My Favorite Chique Place in the World

My Favorite Chique Place In The World
By Barbara Conelli

My favorite place in the world? The answer is easy: There’s isn’t any because there are too many of them, and there are still so many left to explore. Saying I have a favorite place would mean admitting that I love the others less, and that wouldn’t be fair.

I’m a nomad and an adventurer, and I love soaking in the atmosphere of unknown places and reconnecting with the energy of the places I know. I love the new and the familiar. I love the highs and lows of every place, and the ups and downs of travel. I love the rollercoaster of emotions that you experience when you see something monumental and you can’t believe that human beings have ever been able to create something this beautiful. When I travel, I laugh a lot, and I cry even more. The vibe of adventure gets the best of me, and at the same time helps me grow and believe and understand.

I love big cities. I love their energy and their rhythm. I love streets flooded with people. I love outdoor cafés. I love the morning peace, the afternoon buzz and the evening city funk. I love hot cobblestones, streets wet with rain, and stories that only cab drivers can tell. I love the delicate, intricate, fascinating mixture of the old and the new that every big city has a unique recipe for.

I love fairytale villages with their slow daily rituals. I love their communities and the families that have known each other for generations. I love home-made food, evening gatherings on the piazza, and the daily rumor digest. I love the quiet nights full of cicadas, and the morning crowing and bird songs. I love fresh baked bread and goat cheese for breakfast, and the fresh breeze throughout the day.

I love lush places off the beaten track, where nature still lives in harmony and where humans feel small and insignificant, gazing in awe at the wonders of this miraculous planet. I love feeling one with the beauty and the richness, realizing the invisible, all-knowing power that created this perfection resides in each and every one of us.

My favorite place in the world is the Chique place I’m at right now. Tomorrow I may very well be somewhere else, but today, this is my home away from home. This is the place I love, adore and admire. This is the place I’m one with.

Barbara Conelli is an internationally published author and Chiquenist on the mission to bring Fantastic Fearless Feminine Fun into women’s lives. In her charming, delightful and humorous Chique Books filled with Italian passion, Barb invites women to explore Italy from the comfort of their home with elegance, grace and style, encouraging them to live their own Dolce Vita no matter where they are in the world.

Barb learned to read and write at the age of four, and a year later, she wrote her first bestselling book that became a big hit in local kindergartens. She turned into an overnight success that lasted for twelve exciting hours. Since then, she has never separated from her writing endeavors. Barb writes even in her sleep and she can often be seen sitting on her bed at three a.m. with a flashlight frantically processing her somnambulant ideas. A born nomad and adventurer, she’s been there, she’s done it, and she’s not afraid to write about it.

An entertaining storyteller, Barb has a unique ability to capture the magical atmosphere of the places she writes about. Through the pages of her books, Barb takes your hand and guides you through the irresistible beauty, captivating secrets, unrepeatable spell and fugitive moments of Italy. She makes them come alive easily and spontaneously, and her writing is like a magic carpet that carries you to Italy and back in the blink of an eye. She introduces you to fascinating women who have created the face of Italy, lifts the shroud of their mysteries, and reveals adorable places off the beaten track where the authentic Italian heart hasn’t stopped beating.

As a naturally curious person who loves traveling, meeting new people and discovering their life stories, Barbara founded Chique Show, an entertaining radio show for women and about women. On Chique Show, Barbara shares her Dolce Vita adventures and interviews inspiring women authors and experts who show listeners how to live their sweet life with gusto.

Barb lives between New York and Milan, and as a real globetrotter, she’s always on the move, accompanied by her adorable and very spoiled beagle. To her, writing is like breathing, and she’s currently working on her new book.

Her latest book is Chique Secrets of Dolce Vita, a narrative travel nonfiction book full of charming, poetic, delightful and humorous travel and life stories about extraordinary Milanese women, men who have succumbed to their temptation and the art of living your own dolce vita no matter where in the world you are.

You can visit her website at www.barbaraconelli.com or connect with her at Twitter at www.twitter.com/barbaraconelli or Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/barbaraconelli.