Tuesday was another hot and muggy day. The weather was also very overcast and a bit cloudy at times. In the morning, I had coffee and a delicious brioche with the woman renting me the apartment at her apartment nearby. Because my apartment was rented starting this Saturday and I wanted to stay in Rome until Monday, she was kind enough to rent me her place for the last two nights since she would be away on holiday. After a lovely chat and a quick tour of how everything worked in her apartment, I headed across the Ponte Garibaldi to explore more of Rome. When making my reservations last February, I also inquired with other apartments in Rome. The owners of one of the apartments were very nice and suggested that we meet for a coffee while I was in Rome. I gave them a call while walking over the bridge and they happened to be in a bar just on the other side. We found each other by calling each other a few time, saying just where we were, and then waving as we got closer. We went to a bar near the Campo to sit and chat for a while. We talkec about many things including Rome and Hawaii. They also gave me a few tips on places to see while here as well as a great bookstore to visit. It has been wonderful to meet so many interesting people during my travels, one of the things I love about traveling. After leaving the bar, we headed over to a tea shop that their friend owns. I spent some time in the shop and ended up buying some interesting tea from South Africa.
I then went to an internet place to check on my pictures which I had burned onto CDs. I have the Apacer Disc Steno 200 which can burn pictures from your memory cards. It has worked wonderfully in the past but has been acting up a bit this year only allowing me to burn one card even if there is more space left. I always check to make sure all of my pictures actually have transferred before deleting them from my memory cards. The computer at my apartment is an older computer and does not have a place to insert a CD and so an internet place is the perfect solution. There is one in Piazza Sant' Andrea near the Campo which Sandra pointed out to me that charges 4.40 euros per hour which is pretty cheap.
After checking on all of my pictures, I decided to go back to my apartment for lunch. I did not want to walk around all day with my CDs and memory cards. I made a Caprese salad. Oh, I wish the Buffalo di Mozarella cheese was available in Hawaii. What a simple and delicious lunch.
In the afternoon, I decided to go to the Musei Capitolini. What a wonderful afternoon! The cost with the audio guide was 13 euros. It was well worth the price. I spent about four hours walking around, taking pictures, and being amazed at so many of the statues and other items on display. The collections are displayed in two buildings with a tunnel underneath that connects the two buildings. You have to go through security first when entering the first building (putting your things through an x-ray machine). The people working there were all very friendly and helpful whenever I was lost. There also is a spot which overlooks the forum. Too bad the weather was so gray and gloomy. It is a great spot for photos.
I had to turn in the audio guide by 7 pm. I could have stayed in the museums for one more hour but I was exhausted. My legs and feet and toes were pretty sore. My ankle by the way has returned to it's normal size. I guess no more wide shoes for me.
I stopped for a pizza on the way home at Dar Poeta and decided on take out as the skies were getting pretty black and it looked like rain. I ordered a zucchini flower and peperoni (peppers) pizza. I watched some TV after finishing off my pizza. I must have fell asleep almost immediately. I woke up about 1am and crawled into bed for the night.
Wednesday was my “slug” day. I think all that walking as well as the heat was finally catching up to me. So, I spent a lazy morning surfing the internet, reading all the latest news and of course catching up on the Red Sox. I also did some laundry, watched a little TV, and went grocery shopping.
Later in the afternoon, I finally ventured out for some sightseeing. It was a beautiful day outside. The weather was finally a little cooler and less humid. I wandered around the Campo, went back to the Pantheon, stopped again to check out that cute elephant, and also went back to the turtle statue.
I decided on Di Giggetto for dinner. I was seated in a nice room inside with a view of an amazing ancient column just outside the window. The waiter was very nice. For appetizers, I had the fiore di zucchina ripiena (fried zucchini blossoms) and the supplì al telefono (rice ball with mozzarella), both which were fabulous. Once I looked at the menu, I finally was able to remember what I had the other night – melanzane all pamigiana (eggplant parmigian). I can't believe I forgot what I had as it was soooo delicious. I decided on being bold and trying something new. I ordered the fettuccine con i carciofi (pasta with artichokes) which was just ok. It was quite strong and a little too “artichokey” for me. I made a reservation for Saturday night for one more dinner there and one more chance to have their marvelous stuffed zucchini flowers. I was not feeling that great when leaving the restaurant (the beginning of a migraine) and so I took some medicine and crashed again when I got back to my apartment.
Wednesday, June 27
a day of statues & fountains, and a visit to the Jewish museum
When I awoke on Monday morning, my ankle was looking better. It was still slightly swollen but the redness on my leg was gone and I was able to tighten my shoe a little. The weather was sunny and very HOT! I had not yet been to the Campo de' Fiori in the morning. I think I have been spoiled by the big Venice fruit and vegetable market next to the fish market as this market seemed smaller in size. I walked around and decided on a nectarine and then headed over to the Sant' Eustachio bar for a caffè macchiato and brioche. I thought the coffee was good but nothing to rave about. Perhaps it is the special coffees they offer that are all the rage there. The bar was not very crowded. This is one of the places where you need to pay first. Everyone was very friendly and nice there.
After having my morning coffee, I went over to the Piazza della Minerva. I have wanted to see the elephant statue in this piazza ever since seeing an amazing picture of this statue. It was another "wow" sighting in Rome. After taking a few pictures of the elephant, I went into the church, the Basilica di Santa Maria sopra Minerva. This church was incredibly beautiful and houses the famous Michelangelo's statue of Christ risen from the tomb.
Being so close to the Pantheon, I had to go inside once again. I don't think I will ever feel like I have spent too much time in this famous site. I then stopped in a few shops, and ended up somehow on the street of the famous Giolitti gelateria and pasticceria. It was now lunchtime. It was so hot outside. I could not pass up stopping in for a gelato. Because of the heat, I decided on fruit flavors. I ordered a small cone with peach and kiwi flavors. Besides the gelato being so much better in Italy than in the US, the size and cost are very different. Here in Italy, when ordering the smallest gelato (which will usually cost between 1.80 and 2.00 euros) you always get 2 flavors and the size of the scoops are usually very large. I could probably manage to eat a medium size gelato but I don't think I could finish a large gelato. WOW the kiwi was amazing! The peach was also very good. I have to say that I agree that this is a very good gelateria. I guess I would have to order the same pistachio and nocciola flavors I have been ordering to say if it was the best gelateria. I may have to take that test before I leave.
I then stumbled onto Piazza Colonna. In this piazza, you will find a very tall column with rows and rows and rows of carvings of battles. At the top of the column is a statue of St. Paul. Across from the huge column was a galleria. Now when I was in Milan a few years ago, we went into the galleria across from the Duomo. This was a shopping mall. Then when I was in Perugia, I saw the word "galleria" on the map and searched for it much of one of my days only to find out that it was a tunnel. This year while with Katia & Guido, we encountered a few gallerias (or galleri?) which were tunnels. And now here in Rome I am looking at this sign saying: Galleria Alberto Sordi. I was not sure what it was at first until I got closer. It indeed was a tiny mall. I went inside to look around for a few minutes to cool down. I swear it had to be at least 100 outside.
After leaving the mall, I looked at the map to figure out where I was. I realized that I was very close to the Trevi Fountain. I have stopped by this fountain on all of my visits to Rome, but this was my first time visiting with a digital camera and so I went back for more pictures. The fountain as beautiful as ever. It was also packed with tourist. I spent a few minutes taking pictures and then decided to walk over to the Palazzo del Quirinale. Somehow I ended up un the back side of the Quirinale and so I walked over to the Piazza Barberini. There you will find a very beautiful fountain. Sandra mentioned that she really enjoyedthe Palazzo Barberini. I walked around a little looking for it figuring that it would be somewhere in the piazza. No luck. So I headed up toward the Quattro Fontane (four fountains).
There on the street heading to the Quattro Fontane was the Palazzo Barberini. Because it was Monday, I was not sure if it would be open. I met a nice Italian man who was also wondering the same thing. He also said he had the hardest time finding this place. Although it says that it is located on Via Barberini, we both found the entrance off of Via delle Quattro Fontane between the Piazza Barberini and the four fountains.
It looked like the palace might be open so we headed toward the ticket door. There we saw the sign: aperto tutti i giorni/open every day 9-19:30 AND THEN underneath: chiuso lunedì/closed on Monday. Now, please explain to me how this sign makes sense! There we both thought for a minute that it was open until we both read the second part of the sign. At this point an American man and his son came walking up. I told them that the museum was closed. They asked why. They said it wasn't Sunday. I replied, "no, it's Monday".
I then continued walking up Via delle Quattro Fontane and reached the four fountains on the corner. I took a few pictures and even refilled my water bottle. Although I have read many times that the fountains are very safe to drink from, I have been a little leery. It was just so hot out that I went for it. The water was so refreshing. I then walked over to the Palazzo del Quirinale as now I was on the correct side to reach the piazza. The piazza is huge! There is a beautiful statue in the middle of the piazza and a view of St.Peter's Basilica. I have read that the views at night from this piazza are spectacular.
By now my feet were pretty tired from all the walking I had done. The one place I knew was open on Monday was the Jewish museum, the Museo Ebraico di Roma. I asked one of the carabiniere for directions. He asked me, "by foot?" I told him that I had walked here from Trastevere. He was amazed. He gave me directions and off I went. I ended up by the Vittorio Emanuele II Monument (also called the wedding cake or the typewriter). I walked over to the monument and walked up the stairs to the tomb of the unknown soldier. I looked at the time and dicided that I better head on over to the Jewish museum before it closed.
After a terrorist bombing where a two-year old boy was killed in 1982, the synagogue and Jewish museum have been guarded. It was a little confusing getting into the museum. You go to where it says tickets but instead you find a man who operates the gate to let you in to the museum where you then by the tickets. I did not understand the man at first. You have to go to the gate, he will buzz you in, and then you walk down some stairs and down a path to get into the museum. There you buy your ticket for the museum and the guided tour of the synagogue.
I really enjoyed this museum. There was a very moving movie, which played continuously, rotating between the Italian version and the English version as well as many displays from ancient times until present. At one point, someone walks through announcing the English synagogue tours. Our tour guide was quite amusing and also very informative. Because of Jewish custom, men must cover their heads and women must cover their shoulders. I happened to have a scarf with me but many women did not. He said that in each of the two synagogues, there were coverings provided. When we got to the bigger synagogue, he helped pick out scarves that went with each person's clothing. I would definitely recommend this museum for anyone interested in all with the Jewish history or Rome.
After spending a couple of hours in the museum, I headed back to my apartment. I stopped at a little store along the way to buy some buffalo mozzarella cheese. I also stopped at a little fruit & vegetable store for some tomatoes. Since all I had for lunch was that gelato, I was starting to get hungry. It was 7pm, too early for dinner out, so I made a caprese salad.
I went back out about 8:30pm for dinner. Because it was Monday night, a couple of the places I wanted to try were closed. A friend told me that friends of hers enjoyed eating at Hosteria del Moro, also known as Tony's. I actually walked by there Sunday night pretty late at night and the waiter tried to get me to sit at a table for dinner. I told him that I had already eaten and asked him if I would need a reservation to eat there on another night. He said definitely "no", I would not need a reservation. The restaurant is a short walk from my apartment. When I arrived, it was pretty full but there still were a couple of tables left outside. I asked the waiter for a table for one. "No tables for one" I was told. He then told me that I could sit inside and pointed to the room where I could find a table. There I found a table for two crammed into the corner with a place setting set up although the table was pretty dirty with lots of crumbs everywhere. I also saw a clean table for four. I sat at the table for two. A waitress came by after a while. I told her that the table was dirty. She suggested that I sit at the table for four (which by the way could have been split into two tables for two). I moved to the new table and she brought me bread and a menu. About five or ten minutes later the waiter who originally told me where to sit came by and told me I could not sit there and that I had to sit at the table for two. I told him that the woman told me that I could sit there as the other table was dirty. He told me that she was crazy and did not know what she was talking about and that I had to move back. Meanwhile, he did not attempt to clean the table. I waited for the table to be cleaned. He came back about 10 minutes later and told me again that I had to move to the other table and that that woman did not know what she was talking about. He again did not clean the table and it seemed apparant that he was not going to wait on me until I moved. I sat there for about five move minutes and then decided to get up and leave. The lady saw me walk out and seemed very surprised. The waiter also saw me walk away. The food may be good there but on this night, a single diner was not treated well and I would not eat there again.
I had food in my apartment and was ready to just go home and make dinner when I was surprised to find that the restuarant near my apartment, La tana de Noantri, was open. I walked by there earlier and it seemed that it was not going to be open. I also walked by there the other night and saw someone eating the zucchini flowers I loved and I also saw someone eating mussles. I had thought about eating there sometime during my stay. I asked for a table and as seated outside at a very nice table. I was still upset about my treatment at the previous restaurant and so that my have clouded my opinion but I would have to say that I felt the service I recieved was not that great. It was hard to get the waiter's attention. The food was good, but I would not say great. I think I was just spoiled with my zucchini flowers I had the other night. I was thinking about having dessert, but it took forever for my waiter to come back to see if I wanted anything else. By the time he did come back, I asked for the bill. I had to ask him again about 15 or 20 minutes later after the waiter walked by me quite a few times with no bill. The restaurant was busy but I saw other waiters much more attentive to their customers. Again, I wondered if it was because I was a single diner.
When walking back around the corner to my apartment, I heard someone calling my name. At first, I figured it could not have been me that they were calling but then again I heard my name. It turned out to be the woman who is renting the apartment to me. We had talked about having coffee Tuesday morning and set a time. I told her my story of my "single diner" experience. Even though my dinner experiences were not so great, I had a wonderful day in Rome!!
After having my morning coffee, I went over to the Piazza della Minerva. I have wanted to see the elephant statue in this piazza ever since seeing an amazing picture of this statue. It was another "wow" sighting in Rome. After taking a few pictures of the elephant, I went into the church, the Basilica di Santa Maria sopra Minerva. This church was incredibly beautiful and houses the famous Michelangelo's statue of Christ risen from the tomb.
Being so close to the Pantheon, I had to go inside once again. I don't think I will ever feel like I have spent too much time in this famous site. I then stopped in a few shops, and ended up somehow on the street of the famous Giolitti gelateria and pasticceria. It was now lunchtime. It was so hot outside. I could not pass up stopping in for a gelato. Because of the heat, I decided on fruit flavors. I ordered a small cone with peach and kiwi flavors. Besides the gelato being so much better in Italy than in the US, the size and cost are very different. Here in Italy, when ordering the smallest gelato (which will usually cost between 1.80 and 2.00 euros) you always get 2 flavors and the size of the scoops are usually very large. I could probably manage to eat a medium size gelato but I don't think I could finish a large gelato. WOW the kiwi was amazing! The peach was also very good. I have to say that I agree that this is a very good gelateria. I guess I would have to order the same pistachio and nocciola flavors I have been ordering to say if it was the best gelateria. I may have to take that test before I leave.
I then stumbled onto Piazza Colonna. In this piazza, you will find a very tall column with rows and rows and rows of carvings of battles. At the top of the column is a statue of St. Paul. Across from the huge column was a galleria. Now when I was in Milan a few years ago, we went into the galleria across from the Duomo. This was a shopping mall. Then when I was in Perugia, I saw the word "galleria" on the map and searched for it much of one of my days only to find out that it was a tunnel. This year while with Katia & Guido, we encountered a few gallerias (or galleri?) which were tunnels. And now here in Rome I am looking at this sign saying: Galleria Alberto Sordi. I was not sure what it was at first until I got closer. It indeed was a tiny mall. I went inside to look around for a few minutes to cool down. I swear it had to be at least 100 outside.
After leaving the mall, I looked at the map to figure out where I was. I realized that I was very close to the Trevi Fountain. I have stopped by this fountain on all of my visits to Rome, but this was my first time visiting with a digital camera and so I went back for more pictures. The fountain as beautiful as ever. It was also packed with tourist. I spent a few minutes taking pictures and then decided to walk over to the Palazzo del Quirinale. Somehow I ended up un the back side of the Quirinale and so I walked over to the Piazza Barberini. There you will find a very beautiful fountain. Sandra mentioned that she really enjoyedthe Palazzo Barberini. I walked around a little looking for it figuring that it would be somewhere in the piazza. No luck. So I headed up toward the Quattro Fontane (four fountains).
There on the street heading to the Quattro Fontane was the Palazzo Barberini. Because it was Monday, I was not sure if it would be open. I met a nice Italian man who was also wondering the same thing. He also said he had the hardest time finding this place. Although it says that it is located on Via Barberini, we both found the entrance off of Via delle Quattro Fontane between the Piazza Barberini and the four fountains.
It looked like the palace might be open so we headed toward the ticket door. There we saw the sign: aperto tutti i giorni/open every day 9-19:30 AND THEN underneath: chiuso lunedì/closed on Monday. Now, please explain to me how this sign makes sense! There we both thought for a minute that it was open until we both read the second part of the sign. At this point an American man and his son came walking up. I told them that the museum was closed. They asked why. They said it wasn't Sunday. I replied, "no, it's Monday".
I then continued walking up Via delle Quattro Fontane and reached the four fountains on the corner. I took a few pictures and even refilled my water bottle. Although I have read many times that the fountains are very safe to drink from, I have been a little leery. It was just so hot out that I went for it. The water was so refreshing. I then walked over to the Palazzo del Quirinale as now I was on the correct side to reach the piazza. The piazza is huge! There is a beautiful statue in the middle of the piazza and a view of St.Peter's Basilica. I have read that the views at night from this piazza are spectacular.
By now my feet were pretty tired from all the walking I had done. The one place I knew was open on Monday was the Jewish museum, the Museo Ebraico di Roma. I asked one of the carabiniere for directions. He asked me, "by foot?" I told him that I had walked here from Trastevere. He was amazed. He gave me directions and off I went. I ended up by the Vittorio Emanuele II Monument (also called the wedding cake or the typewriter). I walked over to the monument and walked up the stairs to the tomb of the unknown soldier. I looked at the time and dicided that I better head on over to the Jewish museum before it closed.
After a terrorist bombing where a two-year old boy was killed in 1982, the synagogue and Jewish museum have been guarded. It was a little confusing getting into the museum. You go to where it says tickets but instead you find a man who operates the gate to let you in to the museum where you then by the tickets. I did not understand the man at first. You have to go to the gate, he will buzz you in, and then you walk down some stairs and down a path to get into the museum. There you buy your ticket for the museum and the guided tour of the synagogue.
I really enjoyed this museum. There was a very moving movie, which played continuously, rotating between the Italian version and the English version as well as many displays from ancient times until present. At one point, someone walks through announcing the English synagogue tours. Our tour guide was quite amusing and also very informative. Because of Jewish custom, men must cover their heads and women must cover their shoulders. I happened to have a scarf with me but many women did not. He said that in each of the two synagogues, there were coverings provided. When we got to the bigger synagogue, he helped pick out scarves that went with each person's clothing. I would definitely recommend this museum for anyone interested in all with the Jewish history or Rome.
After spending a couple of hours in the museum, I headed back to my apartment. I stopped at a little store along the way to buy some buffalo mozzarella cheese. I also stopped at a little fruit & vegetable store for some tomatoes. Since all I had for lunch was that gelato, I was starting to get hungry. It was 7pm, too early for dinner out, so I made a caprese salad.
I went back out about 8:30pm for dinner. Because it was Monday night, a couple of the places I wanted to try were closed. A friend told me that friends of hers enjoyed eating at Hosteria del Moro, also known as Tony's. I actually walked by there Sunday night pretty late at night and the waiter tried to get me to sit at a table for dinner. I told him that I had already eaten and asked him if I would need a reservation to eat there on another night. He said definitely "no", I would not need a reservation. The restaurant is a short walk from my apartment. When I arrived, it was pretty full but there still were a couple of tables left outside. I asked the waiter for a table for one. "No tables for one" I was told. He then told me that I could sit inside and pointed to the room where I could find a table. There I found a table for two crammed into the corner with a place setting set up although the table was pretty dirty with lots of crumbs everywhere. I also saw a clean table for four. I sat at the table for two. A waitress came by after a while. I told her that the table was dirty. She suggested that I sit at the table for four (which by the way could have been split into two tables for two). I moved to the new table and she brought me bread and a menu. About five or ten minutes later the waiter who originally told me where to sit came by and told me I could not sit there and that I had to sit at the table for two. I told him that the woman told me that I could sit there as the other table was dirty. He told me that she was crazy and did not know what she was talking about and that I had to move back. Meanwhile, he did not attempt to clean the table. I waited for the table to be cleaned. He came back about 10 minutes later and told me again that I had to move to the other table and that that woman did not know what she was talking about. He again did not clean the table and it seemed apparant that he was not going to wait on me until I moved. I sat there for about five move minutes and then decided to get up and leave. The lady saw me walk out and seemed very surprised. The waiter also saw me walk away. The food may be good there but on this night, a single diner was not treated well and I would not eat there again.
I had food in my apartment and was ready to just go home and make dinner when I was surprised to find that the restuarant near my apartment, La tana de Noantri, was open. I walked by there earlier and it seemed that it was not going to be open. I also walked by there the other night and saw someone eating the zucchini flowers I loved and I also saw someone eating mussles. I had thought about eating there sometime during my stay. I asked for a table and as seated outside at a very nice table. I was still upset about my treatment at the previous restaurant and so that my have clouded my opinion but I would have to say that I felt the service I recieved was not that great. It was hard to get the waiter's attention. The food was good, but I would not say great. I think I was just spoiled with my zucchini flowers I had the other night. I was thinking about having dessert, but it took forever for my waiter to come back to see if I wanted anything else. By the time he did come back, I asked for the bill. I had to ask him again about 15 or 20 minutes later after the waiter walked by me quite a few times with no bill. The restaurant was busy but I saw other waiters much more attentive to their customers. Again, I wondered if it was because I was a single diner.
When walking back around the corner to my apartment, I heard someone calling my name. At first, I figured it could not have been me that they were calling but then again I heard my name. It turned out to be the woman who is renting the apartment to me. We had talked about having coffee Tuesday morning and set a time. I told her my story of my "single diner" experience. Even though my dinner experiences were not so great, I had a wonderful day in Rome!!
the rest of my weekend in Rome
I had made plans to meet Sandra (slow traveler) on the Ponte Sisto bridge on Saturday night at 6pm. She was staying in the Piazza Farnese area so the bridge was about halfway. I have not been a fan of this bridge. It is a foot bridge, meaning no cars, and there are always aggressive beggars on this bridge. I got there a little early and decided to wait at her end instead of in the middle. The only challenge was trying to find a place in the shade that didn’t reek of urine. The smell of urine is pretty common in many cities in Italy and even some smaller towns. I think that is one reason why many shop keepers wash in front of their shop each day.
When Sandra arrived, we walked over to my apartment. She has been thinking of renting an apartment on her next stay and so I wanted to show her my great find. She was impressed. We had a drink at the bar downstairs and talked about our travels. As it got closer to 8pm, we headed over to Da Giggetto’s for dinner. I cannot rave enough about this restaurant. When eating at the Hostaria da Nerone the day before, I saw the fried artichokes on the menu but was not sure how to eat one so I decided to wait until Saturday night to figure this out, thinking that Sandra may have eaten one before. Well it was a new experience for both of us. We ordered both the famous Carciofi alla Giudea and also some stuffed zucchini flowers. The fried artichokes were very good but the stuffed zucchini flowers…Mama Mia! They were excellent. I have had fried zucchini flowers before but never the famous stuffed ones with anchovies inside. I have not been a big anchovy fan but these were incredible. I ordered another one and Sandra ordered a rice ball. The rice ball was also very good. Incredibly, I cannot even remember what else I ate. I guess I could not get the zucchini flowers out of my brain. Sandra, if you read this please fill in the blanks. I remember that she had a caccia e pepe pasta but other than that it is a mystery. I loved this restaurant and am definitely going back there again at least once if not more than once before I leave Rome.
After dinner we walked over to the Piazza Campidoglio. It is a beautiful piazza both by day and at night. We also walked toward the back and enjoyed the view of the forum at night and then walked back through a little of the ghetto area. We ended up at the turtle fountain. What a great night. We decided to have dinner again together the following night. We walked together as far as the Ponte Garibaldi bridge and said our goodbyes. It was now almost midnight. I could not believe the size of the crowds out and about walking around. It was packed with people. It was like walking down a narrow street right after a concert just got out. Stores were open, people were buying gelato, kids were still out. Simply amazing.
As I was walking home, I could feel my left foot rubbing on the strap of my shoes. When I got home, I could see that now my left foot was also swollen. I soaked each foot and leg in the sink in cold water and then put more of that prescription cream on my legs on all of the red spots. I took another benedryl and then searched the internet for possible causes or to see if I could figure out what was going on with my legs and feet. My ankles were swollen the most. Thank goodness my legs did not look like any of the horrifying pictures I saw online. I figured I would give the medicine the night to work and if my legs and feet were still swollen in the morning, I would start taking one of the two antibiotic medicines I had with me. The next question though would be, which one to take?
Sunday morning, I awoke with only my right ankle slightly swollen so things were looking much better. I figured that I better give my feet a rest since I had been walking so much the past few days. I also decided that I better wear long pants just in case this reaction was from the sun. I figured the cause had to be perhaps an allergic reaction to the sun, some sort of reaction from shaving, or a reaction from the heat or even a combination??
I took a short walk over to the Torre Argentina area. It was really hot and humid outside but also a little overcast. I went into the bookstore, Feltrinelli to cool off. I love this store and can spend hours looking at all of the books. They have so many great books that I would love to buy. I just wish books did not weigh so much. I did end up buying 2 Italian language books.
After leaving the bookstore, I found a little grocery store open and bought some basil and some ravioli. unfortunately the did not have any good tomatoes and there was no buffalo di mozzarella as I was thinking caprese salad. On my way back to my apartment, I walked through the ghetto area again. This was my first time exploring this area during the day. I thought about visiting the Jewish Museum but figured I better get my ravioli home and also I better get off my feet for a while. I made lunch and hung out in my apartment for the afternoon.
Sunday night, I met Sandra at her hotel. We walked through the Campo area and then up and down a few more streets. She knows Rome well and it has been very helpful for me to get my bearings with some of her tips on where things are located.
We had an early dinner as Sandra was flying home early the next morning. We ate at Ditirambo. The service was great and the atmosphere was nice. However, I thought the food was just ok. We shared a zucchini and cheese appetizer. I ordered a ravioli dish which was more like a fried pot sticker type of ravioli than an Italian type of ravioli and an eggplant roll calabrian style. Sandra ordered an eggplant pudding dish and a cheese, corn and walnut salad. We thought she must have been given the wrong salad when it arrived as there was no corn in sight. It turned out if we understood the waiter correctly that the mozzarella cheese was supposed to be in the shape of corn. We laughed about it quite a bit as we were not seeing the "corn". The food was good, just not great. My tastes are more toward the typical types of pasta and Italian food.
We walked back to Sandra's hotel and said our goodbyes. It was really nice to have company for dinner. I am so glad we decided to meet while in Rome.
After leaving the hotel, I was debating whether or not to cross the Ponte Sisto late at night on my own or walk down to the Ponte Garibaldi. I met a nice family from New Jersey who was here visiting friends from Rome. They were talking about crossing the bridge. I mentioned that I was a little nervous crossing the bridge alone and would like to cross the bridge with them. The man from Rome told me that the people on the bridge are all harmless. I told him that that was probably true but as a single woman, I still get nervous crossing the bridge alone late at night. Well, when we got to the bridge, I couldn’t believe what I saw! There were tons and tons of people on the bridge. The bridge was also lined with tables of jewelry and other things for sale.
As I crossed to the other side, I saw that the piazza on that side was packed. I could understand a packed Saturday night, but this was Sunday night. I was starting to enjoy being out with the crowds and felt completely safe walking around at night. I have never been a big "city" person but the energy of the night was incredible. I have to thank Sandra because I don’t think that I would have ventured out very far at night after dinner on my own and now I feel much safer to explore more of Rome at night.
I took a walk down to Fior di Luna for a gelato which was a few blocks past my apartment. This is an all natural gelateria that also sells other natural foods from poor countries to help support workers from these countries. On one of the shelves I saw a huge bag of Museli! I wish I saw this first but think that I probably have enough already at my apartment to last me throughout my stay here. I walked around eating my gelato and then even stopped in a couple of stores.
I LOVE Rome!!!
When Sandra arrived, we walked over to my apartment. She has been thinking of renting an apartment on her next stay and so I wanted to show her my great find. She was impressed. We had a drink at the bar downstairs and talked about our travels. As it got closer to 8pm, we headed over to Da Giggetto’s for dinner. I cannot rave enough about this restaurant. When eating at the Hostaria da Nerone the day before, I saw the fried artichokes on the menu but was not sure how to eat one so I decided to wait until Saturday night to figure this out, thinking that Sandra may have eaten one before. Well it was a new experience for both of us. We ordered both the famous Carciofi alla Giudea and also some stuffed zucchini flowers. The fried artichokes were very good but the stuffed zucchini flowers…Mama Mia! They were excellent. I have had fried zucchini flowers before but never the famous stuffed ones with anchovies inside. I have not been a big anchovy fan but these were incredible. I ordered another one and Sandra ordered a rice ball. The rice ball was also very good. Incredibly, I cannot even remember what else I ate. I guess I could not get the zucchini flowers out of my brain. Sandra, if you read this please fill in the blanks. I remember that she had a caccia e pepe pasta but other than that it is a mystery. I loved this restaurant and am definitely going back there again at least once if not more than once before I leave Rome.
After dinner we walked over to the Piazza Campidoglio. It is a beautiful piazza both by day and at night. We also walked toward the back and enjoyed the view of the forum at night and then walked back through a little of the ghetto area. We ended up at the turtle fountain. What a great night. We decided to have dinner again together the following night. We walked together as far as the Ponte Garibaldi bridge and said our goodbyes. It was now almost midnight. I could not believe the size of the crowds out and about walking around. It was packed with people. It was like walking down a narrow street right after a concert just got out. Stores were open, people were buying gelato, kids were still out. Simply amazing.
As I was walking home, I could feel my left foot rubbing on the strap of my shoes. When I got home, I could see that now my left foot was also swollen. I soaked each foot and leg in the sink in cold water and then put more of that prescription cream on my legs on all of the red spots. I took another benedryl and then searched the internet for possible causes or to see if I could figure out what was going on with my legs and feet. My ankles were swollen the most. Thank goodness my legs did not look like any of the horrifying pictures I saw online. I figured I would give the medicine the night to work and if my legs and feet were still swollen in the morning, I would start taking one of the two antibiotic medicines I had with me. The next question though would be, which one to take?
Sunday morning, I awoke with only my right ankle slightly swollen so things were looking much better. I figured that I better give my feet a rest since I had been walking so much the past few days. I also decided that I better wear long pants just in case this reaction was from the sun. I figured the cause had to be perhaps an allergic reaction to the sun, some sort of reaction from shaving, or a reaction from the heat or even a combination??
I took a short walk over to the Torre Argentina area. It was really hot and humid outside but also a little overcast. I went into the bookstore, Feltrinelli to cool off. I love this store and can spend hours looking at all of the books. They have so many great books that I would love to buy. I just wish books did not weigh so much. I did end up buying 2 Italian language books.
After leaving the bookstore, I found a little grocery store open and bought some basil and some ravioli. unfortunately the did not have any good tomatoes and there was no buffalo di mozzarella as I was thinking caprese salad. On my way back to my apartment, I walked through the ghetto area again. This was my first time exploring this area during the day. I thought about visiting the Jewish Museum but figured I better get my ravioli home and also I better get off my feet for a while. I made lunch and hung out in my apartment for the afternoon.
Sunday night, I met Sandra at her hotel. We walked through the Campo area and then up and down a few more streets. She knows Rome well and it has been very helpful for me to get my bearings with some of her tips on where things are located.
We had an early dinner as Sandra was flying home early the next morning. We ate at Ditirambo. The service was great and the atmosphere was nice. However, I thought the food was just ok. We shared a zucchini and cheese appetizer. I ordered a ravioli dish which was more like a fried pot sticker type of ravioli than an Italian type of ravioli and an eggplant roll calabrian style. Sandra ordered an eggplant pudding dish and a cheese, corn and walnut salad. We thought she must have been given the wrong salad when it arrived as there was no corn in sight. It turned out if we understood the waiter correctly that the mozzarella cheese was supposed to be in the shape of corn. We laughed about it quite a bit as we were not seeing the "corn". The food was good, just not great. My tastes are more toward the typical types of pasta and Italian food.
We walked back to Sandra's hotel and said our goodbyes. It was really nice to have company for dinner. I am so glad we decided to meet while in Rome.
After leaving the hotel, I was debating whether or not to cross the Ponte Sisto late at night on my own or walk down to the Ponte Garibaldi. I met a nice family from New Jersey who was here visiting friends from Rome. They were talking about crossing the bridge. I mentioned that I was a little nervous crossing the bridge alone and would like to cross the bridge with them. The man from Rome told me that the people on the bridge are all harmless. I told him that that was probably true but as a single woman, I still get nervous crossing the bridge alone late at night. Well, when we got to the bridge, I couldn’t believe what I saw! There were tons and tons of people on the bridge. The bridge was also lined with tables of jewelry and other things for sale.
As I crossed to the other side, I saw that the piazza on that side was packed. I could understand a packed Saturday night, but this was Sunday night. I was starting to enjoy being out with the crowds and felt completely safe walking around at night. I have never been a big "city" person but the energy of the night was incredible. I have to thank Sandra because I don’t think that I would have ventured out very far at night after dinner on my own and now I feel much safer to explore more of Rome at night.
I took a walk down to Fior di Luna for a gelato which was a few blocks past my apartment. This is an all natural gelateria that also sells other natural foods from poor countries to help support workers from these countries. On one of the shelves I saw a huge bag of Museli! I wish I saw this first but think that I probably have enough already at my apartment to last me throughout my stay here. I walked around eating my gelato and then even stopped in a couple of stores.
I LOVE Rome!!!
Monday, June 25
searching for that perfect cup of coffee, Castel Sant' Angelo, & my swollen foot
When I walked out the door on Saturday morning, I realized that my right shoe felt tight. I looked down and my right foot was twice as fat as my left foot. My chacos are adjustable and so I spent a little time getting them to fit. I thought, now was the time to be able to wear all of those shoes that never fit me before as my feet are pretty narrow. Well at least one of my feet could wear them.
I started out my day deciding to have a coffee at Tazza d'Oro, a place recommended as one of the best places to have coffee in Rome. The only information I had was that it was near the Pantheon. The walk from my apartment to the Pantheon with stops to take pictures along the way was about 15 minutes. I looked around for the bar. There was a place right across from the Pantheon with a sign difficult to see because of the way the table umbrellas were blocking the sign. I saw a "z" on the sign and assumed it was Tazza d'Oro. It was pretty late in the morning as I spent some time on the internet before leaving the apartment Saturday morning and so there was no one else inside. I figured everyone already had their cup of coffee and was off touring Rome. I went over the the bar which was pretty tiny and thought that was a little odd. I also found it odd that there were no pastries as most bars have an assortment to go with your coffee. I ordered my caffè machiatto and was ready to taste "best" cup of coffee. I thought it was a great coffee and told the bartender that I read this place has one of the best cups of coffee and that they were right. He told me that Sant' Eustachio has the best coffee. I thought that was odd that he would say that when working at Tazza d'Oro. I asked him where Sant' Eustachio was located as I read that the other highly rated place for a cup of coffee was Sant' Eustachio. I had wanted to try their coffee also and would then compare for myself to decide which I liked the best. When I went to pay, I saw some cards on the bar. They were for Zio Ciro which seems to be a chain restaurant, pizzeria, caffè, and gelateria. I couldn't believe that this entire time I was thinking I was at Tazza d'Oro when really I was at Zio Ciro. Well either the power of suggestion worked or they also make a superb coffee as I really enjoyed my morning cup.
Now I had to go search out Tazza d'Oro. I am only a one cup drinker and so I figured I would get a brioche and then start my day. When I found Tazza d'Oro, it was packed. That should have been my first hint. I waited by the choices of pastries and no one helped me. I then realized that this was one of the places where you need to pay first. I went to pay and then got one of those snail like pastries that has raisins in it. It was very sweet and filling. I walked around the Pantheon while eating it enjoying the views. I then felt that I needed some coffee to go with that pastry. I decided to go search out Sant' Eustachio since the directions were still fresh in my head. I found the piazza and saw the sign over a beautiful caffè with the name Camilloni Sant' Eustachio. This time I was going to have one of the "best" coffees in Rome! Inside the bar was huge with tons of choices of pastries and other sweets. Again though, there were no other customers inside but there were a few sitting at the tables outside. By now it was 11 or 11:30 and so I just figured I was late for a morning coffee. I ordered my caffè machiatto and this time thought it was an good cup of coffee but nothing to rave about. After paying, I walked through the piazza and then really could not believe my stupidity. There in front of me was the real Caffè Sant' Eustachio packed with people. There was no way I could function on 3 cups and so I will have to leave my search for that "superb" coffee for another day.
By now I was wide awake and ready for the day. I headed over to the Piazza Navona for another peak at the beautiful piazza and then thought perhaps I would spend the day shopping. I wanted to find the street, Via Margutta, where part of Roman Holiday took place and headed that way. At one point when taking one wrong street, I ended up near one of the bridges and saw Castel Sant' Angelo. I had always wanted to go inside that castle and so change of plans, I headed toward the castle. The bridges near the castle have huge statues on them. I walked over 2 of the bridges taking pictures of the various statues, the castle, & St. Peter's Basilica. I then spent a lovely afternoon inside the castle. There were lots of little rooms to explore with amazing frescoes and also 360 degree views of Rome on the way up and again at the top of the castle. It was really worth the cost of admission (5 euros). When leaving the castle, I stopped in the bookstore and then made friends with a gorgeous cat.
When leaving the Castel Sant' Angelo, the Basilica was so beautiful that I could not pass up walking that way. The day before it was so hot out that I decided that I would wear shorts on Saturday and skip churches on this day. I figured that it would be pretty crowded but actually it was not. I took a bunch of pictures from the outside, thought about buying a little wrap to go inside, but decided against it as I knew I still had plenty of days left to return.
By this time, I noticed that my foot was really swollen and there was a strange red rash on much of my leg which also seemed swollen. My foot started to feel tingly which I did not think was a good sign. Although I had walked by a few hospitals since arriving in Rome, I was not planning on a visit. I headed back to my apartment by way of the river, a beautiful walk, and then put some of this prescription cream I have for allergic reactions and rashes and also took benedryl and zyrtec.
more later on my dinner...
I started out my day deciding to have a coffee at Tazza d'Oro, a place recommended as one of the best places to have coffee in Rome. The only information I had was that it was near the Pantheon. The walk from my apartment to the Pantheon with stops to take pictures along the way was about 15 minutes. I looked around for the bar. There was a place right across from the Pantheon with a sign difficult to see because of the way the table umbrellas were blocking the sign. I saw a "z" on the sign and assumed it was Tazza d'Oro. It was pretty late in the morning as I spent some time on the internet before leaving the apartment Saturday morning and so there was no one else inside. I figured everyone already had their cup of coffee and was off touring Rome. I went over the the bar which was pretty tiny and thought that was a little odd. I also found it odd that there were no pastries as most bars have an assortment to go with your coffee. I ordered my caffè machiatto and was ready to taste "best" cup of coffee. I thought it was a great coffee and told the bartender that I read this place has one of the best cups of coffee and that they were right. He told me that Sant' Eustachio has the best coffee. I thought that was odd that he would say that when working at Tazza d'Oro. I asked him where Sant' Eustachio was located as I read that the other highly rated place for a cup of coffee was Sant' Eustachio. I had wanted to try their coffee also and would then compare for myself to decide which I liked the best. When I went to pay, I saw some cards on the bar. They were for Zio Ciro which seems to be a chain restaurant, pizzeria, caffè, and gelateria. I couldn't believe that this entire time I was thinking I was at Tazza d'Oro when really I was at Zio Ciro. Well either the power of suggestion worked or they also make a superb coffee as I really enjoyed my morning cup.
Now I had to go search out Tazza d'Oro. I am only a one cup drinker and so I figured I would get a brioche and then start my day. When I found Tazza d'Oro, it was packed. That should have been my first hint. I waited by the choices of pastries and no one helped me. I then realized that this was one of the places where you need to pay first. I went to pay and then got one of those snail like pastries that has raisins in it. It was very sweet and filling. I walked around the Pantheon while eating it enjoying the views. I then felt that I needed some coffee to go with that pastry. I decided to go search out Sant' Eustachio since the directions were still fresh in my head. I found the piazza and saw the sign over a beautiful caffè with the name Camilloni Sant' Eustachio. This time I was going to have one of the "best" coffees in Rome! Inside the bar was huge with tons of choices of pastries and other sweets. Again though, there were no other customers inside but there were a few sitting at the tables outside. By now it was 11 or 11:30 and so I just figured I was late for a morning coffee. I ordered my caffè machiatto and this time thought it was an good cup of coffee but nothing to rave about. After paying, I walked through the piazza and then really could not believe my stupidity. There in front of me was the real Caffè Sant' Eustachio packed with people. There was no way I could function on 3 cups and so I will have to leave my search for that "superb" coffee for another day.
By now I was wide awake and ready for the day. I headed over to the Piazza Navona for another peak at the beautiful piazza and then thought perhaps I would spend the day shopping. I wanted to find the street, Via Margutta, where part of Roman Holiday took place and headed that way. At one point when taking one wrong street, I ended up near one of the bridges and saw Castel Sant' Angelo. I had always wanted to go inside that castle and so change of plans, I headed toward the castle. The bridges near the castle have huge statues on them. I walked over 2 of the bridges taking pictures of the various statues, the castle, & St. Peter's Basilica. I then spent a lovely afternoon inside the castle. There were lots of little rooms to explore with amazing frescoes and also 360 degree views of Rome on the way up and again at the top of the castle. It was really worth the cost of admission (5 euros). When leaving the castle, I stopped in the bookstore and then made friends with a gorgeous cat.
When leaving the Castel Sant' Angelo, the Basilica was so beautiful that I could not pass up walking that way. The day before it was so hot out that I decided that I would wear shorts on Saturday and skip churches on this day. I figured that it would be pretty crowded but actually it was not. I took a bunch of pictures from the outside, thought about buying a little wrap to go inside, but decided against it as I knew I still had plenty of days left to return.
By this time, I noticed that my foot was really swollen and there was a strange red rash on much of my leg which also seemed swollen. My foot started to feel tingly which I did not think was a good sign. Although I had walked by a few hospitals since arriving in Rome, I was not planning on a visit. I headed back to my apartment by way of the river, a beautiful walk, and then put some of this prescription cream I have for allergic reactions and rashes and also took benedryl and zyrtec.
more later on my dinner...
Sunday, June 24
my day exploring some of ancient Rome
I have been to Rome 3 times before, either arriving or departing from Rome, but I have never stayed more than 2 or 3 days. I decided for this trip that I would not make any major plans and instead just wander and explore Rome to get to know her a little better.
As I mentioned earlier, I have been very fortunate to find a wonderful apartment in Trastevere. This apartment is usually booked up and so I was very fortunate to find open dates on the availability calendar 4 months before traveling. Usually the apartment is booked up months and months in advance. The piazza where the apartment is located right next to Piazza Santa Maria in Trastevere. Trastevere is a maze of streets and I have already been lost a few times when taking just one wrong turn. It is always interesting though as I end up finding the most interesting places that I would have never seen if I stayed on the correct path.
I started out my day on Friday on a quest for muesli. The grocery store I shopped in the night before did not have any and so I stopped in a few local stores that sell a little of everything but usually only have 1 or 2 small aisles. The people of Rome have all been so very friendly and kind.
After searching most of the little stores in the area, I remembered that I needed to find an ATM (bancomat). When I was in Venice, my main ATM card would not work. I tried it in 2 different ATM machines (different banks) and each time I was able to put in my password but then when I went to choose the amount I wanted, the machine would take a very long time and then have a message that said there was no connection. Luckily, I opened up a second account a couple of months before leaving and had a second ATM card. Both cards are from credit unions with the same symbols on the back so if one card worked, the other should have also. A friend called the bank for me and they told her they had it recorded on my account that I would be in Italy and did not know why it worked. Anyways, I decided to give it a try again here in Rome.
I found an ATM machine outside a bank on the corner of a street. I went to put the card in and saw the message the the machine was not working. An older man came up to use it when I left and I told him that it was not working. He thanked me and said something I did not understand and then went around the corner. I started to walk off the other way and then decided to check out where he went. There he was waiting behind a lady at another ATM machine a few feet away from the same bank. I went over to wait in line. He insisted that I go next. This time my ATM card worked!! My guess is that there was something wrong on the bank's end but at least now both of my cards work again!! After I got my money, I decided to go inside the bank to get change as the ATM machine only gave me 50's and people are not happy at all when you try to pay with a 50. Many times they are not even happy when I pay with a 10! I stood in front of the door waiting for it to open. After a few minutes of trying to figure out how to get in, I decided to push the red button. The door opened and then I was inside between 2 doors. There was a guard on the other side of the glass door I was enclosed in. I am not sure if he actually pushed a button to open the other door or if the door just automatically opened after a few seconds. Inside the bank, there were 2 tellers open. One had a longer line and so I went to the teller that had only 1 person in front of me. She took forever. People came in and out and I was still there waiting. At one point a man that just finished at the other line around the corner came up to me to tell me that that line was free. The teller was very friendly and happily gave me the change I needed. I was now set to go out and explore Rome.
I decided to head toward the Bocca della Verita. Crossing the street from the bridge (Ponte Palatino) was pretty harrowing as the cars went speeding by. I keep thinking about the problems on Oahu with all the pedestrians getting hit. I think 2 or 3 days training in Rome and the accidents would be down to zero. Here you have to look left, right, left, right, and again left, right and if possible cross with a crowd. There is no stopping to let a person cross here. Instead it is almost like a game where the car or motorcycle will actually speed up as they get near you. After seeing my life flash in front of me when falling in the middle of a crazy street in Naples a few years ago, I have always been a little nervous crossing busy streets. Well, as you can see, I made it safely across the street and have crossed many more streets since then.
The Bocca della Verita was packed with people and so I headed on to the Piazza del Campidoglio. I had never been there before and was amazed with the beauty of the area. In this piazza are huge statues, a replica of Marcus Aurelius, the Capitoline Museums which I plan to visit later in the week, and in the back is an incredible view of Roman Forum. I took a bunch of pictures and then headed onward to the Colosseum. It was very hot and humid and as I reached the Colosseum, I started to think about lunch. I figured out how to put text files on my nano and so I took it out and searched for the restaurant reviews I had gathered for the Colosseum area. I decided on Hostaria da Nerone since it had such wonderful reviews and was nearby.
The restaurant was easy to find and when I arrived I asked for a table for one. The waiter told me "no tables for one". He then smiled and showed me to a table and told me he would find me a handsome man to sit with me. I told him that would be fine and smiled. I ordered the spaghetti with clams which I thought was one of the best spaghetti and clam dishes I have ever had. I also ordered the Roman chicken with peppers. This dish was just ok. Some of the meat was pink which made me a little nervous. Since having a salmonella infection, I am a little more cautious with food. For dessert, I ordered a ricotta torta. I did not realize that it had chocolate in it and had to pick around all of the chocolate and still ended up with a mild migraine later in the day even from the little bit I must have eaten. Even with the minor concerns, I would definitely eat there again if in the area. I great find and an enjoyable meal.
After lunch, I walked over to the Colosseum. I have taken a tour during one of my past visits and so I just took pictures from the outside this time. I then went into the Roman Forum. WOW, everytime I visit this area, I am amazed. I took more pictures and finally ended up back up at the Capitoline museums again. I was soo hot and thirsty by this point. I went to the bar that I read about at the top of one of the museums. I ordered a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice and must have drank it all in less than a minute. I could have had 3 more glasses and still have been thirsty. It was time to head on back to the apartment and get out of the hot sun.
On my walk back, I went over the bridge that crosses the little island. On this island was a gelateria. I stood in line and ordered my usual combo: pistachio and nocciola. It was sooo delicious, definitely a gelateria to recommend to others. There was no name but it is located in the Piazza di S. Bartolomeo all' Isola next to Sora Lella.
I was exhausted by the time I got home and so I made some ravioli with burro and salvia for dinner instead of going back out again.
An amazing day exploring some of ancient Rome and there is still so much more to see!
As I mentioned earlier, I have been very fortunate to find a wonderful apartment in Trastevere. This apartment is usually booked up and so I was very fortunate to find open dates on the availability calendar 4 months before traveling. Usually the apartment is booked up months and months in advance. The piazza where the apartment is located right next to Piazza Santa Maria in Trastevere. Trastevere is a maze of streets and I have already been lost a few times when taking just one wrong turn. It is always interesting though as I end up finding the most interesting places that I would have never seen if I stayed on the correct path.
I started out my day on Friday on a quest for muesli. The grocery store I shopped in the night before did not have any and so I stopped in a few local stores that sell a little of everything but usually only have 1 or 2 small aisles. The people of Rome have all been so very friendly and kind.
After searching most of the little stores in the area, I remembered that I needed to find an ATM (bancomat). When I was in Venice, my main ATM card would not work. I tried it in 2 different ATM machines (different banks) and each time I was able to put in my password but then when I went to choose the amount I wanted, the machine would take a very long time and then have a message that said there was no connection. Luckily, I opened up a second account a couple of months before leaving and had a second ATM card. Both cards are from credit unions with the same symbols on the back so if one card worked, the other should have also. A friend called the bank for me and they told her they had it recorded on my account that I would be in Italy and did not know why it worked. Anyways, I decided to give it a try again here in Rome.
I found an ATM machine outside a bank on the corner of a street. I went to put the card in and saw the message the the machine was not working. An older man came up to use it when I left and I told him that it was not working. He thanked me and said something I did not understand and then went around the corner. I started to walk off the other way and then decided to check out where he went. There he was waiting behind a lady at another ATM machine a few feet away from the same bank. I went over to wait in line. He insisted that I go next. This time my ATM card worked!! My guess is that there was something wrong on the bank's end but at least now both of my cards work again!! After I got my money, I decided to go inside the bank to get change as the ATM machine only gave me 50's and people are not happy at all when you try to pay with a 50. Many times they are not even happy when I pay with a 10! I stood in front of the door waiting for it to open. After a few minutes of trying to figure out how to get in, I decided to push the red button. The door opened and then I was inside between 2 doors. There was a guard on the other side of the glass door I was enclosed in. I am not sure if he actually pushed a button to open the other door or if the door just automatically opened after a few seconds. Inside the bank, there were 2 tellers open. One had a longer line and so I went to the teller that had only 1 person in front of me. She took forever. People came in and out and I was still there waiting. At one point a man that just finished at the other line around the corner came up to me to tell me that that line was free. The teller was very friendly and happily gave me the change I needed. I was now set to go out and explore Rome.
I decided to head toward the Bocca della Verita. Crossing the street from the bridge (Ponte Palatino) was pretty harrowing as the cars went speeding by. I keep thinking about the problems on Oahu with all the pedestrians getting hit. I think 2 or 3 days training in Rome and the accidents would be down to zero. Here you have to look left, right, left, right, and again left, right and if possible cross with a crowd. There is no stopping to let a person cross here. Instead it is almost like a game where the car or motorcycle will actually speed up as they get near you. After seeing my life flash in front of me when falling in the middle of a crazy street in Naples a few years ago, I have always been a little nervous crossing busy streets. Well, as you can see, I made it safely across the street and have crossed many more streets since then.
The Bocca della Verita was packed with people and so I headed on to the Piazza del Campidoglio. I had never been there before and was amazed with the beauty of the area. In this piazza are huge statues, a replica of Marcus Aurelius, the Capitoline Museums which I plan to visit later in the week, and in the back is an incredible view of Roman Forum. I took a bunch of pictures and then headed onward to the Colosseum. It was very hot and humid and as I reached the Colosseum, I started to think about lunch. I figured out how to put text files on my nano and so I took it out and searched for the restaurant reviews I had gathered for the Colosseum area. I decided on Hostaria da Nerone since it had such wonderful reviews and was nearby.
The restaurant was easy to find and when I arrived I asked for a table for one. The waiter told me "no tables for one". He then smiled and showed me to a table and told me he would find me a handsome man to sit with me. I told him that would be fine and smiled. I ordered the spaghetti with clams which I thought was one of the best spaghetti and clam dishes I have ever had. I also ordered the Roman chicken with peppers. This dish was just ok. Some of the meat was pink which made me a little nervous. Since having a salmonella infection, I am a little more cautious with food. For dessert, I ordered a ricotta torta. I did not realize that it had chocolate in it and had to pick around all of the chocolate and still ended up with a mild migraine later in the day even from the little bit I must have eaten. Even with the minor concerns, I would definitely eat there again if in the area. I great find and an enjoyable meal.
After lunch, I walked over to the Colosseum. I have taken a tour during one of my past visits and so I just took pictures from the outside this time. I then went into the Roman Forum. WOW, everytime I visit this area, I am amazed. I took more pictures and finally ended up back up at the Capitoline museums again. I was soo hot and thirsty by this point. I went to the bar that I read about at the top of one of the museums. I ordered a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice and must have drank it all in less than a minute. I could have had 3 more glasses and still have been thirsty. It was time to head on back to the apartment and get out of the hot sun.
On my walk back, I went over the bridge that crosses the little island. On this island was a gelateria. I stood in line and ordered my usual combo: pistachio and nocciola. It was sooo delicious, definitely a gelateria to recommend to others. There was no name but it is located in the Piazza di S. Bartolomeo all' Isola next to Sora Lella.
I was exhausted by the time I got home and so I made some ravioli with burro and salvia for dinner instead of going back out again.
An amazing day exploring some of ancient Rome and there is still so much more to see!
Saturday, June 23
bustling Bologna
First a little more about my hotel. Hotel Porta San Mamolo is quite an interesting hotel. I had to pay close attention when shown to my room and later got lost a couple of times finding it. My room was on the second floor after walking through this maze of outdoor and indoor corridors. As I mentioned earlier, I thought there must have been a mistake as I asked for a single room, but this room was huge! There even was a couch in the room!! I was staying for one night but still there were tons of towels (the fluffy type) and soaps and shower caps, etc. The shower was wonderful and the bed was also huge! The breakfast in the morning was one of the usual buffet types. There was a man at the bar taking orders for coffee. He made me a delicious Caffè macchiato. The staff were very friendly and helpful. I would definitely stay there again if returning to Bologna.
I had been to Bologna a couple of times before; once on a day trip and once for an overnight stop. When making my itinerary this year, I thought about 4 days in Bologna but then decided on wanting one smaller place to stay instead of all cities (since my other stops would be Venice and Rome). I know that one night is definitely not “slow travel” but it would have been six hours and 3 train stops to Cortona and so I chose Bologna as my half way point. This year, I was much more organized with my packing and so I only had to take a few things out and really did not lose much time except the taxi each way to make this stop. And with the canceled train and last minute changes which ended up taking me four and a half hours instead of three hours to get to Bologna from Rovato, I don’t even want to think about what my day of traveling would have been like if I went straight to Cortona from Rovato.
After dropping off my bags, as I mentioned earlier, I ate at a little restaurant right down the street called Al Sangiovese which was recommended to me by the hotel. Because I was there on a Monday, unfortunately most of the “famous” Bologna restaurants were closed. One of the things I love about Bologna is the food. I had a very delicious lunch at Al Sangiovese The service was great and all the other customers appeared to be locals from Bologna. When leaving, I made a dinner reservation there that night so that I would not have to spend part of my day looking for another place to eat.
I went back to my hotel, was shown to my room, and then headed out for the afternoon. Bologna is a town full of energy. It is also a pretty easy town to navigate. Although you need to watch out for cars, motorcycles, and bikes, when you get close to the main piazza, the area becomes a pedestrian only area which is nice. One of the famous things about Bologna are all the porticoes. I took a lot of pictures along the way. I then headed into the main piazza, Piazza Maggiore. I love spending time in this piazza. The day that I was there, they were setting up a stage and putting out a bunch of chairs for a dance marathon that would be taking place the next few days and nights. Too bad I didn’t know about this when making my plans. It would have been fun to watch. There was also a Charlie Chaplin exhibition going on much of the week or possibly month. I took a bunch of pictures, wandered in a few shops, went into the Basilica di San Petronio, which is huge church, and then wandered into the big library. After spending some time in Piazza Maggiore, I wandered down one of the side streets where you will find lots of fruit and vegetable stands. I then headed over to the twin towers.
One of my passions when traveling in Italy is climbing towers. The last time I stayed in Bologna, I was still very jetlagged and passed on climbing the Torre degli Asinelli. It is one of the taller towers in Italy with nearly 500 steps. There are signs posted where the tops of other towers are on the way up. The Pisa tower sign was about three quarters of the way up. I had to stop a few times to rest on the way up to the top of this tower. But the climb was worth it as the views at the top were spectacular! I was glad that I walked around the town a little first as I could recognize much of what I saw earlier in the afternoon.
By now I was thinking GELATO. I saw some people eating gelato and followed their trail. Gelateria Gianni! I hit the jackpot! I stood in line and saw when I got closer to the front that this was one of the places where you pay first and then you choose your flavors. I ordered what many would think of as a strange combo of pistachio and peach. The peach gelato in Italy is wonderful and I have not had one yet. For some reason, pistachio has been my thing this summer to I ordered the combo. In the past, some sort of chocolate has always been in the mix but since I have found out that chocolate (one of my all time favorite foods) is a definite migraine trigger for me, chocolate has been out. YUMMY, both flavors were heavenly. I did however have to concentrate on first eating the peach and then the pistachio as they did not mix well together.
I wandered into a few more shops and took a different route where I became just a little lost back to my hotel. I had another delicious meal at Al Sangiovese and then went to bed. I was exhausted from a long day of travel and then the walk to the top of the tower. I will definitely return to Bologna again!
I had been to Bologna a couple of times before; once on a day trip and once for an overnight stop. When making my itinerary this year, I thought about 4 days in Bologna but then decided on wanting one smaller place to stay instead of all cities (since my other stops would be Venice and Rome). I know that one night is definitely not “slow travel” but it would have been six hours and 3 train stops to Cortona and so I chose Bologna as my half way point. This year, I was much more organized with my packing and so I only had to take a few things out and really did not lose much time except the taxi each way to make this stop. And with the canceled train and last minute changes which ended up taking me four and a half hours instead of three hours to get to Bologna from Rovato, I don’t even want to think about what my day of traveling would have been like if I went straight to Cortona from Rovato.
After dropping off my bags, as I mentioned earlier, I ate at a little restaurant right down the street called Al Sangiovese which was recommended to me by the hotel. Because I was there on a Monday, unfortunately most of the “famous” Bologna restaurants were closed. One of the things I love about Bologna is the food. I had a very delicious lunch at Al Sangiovese The service was great and all the other customers appeared to be locals from Bologna. When leaving, I made a dinner reservation there that night so that I would not have to spend part of my day looking for another place to eat.
I went back to my hotel, was shown to my room, and then headed out for the afternoon. Bologna is a town full of energy. It is also a pretty easy town to navigate. Although you need to watch out for cars, motorcycles, and bikes, when you get close to the main piazza, the area becomes a pedestrian only area which is nice. One of the famous things about Bologna are all the porticoes. I took a lot of pictures along the way. I then headed into the main piazza, Piazza Maggiore. I love spending time in this piazza. The day that I was there, they were setting up a stage and putting out a bunch of chairs for a dance marathon that would be taking place the next few days and nights. Too bad I didn’t know about this when making my plans. It would have been fun to watch. There was also a Charlie Chaplin exhibition going on much of the week or possibly month. I took a bunch of pictures, wandered in a few shops, went into the Basilica di San Petronio, which is huge church, and then wandered into the big library. After spending some time in Piazza Maggiore, I wandered down one of the side streets where you will find lots of fruit and vegetable stands. I then headed over to the twin towers.
One of my passions when traveling in Italy is climbing towers. The last time I stayed in Bologna, I was still very jetlagged and passed on climbing the Torre degli Asinelli. It is one of the taller towers in Italy with nearly 500 steps. There are signs posted where the tops of other towers are on the way up. The Pisa tower sign was about three quarters of the way up. I had to stop a few times to rest on the way up to the top of this tower. But the climb was worth it as the views at the top were spectacular! I was glad that I walked around the town a little first as I could recognize much of what I saw earlier in the afternoon.
By now I was thinking GELATO. I saw some people eating gelato and followed their trail. Gelateria Gianni! I hit the jackpot! I stood in line and saw when I got closer to the front that this was one of the places where you pay first and then you choose your flavors. I ordered what many would think of as a strange combo of pistachio and peach. The peach gelato in Italy is wonderful and I have not had one yet. For some reason, pistachio has been my thing this summer to I ordered the combo. In the past, some sort of chocolate has always been in the mix but since I have found out that chocolate (one of my all time favorite foods) is a definite migraine trigger for me, chocolate has been out. YUMMY, both flavors were heavenly. I did however have to concentrate on first eating the peach and then the pistachio as they did not mix well together.
I wandered into a few more shops and took a different route where I became just a little lost back to my hotel. I had another delicious meal at Al Sangiovese and then went to bed. I was exhausted from a long day of travel and then the walk to the top of the tower. I will definitely return to Bologna again!
Friday, June 22
the men in Cortona & Arezzo
Wednesday morning I headed out for some breakfast. The B&B I stayed at gives you a ticket for breakfast. You can choose one of three places listed on the card. The one I wanted to eat at was closed and so I went to the Bar Sport Caffè. The most handsome Carabiniere came in and stood next to me as we had our coffees at the bar. I kept trying to steal a few glances without making it too obvious. I was not brave enough to take picture but I can still remember every detail.
After breakfast, I went back over to Il Girasoli to see if the shop owner was there. The rolling green door was open but the regular doors were still locked. I peered into the window and a man, who I later found out was her husband, came up to me to tell me that the shop was not open yet. I explained that I was another Slow Traveler and wanted to meet the shop owner. He insisted that I wait right there while he made a phone call. Actually it took him a few minutes as the reception is impossible in Cortona. I thought it was just my phone service but I later found out it is the town. It reminded me so much of the “Can you hear me now?” commercial. I actually tried to explain the commercial to a few people but no one got it. Anyways, he finally reached her and I told her that I needed to catch the but that was leaving soon for Arezzo and that I would return around 3 pm.
I walked to the bus stop and sat on one of the park benches to wait for the bus. This man who was also sitting on the bench asked me in Italian if I was a tourist. I told him that I was from Hawaii. He told me that he was from Canada and then we both switched to English. I was very lucky to meet him as I would never have found the train station without him. We chatted on the ride down on the bus and also at the train station for a few minutes before our trains arrived. He was going to Rome and I was going to Arezzo so we took different trains. He had that accent that everyone had in the movie “Fargo” and I I had the hardest time paying attention to what he was saying as all I could keep thinking of was the movie. He teaches Roman History and was off to meet some friends to go to a dig down south somewhere in Italy.
The train ride was very short and I arrived in Arezzo with a map that I picked up in Cortona. I wanted to see the Piero della Francesca exhibit and chapel and also the Piazza Grande. I have always wanted to visit Arezzo after seeing the movie “Life is Beautiful”. I was so amazed with the Piazza.
I decided to take the bus back as it would end up taking almost the same time when having to wait for a bus at the train station and so before heading out into the town, I stopped at the tourist information booth and asked where the bus departed for Cortona. The man drew a little line on my map.
The are a couple of main streets in Arezzo which go straight up through the middle of the town. I kept my eye out for the bus stop and saw a blue bus at a stop which seemed to be too close to the train station to be the stop I was shown. I saw a couple of men sitting at a table outside at a bar wearing what I thought were blue bus uniforms. I asked them if the blue bus was the same bus I would take to Cortona later in the day. They said “yes” and then I asked them if I was at the Pisazza Guido Monaco and showed them the map where the tourist info guy marked the bus stop. They told me that the bus stops at both stops and so I could go to either stop to catch the bus. At this point another man sitting nearby, not wearing a blue uniform who must have been eavesdropping on our conversation came over and asked me what bus I wanted to take. He pointed to a different location where a blue bus was parked insisting that I needed to catch the bus there instead of the location that the other two men pointed out. And then, a huge argument began between the two men and the eavesdropping man. Voices were raised and hands were flying. I tried to assure them that I understood where the bus would stop and thanked them for their help. They continued to argue as I left.
I went to the San Francesco church first to see Piero della Francesco’s work in the Capella Bacci (chapel), which was called The Legend of the True Cross. This cost 5 euros. It was very beautiful but did not move me like many other art works have in the past. I then walked to the Museo Statale d’Arte Medioevale e Moderna museum to see the Piero exhibit. It was not until I reached the top floor and saw the famous Duke of Urbino which I recognized immediately was I “wowed”. Ok, I know that is not a work but it is late and I can’t think of the proper word to describe the moment.
After leaving the museum, I headed uphill to see the Duomo and then the Piazza Grande. Unfortunately the piazza was roped off with stands placed in front of all the buildings in the piazza. It took the “wow” out of my moment of finally seeing this famous piazza. I then realized that the bus would be leaving pretty soon, and so I stopped at a bar and got a slice of pizza to go and headed down to the bus stop in piazza where the tourist info guy showed me. The guys in the blue uniform were correct as the bus then stopped at the stop that they showed me.
As usual, I forgot my ginger and was wishing I took the train instead of the bus as my stomach was not thrilled to be on the bus. When I got back to Cortona, I went back to see if the shop owner was still at her shop. She was there and it was exciting to meet her. She is the fourth Slow Traveler I have met. She was busy with “Imelda” for a while and then more and more customers came into the shop. It was great to see her have such a wonderful day of business. I also met a friend of hers who runs a blog from Cortona. They both recommended il Dolce for a gelato where I later had an incredible gelato (pistachio and nocciola)
After leaving Il Girasoli, I wandered the town for a short while taking some photos and then bought a big bottle of water and sat on one of the park benches. After a while a much older man came and sat next to me. He asked me where I was from and told me that he was from Rimini and was on a tour and pointed to the group nearby. We had a very enjoyable chat about many things and after a while the group headed our way and saw us on the bench. Well, this required pictures from all of his “men friends” with lots of laughter all around. I wonder if any of them will end up on the internet somewhere. At one point I wanted to ask him if he was escaping from his group but remembered that if the work “to escape” was pronounced incorrectly it could mean something very different and so I did not bring that subject up.
After my chat and then my gelato, I headed back to my room to pack. For dinner, I checked out a couple of other recommended restaurants that I wanted to try but both were closed. One restaurant had a sign saying “just married” and the other one was also on vacation. I thought about eating at Il Cacciatore but decided on pizza since there was a review for Fulfuns as having great pizza. I would not agree at all with that review. I thought the pizza was terrible. I also ended up most of the night with a horrible stomach ache. I can’t definitely say it was from the pizza as I have been eating a lot of wheat which I am not supposed to eat but it sure was a coincidence. I am just thankful that by the following night my stomach started to feel much better although it was not fun on the train.
The following morning I headed to Rome (see one of my previous posts).
I am off to bed! Buona Notte
After breakfast, I went back over to Il Girasoli to see if the shop owner was there. The rolling green door was open but the regular doors were still locked. I peered into the window and a man, who I later found out was her husband, came up to me to tell me that the shop was not open yet. I explained that I was another Slow Traveler and wanted to meet the shop owner. He insisted that I wait right there while he made a phone call. Actually it took him a few minutes as the reception is impossible in Cortona. I thought it was just my phone service but I later found out it is the town. It reminded me so much of the “Can you hear me now?” commercial. I actually tried to explain the commercial to a few people but no one got it. Anyways, he finally reached her and I told her that I needed to catch the but that was leaving soon for Arezzo and that I would return around 3 pm.
I walked to the bus stop and sat on one of the park benches to wait for the bus. This man who was also sitting on the bench asked me in Italian if I was a tourist. I told him that I was from Hawaii. He told me that he was from Canada and then we both switched to English. I was very lucky to meet him as I would never have found the train station without him. We chatted on the ride down on the bus and also at the train station for a few minutes before our trains arrived. He was going to Rome and I was going to Arezzo so we took different trains. He had that accent that everyone had in the movie “Fargo” and I I had the hardest time paying attention to what he was saying as all I could keep thinking of was the movie. He teaches Roman History and was off to meet some friends to go to a dig down south somewhere in Italy.
The train ride was very short and I arrived in Arezzo with a map that I picked up in Cortona. I wanted to see the Piero della Francesca exhibit and chapel and also the Piazza Grande. I have always wanted to visit Arezzo after seeing the movie “Life is Beautiful”. I was so amazed with the Piazza.
I decided to take the bus back as it would end up taking almost the same time when having to wait for a bus at the train station and so before heading out into the town, I stopped at the tourist information booth and asked where the bus departed for Cortona. The man drew a little line on my map.
The are a couple of main streets in Arezzo which go straight up through the middle of the town. I kept my eye out for the bus stop and saw a blue bus at a stop which seemed to be too close to the train station to be the stop I was shown. I saw a couple of men sitting at a table outside at a bar wearing what I thought were blue bus uniforms. I asked them if the blue bus was the same bus I would take to Cortona later in the day. They said “yes” and then I asked them if I was at the Pisazza Guido Monaco and showed them the map where the tourist info guy marked the bus stop. They told me that the bus stops at both stops and so I could go to either stop to catch the bus. At this point another man sitting nearby, not wearing a blue uniform who must have been eavesdropping on our conversation came over and asked me what bus I wanted to take. He pointed to a different location where a blue bus was parked insisting that I needed to catch the bus there instead of the location that the other two men pointed out. And then, a huge argument began between the two men and the eavesdropping man. Voices were raised and hands were flying. I tried to assure them that I understood where the bus would stop and thanked them for their help. They continued to argue as I left.
I went to the San Francesco church first to see Piero della Francesco’s work in the Capella Bacci (chapel), which was called The Legend of the True Cross. This cost 5 euros. It was very beautiful but did not move me like many other art works have in the past. I then walked to the Museo Statale d’Arte Medioevale e Moderna museum to see the Piero exhibit. It was not until I reached the top floor and saw the famous Duke of Urbino which I recognized immediately was I “wowed”. Ok, I know that is not a work but it is late and I can’t think of the proper word to describe the moment.
After leaving the museum, I headed uphill to see the Duomo and then the Piazza Grande. Unfortunately the piazza was roped off with stands placed in front of all the buildings in the piazza. It took the “wow” out of my moment of finally seeing this famous piazza. I then realized that the bus would be leaving pretty soon, and so I stopped at a bar and got a slice of pizza to go and headed down to the bus stop in piazza where the tourist info guy showed me. The guys in the blue uniform were correct as the bus then stopped at the stop that they showed me.
As usual, I forgot my ginger and was wishing I took the train instead of the bus as my stomach was not thrilled to be on the bus. When I got back to Cortona, I went back to see if the shop owner was still at her shop. She was there and it was exciting to meet her. She is the fourth Slow Traveler I have met. She was busy with “Imelda” for a while and then more and more customers came into the shop. It was great to see her have such a wonderful day of business. I also met a friend of hers who runs a blog from Cortona. They both recommended il Dolce for a gelato where I later had an incredible gelato (pistachio and nocciola)
After leaving Il Girasoli, I wandered the town for a short while taking some photos and then bought a big bottle of water and sat on one of the park benches. After a while a much older man came and sat next to me. He asked me where I was from and told me that he was from Rimini and was on a tour and pointed to the group nearby. We had a very enjoyable chat about many things and after a while the group headed our way and saw us on the bench. Well, this required pictures from all of his “men friends” with lots of laughter all around. I wonder if any of them will end up on the internet somewhere. At one point I wanted to ask him if he was escaping from his group but remembered that if the work “to escape” was pronounced incorrectly it could mean something very different and so I did not bring that subject up.
After my chat and then my gelato, I headed back to my room to pack. For dinner, I checked out a couple of other recommended restaurants that I wanted to try but both were closed. One restaurant had a sign saying “just married” and the other one was also on vacation. I thought about eating at Il Cacciatore but decided on pizza since there was a review for Fulfuns as having great pizza. I would not agree at all with that review. I thought the pizza was terrible. I also ended up most of the night with a horrible stomach ache. I can’t definitely say it was from the pizza as I have been eating a lot of wheat which I am not supposed to eat but it sure was a coincidence. I am just thankful that by the following night my stomach started to feel much better although it was not fun on the train.
The following morning I headed to Rome (see one of my previous posts).
I am off to bed! Buona Notte
tuesday in Cortona
I guess I will start with Cortona and go backwards back to Venice to catch up on all I have not been able to post yet.
After arriving in Cortona and checking into my B&B, I went on a restaurant hunt to find a somewhere to have lunch. I brought a list of recommended restaurants with me. As I did not know the town well yet, I looked for restaurants near the center which was also near my B&B. I stumbled onto La Logetta but it was already full. Since I was there, I asked to have a table reserved for me for dinner. I also asked the waiter for a recommendation of another restaurant nearby. He suggested Il Cacciatore.
Il Cacciatore was also on my list and turned out to be my favorite place to eat while I was there. I had a ravioli dish which was stuffed with eggplant and came with a fresh tomato sauce. Delicious!! I also enjoyed the atmosphere. There were a few tables full of locals and what seemed to be a table of Italian tourists. Right before I was done, in walked “Imelda” and her party as I will call her (nicknamed by a fellow slow traveler and that is all I will say about that). There were only tables for 2 set up. Two men offered to move so that they could set a table for four but they just started eating. I was just finishing up my water and waiting for the bill and offered to let them have my table but no one would hear of that. It was an entertaining few minutes before I left.
I then went to look for Il Girasoli to see if Alessandra was there. It took me a while to find it and when I did, I could not believe I did not see it sooner as it is located right in the town center. Alessandra wasn’t there and so I left a message saying that I would be back the next morning.
After leaving my message, I went to the tourist information office to get a map of Cortona. I also inquired about the hike up to the church on the top of the hill. The road to take started near where the buses depart and so I went to check the bus schedule and then started on my long hike. It was a very hot day and I ended up with the beginning of a blister. At the top was the Sanctuary of Santa Margherita and a little further up was a fortezza, Fortezza del Girifalco. The cost was 3 euros and it was similar to the fortezza in Montalcino in that it had the wall at the top that you could walk around but it was not as big. I really enjoyed my visit inside the fortezza. The views were spectacular.
After my long walk up to the church and the fortezza, I headed back down a different way which included walking along a few windy roads through the middle of the town. When I got back to the center, I went back to my room to rest my feet for a while. I went back out to look for an internet caffè and spent a little time catching up.
I then headed over to La Logetta for dinner. The food at La Logetta was good but it was a very “touristy” restaurant and I felt that the service was not as genuinely friendly as I find it to be in places which are not frequented by so many tourists. I had bruschetta with tomatoes and a salad with lots of vegetables and delicious tuna.
I was pretty tired after dinner and went back to my B&B for the night.
After arriving in Cortona and checking into my B&B, I went on a restaurant hunt to find a somewhere to have lunch. I brought a list of recommended restaurants with me. As I did not know the town well yet, I looked for restaurants near the center which was also near my B&B. I stumbled onto La Logetta but it was already full. Since I was there, I asked to have a table reserved for me for dinner. I also asked the waiter for a recommendation of another restaurant nearby. He suggested Il Cacciatore.
Il Cacciatore was also on my list and turned out to be my favorite place to eat while I was there. I had a ravioli dish which was stuffed with eggplant and came with a fresh tomato sauce. Delicious!! I also enjoyed the atmosphere. There were a few tables full of locals and what seemed to be a table of Italian tourists. Right before I was done, in walked “Imelda” and her party as I will call her (nicknamed by a fellow slow traveler and that is all I will say about that). There were only tables for 2 set up. Two men offered to move so that they could set a table for four but they just started eating. I was just finishing up my water and waiting for the bill and offered to let them have my table but no one would hear of that. It was an entertaining few minutes before I left.
I then went to look for Il Girasoli to see if Alessandra was there. It took me a while to find it and when I did, I could not believe I did not see it sooner as it is located right in the town center. Alessandra wasn’t there and so I left a message saying that I would be back the next morning.
After leaving my message, I went to the tourist information office to get a map of Cortona. I also inquired about the hike up to the church on the top of the hill. The road to take started near where the buses depart and so I went to check the bus schedule and then started on my long hike. It was a very hot day and I ended up with the beginning of a blister. At the top was the Sanctuary of Santa Margherita and a little further up was a fortezza, Fortezza del Girifalco. The cost was 3 euros and it was similar to the fortezza in Montalcino in that it had the wall at the top that you could walk around but it was not as big. I really enjoyed my visit inside the fortezza. The views were spectacular.
After my long walk up to the church and the fortezza, I headed back down a different way which included walking along a few windy roads through the middle of the town. When I got back to the center, I went back to my room to rest my feet for a while. I went back out to look for an internet caffè and spent a little time catching up.
I then headed over to La Logetta for dinner. The food at La Logetta was good but it was a very “touristy” restaurant and I felt that the service was not as genuinely friendly as I find it to be in places which are not frequented by so many tourists. I had bruschetta with tomatoes and a salad with lots of vegetables and delicious tuna.
I was pretty tired after dinner and went back to my B&B for the night.
so far Rome is very peaceful
Buon giorno!
I arrived in Rome yesterday afternoon. I took the bus, which was 10 minutes "in ritardo" (late), from Cortona to Camucia where I caught the train to Rome. The bus drops you off in the town of Camucia and then I had to walk (about a 10 minute walk) to the train station. I took the bus the day before as a practice run. Because the bus was late, I only had 10 minutes to get to the train station and so I jogged partway, reaching the station in 5 minutes, only to find out that the train was also 10 minutes "in ritardo"!
The train was a newer regional train and was quite comfortable. I had a 1st class ticket. The 1st class section was full but luckily I found a great seat before it filled up at the Terontola station. We arrived in Rome 20 minutes late. I decided to go to the Trastevere station instead of the Termini to avoid the craziness and long taxi lines at the Termini station. This meant a change at the Tiburtina station. I printed out all the train options in case the train was late for my connection.
I was very glad that I had this print out as when I arrived at the Tiburtina station, I could not find a "partenza" board (where you find which binario or train track to take your connecting train). There was a list of train departure times with the destinations listed on the main board up on the TV monitors. I was not aware at the time that the train I was taking was the airport train. Because I had the train departure times and the airport train was the only train listed with the same departure times (2 airport trains were listed as they run about every 15 mins), I assumed that the airport train was the correct train to take. Interestingly, the airport trains did not have a binario listed. I saw a group of people standing watching the TV monitor. I asked a girl if she knew which binario to take and she said she was also waiting for it to be listed. This would not be so strange if the train was departing 30 minutes or later, but the train was departing in 5 minutes. Finally, with about 2 minutes to spare, the binario was announced (only in Italian) over the loudspeaker. The train was a nice train and if unless I decide to splurge and take a taxi to the airport, I will take this same train to the airport when I leave.
When I arrived around 1:20 pm at the Trastevere station, I went outside and saw one taxi parked in the middle of the parking lot and no taxi stand. I remembered reading all about the private taxis and how important it was to go to the taxi stand. I saw two policemen sitting in a car and asked them where the taxi stand was. They were not very friendly. They grumbled and pointed to the taxi stand. I went to the stand and stood there. The taxi in the middle of the parking lot did not move. A woman then got into the taxi. Now there were no taxis. I waited a few minutes and then called the number on the sign. The number was out of order.
I then saw a couple with luggage waiting near the entrance. I went over to them to see if they knew about the taxis. They also did not know anything about the taxi situation. I called the lady renting me the apartment and she gave me directions on how to take the tram. I am not good with directions and was quite concerned that it could end up taking quite a while to find the apartment. By now, the Termini was looking really good. Luckily just then a taxi drove up and again parked in the middle of the parking lot. The couple and I decided to take this cab and to share the cab. The taxi driver was extremely nice and the couple's hotel was quite close to my apartment.
They were very thankful that I rode with them as they did not speak English and so I was able to interpret what the taxi driver was telling them. He thought that we were traveling together and so he was telling us about the new change that it costs 40 euros to the airport by taxi no matter how many people and how many bags. I explained to him that we did not know each other. We realized while chatting in that taxi that we were both originally from Massachusetts and we are both huge Red Sox fans. Small world!!
We were dropped off at the Piazza Sant' Edgidio where my my apartment is located. He told the other couple that he could not drive directly to their hotel but it was just around the corner. We said our goodbyes and I located my apartment.
WOW, I am so very fortunate. What a great find! My apartment is located in a very peaceful little piazza and is very comfortable. I awoke this morning to the church bells. What a wonderful sound!
Yesterday after being shown all the important things about the apartment and dropping off my things as the apartment was still being cleaned, I decided to go see if a friend I have met through Slow Travel had arrived at her hotel. We had made plans to meet Saturday night for dinner. We both changed our plans last minute after finding out about Friday's train strike and arrived in Rome on Thursday instead of Friday. She sent me very detailed directions on how to get to her hotel but that paper was still in my bag. All I had was a map of Rome. While walking over to the Campo de' Fiori area, I experienced the first craziness on this trip of crossing a street. It is amazing that everyone makes it across the street in one piece.
I found the hotel after asking a few people and we met for a drink. While we were sitting at this wonderful little caffè, the couple that I shared the taxi with walked by and stopped to say hello. I was so happy that they found their hotel.
After we made our plans for Saturday night and said our goodbyes, I walked to the Campo de' Fiori and then to the Piazza Navona. What a feeling standing in that amazing Piazza. That was when it really hit me that I was back in Rome! I then walked over to the Pantheon. Again, another amazing sight to see once again. I went into the Pantheon, which although a little crowded, was so incredibly beautiful. I then walked back to Trastevere, went to a little grocery store, and then went back to my apartment to unpack and have some dinner. I was pretty tired as I did not sleep well the night before and so I went to bed early.
I am not sure just what I will do today, but I am headed out to enjoy Roma!
Ciao!!
I arrived in Rome yesterday afternoon. I took the bus, which was 10 minutes "in ritardo" (late), from Cortona to Camucia where I caught the train to Rome. The bus drops you off in the town of Camucia and then I had to walk (about a 10 minute walk) to the train station. I took the bus the day before as a practice run. Because the bus was late, I only had 10 minutes to get to the train station and so I jogged partway, reaching the station in 5 minutes, only to find out that the train was also 10 minutes "in ritardo"!
The train was a newer regional train and was quite comfortable. I had a 1st class ticket. The 1st class section was full but luckily I found a great seat before it filled up at the Terontola station. We arrived in Rome 20 minutes late. I decided to go to the Trastevere station instead of the Termini to avoid the craziness and long taxi lines at the Termini station. This meant a change at the Tiburtina station. I printed out all the train options in case the train was late for my connection.
I was very glad that I had this print out as when I arrived at the Tiburtina station, I could not find a "partenza" board (where you find which binario or train track to take your connecting train). There was a list of train departure times with the destinations listed on the main board up on the TV monitors. I was not aware at the time that the train I was taking was the airport train. Because I had the train departure times and the airport train was the only train listed with the same departure times (2 airport trains were listed as they run about every 15 mins), I assumed that the airport train was the correct train to take. Interestingly, the airport trains did not have a binario listed. I saw a group of people standing watching the TV monitor. I asked a girl if she knew which binario to take and she said she was also waiting for it to be listed. This would not be so strange if the train was departing 30 minutes or later, but the train was departing in 5 minutes. Finally, with about 2 minutes to spare, the binario was announced (only in Italian) over the loudspeaker. The train was a nice train and if unless I decide to splurge and take a taxi to the airport, I will take this same train to the airport when I leave.
When I arrived around 1:20 pm at the Trastevere station, I went outside and saw one taxi parked in the middle of the parking lot and no taxi stand. I remembered reading all about the private taxis and how important it was to go to the taxi stand. I saw two policemen sitting in a car and asked them where the taxi stand was. They were not very friendly. They grumbled and pointed to the taxi stand. I went to the stand and stood there. The taxi in the middle of the parking lot did not move. A woman then got into the taxi. Now there were no taxis. I waited a few minutes and then called the number on the sign. The number was out of order.
I then saw a couple with luggage waiting near the entrance. I went over to them to see if they knew about the taxis. They also did not know anything about the taxi situation. I called the lady renting me the apartment and she gave me directions on how to take the tram. I am not good with directions and was quite concerned that it could end up taking quite a while to find the apartment. By now, the Termini was looking really good. Luckily just then a taxi drove up and again parked in the middle of the parking lot. The couple and I decided to take this cab and to share the cab. The taxi driver was extremely nice and the couple's hotel was quite close to my apartment.
They were very thankful that I rode with them as they did not speak English and so I was able to interpret what the taxi driver was telling them. He thought that we were traveling together and so he was telling us about the new change that it costs 40 euros to the airport by taxi no matter how many people and how many bags. I explained to him that we did not know each other. We realized while chatting in that taxi that we were both originally from Massachusetts and we are both huge Red Sox fans. Small world!!
We were dropped off at the Piazza Sant' Edgidio where my my apartment is located. He told the other couple that he could not drive directly to their hotel but it was just around the corner. We said our goodbyes and I located my apartment.
WOW, I am so very fortunate. What a great find! My apartment is located in a very peaceful little piazza and is very comfortable. I awoke this morning to the church bells. What a wonderful sound!
Yesterday after being shown all the important things about the apartment and dropping off my things as the apartment was still being cleaned, I decided to go see if a friend I have met through Slow Travel had arrived at her hotel. We had made plans to meet Saturday night for dinner. We both changed our plans last minute after finding out about Friday's train strike and arrived in Rome on Thursday instead of Friday. She sent me very detailed directions on how to get to her hotel but that paper was still in my bag. All I had was a map of Rome. While walking over to the Campo de' Fiori area, I experienced the first craziness on this trip of crossing a street. It is amazing that everyone makes it across the street in one piece.
I found the hotel after asking a few people and we met for a drink. While we were sitting at this wonderful little caffè, the couple that I shared the taxi with walked by and stopped to say hello. I was so happy that they found their hotel.
After we made our plans for Saturday night and said our goodbyes, I walked to the Campo de' Fiori and then to the Piazza Navona. What a feeling standing in that amazing Piazza. That was when it really hit me that I was back in Rome! I then walked over to the Pantheon. Again, another amazing sight to see once again. I went into the Pantheon, which although a little crowded, was so incredibly beautiful. I then walked back to Trastevere, went to a little grocery store, and then went back to my apartment to unpack and have some dinner. I was pretty tired as I did not sleep well the night before and so I went to bed early.
I am not sure just what I will do today, but I am headed out to enjoy Roma!
Ciao!!
Tuesday, June 19
bella Cortona
I am now in Cortona. It is a beautiful day. I arrived about 12:45 after two train rides. I was fortunate to have a nice man share a taxi with me at the Camucia-Cortona train station, although I think I ended up paying the entire fare. After a wonderful lunch I hiked up to an amazing church and the Fortezza with great views. Yesterday I climbed the tower in Bologna (more in another post about Bologna). I have definitely had a workout these past two days. It looks like I will definitely be going to Rome on Thursday instead of Friday and will post more then as I will have computer access at my apartment.
Hope everyone is well!
CIAO!!
Hope everyone is well!
CIAO!!
Monday, June 18
train travel to Bologna
Ciao! I am now in Bologna. I still need to catch up with my days in Venice and also my stay with my friends in Coccaglio. I am only here for one day and have a dinner reservation in an hour but I wanted to at least check in.
I arrived at the train station in Rovato about 15 minutes early. I validated my ticket and I was set to say goodbye to Katia when we saw that my train was 50 minutes delayed! That made my connection in Verona impossible. Rovato is a very small train station with one ticket booth with a man that is not very friendly. After buying a ticket from him a few years ago, I always buy my ticket in advance when taking a train from this station so that I can avoid him. I was not very hopeful that he would be able to help but surprisingly, he was able to suggest an alternate train that should still get me to Verona in time. He told me that I would not have to pay anything more since the train I bought the ticket for was now canceled.
Katia had to leave to go to work and so I sat and waited. This train ended up being 5 minutes late also. I arrived in Brescia and saw that the Eurostar City train was going to Verona and would get me there on time. I told my story about my cancelled train to the conductor but he would not let me on the train. He said I had to wait for the IC train which would get me to Verona in time for my connection.
Right after the Eurostar City train left, there was an announcement that the train I was waiting for would be 10 minutes late. This meant that I would probably miss my nice Eurostar train from Verona to Bologna. I looked at the schedule and with the time delay, I would arrive with 1 minute to spare to make my connection. I went into this little office to ask one of the train people to find out my options. I did not know the time of the other trains and thought that maybe it would be better to go to Milan instead as I seemed to remember that there were many trains that go to Bologna from Milan. The man told me that next train was an IC Plus train and that I could use my ticket for that train. It would arrive 70 minutes later than my original train. At least now I had a backup plan.
When the train arrived, it was packed! I was not able to get past the tiny area by the door where the bathroom is and so I stood with 2 other men and 2 other woman for the journey. The 2 women sent SMS messages, the 2 men read books, and I listened to my iPod.
When we arrived in Desenzano Del Garda we had to all shuffle a little to make room for people to get off the train and board the train. Once the train left, we all resumed our positions. The next stop was Peschiera Del Garda. Again we shuffled to make room but this time a man and his son got on. The man left his BIG suitcase right in front of the door and went inside one of the cars. His son sat on the floor and proceeded to play his gameboy. The rest of us were now squashed like sardines! As people came through to use the bathroom, it became a game of twister as we all tried to move this way and that for each person to get buy. The son did not move an inch and the man looked at us all through the door of the car.
We arrived in Verona at 10:45. My Eurostar train left at 10:41. Of course that train was on time!! I now had some time to kill. I bought my tickets for my next train trip (Bologna to Cortona) and then headed to the bathroom. I have to say that the bathroom at the Verona train station was extremely nice as train bathrooms go. It is a pay bathroom and you need coins. The machine will take .50, .10, and .05 coins and it does not give change.
I headed to the binario and read on the board that my train would be 10 minutes late! What a surprise! At least this was my last train of the day! I was concerned that I would have to stand the entire way but was happy to find a wonderful seat with room for my bags. I took out my sudoku puzzles and turned my iPod on and was finally ready for a nice train ride. When the train ticket person came by, I handed her my ticket. She made a funny face as she looked at my Eurostar ticket. I started to tell her my story of my cancelled train and all the late and missed connections. She continued to make the funny face and so I continued to tell her my story in Italian. Either she did not want to hear my tell my story anymore or she decided that it was ok as she said as long as I was getting off in Bologna my ticket would be fine. Now why wouldn't I be getting off in Bologna??
We arrived in Bologna 15 minutes late and in all I arrived an hour and 25 minutes after I was supposed to arrive. I headed to the taxi area, waited about 10 minutes in line and then hopped in a taxi. A very nice man at my hotel (Hotel Porta San Momolo) met me at the door. Everyone was SO friendly. I was told that my room was almost ready but another room was ready which I could have right now. She showed me the room but I told her that I prefered the other room as I requested a no-smoking room. I asked if any restaurants were still open as I was starving. It was now almost 2 pm. I left my luggage, had a wonderful dinner and then returned to find an amazing room. I reserved a single and thought for sure that they must have made a mistake as my room seems like a suite! It is the biggest single I have ever stayed in.
I grabbed what I needed for the afternoon and headed out to enjoy an afternoon in Bologna.
More to come later as I am off to dinner pretty soon.
ciao!!
I arrived at the train station in Rovato about 15 minutes early. I validated my ticket and I was set to say goodbye to Katia when we saw that my train was 50 minutes delayed! That made my connection in Verona impossible. Rovato is a very small train station with one ticket booth with a man that is not very friendly. After buying a ticket from him a few years ago, I always buy my ticket in advance when taking a train from this station so that I can avoid him. I was not very hopeful that he would be able to help but surprisingly, he was able to suggest an alternate train that should still get me to Verona in time. He told me that I would not have to pay anything more since the train I bought the ticket for was now canceled.
Katia had to leave to go to work and so I sat and waited. This train ended up being 5 minutes late also. I arrived in Brescia and saw that the Eurostar City train was going to Verona and would get me there on time. I told my story about my cancelled train to the conductor but he would not let me on the train. He said I had to wait for the IC train which would get me to Verona in time for my connection.
Right after the Eurostar City train left, there was an announcement that the train I was waiting for would be 10 minutes late. This meant that I would probably miss my nice Eurostar train from Verona to Bologna. I looked at the schedule and with the time delay, I would arrive with 1 minute to spare to make my connection. I went into this little office to ask one of the train people to find out my options. I did not know the time of the other trains and thought that maybe it would be better to go to Milan instead as I seemed to remember that there were many trains that go to Bologna from Milan. The man told me that next train was an IC Plus train and that I could use my ticket for that train. It would arrive 70 minutes later than my original train. At least now I had a backup plan.
When the train arrived, it was packed! I was not able to get past the tiny area by the door where the bathroom is and so I stood with 2 other men and 2 other woman for the journey. The 2 women sent SMS messages, the 2 men read books, and I listened to my iPod.
When we arrived in Desenzano Del Garda we had to all shuffle a little to make room for people to get off the train and board the train. Once the train left, we all resumed our positions. The next stop was Peschiera Del Garda. Again we shuffled to make room but this time a man and his son got on. The man left his BIG suitcase right in front of the door and went inside one of the cars. His son sat on the floor and proceeded to play his gameboy. The rest of us were now squashed like sardines! As people came through to use the bathroom, it became a game of twister as we all tried to move this way and that for each person to get buy. The son did not move an inch and the man looked at us all through the door of the car.
We arrived in Verona at 10:45. My Eurostar train left at 10:41. Of course that train was on time!! I now had some time to kill. I bought my tickets for my next train trip (Bologna to Cortona) and then headed to the bathroom. I have to say that the bathroom at the Verona train station was extremely nice as train bathrooms go. It is a pay bathroom and you need coins. The machine will take .50, .10, and .05 coins and it does not give change.
I headed to the binario and read on the board that my train would be 10 minutes late! What a surprise! At least this was my last train of the day! I was concerned that I would have to stand the entire way but was happy to find a wonderful seat with room for my bags. I took out my sudoku puzzles and turned my iPod on and was finally ready for a nice train ride. When the train ticket person came by, I handed her my ticket. She made a funny face as she looked at my Eurostar ticket. I started to tell her my story of my cancelled train and all the late and missed connections. She continued to make the funny face and so I continued to tell her my story in Italian. Either she did not want to hear my tell my story anymore or she decided that it was ok as she said as long as I was getting off in Bologna my ticket would be fine. Now why wouldn't I be getting off in Bologna??
We arrived in Bologna 15 minutes late and in all I arrived an hour and 25 minutes after I was supposed to arrive. I headed to the taxi area, waited about 10 minutes in line and then hopped in a taxi. A very nice man at my hotel (Hotel Porta San Momolo) met me at the door. Everyone was SO friendly. I was told that my room was almost ready but another room was ready which I could have right now. She showed me the room but I told her that I prefered the other room as I requested a no-smoking room. I asked if any restaurants were still open as I was starving. It was now almost 2 pm. I left my luggage, had a wonderful dinner and then returned to find an amazing room. I reserved a single and thought for sure that they must have made a mistake as my room seems like a suite! It is the biggest single I have ever stayed in.
I grabbed what I needed for the afternoon and headed out to enjoy an afternoon in Bologna.
More to come later as I am off to dinner pretty soon.
ciao!!
Saturday, June 16
feeling much better now
Just a quick post. I am now in Coccaglio with Katia and Guido. I am finally feeling better and have more energy to climb those towers in my future. My last few days in Venice were wonderful. I will post more to catch up on all the news soon I hope when I have more time. Guido was able to make the handle of the bag go down and up partway. He took the suitcase apart and there is a big dent halfway down on the metal part which holds the part of the metal handle. The airlines better be paying for this later. At least now I can close it to put my luggage on the plane.
well...we are off to see Katia & Guido's wedding pictures and video and then later we will go for pizza.
ciao a tutti!
susan
well...we are off to see Katia & Guido's wedding pictures and video and then later we will go for pizza.
ciao a tutti!
susan
Wednesday, June 13
the clock tower
Wednesday morning, I awoke to blue skies!! A beautiful sunny day is the sure cure to my nasty little bug.
...will write more soon as I have been here much too long...will leave you with the knowledge that the clock tower tour was amazing!! a wonderful day!!
...will write more soon as I have been here much too long...will leave you with the knowledge that the clock tower tour was amazing!! a wonderful day!!
jet lag & rain
Sunday morning was pretty peaceful in Venice. The skies were blue, the sun was out, and the temperature was perfect. Not too hot, but also not too chilly. It was amazing to stand in such an empty Piazza San Marco. There could not have been more than 30 or 40 people in the entire square. Even the pigeons had not arrived. I guess they wait for the vendors with the pigeon food to arrive. I had a nice chat with the man standing by the Basilica door about how empty it was. I asked him if it was because it was Sunday. He said that every morning at 7 am most of Venice is still asleep. Although this will not convert me to be a morning person, I was glad to be there in the wee hours of the morning to enjoy the piazza without the crowds. After taking a few pictures, I walked down as far as the Arsenale area and then took the vaporetto back to Ca' Doro, stopped for my first italian coffee (heavenly) and then headed back to my apartment.
I was pretty wiped out and took a long nap. I woke up feeling the beginning of a cold coming on. I thought I escaped that nasty bug that many of the teachers at my school caught the last month of work. I took my cold snap, wellness capsules, and drank some airborne. Unfortunately none of that helped.
Later on in the day, I explored some of the Canneregio area where my apartment is located and then stopped at the grocery store again and bought some pesto and pasta for dinner. I was feeling pretty terrible by this point and decided that I would eat at home and get to bed early again. I had some more cherries hoping that would help with my jetlag. Unfortunately I forgot to have some again the night before and so it will be hard to tell if they work or not since I have not been eating them regularly right before dinner.
I fell asleep pretty quickly. I woke up at 2 am and could not go back to sleep! I found a cable plug in the bedroom and moved the tv to the bedroom and tried my best to go back to sleep. The tv usually will put me back to sleep. I finally got up at around 6 am and saw that the weather was gray and cloudy. The "METEO" (weather report) was not promising. I headed out after having some breakfast. I stopped for my morning coffee and then decided to walk down to the train station in search of an internet site along the way. I remembered seeing one last year but could not find it. I thought perhaps there might be one in the train station. Just as I arrived, the skies opened up and it started to rain. Umbrellas popped up everywhere. I headed over to San Tomà to go to the agency that arranged for my apartment to pay my bill. After paying, I stopped in a paper store and then decided to try Casa Mia for lunch.
Casa Mia is one of the restaurants recommended in the Chow Venice book I bought. A great choice! I had a delicious pepperoni pizza (peppers not the meat). Delicious! After lunch, I was feeling pretty lousy and was not up for walking around in the rain. I had dinner at my apartment again and tried to stay up as late as possible.
Tuesday morning, I woke to another cloudy and overcast day. I slept until about 4 which was an improvement. I was feeling horrible but decided to head out anyways. I walked to the Fondamenta Nove area and then took one of the vaporetti around the island. I got off at the Giardini stop and thought about visiting the Biennale but decided against it. The weather looked like it was going to start raining at any moment and I still not feeling too good. I took the next Vaporetto and stopped at the COOP at the Piazzale Roma stop. I bought some food for lunch and dinner and then headed back to the apartment and hung out for most of the afternoon until finally it cleared up and a little bit of blue sky peeked through.
I headed out searching for a recommended gelateria. I found it after a few wrong turns but was not thrilled with the flavors. I had pistachio on my mind and they did not have any. I stumbled into 2 amazing piazzas, Campo Santa Maria Formosa and Campo Santi Giovanni e Paolo. I found a gelateria with pistachio. After hanging out for a while, I headed back to my apartment. As I was walking back to my apartment, I saw another restaurant recommended that I wanted to try and made a mental note as to how to get there again for a lunch or dinner later in the week.
I was wiped out and had dinner once again at my apartment and then watched a movie on tv. I can't even remember the name of it at the moment but thankfully that was the last night of my jetlag haze.
I was pretty wiped out and took a long nap. I woke up feeling the beginning of a cold coming on. I thought I escaped that nasty bug that many of the teachers at my school caught the last month of work. I took my cold snap, wellness capsules, and drank some airborne. Unfortunately none of that helped.
Later on in the day, I explored some of the Canneregio area where my apartment is located and then stopped at the grocery store again and bought some pesto and pasta for dinner. I was feeling pretty terrible by this point and decided that I would eat at home and get to bed early again. I had some more cherries hoping that would help with my jetlag. Unfortunately I forgot to have some again the night before and so it will be hard to tell if they work or not since I have not been eating them regularly right before dinner.
I fell asleep pretty quickly. I woke up at 2 am and could not go back to sleep! I found a cable plug in the bedroom and moved the tv to the bedroom and tried my best to go back to sleep. The tv usually will put me back to sleep. I finally got up at around 6 am and saw that the weather was gray and cloudy. The "METEO" (weather report) was not promising. I headed out after having some breakfast. I stopped for my morning coffee and then decided to walk down to the train station in search of an internet site along the way. I remembered seeing one last year but could not find it. I thought perhaps there might be one in the train station. Just as I arrived, the skies opened up and it started to rain. Umbrellas popped up everywhere. I headed over to San Tomà to go to the agency that arranged for my apartment to pay my bill. After paying, I stopped in a paper store and then decided to try Casa Mia for lunch.
Casa Mia is one of the restaurants recommended in the Chow Venice book I bought. A great choice! I had a delicious pepperoni pizza (peppers not the meat). Delicious! After lunch, I was feeling pretty lousy and was not up for walking around in the rain. I had dinner at my apartment again and tried to stay up as late as possible.
Tuesday morning, I woke to another cloudy and overcast day. I slept until about 4 which was an improvement. I was feeling horrible but decided to head out anyways. I walked to the Fondamenta Nove area and then took one of the vaporetti around the island. I got off at the Giardini stop and thought about visiting the Biennale but decided against it. The weather looked like it was going to start raining at any moment and I still not feeling too good. I took the next Vaporetto and stopped at the COOP at the Piazzale Roma stop. I bought some food for lunch and dinner and then headed back to the apartment and hung out for most of the afternoon until finally it cleared up and a little bit of blue sky peeked through.
I headed out searching for a recommended gelateria. I found it after a few wrong turns but was not thrilled with the flavors. I had pistachio on my mind and they did not have any. I stumbled into 2 amazing piazzas, Campo Santa Maria Formosa and Campo Santi Giovanni e Paolo. I found a gelateria with pistachio. After hanging out for a while, I headed back to my apartment. As I was walking back to my apartment, I saw another restaurant recommended that I wanted to try and made a mental note as to how to get there again for a lunch or dinner later in the week.
I was wiped out and had dinner once again at my apartment and then watched a movie on tv. I can't even remember the name of it at the moment but thankfully that was the last night of my jetlag haze.
the good, the bad, & the ugly
The good:
Another wonderful check in experience at the Honolulu Airport. No line for the agriculture inspection. A long line for Northwest, BUT no line for Continental!! Because I already printed out my boarding pass, all I had to do was check my bag. There was an open kiosk available when I arrived. I quickly checked my bag (32 pounds) and went to the screening area. The aloha spirit is alive and well at the Honolulu Airport! The line was not very line and so I was not very concerned about the wait. But, a very kind man suggested that anyone leaving from gate 27 go to the next screening area because there was a shorter line there. He was correct. It took a total of 5 minutes to breeze through. This was the first time I flew since the new liquid rules. The person in front of me was a flight attendant and so I just followed her. It was sort of like an assembly line. Off go the shoes, everything goes in little bins, and one by one, we walk through the metal detector. The baggage screeners were very cheerful as I passed through.
After gathering all my belongings, I tried to figure out where my gate was located. My glasses were in a bag and so I tried to squint to read the signs. I saw a couple of ladies sitting on carts and went to ask one where gate 27 was. She said to hop in and she would give me a ride! WOW, that was probably the highlight of my flight. And it gets even better. Along the way, I asked her where I could buy some water. She said that the stores by my gate were already closed but she would pull over to one of the stores along the way and wait for me while I purchased my water. We picked up an older man along the way and quickly arrived at my gate. Simply amazing!
My flight took off on time and was as pleasant as a flight could be in coach. I ate some dried cherries (a tip I read that helps with jet lag) and slept much of the flight.
Once in Newark, I had about 5 hours to kill. It took 2 hours before my gate was announced so I basically wandered and stopped to watch the latest with Paris going back to jail on CNN. I also searched for the mailbox I had seen in the past to mail some cards that I should have mailed before I left and found out that there no longer are any mailboxes or mail slots inside the airport. The only way I could mail my cards was to go outside and then go through the security line again. Needless to say, the cards are now in Venice with me.
I had a grilled pepper and cheese sub, YUM!! and then headed over to my gate about an hour before it was scheduled to take off. A large group of people all flying together were sitting near me. We chatted a little and then slowly learned that our flight was not taking off on time. First we got the "Ladies and Gentlemen, we will be shortly delayed as we need to clean the plane" and then once we all boarded were told that we were out of order for the runway and it would only be a 15 minute delay. I'm sure you all know how that goes. Well, I really really had to pee by the time we finally took off. I leaped out of my seat as soon as we seemed to be leveling off and bolted for the restroom. Two of the flight attendants started to stop me but I pleaded that I had a medical condition and it was an emergency. They both were extremely kind and one of them, a very cute flight attendant was assigned to our section and was very kind to me the entire flight.
I sat next to an interesting guy that works for Diesel and live in Switzerland. We chatted for a while until we were served dinner and then it was movie time. I forgot to have more cherries, but fell asleep anyways pretty quickly and slept much of the flight.
We arrived about 90 minutes later than scheduled and zoomed through the passport control area.
The bad:
The luggage guys seemed to be taking a break as nothing moved for over 30 minutes. I chatted with a couple that did not have a very good travel agent as they were booked at the airport hotel for 2 nights! I didn't have the heart to tell them that staying at the airport area was probably the worst choice they could have made. They wanted to go to Venice one day and Lake Como the next. They probably should have stayed at Lake Come for the 2 nights instead. Finally the bags started to come out. I grabbed my bag and realized (THE BAD) that my handle was broken!! It would not budge. While I lent my phone to the wife to call the hotel for a shuttle (and sadly she was told to take a taxi), the husband tried to help me pull up the handle. He was able to pull it up about 4 inches and that was as far as it would go. So much for the new tote bag I bought specifically to slip over the handle.
I easily found the bus to the train station outside of the airport and handed my luggage to the driver to put underneath and grabbed a seat. The bus ride was as pleasant as a bus ride into the city could be. I bought my ticket and 30 minutes later I was on the train to Venice. We took off about 5 minutes later than scheduled. I was on a Eurostar train and so it was a very pleasant 3 hour train ride. Once we arrived in Mestre, we were told that there would be a slight delay. Outside, you could see tons of people waiting for trains. Later I found out there was some sort of strike taking place. We ended up being 30 minutes delayed by the time we arrived at the Santa Lucia train station.
I met Ketty, the woman who was to take me to my apartment at the train station. We sent a few SMS' (text messages) back an forth since my arrival at the airport in Milan. I needed to buy my Venice Blu Card ticket, which I reserved ahead of time and gives me 7 days of access on all vaporetti. There was a HUGE line and she did not want to wait. She said it was just a short walk to the apartment and that the maid was waiting there with the key and needed to leave. I knew the route that we were about to take and this was NOT part of my plan. There were lots of people along the way and Ketty walked at a brisk pace weaving in and out of the crowd. I tried my best to keep up while pulling my suitcase with the broken handle which was not too easy to do. We had to cross 5 bridges. Now 5 may not seem a lot to you, but by the 5th bridge, my arms were shaking and I could hardly lift my bag. We arrived at the door of my apartment and Ketty buzzed the maid. The apartment is on the 3rd floor (2nd floor for Italian lingo). I tried to lift my bag but my arms were not budging. Ketty helped me by grabbing one end and finally just carried it on her own. I was pleasantly surprised by a very nice apartment and after Ketty quickly announced the name of each room, she said goodbye and started to leave. I asked her to wait until I was sure about using each key and then said goodbye.
By this time, 30 hours after taking off from Honolulu, I was completely exhausted. I unpacked my things, stopped at an ATM, went to the grocery store (Billa), and bought a few things for dinner as well as some toilet paper. There was not even a square left for me so that was a priority! I then went over the to Rialto Bridge vaporetto stop and bought my Venice Blu card. At first, the woman was going to make me go back to the train station but after I explained how long I had been traveling and asked her nicely if I could buy the ticket there, she agreed.
I made myself a caprese salad for dinner and went to bed. I woke up at 1 am and was not able to get back to sleep. I finally got up around 5:30. I watched some TV, had some yogurt and cereal for breakfast and then headed out to explore Venice.
Sunday morning in Venice is pretty quiet at 6:30 am. The street cleaners (men with brooms, not machines) were hard at work. I was amazed at all of the trash. I have to say though that there are not many wastebaskets around, not that I am making an excuse for littering.
The ugly:
OK, are you ready for the ugly?? After wandering my neighborhood for a while, I decided to head towards Piazza di San Marco. Thank goodness I looked down as at one point I just missed stepping on a dead rat!! Yes, you are reading this correctly, a big fat rat. I assume he or she was dead but perhaps it was just asleep. I guess the street cleaners did not get to that street yet. This is my 4th trip to Venice and in her defense, this is only the first rat I have seen. I would say that definitely qualifies as the ugly!
Another wonderful check in experience at the Honolulu Airport. No line for the agriculture inspection. A long line for Northwest, BUT no line for Continental!! Because I already printed out my boarding pass, all I had to do was check my bag. There was an open kiosk available when I arrived. I quickly checked my bag (32 pounds) and went to the screening area. The aloha spirit is alive and well at the Honolulu Airport! The line was not very line and so I was not very concerned about the wait. But, a very kind man suggested that anyone leaving from gate 27 go to the next screening area because there was a shorter line there. He was correct. It took a total of 5 minutes to breeze through. This was the first time I flew since the new liquid rules. The person in front of me was a flight attendant and so I just followed her. It was sort of like an assembly line. Off go the shoes, everything goes in little bins, and one by one, we walk through the metal detector. The baggage screeners were very cheerful as I passed through.
After gathering all my belongings, I tried to figure out where my gate was located. My glasses were in a bag and so I tried to squint to read the signs. I saw a couple of ladies sitting on carts and went to ask one where gate 27 was. She said to hop in and she would give me a ride! WOW, that was probably the highlight of my flight. And it gets even better. Along the way, I asked her where I could buy some water. She said that the stores by my gate were already closed but she would pull over to one of the stores along the way and wait for me while I purchased my water. We picked up an older man along the way and quickly arrived at my gate. Simply amazing!
My flight took off on time and was as pleasant as a flight could be in coach. I ate some dried cherries (a tip I read that helps with jet lag) and slept much of the flight.
Once in Newark, I had about 5 hours to kill. It took 2 hours before my gate was announced so I basically wandered and stopped to watch the latest with Paris going back to jail on CNN. I also searched for the mailbox I had seen in the past to mail some cards that I should have mailed before I left and found out that there no longer are any mailboxes or mail slots inside the airport. The only way I could mail my cards was to go outside and then go through the security line again. Needless to say, the cards are now in Venice with me.
I had a grilled pepper and cheese sub, YUM!! and then headed over to my gate about an hour before it was scheduled to take off. A large group of people all flying together were sitting near me. We chatted a little and then slowly learned that our flight was not taking off on time. First we got the "Ladies and Gentlemen, we will be shortly delayed as we need to clean the plane" and then once we all boarded were told that we were out of order for the runway and it would only be a 15 minute delay. I'm sure you all know how that goes. Well, I really really had to pee by the time we finally took off. I leaped out of my seat as soon as we seemed to be leveling off and bolted for the restroom. Two of the flight attendants started to stop me but I pleaded that I had a medical condition and it was an emergency. They both were extremely kind and one of them, a very cute flight attendant was assigned to our section and was very kind to me the entire flight.
I sat next to an interesting guy that works for Diesel and live in Switzerland. We chatted for a while until we were served dinner and then it was movie time. I forgot to have more cherries, but fell asleep anyways pretty quickly and slept much of the flight.
We arrived about 90 minutes later than scheduled and zoomed through the passport control area.
The bad:
The luggage guys seemed to be taking a break as nothing moved for over 30 minutes. I chatted with a couple that did not have a very good travel agent as they were booked at the airport hotel for 2 nights! I didn't have the heart to tell them that staying at the airport area was probably the worst choice they could have made. They wanted to go to Venice one day and Lake Como the next. They probably should have stayed at Lake Come for the 2 nights instead. Finally the bags started to come out. I grabbed my bag and realized (THE BAD) that my handle was broken!! It would not budge. While I lent my phone to the wife to call the hotel for a shuttle (and sadly she was told to take a taxi), the husband tried to help me pull up the handle. He was able to pull it up about 4 inches and that was as far as it would go. So much for the new tote bag I bought specifically to slip over the handle.
I easily found the bus to the train station outside of the airport and handed my luggage to the driver to put underneath and grabbed a seat. The bus ride was as pleasant as a bus ride into the city could be. I bought my ticket and 30 minutes later I was on the train to Venice. We took off about 5 minutes later than scheduled. I was on a Eurostar train and so it was a very pleasant 3 hour train ride. Once we arrived in Mestre, we were told that there would be a slight delay. Outside, you could see tons of people waiting for trains. Later I found out there was some sort of strike taking place. We ended up being 30 minutes delayed by the time we arrived at the Santa Lucia train station.
I met Ketty, the woman who was to take me to my apartment at the train station. We sent a few SMS' (text messages) back an forth since my arrival at the airport in Milan. I needed to buy my Venice Blu Card ticket, which I reserved ahead of time and gives me 7 days of access on all vaporetti. There was a HUGE line and she did not want to wait. She said it was just a short walk to the apartment and that the maid was waiting there with the key and needed to leave. I knew the route that we were about to take and this was NOT part of my plan. There were lots of people along the way and Ketty walked at a brisk pace weaving in and out of the crowd. I tried my best to keep up while pulling my suitcase with the broken handle which was not too easy to do. We had to cross 5 bridges. Now 5 may not seem a lot to you, but by the 5th bridge, my arms were shaking and I could hardly lift my bag. We arrived at the door of my apartment and Ketty buzzed the maid. The apartment is on the 3rd floor (2nd floor for Italian lingo). I tried to lift my bag but my arms were not budging. Ketty helped me by grabbing one end and finally just carried it on her own. I was pleasantly surprised by a very nice apartment and after Ketty quickly announced the name of each room, she said goodbye and started to leave. I asked her to wait until I was sure about using each key and then said goodbye.
By this time, 30 hours after taking off from Honolulu, I was completely exhausted. I unpacked my things, stopped at an ATM, went to the grocery store (Billa), and bought a few things for dinner as well as some toilet paper. There was not even a square left for me so that was a priority! I then went over the to Rialto Bridge vaporetto stop and bought my Venice Blu card. At first, the woman was going to make me go back to the train station but after I explained how long I had been traveling and asked her nicely if I could buy the ticket there, she agreed.
I made myself a caprese salad for dinner and went to bed. I woke up at 1 am and was not able to get back to sleep. I finally got up around 5:30. I watched some TV, had some yogurt and cereal for breakfast and then headed out to explore Venice.
Sunday morning in Venice is pretty quiet at 6:30 am. The street cleaners (men with brooms, not machines) were hard at work. I was amazed at all of the trash. I have to say though that there are not many wastebaskets around, not that I am making an excuse for littering.
The ugly:
OK, are you ready for the ugly?? After wandering my neighborhood for a while, I decided to head towards Piazza di San Marco. Thank goodness I looked down as at one point I just missed stepping on a dead rat!! Yes, you are reading this correctly, a big fat rat. I assume he or she was dead but perhaps it was just asleep. I guess the street cleaners did not get to that street yet. This is my 4th trip to Venice and in her defense, this is only the first rat I have seen. I would say that definitely qualifies as the ugly!
Monday, June 4
strike website on strike?
3 more days!!!
I just checked the strike website I linked below in my previous post and it seems that perhaps they are on STRIKE??? I am adding this link in case the previous link does not work so that I can check periodically before getting to Cortona to see if the train strike will be called off. Unfortunately it is all in Italian so I am not sure how interesting it will be to many of you.
Happy June and have a great summer!!
ciao...
I just checked the strike website I linked below in my previous post and it seems that perhaps they are on STRIKE??? I am adding this link in case the previous link does not work so that I can check periodically before getting to Cortona to see if the train strike will be called off. Unfortunately it is all in Italian so I am not sure how interesting it will be to many of you.
Happy June and have a great summer!!
ciao...
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