João Pessoa, a random downtown flower shop I thought was pretty
Praia da Pipa cliff, with a little lizard climbing the side
The view from Mirante Sunset Bar in Praia da Pipa
João Pessoa
João Pessoa
João Pessoa
João Pessoa
Praia da Pipa
This reminds me of the sign in Toronto’s Nathan Phillips Square
A beautiful piece of stained glass outside a Brazilian Museum in Downtown João Pessoa
Hot Temaki, a handroll breaded in chicken strip breading… leading to the best sushi I ever had
The inside of a Hot Temaki Ebi (Shrimp) Roll
Red cliffs just outside of Pipa Beach
Praia Do Amor (beach of love) – one of many bars along the coast
Praia do Amor coastline
Mirante Sunset bar, well worth the cover charge
Mirante Sunset Bar 2
Mirante Sunset Bar is still beautiful, even after the sun has set
The sheer cliffs are right next to the beach – be careful walking up and down
Aventureiro Pipa is one of many boat tours you can get on the beach – they guarantee you will see wild dolphins, or your money back – well worth it!!
The tide is extremely large on Pipa Beach, all of these rocks were well underwater by the time we walked back – be careful not to get stranded!
The view from underneath the world’s largest cashew tree!
The view from above the world’s largest cashew tree!
This tree marks the spot where Julius Caeser was stabbed by the Senate. Supposedly, 60 people agreed to stab him, but he had only 23 wounds
Tomb of the unknown soldier, World War I memorial at the Victor Emmanuel II monument in Rome
Inside the Victor Emmanuel II monument
Roman Coliseum – apparently all sorts of people and animals were kept underneath in nearly complete darkness for days before their gladiatorial battles
Adjacent to the Ancient Roman Forum, this is the ancient marketplace
Piazza Navona, where we found the Brazilian Embassy, has some beautiful fountains, including the Fountain of the Four Rivers
One of the beautiful ceilings in the Vatican Museums
The Fontana dell’Acqua Paola was really far away from any other landmarks, and not worth the walk
Another small fountain in Italy, Italy is littered with fountains, which seem.to have historically been a sign of wealth
The Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore was one of my favourite churches in Rome, beautiful inside, and with a fragment of the cradle of Jesus Christ
Monument to the fallen Stuart line of Catholic Kings of Britain, St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican City
The Pietà by Michaelangelo, in Vatican City. Carved when Michaelangelo was only 22, people doubted he built it, so he carved his name into Mary’s sash, which he always regretted as ruining such a masterpiece
The Florence Duomo, such a marvelous piece of architecture
Ponte Vecchio, one of the ancient bridges of Florence with old storefronts that still operate as jewelry stores
Another painting of The Last Supper, not the famous one by Da Vinci – so rare to see any other painting of the subject matter
Some of the artwork of the Basilica di Santa Croce, the burial place of Michaelangelo, Galileo, Machiavelli and others
The inside of the Florence Duomo, built by Filippo Brunelleschi. He refused to tell anyone how he built it, to protect his work and prevent others from copying it. Entire theses have been written by architecture PhDs trying to replicate thos fifteenth century work
The Florence Duomo is also known as the Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore, a fully functioning church
Michaelangelo’s David, at 5.17 meters tall, it was much bigger than I ever imagined.
It was weird to view Michaelangelo’s David from angles not normally photographed
One of the many Venetian Cathedrals, the water fronts made them particularly beautiful.
The inside of the Santa Maria dei Miracoli, Venice, to host a miraculous painting of the Virgin Mary, which has been associated with all sorts of miracles, including the restoration of life
So many seagulls, but such a Venice is such a beautiful backdrop for any picture
Basilica Cattedrale Patriarcale di San Marco, Venice, with the Piazza in front
A close up of Basilica Cattedrale Patriarcale di San Marco
Even the skyline in Venice is beautiful
Another beautiful Cathedral in Venice, there are so many I can’t remember all the names
The canals in Venice were wonderful, we just took the bus (read: public transport boat) and looked at all the beautiful architecture
Another beautiful skyline photo of Venice
The Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels and the Martyrs of Rome is ugly outside, but that’s because they removed more recent attempts at restoration. Designed by Michaelangelo, inside it is one of the most gorgeous churches I’ve ever seen.
Click on any image to see a larger version – please don’t steal these, as I do own the copyright.