Enter to Win an Italy Gift Pack!

Just to add some excitement to your week, we're having a giveaway!

To Enter:  

Leave a comment today or any day this week. Every comment enters you in the contest. You may enter more than once!

The Prize:  

A copy of Susan VanAllen's book 100 Places in Italy Every Woman Should Go plus a variety of Italian treats that I picked up on my trip this month

I've had two excerpts from Susan's book up this week: 

• Casa Guidi in Florence 
• The Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice

Check them out!  And then leave a comment here (or on any post from this week) to be entered to win!

It's that simple! Please include your email address in the comment form or make sure it is attached to your Google ID (your email isn't shared with anyone, and I will not send you email unless you win). 

Contest entries close Sunday, February 20 at 11:59 pm PST.

So... here's today's question: what's one place in Italy where you think every woman should go?  

Today: Michelangelo's Rome at The Rotary Club of Sacramento

I'll be the featured speaker today at the Rotary Club of Sacramento's luncheon gathering.  Today's topic: Pope Julius II's tomb, otherwise known as the Tragedy of the Tomb.  It'll be a fun gathering, and I'll have books to sign, too.

Thanks, Rotary, for inviting me!

Have a book club, civic organization, church group, or other gathering?  I'd love to come by!  Just ask!

Travel Writer Rick Steves to Speak in Sacramento Tonight

If you are in the Sacramento area, make plans to be at St. John's Lutheran Church tonight!  Travel guru Rick Steves will be speaking about his book "Travel as a Political Act" which was awarded the Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism best travel book of the year just last week.

Who: Rick Steves
When: Wednesday, October 20, 2010 at 6:30 pm (doors open at 6 pm)
Where: St. John's Lutheran Church (1701 L Street in Sacramento; parking information)
Cost: $40 per person -- tickets available at the door

The event is a benefit for Lutheran Social Services of Northern California and The Rwanda School Project -- two tremendous organizations.

I'll see you tonight!