Author: mattathomeintheworld

I was born and raised in New England, but spent almost 40 years living in southern California and San Francisco. I'm a retired psychology professor with a strong interest in natural disasters, media influences, and travel. I used to teach a specialty course on the Psychology of Travel and created my own travel website at www.mattathomeintheworld.com I recently published my first book: At Home in the World: Reflections of a Travel Addict. Please come check out my site!

American Roadtrip, Part II: The South

by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Travel Recommendations, USA, USA Roadtrips

After my first visit south of the Mason-Dixon line some 40 years ago, I joked that now I understood the reason that the South lost the Civil War. They were obviously too full from all their amazing foods to be able to fight at full effectiveness. Despite the fact that I was born a Yankee, I lived in Virginia for a couple of years and I’ve traveled through the southern states often. From the Carolinas to Texas, I find the people to be among the warmest, most welcoming and polite I’ve ever encountered.

Y’all read more now, hear?

You Don’t Have to Take Route 66 to Get Your Kicks! American Roadtrip, Part I: The Southwest

by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Travel Recommendations, USA, USA Roadtrips

“Get Your Kicks on Route 66” is a popular refrain from the 1946 song that was made famous by Nat King Cole and subsequently was recorded by dozens of other artists including Chuck Berry, Asleep at the Wheel, and Michael Martin Murphy. While vestiges of the old highway that wound “from Chicago to L.A.” still remain (notably in the California desert and various parts of New Mexico and Oklahoma), much of it has been replaced by Interstate 40. But don’t despair, you can get your kicks on any number of highways that crisscross the U.S. You just have to take that long dreamed about road trip!

The Burr Trail, a scenic but rugged drive off Highway 12 near Boulder, Utah

Let’s hit the road! Read More:

Corsica: Land of Pristine Beaches and Pristine Rental Cars

by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Europe, France: Corsica

For years I’ve wanted to visit the French island of Corsica, intrigued by stories of its incredible natural beauty. I’ve been to 10 of the Greek islands and to Sicily and Sardinia in Italy, and have loved the scenery and amazing beaches to be found on all of them, but people assured me that Corsica trumps them all. Corsican culture is a mixture of Italian and French influences and so I assumed that I would feel right at home there, so I was eagerly anticipating my 5 day visit to this Mediterranean paradise.

P1150874
The Amazing Beaches of Corsica’s West Coast

Read on!

Where the Pappardelle Fly and It’s Hard to Say “GUDABYE”: Italy, Summer, 2017

by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Blogs, Italy

As I do almost year, as soon as my semester is over and I am free for the summer, I head for Europe and while I frequently visit other countries, my main target is Italy. This year, after a few days on the Greek island of Mykonos, I flew into Venice, picked up a rental car, and began a three week visit to my adopted home.

Handmade Pappardelle with Wild Boar Ragout
Read more:

Lo Stadio – An Evening at San Siro with Tiziano Ferro

by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Italy, Music

I’ve been following Italian pop music since my first visit to Italy in 1998, and over the years have discovered a number of amazingly talented singers and songwriters that I now follow regularly. I’ve also been fortunate enough to have the chance to see some of them in concerts both in the U.S. and in Italy. So far I have seen Eros Ramazzotti twice, and both Laura Pausini, and Giorgia once. But another of my favorite artists, Tiziano Ferro has been more elusive…

Read more:

Mykonos with Italian Book-ends

by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Blogs, Greece

Every year, within hours of the final graduation ceremony at my university, I’m usually Europe-bound, sometimes with a group of students for a study abroad trip, sometimes solo. I always try to leave before May 15, because after that magical date, air prices increase by $700 or so. This year I used frequent flier miles for the trip, and because I booked in December, I could leave any damn day I chose to! I opted to have a week at home after school ended and it was really a nice change, as I felt a lot more together by the time I was ready to leave on the 22nd. I’d made dozens of plane, hotel, car rental and airport shuttle reservations over the last months, and everything was perfectly planned. Or so I thought…

P1140852
Mykonos, Greece

Read on!

Hawaii: Paradise Found

by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Hawaii, Travel Recommendations, USA

I’d put off a visit to Hawaii for many years, thinking that all it had to offer was the crowded beaches of Waikiki or corny lounge singers performing “Tiny Bubbles”. I could not have been more wrong, and I’ll always be grateful for the day when I finally discovered the Hawaiian Islands and for the fact that I’ve been able to return to them many times since.

Landing in Paradise… passing Lanai on the descent into Maui
The welcoming face of Hibiscus blossoms
Welcome to the “Aloha State”

Let’s explore the islands!

Cucineria Pane Vino & Zucchero, Montepulciano

by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Italy, Toscana and Firenze, Travel Recommendations

Every visit to Italy that I make requires careful planning to be sure I’m able to dine at all of my tried and true favorite restaurants. Still, I always enjoy finding a new place to add to my list and on a recent trip to Tuscany I had one of the best dining experiences ever at a restaurant called Pane, Vino & Zucchero, which means Bread, Wine and Sugar. That sounded like a winning combination to me, and I am so glad I discovered this place!

P1140457
Antipasto of cheese, meat and fruits

Read more about Pane Vino & Zucchero:

Wildflower “Superblooms” and an Unpredictable Earthquake Fault: Exploring the Heart of California

by mattathomeintheworld, posted in California, U.S.A.

When I was young and growing up in Massachusetts, I had an almost scary obsession with California. Perhaps it was the influence of TV, beaming images of the “Golden State” into my living room on a daily basis, but to me, California seemed like the Promised Land, and from an early age I dreamed of going west.

P1140605
The Golden State is even more golden this week with a wildflower “Superbloom”

Explore the heart of California… read more:

Spring Break in Italy: A Lot More Fun Than a Run to the Grocery Store

by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Blogs, Italy

Years ago I studied Italian at the Italian Cultural Institute of San Francisco. We had a great class of 12 people who all got along famously and shared a love for Italy, the Italian language and our phenomenal teacher, Diletta. We were also a group of avid travelers. One night in class, a student named Andrew shared that he’d be missing the class the following week as he was off to Rome for a week. A couple of weeks down the road, it was my turn to announce that I would be away in Italy and would have to miss class for the following two weeks. Then our classmate Judy volunteered that she and her husband would be in Venice at the end of the month and that she too would be missing class. Diletta, shaking her head in a mix of disbelief and envy muttered, “You people run off to Italy the way I run to the grocery store!”

Let’s run off to Italy! Read more!