In 2023, my astrologer strongly urged me to visit Athens, Greece.

To be fair, it was on the list, but near the bottom.

I had amassed a list of options within my budget for a birthday trip. The only requisite, a seaside location. It’s tradition. I’m a Pisces.

Water is my element, but regardless of the stars, water makes me feel connected to the cycle of life. We discussed my chart and where I was geographically and emotionally.

For context: I was reeling from the loss of my mom and a recent breakup. I was still feeling unmoored, struck between Rome and New York City.

I was determined to find an agent to help sell my debut book, but I knew I needed some important author bylines to bolster my credibility.

According to Darryl, Athens was it.

Gaines, of Guiding Planet, explained astrocartography, a branch of astrology that treats places like people. It examines their relationship to each other and the celestial forces in motion.

I didn’t fully understand. That’s why he’s the professional, not me.

He explained that during my birthday my own chart had some momentum that corresponded with Athens’ own chart.

Read Darryl’s story here. Find him on Substack here.

Think of it as comparing partner charts for compatibility.

Jupiter is a major ruling planet of Athens (see below).

Jupiter is all about philosophy, knowledge, education and exploration. He didn’t know I had started studying Greek at the time, in part for love, and in part to discuss philosophy with a Greek friend!

Apparently something was happening with Mercury in Athens during my birthday. Mercury is the planet of self-expression and language. Wow.

That trip to Athens altered the trajectory of my whole life from my writing goals to my romantic aspirations and creative inspiration.

Check out Darryl’s take on these world cities.

AstroCartology is still a budding branch of astrology. In his classically Renaissance-style, Darryl identifies aspects of the stars as well as the cities’ respective personalities and potential.

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New York City: Gemini Rising / Sagittarius Sun

Birthdate: Often set at July 26, 1788 (ratification of the Constitution by NY).

Keywords: Communication, commerce, duality, speed.

Planetary Rulers: Mercury and Jupiter.

Why Gemini: The city’s intense media culture, subway veins, financial talk, and diverse voices reflect Gemini’s mutable air. Its global status and publishing/advertising dominance also fit.

Why Sagittarius: (symbolically): Ambition, expansion, cosmopolitanism.

Los Angeles: Pisces Sun / Leo Rising

Birthdate: Often noted as September 4, 1781 (original founding).

Keywords: Illusion, imagination, glamour, creativity.

Planetary Rulers: Neptune and the Sun.

Why Pisces: The dream factory of Hollywood, the blurred lines of reality, and wellness/spiritual subcultures.

Why Leo: The centrality of performance, charisma, and celebrity culture.

Chicago: Taurus Sun / Scorpio Moon

Birthdate: March 4, 1837 (incorporation).

Keywords: Industry, grit, endurance, rootedness.

Planetary Rulers: Venus and Pluto/Mars.

Why Taurus: Deep ties to labor, meatpacking, blues music, and fixed, steady growth.

Why Scorpio: (symbolically): A history of resilience through fire, crime, and reinvention.

London: Capricorn Sun / Virgo Moon

Birthdate: Tricky, but often symbolized with the Norman Conquest (1066) or Roman Londinium (~43 CE).

Keywords: Legacy, structure, formality, tradition.

Planetary Rulers: Saturn and Mercury.

Why Capricorn: The “empire” signature, class hierarchies, governance, and old institutions.

Why Virgo: The obsession with order, etiquette, and service.

Paris: Libra Sun / Pisces Moon

Birthdate: Traditionally July 8, 508 CE (Clovis I made it capital).

Keywords: Beauty, philosophy, romance, revolution.

Planetary Rulers: Venus and Neptune.

Why Libra: The architecture, style, diplomacy, and cultural sophistication.

Why Pisces: Emotional depth, art, a certain elusive melancholy.

Rome: Aries Sun / Scorpio Rising

Birthdate: April 21, 753 BCE (mythic founding by Romulus).

Keywords: Power, conquest, foundation, transformation

Planetary Rulers: Mars and Pluto.

Why Aries: Mars rules, a city of warriors and founders.

Why Scorpio: Religious influence, dramatic rebirths, imperial shadow.

Athens – Aquarius Sun / Sagittarius Rising

Birthdate: Mythic origins, but often symbolically tied to democracy’s birth (~508 BCE).

Keywords: Wisdom, democracy, rebellion, ideals

Planetary Rulers: Uranus and Jupiter.

Why Aquarius: Radical thought, collective ideals, birthplace of Western philosophy.

Why Sagittarius: Exploration, pedagogy, and cosmopolitan spirit.

Tokyo: Virgo Sun / Aries Moon

Birthdate: Symbolically July 1, 1869 (renamed Tokyo).

Keywords: Precision, innovation, structure, resilience.

Planetary rulers: Mercury and Mars.

Why Virgo: Orderly infrastructure, cultural etiquette, technological exactitude.

Why Aries: The underlying fierce independence and energy beneath surface calm.

Shanghai: Scorpio Sun / Gemini Moon

Birthdate: Symbolically November 7, 1292 (Yuan Dynasty county establishment).

Keywords: Power, mystery, trade, dual identity.

Planetary Rulers: Pluto/Mars and Mercury.

Why Scorpio: Deep economic power, strategic location, hidden strengths.

Why Gemini: Fast-moving energy, bilingual/multinational identity.

Sydney: Sagittarius Sun / Cancer Moon

Birthdate: January 26, 1788 (arrival of the First Fleet).

Keywords: Expansion, sea connection, celebration, cultural duality.

Planetary Rulers: Jupiter and the Moon.

Why Sagittarius: Big skies, outdoors, easy-going optimism.

Why Cancer: Oceanfront identity, homesickness in its colonial past, deep ancestral resonance

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Darryl's multidisciplinary take on celestial influences has earned him celebrity clients and lifelong friends.I count myself as lucky to be among them—the friend category for now.

But I am a Leo rising…so who knows?

In 2023, he strongly urged me to visit Athens, Greece.

I had amassed a list of options within my budget for a birthday trip. The only requisite, a seaside location. It’s tradition. I’m a Pisces.

Water is my element, but regardless of the stars, water makes me feel connected to the cycle of life. We discussed my chart, where I was geographically and emotionally.

According to Darryl, Athens was it.

He explained AstroCartography, a branch of astrology that treats places like people. It examines their relationship to each other and the celestial forces in motion.

I didn’t fully understand (that’s why he’s the professional, not me). That trip to Athens altered the trajectory of my whole life from my writing goals to my romantic aspirations and creative inspiration.

What Happened in Athens?

I made instant friendships and started healing a broken heart. I discovered work connections and sources for stories that led to coveted bylines in Wine Enthusiast, Travel and Leisure, and BBC Travel.

I had started learning Greek as a productive distraction when my mom was terminally ill. Every single Athenian indulged my rudimentary language skills and taught me new words and phrases. Patience of the angels!

Language and culture go hand in hand, so I began a deep dive into Greek wine and spirits.

I’m used to living among antiquity. I chose Rome for its beauty, mythology, and the grounding quality of millennia-old marble.

Athens is older than Rome, but it pulses with the relentless creative energy of youth. I felt embraced, invigorated, motivated, and am now addicted to how I feel in Athens.

Do I believe in astrology?

Let’s first define ‘astrology.’

Etymologically, astrology is the study of the stars. From the Ancient Greek ἄστρον / astron (star) and -λογία / logia (study).

The definition has evolved, infusing mythology, religion, and spirituality into pop culture.

My first astrologer (also trained in Jungian psychotherapy) explained astrology like this:

We are all born with an electromagnetic blueprint. Stars, planets, the moon… their gravitation push and pull uniquely affects all of us. Astrology is a way of examining who we are as part of a collective energetic exchange. We are, by definition, our relationship to each other and to the world.

Do I read my daily horoscope before making major decisions? No.

Do I read Rob Brezsny’s weekly horoscope translated into Italian for his literary references, inspiration, and entertainment? Absolutely!

When I want to make sense of life events through the lens of something bigger than me, I call Darryl.

Darryl speaks the language of astrology fluently, but he uses references that resonate with me.

Music, lyrics, literature and artwork. Whether you’re a horoscope obsessive or respectfully skeptical, conversation with Darryl is eye-opening and inspiring every time.

A Career Path Written in the Stars

Born into an ultra-religious Cristian household, Darryl grew up with zero exposure to astrology. If anyone talked about it, it was demonic, the devil’s work, he says.

So how did he get here?
According to his chart, Darryl is a Cancer with a Leo rising and a Leo moon. His sun in Mercury in the 11th house governs higher consciousness, literally and figuratively. My chart confirms my astrological abilities. I’m fulfilling my purpose, he says.

And personality-wise?
A chart ruled by the sun (Leo rising) creates a need to go “center stage,” but as a service for the collective. Communicating astrology to the collective consciousness, to a receptive audience.

Likening it it the joy of hospitality: You’re the center of the party, but it’s an act of service that brings you joy. In this life you either serve or you suffer.

Leos make great leaders and stars (Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Madonna, Mick Jagger, Jennifer Lopez), but are often seen as egocentric. Darryl sees it this way: That ego impulse is necessary to deliver your message. You’re in the spotlight so that everyone can feel the sun.

Re-embracing the Divine

A reading in Germany first exposed Darryl to his birth chart and its possibilities. His resistance to his religious upbringing had made him agnostic, but a burgeoning interest in astrology ultimately brought him back to a concept of the divine.

Astrology is a celebration of the spiritual. My mission is to bring it back to being a spiritual science, like it was historically, much like Kabbala (which you couldn’t study until age 40, ie mid-life).

This makes sense astrologically too.
You have to have lived the full circle. in astrology we move through phases: We start with Aries (Mars), which rules the head and the singular ‘I’. The cycle ends with a spiritual collective in Pisces (Neptune), which rules the feet. It’s also the ‘we’, multiplicitous. I’m living my journey.

I have always considered astrology a language or a lens. We use words to describe our lives, but language is more than vocabulary. I say the same thing about wine tasting. It's history, culture, context, tradition, and ripe for interpretation.

How do you personally define astrology?
Understanding what you’ve been born with, what you’ve been through, where you are now, and where you can go. Think of astrology as ‘weather patterns.’ How to they affect your personal plans?

Awareness is also free will. According to Darryl, astrology is a celebration of autonomy in the midst of collective energy.

How do you communicate your vision to non-experts like me?
In everyone’s chart I see a story like a musical composition or a film. We’re all under the same sky, so how do these seismic shifts [the outer planets and eclipses] surrounding earth create marks in time, beats, moments to be aware of?

Words aren’t always adequate. Sometimes a piece of music, or lyrics, or a film scene will convey a sensation or a aspiration, or even personality characteristic can be made clearer via a piece of art.

How do you reconcile astrology in the context of everything we know now, the shifting of the skies, redrawing of celestial maps and planets appearing and disappearing?

How do you reconcile astrology in the context of everything we know about the redrawing of celestial maps and planets appearing and disappearing?

Interest in Astrology is growing! Especially in the last 12 years. More people than ever are interested. A lot has to do with the times we’re living in. It’s an inconvenient truth when you can’t hide behind your race or sex. Your chart see you as you are—not a census box, but a part of a celestial/spiritual collective.

Astrology is blowing up in pop culture.
During the development of humankind and throughout the world, in ancient cultures, astrology was pervasive. Darryl sights scripture. In the book of Genesis it says, ‘heavens are signs for the seasons to come.’

In the 16^th and 17^th centuries we got away from that, rejection of church and the spiritual. We became more man-driven, patriarchal, and singularly focused.

Today I see a palpable pushback of putting people in boxes. At same the time we cling to things like tradition that are part of our identities. This explains the draw to astrology.

My trip to Athens altered the trajectory of my whole life from my writing goals to my romantic aspirations and creative inspirations. How did you come up with the idea to associate places with an astrological interpretation?

It’s a continuing education in astrology, and it also has ancient roots. AstroCartography, also known as Locational Astrology, was practiced in pre-Roman times. There was a strong belief in universal forces upon the land.

As Above, So Below
AstroCartography is a projection of a person’s birth chart over the earth’s surface—think of tracing paper. It’s a casting of celestial chart onto the earth’s latitudinal and longitudinal delineations.

I had a reading once that said California would be the ideal place for me. My career blossomed there, so did I. First in the fitness industry where I grew a community, and later as an astrologer.

Wherever we are, we are.
That’s important too. Sometimes a move can move your world. Then again, the best place on the planet according the your chart might be in the middle of the Atlantic, so it’s that’s not necessarily practical. But it might be something to think about. Maybe you need some peace and space.

Find Darryl on Substack too!

Darryl’s Take on AstroCartography

Still a work in progress, Darryl put together his own vision of place-based astrology. He treats major cities around the world as he would his clients.

• He takes into account their birthplace and time, historically and geographically.

• He examines and assigns each city a zodiac-coded “personality.”

Read it here!

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Hospitality on Four Wheels

Last month, I hitched a ride to the train station with these guys.

I was running late, it was hot, I had a backpack full of wine. Classic dilemma.

I may have charmed them into a free lift, but in the ten minutes it took us to get the station, the effervescent and enterprising team behind Florence Platinum Tours charmed me right back.

While notoriously walkable, tourist hubs like Rome and Florence rarely account for what I call human traffic.

It’s more than crowds. You navigate photo shoots in progress (if you’re being polite), risk selfie sticks to the eye, and you wait out parades of guided tours who choke intersections, like feckless baby ducklings, and far less cute.

Everyone is looking around in awe, or worse, at their phones. Accidents are inevitable.

Picture-Perfect Florentine Charm

From the inside of a convertible vintage car, the roads are instantly ours.

With the wind in my hair, we parted seas of people who didn’t mind making space. The vintage cars inspire joy. Tourists wave and smile. They snap photos of us too.

Before I dashed toward the train platform we exchanged numbers. I promised to be back. I wanted to learn more.

Kindness goes a long way.

As promised, I booked a two-hour ride during my most recent trip to Florence. It might just be the best money I’ve spent all year.

If you’ve even explored the islands, or even the coastline, with a boat and a skipper who is well versed in the geography, history, mythology, and wonderlands that await you on the water far from the shore, this is the equivalent.

Indigenous and Adopted, 100% Florentine

This brilliant band of brothers know every inch of the city.

The founders all grew up here, or very near here. They’ve got hospitality in their blood and on their resumes.

Elme, Moroccan-born and Chianti-raised met Giulio in school. They grew up in wine country with its deep ties to the Florentine hospitality world. The inseparable duo often spent weekends in the “big city.”

Co-founders, Francesco and Alberto have been embedded in the Florentine hospitality and tourism scene for decades. Former restaurant partners, they hired Elme for a job, and Giulio ultimately tagged along.

Despite substantial generational gaps, the four men clicked.

History, Diversity, and Innovation

The decades between them provided a rare synergy. Alberto, who is pushing 60, lived the so-called golden age of Italy—when life was less expensive, and la dolce vita was far more accessible.

Francesco, a late-stage millennial, experienced rapid advances in technology, the shift from lira to euro currency, and the urgent push toward innovation facing every Italian business.

Giulio and Elme represent a modern and more ethnically integrated Florence. They’re also true digital natives and bring a sense of adventure, youthful energy, and insight into the marketing and execution of their tour service.

The Vision

Co-founder, Gulio Bianchi explains:

Wanted to give tourism in Florence an infusion of authentic, Italian hospitality. We all love the city and we know it so well, we created the business to celebrate the place we feel so connected to.

On Teamwork

We’re not perfect, of course. We have our different point of view. But over all, the age gap, and the vastly different experiences work for our brand. We’re not too modern, and not too old-fashioned. It’s a via “di mezzo”, a middle way. It’s harmonious.

Eco-Friendly and Fabulous Fleet

The cars are 100% electric. On a single charge they can run all day. The model is a rehabbed Fiat 500 spiaggina convertible.

Choose from preset tours, for example: the classic, the sunset, the hills, or come with your own ideas and design a customized itinerary. The more information you provide at booking, the more in-depth and personalized your experience will be. Want to try the best ice cream in town? Drinks with a view? Check out Dante’s private chapel?

Let the team know, and they’ll make it happen. They have plenty of tips up their own sleeves too.

Florence Platinum Tours

SITE | @florenceplatinumtours
TEL +39 39227376800
For personalized tours, call or get in touch via the website.

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