Well at some point during our move, we lost our card reader, so I haven't been able to upload pictures from this Italy trip to the computer. I was going to wait to write until I had the pictures, but if I don't write down the experiences now I will forget them all. So pictures will just have to come later.
As our final adventure in Europe, we spent 6 days in Rome, Florence and Pisa. We flew first to Rome via Frankfurt Hahn. We had a private driver take us there since the price was reasonable and made up for long, ever changing route to Hahn. I'm certain we never took the same road twice to get there. German roads will never cease to confound me.
Moving on- ROME! By far our favorite, we easily could have spent the entire time there. We stayed in a beautiful hotel right near the Termini train station. On our first night there, we ate at the same restaurant I had visited with my friend last year. The food was just as delicious and I enjoyed introducing it all to Ray.
The next day we tried to get to the catacombs, but when we made it to the bus station that was to take us there, the bus simply never showed up. We waited and waited, and a short Italian phrase kept popping up on the electronic sign that was informing patrons of how long their bus wait would be. We finally stopped someone to see if they could tell us what it meant, and they said it meant something to the effect of "the bus has not left the station." We gave up. Instead we walked around the Circo Massimo and then up to the Colosseum and Palatine Hill. That took up several hours with wanderings and discussions of ancient Rome.
We visited the Spanish Steps, and this time I climbed to the top. I didn't think it would be much, but the view afforded from the top was breathtaking. Even more so because we got there right as the sun was setting. We stood close together and enjoyed the vibrant colors of the sky against the fascinating outline of the city. This may have been my favorite part of the trip.
From there we went back to Barbara's house! Barbara is the sweet, Roman woman who I found through EatWith.com. She opens her home and makes delicious, authentic Italian meals. This time, the party included a group of women from Israel on a fun girl's trip, a couple from Norway, and ourselves. It was so incredible talking to all of these people about their lives and the things they have seen and done, and what they do on a daily basis. It was another fun evening I will never forget.
On Saturday, we took a train from Rome to Florence, and arrived there just as the night was coming on. We checked into our hotel which was happily situated just down the street from the towering Duomo. Leaving our things, we went out searching for something to eat. We found a small square with a pizza/pasta place that looked packed with locals, so we decided it must be good. We were seated in a back room right next to the brick oven they used to fire their pizzas. It was fun to watch to watch them be made. All around us were lively and boisterous Italian families. Ray and I, ever wanting to observe and blend in as much as possible sat and spoke quietly to each other about what we'd seen and done thus far, and what there was to do still ahead of us.
At length, and older gentleman sat down alone at the table next to us. We quietly remarked that this place really must be good if even the old, single Italian men will come on their own on a Saturday evening. We ate our pizza and pasta (which was delicious) when towards the end of our meal the man turned to us and asked in perfect British English if he "could ask us a personal question?" I was totally taken back, but smiled and said "of course!"
"Are you two Canadian? Because you're much too quiet to be American."
We of course smiled and laughed a bit, and informed him we actually were American. We just had taken up habits while traveling and living abroad that helped us blend a little more easily. We talked to this gentleman for probably an hour and ended up ordering another pizza. He was from Southern England and works on his own terms, so for the past few weeks he'd been in Florence, working as he liked. By the end of the conversation in the restaurant, he insisted on showing us the best gelato places and buying us our own servings too. We walked through Florence with him for 20 more minutes and then, once we had gelato in hand, he bid us goodnight.
There are the most amazing people in this world.
The next day was packed full of the sites of Florence. Since it was the first Sunday of the month, several museums were free admittance. So our first stop was to see the statue of David. I had seen it before when I was 13, but I think I was able to appreciate the magnitude of it much more this time. Ray as in awe. This was definitely another highlight of our trip.
From there we went through the baptistry. We spent probably 20 minutes inside following the mosaic tile pictures that depicted different stories from the Bible. Then it was on to climb the bell tower. Up, up, up! The stairway was narrow and had to accommodate both up and down traffic which resulted in much stopping and going. But the view from the top was worth it. Following this, we went to have lunch. Ray choose a small pasta restaurant where we were seated at a bar that looked directly into the small galley kitchen. We watched as the single chef prepared every dish for the packed eatery. Ray had spaghetti (of course) and I had gorgonzola gnocchi. They were both delightful.
Then it was time to hike to the top of the Duomo. Keep in mind I had done the bell tower with no problem, but for some reason, the Duomo made me lose all my nerve. The stairs were even narrower than in the bell tower, and I couldn't stop thinking about someone trying to come down at the same time I was going up. We'd be stuck for sure. Then once you get to the actual dome, you can see the curve and I began to visualize what was beneath me: nothing, absolutely nothing. The last part of the climb you are at a 45 degree angle obviously scaling the peak of the dome. From here until I was back on the ground I had to remain tightlipped to keep myself from breaking into hysterics. At the top there is a small, round area to move about. Again though, there were so many people and so much nothing-ness beneath me that I sat quietly on a bench and waited for Ray to be done viewing. On the way down there were two parts where we had to wait patiently as a one group going up would clear out, and then our group would pass to the next shallow waiting zone. While the view was nice, I think I would have been fine with just the bell tower.
On our final full day in Italy, we had planned on taking a train out to a medieval, walled city called Luca, and spending the day there. But we woke up to rain, and believe it or not, we were tired. And sick of traveling. We finally reached our limit. We agreed that while Luca was tempting, we had officially tired ourselves out of Europe and were content to eat some good food, and read a book in the dry comfort of our hotel room. So we did. The food we got was from the Central Market, which was definitely a highlight for me. By night, the rain had stopped so we walked to the large, main bridge in Florence and enjoyed peacefully walking together in that beautiful city.
Tuesday morning we woke up early to take a train to Pisa. From the station, we walked to the leaning tower, snapped a few pictures, and then walked back to the station to take the shuttle to the airport. Two hours later we were back in Germany.
 |
| hahaha... |
