Leif Pettersen is a freelance writer, humorist, insatiable traveler, “slightly caustic” blogger and semi-professional wino from Minneapolis, Minnesota. He has been a regular contributor for Lonely Planet and LonelyPlanet.com. His work has appeared in MSN, USA Today, Mapquest/AOL Travel, CNN Travel, BBC Travel, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Star Tribune, Travel + Leisure magazine, Rough Guide First Time Europe (6th Edition) and more. Leif’s engaging, humor-driven writing voice is well known in the travel writing community. He has been interviewed by the NewYork Times in an article about guidebook writers, OffTrack Planet, Matador’s “what’s in your backpack?” series and other popular outlets regarding his accomplished 11-year career as a travel writer. He was prominently featured in a Twitter report by the Minneapolis StarTribune. The Observer (Guardian UK) included him on their list of favorite Twitterers. He was labeled “the Larry David of travel bloggers” by Jaunted.com and was included in Galavanting’s “2010 Hunkiest Men in Travel” list.
If you’re looking for the best gelato in Florence, just follow this gelateria itinerary. Gelato is one of life’s greatest pleasures, except when it’s six months old and has suffered tragic freezer burn but the cafe charges you three euros for a cup of that goop anyway. That sucks. To avoid this monumental letdown, I’ve made the ultimate sacrifice and...
According to UNESCO, 60 percent of the world’s most important works of art are located in Italy and approximately half of those are in Florence Museums. One can (and does) spend years getting a solid grasp on all the incredible artists that lived here and their groundbreaking work, so buckle up. This itinerary is listed as a “weekend or longer,”...
Florence churches are among the city’s must-see sights. If centuries-old places of worship containing some of the most celebrated art in the world and architecture that is no less amazing now than when it was painstakingly pieced together in medieval times is your thing, then you’ve come to the right place. Though these structures contain some of the most important...
The area south of the Arno River tends to be less hectic than the rest of Florence, despite the fact that there’s a lot of really cool stuff to see. If you’ve had one too many crowd-fueled nervous breakdowns, spend a day in this area enjoying plenty of elbow room and cultural amazingness. Begin at the Porta Frediano Moving roughly...
Florence is famous for its stunning art museums. So, you’ve climbed Mount Kilimanjaro and rowed across the Atlantic Ocean? Whatever. You have not begun to understand what true stamina is until you’ve done a comprehensive art crawl in Florence. According to UNESCO, 60 percent of the world’s most important works of art are located in Italy and approximately half of...
Between the markets scattered across the city and the assortment of eye-popping luxury and boutique shops, you’ll be well served by the Florence shopping options. Markets vary wildly offering staples and cheap stuff you can find in any strip mall and dollar store in the world to jewelry at heart attack prices. The shops are more specific, and more expensive,...
Florence’s accolades include the greatest collection of Italian Renaissance art in the world, the most famous sculpture in the world, one of the greatest cathedrals in the world, a bridge so beautiful that even Hitler (allegedly) could not bring himself to destroy it and some seriously toe-curling gelato. Additionally, there’s the exceptional cuisine, energized nightlife, a youthful, international array of...
Romania. It’s about the biggest bang for your buck in Europe and has incredibly diverse natural and man-made attractions, not to mention a head-spinning history, which I exhaustively detailed in my new book BACKPACKING WITH DRACULA. (Buy it on Amazon!)
Andorra.
Train, because there’s space to more around comfortably and it’s infinitely more dignified than flying is these days.
Something will go wrong, eventually. Just accept that and go with the flow or you’ll go insane.