There are certain experiences you have while traveling that turn out to be even better than you expected. Our family bike ride from San Candido, Italy, to Lienz, Austria, was one of those experiences. Before our trip to the Dolomites, I had learned about a famous bike route that begins in San Candido and follows the Drava River toward Lienz. The idea sounded almost too good to be true: rent bikes in Italy, ride through the mountains and countryside into Austria, leave the bikes in Lienz, and then take the train back to San Candido. We were traveling with three children, so naturally I had some concerns. Would the route be difficult to follow? Would my nine-year-old son be able to handle the 3-hour ride? Would my wife enjoy it? Would I survive pulling my eight-year-old and two-year-old daughters in tow behind me? The answer to all of those questions was yes. And it turned out to be one of the best family experiences we have ever had. Starting in San Candido: Our adventure began in San Candido, a beautiful mountain town in the Italian Dolomites. We rented our bikes in town. My wife had her own bike, my nine-year-old son rode independently, and I had the privilege (and workout) of pulling my two daughters in a trailer behind me. One of the things that immediately impressed us was how simple the entire process was. We got our bikes from Papin Bike Rentals, figured out the equipment, and before long, we were on our way toward Austria on e-bikes. There was no complicated navigation. We did not once need to look at our phones for navigation purposes. The route was well marked and easy to follow. We also quickly discovered that we were not alone. Families, couples and groups of...

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One of the reasons I love walking through Florence is that you never know what story is hiding on the wall in front of you. Recently, while walking along Via Giovanni da Verrazzano, near Santa Croce, I noticed an old stone inscription built into the wall of an otherwise modest house. At first glance, it is difficult to understand. The inscription is written primarily in medieval Latin, the words are heavily abbreviated, and the stone has suffered centuries of wear. But the story behind it is remarkable. It tells us about a Florentine man named Ugolino, his wife, and a journey they made to Rome more than 700 years ago. The First Jubilee of 1300 In 1300, Pope Boniface VIII proclaimed what became recognized as the first Christian Jubilee, offering a plenary indulgence under prescribed religious conditions to pilgrims who traveled to Rome and visited the designated basilicas. The event drew extraordinary numbers of pilgrims from across Europe. Contemporary and later accounts describe enormous crowds traveling to and from Rome, and the Via Giovanni da Verrazzano inscription is rare physical evidence of how that great movement of pilgrims reached the lives of ordinary Florentines. Among those pilgrims were Ugolino and his wife. And apparently, Ugolino wanted people to remember it. What Does the Plaque Say? The inscription begins formally: "Ad perpetuam memoriam..." Or: “For perpetual memory...” It goes on to announce to future readers that in the year 1300, God had granted a special grace to Christians. The inscription then refers to the Holy Sepulchre, the Saracens and Tartars, and the solemn remission of sins proclaimed by Pope Boniface VIII for those traveling to Rome. The inscription is grand, solemn and religious. And then something wonderful happens. After all that formal medieval Latin, the inscription suddenly ends in the everyday...

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One of the things I love most about Florence is that history is not confined to museums. Sometimes it is right there on the wall of a building, waiting for someone to stop and wonder what it says. While walking near Piazza Santa Croce, I noticed an old stone plaque mounted on a wall. The Italian was archaic and filled with abbreviations, but one word immediately caught my attention: MERETRICI (which means "prostitutes")... Naturally, I wanted to know the rest of the story. What Does the Plaque Say? The plaque records a decree issued in 1714 by a powerful Florentine magistracy known as the Otto di Guardia e Balìa, or the Eight of Guard and Balia. The inscription reads, with the abbreviations expanded: "Gli Spettabili Signori Otto di Guardia e Balìa della Città di Firenze, per decreto de' 22 gennaio 1714, proibiscono a tutte le meretrici descritte al loro uffizio d'abitare nella Via di Pepe, sotto pena della cattura et arbitrio delle Magnificenze Loro, non obbedendo, e altre pene imposte nella legge de' 31 agosto 1688." In modern English, the meaning is approximately: "The Honorable Eight of Guard and Balia of the City of Florence, by decree of January 22, 1714, prohibit all prostitutes registered with their office from residing in Via di Pepe. Those who disobey are subject to arrest, punishment at the discretion of the magistrates, and the additional penalties imposed by the law of August 31, 1688." The street identified on the plaque as Via di Pepe is associated with the area now known as Via del Fico, in the Santa Croce neighborhood. Historical descriptions of the street explain that the narrow lanes in this part of Florence had been frequented and inhabited by prostitutes, and that in 1714 local residents and nearby religious institutions succeeded in obtaining a decree restricting their presence. In...

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