Robert V. Camuto

Special to the Washington Post

I should have listened to the lady behind the rental car counter. She warned me that there was no sense -- and too much traffic -- in taking Route Nationale 7 through the Paris suburbs.

But I was on a mission to drive almost every inch of France's mythic road, which connects the capital to the Cote d'Azur by nearly 600 miles of what's now largely a back road through La France Profonde, or deep France.

Special to the Washington Post

It is hard for me to be objective about Sicily. In the past couple of years, I've fallen under its spell as I've crisscrossed the island: from the chaotic markets of Palermo to the stillness of the cooled lava flows on Mount Etna to the vast, rugged interior that turns from deep green in spring to a barren brown under a searing summer sun.

Sicily has become my second home: I love the contradictions of this historic place that cherishes its medieval traditions and refuses to follow simple modern rules; the natural bounty of the land; the resilience of the people; the pace of life; a cuisine with one of the widest varieties of local ingredients anywhere; and the monuments, churches and palaces, so often decorated to operatic excess.

Read full article in the Sydney Morning Herald or in the Washington Post

By Robert V. Camuto
Special to The Washington Post

Special to The Washington Post
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The Italian city of Verona is a sort of Disneyland of Eternal Love. Inspired by Shakespeare's tar-crossed lovers, hundreds of thousands of visitors flock yearly to places said to have been associated with "Romeo and Juliet."

Special to the Washington Post

If there is one thing the French do better than just about anyone, it's grandeur: the pomp and showmanship so convincing you almost believe that the world revolves (or should revolve) around the enlightened sun of la France.

Special to The Washington Post