God, Happiness and Life

These hotels are centrally located, rooms are air-conditioned and rates include breakfast. Grand Hotel Baglioni, Via dell'Indipendenza 8, 800-745-8883, www.baglionihotels.com /bologna-hotel. This Leading Hotel of the World has 122 rooms, Venetian glass chandeliers, silk brocaded walls and linen sheets, plus a stretch of Roman foundation and 16th century Carracci frescoes on the dining room ceiling; doubles from about $325. Corona d'Oro, Via Oberdan 12, 011-39-051-745-7611, coronaoro.hotelsbologna.it. A 35-room charmer in a refurbished historic building; doubles from about $300. Art Hotel Commercianti, Via dei Pignattari 11, 011-39-051-745-7511, www.art-hotel-commercianti.it . A 34-room, stylishly furnished boutique hotel; doubles from about $285. Trattoria Battibecco, via Battibecco 4, 051-223-298, www.battibecco.com . Despite it name, this is an elegant, stylish Michelin-starred restaurant specializing in superb seafood. Osteria de' Poeti, via De' Poeti 1, 0...

From the article written by Joan Scobey, a freelance travel writer. "Bologna the Learned honors its university, founded in 1088 and the oldest in the world. Its reknowned faculties bring 90,000 students to a city of less than 400,000 people, one reason why the municipal calendar is filled with concerts, opera, ballet and theater, why there seems to be a bookstore on every block, and why you hear street musicians play in the arcades. Ah, the arcades. Bologna the Red is a nod, not to its left-leaning politics, but to its ruddy arcades, 23 miles of them, lining the streets of central Bologna . They flank wide boulevards, narrow alleys, plazas and squares. Some have tall, Gothic arches, others are Romanesque and a few are simple wooden medieval beams. Their origins go back nine centuries, when medieval buildings were first cantilevered over the street to gain extra room for students at the new university. First-time visitors should head to the main square, Piazza Maggiore, the h...

A nice place that needs to be visited by my children if they could, someday I hope. "Tolentino is a relatively nondescript small town which it would be easy to skip in a tour of central It aly. This being Italy, of course, the place is of the hoariest antiquity, a stronghold of the Piceni, a tribe that gave the Romans a good deal of trouble before they were finally conquered, and there are vestiges of both peoples in the town's museum. This being Italy, you will also see several medieval churches, of which the oldest, despite its cold neoclassical façade, is S. Catervo, the cathedral, which dates back to the 4c and preserves the actual 4c marble sarcophagus of St. Catervus: and recent excavations have brought to light some of the saint's original Roman mausoleum. A rather striking 13c towered bridge, tall and narrow, forms the entrance to the city from the S: somewhat predictably monikered the Ponte del Diavolo, or Devil's Bridge. But such riches are common thruout th...

My cousin who works in Bologna tells me that it is a beautiful place. When I heard this, I immediately googled to do some initial sleuthing. From what I read so far I am already in love with this North Italian place were lots of 'important churches such as: San Pietro Cathedral, and the Basilicas of Santo Estafano, San Domenico, San Francesco, Santa Maria dei Servi, San Giacomo Megiorre, San Michele in Bosco, San Paolo the Great, and Sanctuary of Madonna di San Luca among others. The trip I guess the trip must be before the summer months of July and August which they say is too hot. And these months are school vacation months. I read somewhere that the best time is spring, not too hot not too cold. Bologna here I come :-)

The Year of the Rat for: The Dragon(Daughter) 1916, 1928, 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000 The rat is a good friend to the dragon. The new cycle that starts this year will bring prosperity to the dragon after what may seem like a long time of struggle. The stream of good fortune that you saw coming your way in a trickle last year will reach fullness this year. Your energy is strong after resting in the year of the pig and you will find that difficulties are able to be overcome. You will need energy to keep up with the social whirl coming your way. While much of your focus will be on friendships and love, put some of that energy toward career networking opportunities that will develop this year and will benefit you throughout the next cycle. The conservative nature of this rat year may give moments of frustration to the dragon who cannot tame a fiery nature. This is a time to begin ventures that will benefit from the steady nurturing earth influence but you will need patience ...

Today, it should be January 9 and a Wednesday in the Philippines. I realize in the western hemisphere it still is January 8. Hillary Clinton wins in New Hampshire. What the heck? That is not even significant to me. Nothing more than my first born's birthday. Lorraine, my eldest child and only daughter is at the crossroads of here young adult life. I think like all women of her age, the specter of losing the 'youth' part of her persona is kindda bothering her:-). I have been telling her not to worry because she really doesn't look like her real age. Believe you me, she looks more like 24. Really! I think more than anything, it's the concern about the 'child bearing age' thing. Again not to worry. Science is kinder now to women who takes care first of their career and worry about marriage or family life later. My daughter, up on her own terms and initiative did so much to improve herself. First, she took to school again after finishing a Bachelor of Science ...

This is a friend from way, way, way back. If anyone knows anything and everything about me, this is the gal. Married for 20 years, she and her husband decided to call the marriage off. She informs me that 10 years prior -- the marriage had already crumbled. But I thought all along that everything was fine, I exclaimed when I first found out early last year. Things have a strange way of ending out... she said:-( And so, single and free again I wish for her the best. Di I need a reason to be concerned about her? I guess not. I am positive she can continue hacking life the way she's been doing it forever. Hearing her speak about her personal fiasco, cements my belief that she'll get through this easily. After all, she said it took her just 6 months to 'mourn' the demise of her marriage. And because this woman is a traveler and hops from the U.S. to the Philippines like they were just an hour away, I know she will use travel to forget the forgettables in her life. January...