Hey, travel friends! Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, and Guide Collective wants to be your Valentine!

“Several of us members of GC have shared some photos and tidbits about special women in our lives—women who have influenced us, guided us, helped us to evolve into the people we are to they. And to them, we say, ‘Thank you for being you and for all that you do!’”

Romantic, majestic, and dominant, the “Cedro di Libano” can be seen from almost any vantage point in the Barolo area. From the top of the vine-covered hill, this cedar tree has incredibly witnessed the Langhe wine region's metamorphosis for the last 165 years.

…Love is the theme of our songs, movies, poems, books, and art because it’s the most important force in our lives. It’s our most important emotion. It drives our actions, our goals , and is the basis of our emotional connections with others, human and non-human. Giving, receiving, and feeling love makes us happy!

When it comes to expressing love, and the emotions associated with it, sometimes words just simply aren’t enough. From a simple hand-tied posy of wildflowers to an explosion of exotic blooms; a dozen red roses to a corsage or boutonniere on Prom night—flowers can speak so eloquently on our behalf.

Thanks to a certain William Shakespeare, who chose to lay the scene for his play Romeo and Juliet in a certain town in the Veneto, Verona is considered Italy's “City of Love.” I interviewed local guide Sara Valitutto from Romeo & Juliet Guide (she works in partnership with her friend Virginia Conta). She can show you that there is so much more romantic charm to Verona than just Juliet's balcony.

GC’s “Poet Laureate,” Charlie Rawson, shares her latest beautiful, evocative creation.

Spain’s culture is as rich, intriguing, and complex as its history. Here are 5 movies that will help you better understand both.

Hey, travel friends! Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. Our guides are feeling full of love, and we’d love to share a bit of Valentine goodness with you!

In the second he opened that door, the world stopped. There she was, the most beautiful goddess in the world. Her blonde curls were playing joyfully with the wind. Her blue eyes were as clear as the Mediterranean Sea. She had dimples when she smiled and she was smiling at me.

Vita nuova translates to “new life,” and through prose and poems Dante describes his relationship with the love of his life, Beatrice. These two first met in Florence when they were nine years old, and then again when they were 18. The early poems in Vita nuova show Dante as a young man besotted with Beatrice’s beauty, love-sick like a hormonal teenager. As in any pop-culture romance, his infatuation has its ups and downs. He’s devastated when Beatrice refuses to greet him in the street. He even has a dream in which Love appears to him personified, and feeds Dante’s heart to Beatrice.

One of our neighbours’ sons, got married in 2016, so I asked if I could write about “going to the chapel,” aka, the wedding, and the answer was “Si!” Weddings are a fun and interesting way to get a glimpse into any culture. This wedding was a great mix of old traditions and modern trends.

I realize that I am blessed to have been born in the US (thank you , Mom and Dad, for seeking and working for a better life). I realize that I enjoy great privilege in being able to travel and learn from experiences and cultures from all over the world, and I do not ever want to take any of that for granted.