GETTING READY

On April 5 next I fly off from Brisbane to Casablanca in Morocco via Singapore and Rome. I shall be joining a small group of enthusiastic and experienced fellow travellers from the Australia China Friendship Society and we shall travel for two weeks in a clockwise direction in our own bus from Casablanca, visiting not only the four imperial cities of Fès, Meknès, Marrakech and Rabat but also the natural attractions of the Atlantic coast along with the remote villages of the High Atlas and Rif mountains and then make our way across the Sahara Desert. After Morocco we head to historic Sicily, where we shall spend another two weeks exploring this gastronomic and architecturally significant island, finishing up, of course, on Europe's most spectacular volcano, Mt Etna. At this stage, when we get back to Rome, I will leave the group and spend a couple of weeks in Italy by myself, visiting, at first, Cinque Terre, a gorgeous, mountain area consisting of five charming and idyllic villages overlooking the Ligurian Sea. From there I shall head north to picturesque Lake Como, located in the shadow of the Italian Alps, where I shall explore this stunning area by local ferry. After Lake Como my next stop will be Tuscany, spending three days each in the renowned art centres of Florence and Siena before making my way back to Rome and then homeward bound.