
When I revisit the photographs from my recent 2-month journey through Southern Italy, I find them bursting with reminiscing details. There is something about those quickly seized moments that don’t at all seem like random samples of my ongoings: they remind me faithfully of what was so special about these minutiae, which jolt with revamped significance when I re-see what I originally saw.
Obviously, local attractions and prominent sights are a must see when traveling. But for me, it is more stimulating to see a place alongside the street. The noises, the aromas, the scenes, the ambiance, and the daily routines of the community. That is why I love using public transportation, dining at local places (the less tourists there are, the better), walking, watching people in parks, and shopping in the local markets where I can haggle. I look for small details, ordinary people, or situations I’ve never seen before but I can learn from, or maybe add to my personal inventory of activities. These, to me, are enormously more entertaining and instructive than any historic building or world-famous piece of art. The 13 explained images included in this 2024 calendar will show you very specific things from which I learned and that were enormously more entertaining and instructive to me than any scenery.