Buying a villa in the spectacular Italian countryside is a wonderful fantasy -- even if 17 rooms and a garden in need of immediate loving care are included in the asking price. Frances Mayes -- gourmet cook, widely published travel writer, and poet -- changed her life by doing just that. Sprinkled liberally with delicious recipes for inspired Italian dishes, amusing anecdotes about the risks of being your own contractor, and a savvy traveler's reminiscences,...

Traces the author's decision to quit her job and travel the world for a year after suffering a midlife crisis and divorce, a journey that took her to three places in her quest to explore her own nature and learn the art of spiritual balance.

The author, having spent several summers working to restore the villa she purchased in Tuscany, shares her ongoing love affair with her home and the country, and discusses her joyous experience of the spring season in Italy.

The author, a trained psychiatric social worker, at the end of WW II inherited a beautiful home in Taormina and has lived there ever since; the book is a candid examination of her life there and descriptions of the many foreign visitors who stayed in her house.

Venice, a city steeped in a thousand years of history, art and architecture, teeters in precarious balance between endurance and decay. Its architectural treasures crumble--foundations shift, marble ornaments fall--even as efforts to preserve them are underway. This book opens in 1996, when a dramatic fire destroys the historic Fenice opera house, a catastrophe for Venetians. Arriving three days after the fire, Berendt becomes a kind of detective--inquiring...

Includes Venice, Florence, Milan, and Lake Como, Genoa, and the Italian Riviera.

Now fully redesigned with a new layout and beautiful images, this guide is packed with customizable itineraries with top recommendations, detailed maps of Florence and Tuscany, and exclusive tips from locals.

Features many different cities, including: Athens and Delphi, the Greek Islands, and more.