Shalom San Lorenzo • Rome (2,121 km)

(Rome, 13.06.2025-16.06.2025) Traveler, if you come to Rome on Shabbat, first go to the “Roman Ghetto” in Sant'Angelo and say “Shabbat Shalom” to the ladies. Cross the Tiber at the Isola Tiberino and stroll through the picturesque Trastevere. Perhaps make a stop and take a look at the houses in Piazza Eugenio Biffi, but don't miss San Lorenzo. This is where life pulsates, an alternative, trendy district with student flair and street art at its best. Make a little detour to the neighboring Esqilino and be sure to get an ice cream at Palazzo del Freddo Giovanni Fassi, an ice cream dynasty since 1880. The atmosphere is like a station waiting room, but the ice cream is fantastic and the people are simply happy; me too. On Sunday, I follow the young policemen from the Guardia di Finanza to St. Peter's Basilica. Have they lost their way, don't they have to go to Siena to follow the business of Igor Bidilo, the investor from Kazakhstan - we remember!?

Panoramas • Siena (1,847 km)

(11.06.2025-13.06.2025) Unlike the previous stages, it is not easy to leave the usual tourist routes in Siena. On the one hand, my desire to explore melts away in temperatures of over 30°C. On the other hand, the historic old town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1995, casts a spell over me, so excursions outside the city walls are out of the question. Siena has always been in rivalry with Florence in political, economic and artistic terms. The two cities must work it out among themselves, but I have never seen such impressive panoramas as in Siena. The shell-shaped Piazza del Campo with the Palazzo Pubblico and the Torre del Mangia, which is over a hundred meters high, is particularly overwhelming. Igor Bidilo, an investor from Kazakhstan with dubious activities in Cyprus, Estonia and Montenegro, must have thought the same. Since 2017, he has owned 15 of the 20 buildings that border the Piazza del Campo. That shouldn't stop us from enjoying the cityscape of Siena.

Trallalla • Modena (1,593 km)

(Modena, 09.06.2025-11.06.2025) “Fame, Sete & Trallallà” or “Hunger, Thirst & Trallalla” is the name of a restaurant in the historic old town of Modena and this is also the motto of the rich and famous who meet here. They have never had to suffer from hunger or thirst and the old town offers them the best backdrop for their trallalla. Luxury cars are part of the street scene here. Ferraris are handcrafted in neighboring Maranello, while Lamborghinis are made in Sant'Agata Bolognese. The Ferrari museums in Modena and Maranello are pilgrimage sites for Ferraristi from all over the world. Here you will also discover a red Ferrari F40 that belonged to Luciano Pavarotti, the famous son of the city of Modena. There is a gulf between the lively old town and the poor suburbs with a high proportion of immigrants. Here, hunger, thirst and trallalla have a completely different, much more concrete meaning. I satisfied my own hunger with a portion of tagliatelle bolognese. I went to Bologna especially for this and have not regretted this.

Green City • Milan (1,373 km)

(Milan, 06.06.2025-09.06.2025) A year ago, I traveled from France to Genoa and experienced a city drowning in noise, exhaust fumes and filth. I was correspondingly reluctant to visit another major Italian city. This time I came to Milan from Switzerland, over the Spülgen Pass (2,114 m above sea level, 75 hairpin bends). It's just as well that my spirit of discovery prevailed over my initial skepticism, because Milan is a green city and definitely worth a visit. Unlike Genoa, traffic is moderate, e-mobility is a matter of course and the Milanese enjoy the relaxed atmosphere of their city. They can do this undisturbed, because Milan Cathedral, La Scala and the Vittorio Emanuele Shopping Arcades act like a magnet by magically attracting all tourists. Everyone? Not everyone, not me! Instead, I visit the Cimitero Monumentale in the morning and the Fondazione Prada in the afternoon, two breathtaking hotspots off the beaten tourist tracks. Among the twelve famous blast furnaces by photographers Bernd & Hilla Becher, I also discover one from Duisburg; feelings of home and also a parallel to the first stage of my current trip.

Three Oases • Malbun (1,088 km)

(Malbun, 02.06.2025-06.06.2025) The small Principality of Liechtenstein, with 40,032 inhabitants, the smallest state in the German-speaking world, the fourth smallest in Europe and the sixth smallest in the world, was long known as a tax haven. This only ended under international pressure in 2009, when Liechtenstein transformed itself from a tax oasis into a natural oasis with very friendly princely subjects. I would be too with an annual per capita income of US$ 180,000.00, but not everyone can become a Liechtenstein citizen. Without family ties, you have to live here for at least 30 years before Parliament and ultimately His Serene Highness, the Prince, decide on naturalization. On the other hand tourists are allowed to use public transport free of charge, which is very practical in the changeable weather in the Alps and a good opportunity to visit the capital Vaduz and the neighboring Austrian town of Feldkirch. Back in Malbun, at an altitude of 1,600 m, I head to the hotel's wellness oasis; pure relaxation before the next stage.