much I love Italian beach life. Today we drove 30 minutes and two traffic lights from Pico to “Raggio di Sole” beach club in Sperlonga. For 42 Euro, parking plus three … Continue reading
Posted in Italy 2026, La Casa Pico
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Neapolitan or Roman style
Today I spent the day working, doing laundry, and organizing things around the house setting myself up to take time off from work later in the week. Tonight we drove 30 minutes to the town of Roccasecca for the “Fritt … Continue reading
Posted in Italy 2026, La Casa Pico
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Back in Pico & ready for pizza
Today we flew from Porto to Rome, picking up the Fiat Pandina from long term parking at the airport. The Pandina is super cute – black and white exterior and interior like a mini panda. I always like the ride … Continue reading
Posted in Italy 2026, La Casa Pico
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Portugal observations
As we close out our time in Portugal, a few observations: I always like to end these trips reflecting on what we enjoyed most and what a low-lite:
Posted in Portugal 2026
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Duoro Valley
Today we hopped on a tour to the Duoro Valley, the oldest wine region in the world and a UNESCO heritage site. The Duoro Valley has its own microclimate and can reach 120F degrees in the summer. And today it … Continue reading
Posted in Portugal 2026
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Port in Porto
We slept in this morning and then I did some work before grabbing brunch at Mini Quecas at noon. Mari had the “mini quecas” which were small fluffy pancakes with biscoff and fruit, while Paul and I had avacado toasts … Continue reading
Posted in Portugal 2026
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Doritos are not nachos
This morning we slept in a bit and had a late breakfast at Mercado Bolhao, a market with dozens of fruit, vegetable, cheese, meat and fish stands. Paul got an assortment of fish, while Miss M and I enjoyed quiches, … Continue reading
Posted in Portugal 2026
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Traveling to Porto
Yesterday we caught the high speed train from Lisbon to Porto. The train ride was only 3 hours and our hotel is only 300 meters from the San Bento station which is in the heart of the old city. By … Continue reading
Posted in Portugal 2026
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A day in Sintra and Cascais
Today, after a yummy breakfast at The Zenith, we ventured out of the city of Lisbon to visit the towns of Sintra and Cascais. Paul describes Sintra as the Newport of Portugal, as it’s filled with palaces and castles. While … Continue reading
Posted in Portugal 2026
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Exploring Alfalma
Alfalma is a neighborhood to the north east of our hotel and is considered the heart of Lisbon. First stop of the day was a Tik Tok famous breakfast eatery “Breakfast Lovers – Tram 28” in the Alfalma district. There … Continue reading
Posted in Portugal 2026
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Bom Dia, Lisboa
Two days ago, 3/4 of the Lilla family united in Lisbon, Portugal for the beginning of our next family adventure. But how did we get here? The train from the airport dropped us off 200 feet from our hotel, the … Continue reading
Posted in Portugal 2026
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Last day in Armenia
Today is our last full day in Armenia and we packed a lot in. But first, today’s breakfast selections included eggplant lasagna, potatoes with mushrooms, and mini sausages. They haven’t had marmalade since last week and today two out of … Continue reading
Posted in Armenia 2025
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Misc. Armenia observations
As we wrap up our time in Armenia, here’s a few observations from me, and I know Paul will have his own thoughts to add separately.
Posted in Armenia 2025
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Etchmiadzin, More Basketball and Good Friends
This morning’s random breakfast selections included chick peas with rice, stewed tomatoes, sausages and fried mushrooms. We took a Yandex back to Etchmiadzin this morning since I wanted to see the relics at the museum. Turns out there are several … Continue reading
Posted in Armenia 2025
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Lake Sevan
For today’s breakfast roulette, there were pork cutlets, lentils with mixed vegetables, village potatoes and sausages. Paul and I stuck to our failsafe selections of toast with jams and fresh fruit, especially since today they had ripe figs. We hired … Continue reading
Posted in Armenia 2025
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