Feb 22, 2011

Home vs. Hotel (Part II)

More family travel chit chat w/ Lara of Grantourismo

By Lisa T. Bergren

NOTE: This is a continuation of my interview with Lara Dunston of Grantourismo. Read Part One of our interview if you’d like to know more!

Lisa: Talk to me about scouting out local grocery stores and tricks you’ve learned about getting what you want when you don’t speak the language.

Lara: You’d assume that all property owners would have a folder of information in the apartment that lists the nearest supermarket or market, but not all do. Continue reading

Aug 12, 2010

How to Grocery Shop in Italy

Embrace the Experience!

By Lisa T. Bergren

My cousin and her husband are renting a private villa in Tuscany this Fall with three other couples and I’m drooling with envy. Sure, the villa and views will be sumptuous. But I’d kill to sink my teeth into the hand-crafted mozzarella or perfect, Roma tomatoes or spicy, local sausage or tart, dry Pecorino cheese…We love cooking in Italy! For us, it’s a part of the experience. And so is the grocery shopping. Continue reading

Jun 9, 2010

A Dream Realized

From an Image in a Magazine to Living It

By Lisa T. Bergren

It began with a “Room with a View” feature in Conde Nast’s Traveler.  A shot out the window from Terre di Nano that captured what I’d been longing for—a visit to the heart of Tuscany—territory in which we could just be, absorb, live like the locals. Continue reading