Sanfelice’s Baroque Staircase in Naples

18th century Neapolitan Rococo architecture is best illustrated in the work of Ferdinando Sanfelice (1675-1748), who is known for his striking staircases. We especially love the Palazzo della Spagnuolo. Via dei Virgini, 19. Sanfelice’s stairway in this building is distinctive for its height, the large size of its perforations, and the movement of the design. This is a great example of how architecture of the Baroque keeps your eye in movement: notice in this picture how Sanfelice skillfully draws your gaze upward, giving the structure a lightness that would otherwise not exist.

Palazzo della Spagnuolo (Naples)

Cultural Travel Guide to Naples
Check out our PDF guide Approach Guide to Italy: The Italian Baroque, which offers travelers additional information on this and other Baroque architectural gems throughout Italy.

What to Drink in Napoli (by Approach Guides Wine iPhone app)

The region of Campania (which includes the city of Naples) has more to share with the world than just Marzano tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella, pizza, Vesuvius and the Amalfi coast; it is also a highlight for wine lovers, producing some of the best wine — both red and white — in all of Italy. We recommend trying a a bold and full-bodied red wine, such as an Aglianico or a medium-bodied and balanced white wine, like a Fiano.

Wine Guide for the iPhone
Learn more about the wines and wine regions mentioned in this post with the Approach Guides Wine iPhone app.

One of the main attractions of Segovia, Spain is its very impressive aqueduct, which runs right through the old city and is staggering in its scale and balance.

Roman Aqueduct in Segovia, Spain

Facts about the Roman Aqueduct in Segovia

• 166 granite arches;
• 29 meters maximum height, 15,000 meters long;
• 28,400 hewn stone granite blocks;
• water was collected from River Frio, 17 km away.

What is perhaps most amazing about this site is the complete absence of any mortar — the structure is held together by gravity acting against the proficiently hewn and placed granite stone.

Another site that should not be missed is La Iglesia de la Vera Cruz (constructed in 1208). This 12-sided church, located outside the city walls, was modelled after the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem by the Knights Templar.

Where to Stay in Segovia

Although Segovia is an easy daytrip from Madrid, we recommend staying overnight and enjoying the city, its sites and, of course, its delicious food.

If you want to stay in town, we recommend Hotel Ayala Berganza (C/ Carretas, 5. Tel +34 921460448), a small modern hotel located walking distance from Segovia’s main sites. The hotel was once a palacio and now has 11 rooms all decorated in a different style. The hotel is quite charming and offers rooms at very reasonable rates.

If you want to spend your holiday like the Madrileños, look into staying at Casa deHechizo, a stunning boutique hotel located just 20 kilometers out of town.

Where to Eat in Segovia

Segovia is famed for its food, especially, its cochinillo (roasted suckling pig). We had our best dining experience at Restaurant Duque (Calle Cervantes, 12. Tel +34 921462487), which not only serves up excellent cochinillo, but also serves other traditional dishes, such as judias con liebre (large white beans stewed with rabbit) and gazpacho. They also have an excellent wine list, full of local, high-quality, well-priced wines.

We also ate at El Bernardino (Calle Cervantes, 2. Tel +34 921462477), but although their cochinillo is good, it does not quite rival Duque. There is, however, outdoor seating, which offers a very pleasant experience.

The Deesis in Hagia Sophia (Istanbul, Turkey)

In Byzantine art, the Deesis is a traditional representation of Christ enthroned, flanked by Mary and St. John the Baptist; these two figures are appealing to Christ for mercy on behalf of the beholder (viewer) on Judgment Day.

In Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia, visitors to the south gallery (upstairs) can find a fantastic mosaic image of the Deesis.  Made in the late 13th century (possibly 1261), this is the highest detail mosaic in the church and one of the most impressive mosaics in the world.

The “Byzantine style” is typically associated with flat two-dimensional, symbolic figuration, emphasized by stylized coloration with golds and blues (after all, the Christians pioneered this style as a rejection of the three-dimensional, naturalistic pagan designs of the Greeks and Romans).  However, this mosaic demonstrates the the “Byzantine Style” was anything but a consistent one; further, there was no evolution in one direction, per se, but rather an ongoing ebb-and-flow, back-and-forth from stylized to naturalistic.

The Hagia Sophia Deesis symbolizes the start of the re-emergence of a highly realistic style (albeit with stylized coloration, a characteristic that would never fade) pioneered during the post-Fourth Crusade, Palaeologan Era (1261-1453).  Although the Byzantine Empire was shaky politically and financially during this period (it had only two hundred years before its fall to the Ottoman Turks), Byzantine mosaic art arguably reaches its apex.

Deesis (Christ Pantocrator) Mosaic in Hagia Sophia

Learn more about the mosaics in Hagia Sophia and the Mediterranean
Check out our PDF travel guides to Istanbul:

Hagia Sophia and its Architectural Legacy, a detailed travel guide to Hagia Sophia

Ancient Mediterranean Mosaics, which offers an overview of the art of mosaics in Istanbul, Italy and the Middle East.

Recently we had the opportunity to chat with Dr. Jessie Voigts at Wandering Educators about our guides, their inspiration and creating meaningful travel experiences.

We were so flattered when Jessie wrote, “Perfect for the thinking traveler, Approach Guides are one of the best travel guides I’ve ever found.“

Visit WanderingEducators.com to read the interview and learn more about Approach Guides. Jessie will also be reviewing several of our travel guides on the site over the next month. While you are on the site, take some time to browse through their immense library of articles. Wandering Educators is a wonderful resource for travelers who want to explore new cultures and discover extraordinary destinations, fascinating people, and global artists, photographers and experts.

Restaurants in Venice can really be hit-or-miss, so you have to choose wisely.  But when you hit on a good one, it rivals the best that Italy has to offer.

Here is a list of our favorite four restaurants in Venice (we usually name our top 3, but we could not leave one of these out) — we have eaten at each of them, conservatively, 5-10x:

• Antiche Carampane. Rio Terra Rampani (San Polo) 041/524-0165. Great seafood, focused on home-style preparation with high quality ingredients. Excellent, slightly out of the way place for dinner, with a solid friendly staff and a classy, casual atmosphere. Best overall.  Antiche Carampane is a great experience, one of our favorite in Italy.  Closed Sunday and Monday.
• Alle Testiere. 5801 Calle del Mondo Novo (Castello). tel 041/522 7220. Excellent seafood restaurant. Good food, cool vibe, and the best wine list. The most elegant dining of all of the restaurants on this list. The only negative is that the seafood can be a bit over-prepared, meaning that the sauces can sometimes overwhelm the more delicate flavors of the seafood. Only 9 tables, so you have to reserve. 2 seatings: 7:30 and 9:30. Closed Sunday and Monday.
• Al Covo. Campiello della Pescheria (Castello). 041/522 3812. Delicious, very high quality Venetian seafood. Right up there with Antiche Carampane and Alle Testiere, however, we would argue that the energy level and feel are superior at the other two. Further, prices here are at least 10-20% higher than the other restaurants. However, this is the best option for dining on a Sunday or Monday, when the other top two are closed (Al Covo is closed Tuesday and Wednesday).
• La Corte Sconta. (Calle del Prestin, Castello, 3886. Near the Arsenale. tel. 041-522-7024; closed Sunday and Monday; also from 7 January to 7 February, and from 15 July to 15 August. ). An old-school seafood-oriented trattoria, that has a slightly simpler décor than the others on the list (tables topped with butcher paper and red napkins); the seafood quality is like Antiche Carampane and Alle Testiere, but it is more casual and offers simpler preparations. They base their daily menu on whatever the Chioggia fish market has to offer. We do find the service rushed, a bit pushy and prices (food and wine) higher than its peers. Although still a good dining experience, the food is the weakest of the top three.

What to Order in Venice

Seafood is definitely the way to go in Venice. Some things to look for that are particularly good and typically Venetian:

• Seppie (cuttlefish, which is basically squid, but a little larger, and with darker ink).
• Cappelunghe (razor shell clams).
• Canestrelli (Venetian scallops).
• Moeche (tiny soft shell crabs, usually fried).
• Branzino (sea bass).
• Razza (ray/skate) – although we enjoy this dish (pan sautéed) in the States, sadly, we never found the dish to be appealing in Venezia.

Like this information?
Check out our PDF guide to the Foods of Italy.

What to Drink in Venice (by AG Wine)

The Veneto produces some excellent wines. However, while we would certainly recommend going with the Veneto’s signature sparker, prosecco (particularly from the Prosecco di Conegliano-Valdobbiadene DOC), the region’s vast and impressive red wine repertoire is not going to work with Venice’s seafood-based cuisine. Since the Veneto’s whites are generally disappointing (based on the trebbiano and garganega varieties), we would suggest looking to the nearby Friuli region. Friuli’s whites are probably the best in Italy. Look for the wines based on the friulano, sauvignon, ribolla gialla grape varieties. Keep in mind that the wines from the Collio and Collio Orientali DOC zones set the standard for the region.

Like this information?
Check out Approach Guides Wine, our new wine app for the iPhone!