Portfolio Category: Europe

Venice, the capital of northern Italy’s Veneto region, is built on more than 100 small islands in a lagoon in the Adriatic Sea. It has no roads, just canals – including the Grand Canal thoroughfare – lined with Renaissance and Gothic palaces. The central square, Piazza San Marco, contains St. Mark’s Basilica, which is tiled…

Though Rome is Italy’s much beloved capital and Milan has serious cosmopolitan clout, Florence remains unrivaled in history, art, and architecture (its beauty and cuisine don’t hurt, either). In addition to being the birthplace of the Renaissance, the Firenze of recent years has had a modern makeover: Study Tuscan classics with celebrity chef Arturo Dori…

These days, one of the world’s oldest cities is brimming with new life. See the Acropolis and the Ancient Agora, sure, but don’t missing shopping Monastiraki’s flea market, walking up Lykavittos Hill, or exploring the city’s burgeoning Exarcheia neighborhood. Earmark an afternoon for the Renzo Piano-designed, $623 million Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, which houses…

Rome, Italy’s capital, is a sprawling, cosmopolitan city with nearly 3,000 years of globally influential art, architecture and culture on display. Ancient ruins such as the Forum and the Colosseum evoke the power of the former Roman Empire. Vatican City, headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church, has St. Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican Museums, which…