Italy 2005 Trip Report.

Find a full write-up on the Fodor's Italy forum. =)

PHOTOS: For your viewing pleasure.

We took around 1,000 photos while we were in Italy! I've plucked out twenty or so from each leg of the trip to share with you. Feel free to leave any comments by clicking the link at the bottom of the post. Enjoy!

The Veneto
Venice
Burano

The Amalfi Coast
Positano
Capri
Amalfi & Ravello

The Eternal City
Rome

The photos begin...

Here are two sweet photos that we will treasure from our adventure. More will definitely be coming. ;)

The two of us in Capri atop Monte Solaro:



Our new Swedish friends, Erica and Henrik. Meeting these two was a definite highlight of the trip for us:

DAY 13: Back home again.

Well, we obviously did not find an internet cafe last night. We had a lovely last jaunt around Venice... walking and enjoying the city one more time. It's such an awesome town. A little too full of tourists right now, though. We bid our dear gelato farewell with 2 more trips during the day. Also, ate cichetti for dinner in the same place we ate the first night. That stuff is mmm-mmm good. We'll definitely miss the food.

So, we got up at 4:20 am this morning and jetted off in our water taxi to Venice's airport. We flew back through Rome and finally got into Cincy at 2:00 this afternoon. By 9:30 this evening, we will have been awake for 24 hours. Ugh. Hoping to go to bed at normal Indiana time, but we are already feeling a bit hazy. We'll see how that goes.

Cheers to those of you that checked in on us. We're happy to be home and it was awesome to see my parents and sister waiting for us in the Cincy airport. Also, the kitties are purring a lot. We'll be posting a few pics shortly, so check back in... xoxo, h&s

DAY 11: When in Roma...

Sorry all, we couldn't find an internet cafe last night. Turns out it was right around the corner from our hotel. More importantly, we have discovered what is across the street... the cat sanctuary! Roman law states that cats have the right to live where they are born, so they turned the site of the assassination of Julius Caesar into a giant cat playground. The cats are all sterilized, fed, sheltered, and available for adoption. We really enjoy watching them crawl around the ruins and nap on columns.

After the London disaster yesterday, security seems a bit picked up around here, but otherwise it's business as usual. Today we went to the Vatican. That St. Peter's Basilica is one massive place... you could get lost in there. The Sistine Chapel was quite impressive as well, but you have to look at about 50,000 statues and tapestries to get to it.

Yesterday we had gelato three times, which might be a new record. We also took in the Pantheon, which was really amazing and well-preserved. Of course, there was a McDonald's in the Pantheon piazza, which is always disturbing. Fortunately we haven't seen a Starbucks or anything like that.

We're planning on trying to get into the best pizza place tonight. It's our last night in Rome, and we leave for Venice early tomorrow morning. We're planning on visiting Trina and her family before heading home bright and early on Sunday. This might be our last post until we see you state-side. Ciao, h&s!

DAY 09: Even the dogs eat gelato here.

Wow! Fun comments the past couple of days. Thanks for checking up on us, everyone. ;) Check out the bottom of this post for specific replies.

So, last night we saw a dog with a gelato cone in its mouth. It was a white chihuahua and the cutest freaking thing we have ever seen. Dogs are strange creatures in this city. They also sit on the floor board of scooters and ride along the streets with their owners with their tails dragging along the ground. How do they get trained to do this?

Today we toured the most famous bits of Rome. We saw the Roman forum, the Colosseum, the Palantine Hill, and the Capitol Hill. It was all very interesting and probably some of the oldest stuff we have laid eyes on. We also stopped by the "Mouth of Truth", made famous by Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday. It was pretty cool (except for the fact that we had to wade through 1,000 Japanese tourists to get close to it). Fortunately, it did not eat either of our hands.

Tomorrow, we are doing a couple of short walking tours with our handy Rick Steves guide. Included is the Pantheon (see below). We also change hotels tomorrow, so not sure of the internet situation again... stay tuned! xoxo, h&s



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Brooke - Happy Birthday tomorrow!!! Hope you have a great day. Hugs and love.

Eric - This is the 3rd bunch of Swedes we have met and they also do not know of Fireside. They always know Kent, but never Fireside. Are you sure they really exist? We think it might be a figment of your imagination. Can't wait to hear more about your trip... hope you took pics of those kids for us.

Nathan - Hey! So sad again that we missed you while you were in Indiana. Hope your mom's wedding was awesome. No Roman pizza yet, but it is in the stars for tomorrow night. We can confirm that the spaghetti carbonara is fine, though. ;)

Mom - We think you will probably just need to park and come in to the Delta counter to meet us. We could not really distinguish an area for you to pick us up and do not want you to have to drive in circles should our flight be late. We can't wait to see you all!

DAY 08: Road to Rome.

We are here in Rome now! It was a long day travelling... started off taking a boat to Salerno with our new Swedish friends. They got off in Amalfi and we said a sad goodbye. We had a great time with them. In Salerno, we picked up a crappy, gypsy-infested train that took us to the Eurostar in Naples. After another hour or so, we arrived!

This city is more walkable than I remember. Tonight, we went from our hotel near the Colosseum to Trevi Fountain to the Spanish Steps. Looking at a map before the trip, I did not think this would be doable. It was a nice walk, though... and surprisingly, the weather tonight is lovely.

Anyhow, we are going to bed early tonight. No Swedes to keep us up. LOL.

On another note, Shawn's bag finally arrived around 7 pm last night. We were about to leave for dinner and the bellman came up saying "Cè un miracolo!", which you can probably guess, means "It's a miracle!" It truly was. Nothing seems to be missing and we have clean pants. Woo.

Dinner last night was also interesting. We went with the Swedes on a private boat to a neighboring village, Praiano. The food was not as good as we had hoped, but it was pretty glamorous leaving Positano on our own freaking boat. Man, the Amalfi Coast was sweet.

Well, we had better turn in. This computer is just too slow and we do not feel like getting ripped off... ciao for now! Hugs and love to everyone... xoxo, h&s

PS Thanks again to Sis and Mom for the updates... keep em coming! We appreciate the litter box duty (or shall I say 'doodie' as well!).

DAY 07: Further up the coast.

It is 4th of July at home and we hope you are all having a great day off! We took off early this morning to visit another Amalfi Coast town, Ravello. It was gorgeous! The bus ride was another white knuckle experience as we ascended to what felt like the top of the world. We walked around villas with amazing gardens and took in several jaw dropping panoramas. One particular lookout was called the infinity balcony. We couldn't quite see Indiana, though. Many pics will follow...

Tonight is our last night in Positano. We had a lovely dinner with the Swedes last night. I came to find out that what I thought was Erikka is actually Erica. It turns out that Erica is the incorrect spelling in Sweden, while Erika is the correct spelling. Thought sis would enjoy that since she is incorrectly spelled at home. Confusing, eh?

For the record, we also found out that Ikea meatballs are actually a decent meal and pretty accurate to boot. Love that.

We're heading back to our hotel now. Shawn called Alitalia this morning as the luggage never arrived last night. I really, really want new underwear and he sincerely will throw away the shirt he has been wearing this week. The pics will all look the same. Ha.

Love to all, h&s

DAY 06: Capri è troppo bello!

Last night ended up being wonderful. We took an odd station wagon/limo to Montepertuso at the top of a cliff for dinner. There was a little festival going on in the town below, and the view from our table went all the way down to the sea... it was really breathtaking! The best part about the meal was our dessert, consisting of two different cakes. Yum!!

On our way back to the hotel, we were heaped into a mini-bus with other diners. Oddly, we all hit it off, and ended up hanging out with a couple of Swedes and Aussies down on the beach back in town. From here we had some drinks and watched the fireworks from the festival high above us.

Today we took a jet boat to the island of Capri with the Swedes (Henrik and Erica). They've been together for 14 years, are both 31, and are very friendly (not to mention they speak impeccable English). The boat ride itself was worth the price of admission, with lovely blue water, sunshine, and once-in-a-lifetime views of the island and Positano.

After a drink and gelato (naturally), we split off and took a chair lift to the top of the highest point on Capri. The 360 degree view was dizzying (as was the bus ride to the lift). We took 200 pictures, so you'll be seeing it sometime, although I doubt anything can do it justice.

Now we're back in Positano, and rumor has it that our luggage may be en route to our hotel. Hopefully this means that H won't have to wash her underwear in the sink tonight, and I might actually wear a different shirt for the first time in 3 days. :)

We're off to relax on our balcony (see picture below for a taste of our view).
Ciao!

DAY 05: It is our anniversary!

So, it is our anniversary. Why are we at an internet cafe? Well, travelling light does not pay off on Alitalia. On the way here (we are currently in beautiful Positano), we flew Alitalia direct from Venice to Naples. Our small bags were apparently "too heavy" for the cabin. We were forced to check them, so naturally, Shawn's bag is now lost. He has one shirt, one pair of shorts, and one pair of shoes. For some odd reason, his underwear and socks were in my bag, while my underwear and bras were in his. So, I have no undergarments, but he has plenty. So, his drawers will be clean, but nothing else. LOL.

Anyhow, nobody knows how to make a collect call to the US. Our travel insurance instructed us to call collect, so we are now in the internet cafe (instead of beautiful Capri) to find out how the hell to get a hold of them. We think we have finally found the answer... now to find a telephone that will work correctly.

Regardless, this place is absolutely gorgeous. We will try to post a pic soon. In the meantime, check out the banner at the top of this blog. That is our view at night. Our hotel room is AMAZING. They actually used our exact room for the scenes in Positano in the film "Under the Tuscan Sun". Yeah, the movie kind of blew, but we like to watch it simply for the scenery.

Most importantly, it is our first anniversary. We watched our video before we left to remember what a beautiful day we had last year. The affection our friends and family showed us was beyond incredible... we love you all! It definitely was the happiest day of my life so far...



So, we might go check out this town now. Keep your fingers crossed that our bag will return to us soon. Otherwise, Shawn might begin to smell... ;) xoxo, h&s

PS. We have both recovered nicely from sore throats (Duane, did you somehow wish this upon us?). Hope our kitties are pooing in their boxes...

DAY 03: To avoid your place in hell...

Here we are on day 3... our last day in Venice (until the end of our trip next Saturday, at least). Shawn slept horribly because he now has my sore throat from last weekend. I, however, enjoyed an air conditioner that was working much better! Plus, we had a major storm last night. It was awesome and helped get rid of the humidity. We could not have been happier. We actually went out in the rain to St. Mark's Square where plenty of people were still dancing and listening to the musicians who were now under tents. The vaporetto ride over there was absolutely crazy. The Grand Canal was raging and we all kept getting splashed. Again, it was awesome.

So, this morning, we took a train to Padova (20 minutes away) to see the Scrovegni Chapel. The chapel was commissioned by a member of the Scrovegni family in 1300-ish, the purpose of which was to save a family member from burning in hell. They were known for being greedy, which according to even Dante, was worthy of eternal damnation. As luck would have it, Giotto was availble to cover the chapel in frescoes from top to bottom. Beautiful! Now, the paintings are so precious that viewers are only allowed in the chapel for 15 minutes at a time, in groups of 25. Before you enter, you enter a chamber to watch a short film while the humidity levels are stabilized inside the chapel. Craziness.

Padova also has a fair amount of modern, regular shopping (not high end boutiques like most of these cities). Shawn found a shirt he liked (but did not purchase). It actually advertised the Kentucky State Fair from 1982 and read: "Not since the caveman have humans eaten so much food on sticks." V. odd.

After we returned to Venice proper, we went straight to the Ghetto. The first ghetto was in Venice, but it is not as it sounds. The term is derived from the Venetian dialect and referred to the neighborhood where the Jewish population lived for a long time. There is nothing "ghetto" about the area, though. It is actually really cute. =)

We also hit several of our neighborhood bakeries for Italian cannoli and cookies this afternoon. We did not skip gelato, though... so do not even think that! Tonight we are turning in early and leaving for Naples and the Amalfi Coast early tomorrow. Not sure of the internet situation there, but stay tuned just in case...

Buona sera! xoxo, h&s

DAY 02: It's very hot.

Yep, it's unseasonably hot here, plus our room is sweltering. We avoided it by running around all day long. First we took the vaporetto to Burano, one of many small islands in Venice's lagoon. It was a charming, but more colorful, version of Venice. The houses are painted bright royal blue, purple, yellow, red, and so on. I got to try Coke-flavored gelato, which is even better than it sounds! We had a great lunch at the Gatto Nero (Black Cat); I got adventurous and ordered grilled eel... even better than Coke gelato! Except for the tail, of course.

In the afternoon we took a lengthy boat ride to San Giorgio Maggiore, which is basically an island consisting of a huge church. Unfortunately by the time we got there it was closing, so we hopped the boat back to Venice for more cichetti. A note about cichetti: you basically walk up to the bar and choose from several plates of appetizers. You may not recognize any of them, but chances are, they're delicious. Between last night and this evening, we have tried calamari, shrimp and scallop salad, tuna fritters, grilled tomatoes smothered in basil, pecorino and herbed goat cheese, potatoes and marinated sun-dried tomatoes, veal meatballs, and deep-fried zucchini blossoms. It's inexpensive to eat this way and you get to try so much. It all seems relatively healthy, as well (save the deep-fried stuff).

We've been using our Italian as much as possible, mostly with old women and shopkeepers (they speak more slowly). It's fun, and they seem surprised that we're from Indiana.

Tonight we're off to the main piazza, San Marco, for dancing... and probably more gelato.

So, anyone else out there? Talk to you tomorrow from our last day in Venice.
ciao, h&s

DAY 01: Lovable chaos.

Well, we're here! We were scheduled to arrive in Venice at 2:02 pm, but didn't check in until nearly 6 pm. If you saw our previous post about Delta screwing us, they did it again. After giving in to them and changing our itinerary, we waited in the blazing hot Rome airport only to see our connecting flight to Venice cancelled with no explanation. Aah!

So, we ended up flying into Verona an hour later. At that point, they offered to take us via shuttle to the Venice airport. We decided to take off on our own and hopped a bus into Verona, where we caught a train directly into Venice. So, we are exhausted and going to bed shortly (and it's like 2 pm Indiana time). As usual, sleep on the plane was scarce.

We spent this evening walking around the Rialto Bridge area in town. It bridges the Grand Canal and is very lively with many restaurants and, more importantly, gelaterias. We had a lovely tapas-style dinner (called cichetti in Venice) and our initial cup of the good stuff (chocolate-hazelnut for me, banana-limone for Shawn). It was a short day here in Venice after all the travelling we did, but we have the next two days completely devoted to her...



Hope to hear from you all soon! xoxo, h&s

ITINERARY

June 28 : 3 nights
Hotel Giorgione, Venice

July 01 : 4 nights
Albergo California, Positano

July 05 : 2 nights
Nicolas Inn, Rome

June 07 : 2 nights
Argentina Residenza, Rome

July 09 : 1 night
Pensione Guerrato, Venice

Arrivederci!

So long everyone! We hope you follow our travels by checking in with this blog frequently. We arrive in Italy Tuesday, and we hope to begin posting shortly thereafter.

Talk to you soon,
H&S

Learn from our mistakes.

On Monday, with seven days to go, our itinerary got a shake-up. I consider myself a seasoned traveller, but with all of the restrictions and policies that airlines instate, each trip is a unique experience.

In March, we purchased round-trip tickets from CVG - Venice with a plane change in Rome. Perfect, we thought! We had already decided to start our trip in Rome, so we could just get off the plane and leave the airport. Also planning to end the trip in Venice, our requirements were met. At the time of purchase, I noted that we should call Delta to alert them to the fact that we would be getting off in Rome, not Venice. After all, I had heard stories of tickets getting cancelled for such behavior.

When Shawn called the airline this past Monday, he was told that getting off the plane in Rome, rather than our true final destination, would be an "abuse of ticket". We could only do this if we paid an outrageous fee of $2200. The airline would have to issue a new ticket and we would need to pay the difference. What?! We didn't ask to change anything about our ticket. We just want to leave the airport in Rome and have two empty seats fly on to Venice. After explaining this, we were told that this does not allow the airline to "target the correct markets" when pricing tickets.

Seriously?! First of all, we're driving from Indianapolis to Cincinnati to catch the flight. So, we're already throwing off their market research. Second, if we already purchased the ticket, isn't that enough? Clearly, there's interest. I've taken trains all over Europe and if a passenger wants to get off before the supposed final destination, it is okay to do so. Often, that passenger can even jump back on and continue as originally planned. The airlines, however, prove time and again through lame policies and bad customer service that we are here to serve them... not the other way around.

So, we switched our itinerary. We scrambled Monday night, shifting hotels and transportation plans. We're still going to Italy and will have a great time regardless. It's just costing a bit more now... thanks, Delta.

Airline Itinerary

One week to go! Here is our airline schedule for those who need it:

Monday, 6/27 - Tuesday, 6/28
Delta 32
Departure: Cincinnati, 6:55 pm
Arrival: Rome, 10:10 am

Delta 8198 / Alitalia AZ 1471
Departure: Rome, 1:00 pm
Arrival: Venice, 2:10 pm

Friday, 7/1
Alitalia AZ 1218
Departure: Venice, 11:25 am
Arrival: Naples, 12:40 pm

Sunday, 7/10
Delta 8253 / Alitalia AZ 1460
Departure: Venice, 6:40 am
Arrival: Rome, 7:55 am

Delta 33
Departure: Rome, 10:10 am
Arrival: Cincinnati, 2:45 pm

Special thanks to John, Tara, and Mom for going the extra 90 miles to help save us some money. ;) Love you guys.

3 weeks and counting...

Well, it's time to rev up this blog's engine. We leave in 21 days... and the dollar is gaining against the Euro. ;)

In the meantime, we can follow our buddy, Duane, as he travels through the UK and France.

3 months and counting...

Now that all of the hotels are booked, we are ready to go. There is still a lot of research left to do, but that's okay... we never need a reason to spend an evening at Border's. ;) We have just three months left now. In the meantime, here are some amazing photo galleries of Italy:

Venice by Bailey Zimmerman : dark and mysterious photography
Italy by Neil Buchan-Grant : includes photos of our destinations
Italy by Cannga : stunning imagery, especially the night photography