Roma, second day: We started in the morning by checking out the Borghese Galleria. It has some very nice sculptures and paintings from Renaissance times. Danielle and I both enjoyed the artwork. We then walked around the shopping area of North Rome, but didn't take time to shop because I was hungry! On our way to Vatican City, we stopped for pizza. It was interesting. Danielle had pizza with baby tomatoes and I had pizza with peppers and mushrooms soaked in oil!
Vatican City:
We had our tickets for the Vatican Museum beforehand, but a guide service approached us. For 20 Euro a piece we were able to join a tour group. The experience took longer, but our guide was full of personality and we learned more of the history of the artwork. After the museum, we saw the St. Paul's bascillica. It may be the most beautiful church in the world! It is huge and adorned with artwork wall to wall.
We then stopped at a fortress in the area and grabbed a nice bird's eye view of Rome. Afterward we walked back to Hotel Boccaccio and enjoyed some Gellato!
This night we went out to a dance club in South Rome. It was hopping! We met some Israelis looking for a club, but they didn't have women in their group, so they couldn't go inside :( But Danielle got the two of us in! We danced the night away until 3:40 and caught a taxi home!
Next morning we woke up tired and ran to the Rome Termini to catch our train to La Spezia, to connect to Monterosso al Mare. The Mediterranian is amazingly blue! We parked our butts on beach chairs and took in the sun/ swam in the sea. What a relaxing experience!
Interesting things Danielle noticed:
Italian men aren't afraid to drink fruity/girlie drinks.
Italian men shun deodorant.
Israeli men don't like to take their women to Danceterias (alas, they couldn't enter then)!
Ciao!
p.s. Gellato is delicious, Jenny we love it!
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Day 2: Roma + Day 3 Monterosso (Cinque Terre)
Roma, second day: We started in the morning by checking out the Borghese Galleria. It has some very nice sculptures and paintings from Renaissance times. Danielle and I both enjoyed the artwork. We then walked around the shopping area of North Rome, but didn't take time to shop because I was hungry! On our way to Vatican City, we stopped for pizza. It was interesting. Danielle had pizza with baby tomatoes and I had pizza with peppers and mushrooms soaked in oil!
Vatican City:
We had our tickets for the Vatican Museum beforehand, but a guide service approached us. For 20 Euro a piece we were able to join a tour group. The experience took longer, but our guide was full of personality and we learned more of the history of the artwork. After the museum, we saw the St. Paul's bascillica. It may be the most beautiful church in the world! It is huge and adorned with artwork wall to wall.
We then stopped at a fortress in the area and grabbed a nice bird's eye view of Rome. Afterward we walked back to Hotel Boccaccio and enjoyed some Gellato!
This night we went out to a dance club in South Rome. It was hopping! We met some Israelis looking for a club, but they didn't have women in their group, so they couldn't go inside :( But Danielle got the two of us in! We danced the night away until 3:40 and caught a taxi home!
Next morning we woke up tired and ran to the Rome Termini to catch our train to La Spezia, to connect to Monterosso al Mare. The Mediterranian is amazingly blue! We parked our butts on beach chairs and took in the sun/ swam in the sea. What a relaxing experience!
Interesting things Danielle noticed:
Italian men aren't afraid to drink fruity/girlie drinks.
Italian men shun deodorant.
Israeli men don't like to take their women to Danceterias (alas, they couldn't enter then)!
Ciao!
p.s. Gellato is delicious, Jenny we love it!
Vatican City:
We had our tickets for the Vatican Museum beforehand, but a guide service approached us. For 20 Euro a piece we were able to join a tour group. The experience took longer, but our guide was full of personality and we learned more of the history of the artwork. After the museum, we saw the St. Paul's bascillica. It may be the most beautiful church in the world! It is huge and adorned with artwork wall to wall.
We then stopped at a fortress in the area and grabbed a nice bird's eye view of Rome. Afterward we walked back to Hotel Boccaccio and enjoyed some Gellato!
This night we went out to a dance club in South Rome. It was hopping! We met some Israelis looking for a club, but they didn't have women in their group, so they couldn't go inside :( But Danielle got the two of us in! We danced the night away until 3:40 and caught a taxi home!
Next morning we woke up tired and ran to the Rome Termini to catch our train to La Spezia, to connect to Monterosso al Mare. The Mediterranian is amazingly blue! We parked our butts on beach chairs and took in the sun/ swam in the sea. What a relaxing experience!
Interesting things Danielle noticed:
Italian men aren't afraid to drink fruity/girlie drinks.
Italian men shun deodorant.
Israeli men don't like to take their women to Danceterias (alas, they couldn't enter then)!
Ciao!
p.s. Gellato is delicious, Jenny we love it!
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Day 1: Roma
Yes, I know it's a bit pretentious to use the Italian names, but lets face it - they sound cooler. So I will use the Italian city names in my blogs. Recap from the flight - I got 2 hours of sleep, Danielle managed four. Some teenager in our row was fascinated with the sun that rose as we came closer to Europe - that woke us up.
It took us until noon to get situated. Warning: The train connecting the airport to city center has no air conditioning. First train ride in 90+ degree weather without A/C. That was rough on us, but we made it to our hotel.
After getting situated we sought out food. We had a couple of thin crust pizzas with mushroom on it. They were delicious, the sauce was great! Before the pizza came, the host brought us bread and a slice of eggplant to put on the bread. The eggplant had been marinating in oils and salts and was amazing!
After lunch, we toured the Colosseum and Forum. It was pretty neat to think that the ancient Romans had lived in those structures. It's amazing that some (parts) are still standing today. After that we took a siesta nap. I almost didn't wake up, but Danielle forced me. We took a walk to the Pantheon which was a sight to behold - that building is a beautiful piece of architecture. We then wandered the streets of old Rome and took in the small, winding, cobblestone roads. After wandering for a couple of hours we had some dinner. We split an appetizer of tomato and mozzarella, then each had a first course. I had some wonderful lasagna and Danielle had a tasty ravioli. We were full before we could move on to a second course. We wondered, do Italians really eat appetizer, first course, second course, and dessert in one meal?
It took us until noon to get situated. Warning: The train connecting the airport to city center has no air conditioning. First train ride in 90+ degree weather without A/C. That was rough on us, but we made it to our hotel.
After getting situated we sought out food. We had a couple of thin crust pizzas with mushroom on it. They were delicious, the sauce was great! Before the pizza came, the host brought us bread and a slice of eggplant to put on the bread. The eggplant had been marinating in oils and salts and was amazing!
After lunch, we toured the Colosseum and Forum. It was pretty neat to think that the ancient Romans had lived in those structures. It's amazing that some (parts) are still standing today. After that we took a siesta nap. I almost didn't wake up, but Danielle forced me. We took a walk to the Pantheon which was a sight to behold - that building is a beautiful piece of architecture. We then wandered the streets of old Rome and took in the small, winding, cobblestone roads. After wandering for a couple of hours we had some dinner. We split an appetizer of tomato and mozzarella, then each had a first course. I had some wonderful lasagna and Danielle had a tasty ravioli. We were full before we could move on to a second course. We wondered, do Italians really eat appetizer, first course, second course, and dessert in one meal?
Day 0: Plane
We wrote a brief entry on the iPad on the plane yesterday. To preface that entry, I should say that we boarded a plane to Philly at 1:45, and then caught a connection to Rome around 6. We landed in Rome at 2 am central time, 9 am Roman time. Here is our entry from the plane:
Day 0 Italy trip 2011 blog entry
Eric: Well we are high up in the air right now. We are watching "just go with it", the recent adam sandler movie. Dinner on an airplane: not good for meat eaters. My "chicken" was thoroughly unsatisfying in the taste dept. I should mention that Danielle's pasta was yummy tho. Well, I'm going to finish this movie, prbly watch the "Lincoln Lawyer" and then catch 3-4 hours ZZZs. Next stop: Rome!
Danielle: my food was good. I think the altitude makes u dehydrated.
Day 0 Italy trip 2011 blog entry
Eric: Well we are high up in the air right now. We are watching "just go with it", the recent adam sandler movie. Dinner on an airplane: not good for meat eaters. My "chicken" was thoroughly unsatisfying in the taste dept. I should mention that Danielle's pasta was yummy tho. Well, I'm going to finish this movie, prbly watch the "Lincoln Lawyer" and then catch 3-4 hours ZZZs. Next stop: Rome!
Danielle: my food was good. I think the altitude makes u dehydrated.
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