Italy--2011
J. T. Smith
The itinerary on this Gate 1 tour was quite compressed; so, we didn't spend much time anywhere--just enough for a sample of the culture and a glimpse of the principal tourist attractions.
Our first stop was Venice. Things started off with a bumpy ride in a water taxi from the airport to our hotel. The usual first-day activities included a briefing by our guide and a 'welcome' dinner, our first of many Italian-style, multiple-course meals.
The next morning started with a brief stroll to a canal landing where we boarded another boat. The guys handling these boats do so with amazing skill. There are stringent restrictions on speed these days to minimize the wake damage to the canal side of the buildings, but the whole place continues to deteriorate and sink. At high tide many buildings experience flooding on the lower floors.
Our first stop was one of the glass works in Murano. Beautiful stuff at exorbitant prices. On return to Venice, we toured the Doge's Palace and enjoyed a nice walk across numerous bridges to get back to the hotel for an afternoon at leisure and packing for the next morning.
A coach ride through Tuscany to Florence took most of the following day. Along the way, we stopped for lunch at a family farm in Montecarlo where we tasted local wines and learned everything anyone needs to know about olive oil: Its 'Virginity' has nothing to do with its quality per se--it's simply a measure of the acidity level--; if you're looking for quality, what you want is "first press" or "cold press" oil; and it should not be used for frying/sauteeing, because heat damages its chemistry and flavor.
Next stop: Pisa. What more is there to say? Yep; it's still leaning (or is it?).
Florence is a beautiful city with wonderful architecture. We made the obligatory visit to see Michelangelo's David (both the original in the museum and the copy occupying the outdoor venue where the original used to reside). Our really excellent local guide was an American lady who came to Florence 35 years ago to study art history and never left. Leather and gold are the big shopping items in Florence; bring lots of money.
After a nice day in Florence and a night's rest, we remounted the coach and headed for Rome. A surprisingly delightful stop in Assissi provided a nice break. We visited the twin bacilicas devoted to St. Francis (born, Giovanni di Bernardone), wandered the town a bit, and had a light lunch This picturesque little town perched on a hill is well worth a visit.
Rome is an impressive mix of old and new. We spent 2 days there, taking multiple walking tours to see most (perhaps all) of the standard tourist venues--Coliseum, Vatican, Forum, Pantheon, the Spanish (well, actually they're Roman) Steps, Michelangelo's Pieta and Moses, the many ornate fountains, and some of what remains of the old city buried under the new. Wading serenely through six lanes of cars, busses and scooters in a busy traffic circle just to get a better picture is now in my tourist skill set. They don't stop for pedestrians in Italy, but they will flow around you provided you give them a predictable target.
Leaving Rome, we traveled south to Sorrento with a stop at Pompeii, which is much larger (and much farther from Vesuvius) than I had imagined. The excavation and partial restorations give you a good feel for what life (and sudden death) might have been like for the citizens of that unfortunate city.
Sorrento is a lovely little town across the bay from Naples. The drive along the coast is simply beautiful; so, it's best done in daylight. Of course, it's also a great road for motorcycles, and I was extremely jealous.
Our stop in Sorrento was mostly intended to be a day of R&R with no scheduled activities. However, some of us decided to take an excursion to Capri to see how the top 1% live. No surprises there; they live quite well.
A boat ride to the Marina Grande followed by a minibus trip up the narrow and occasionally precarious road to Anacapri started the day. Diane took the chair lift up to the top of Monte Solaro for the panoramic view of the Bay of Naples. Still being cowardly when it comes to such things, I opted to poke around the village, scope out what I was not going to buy, and grab a nice cappuccino.
After lunch, we retraced our ride down the serpentine road to the village of Capri. There, a nice walk to a view point overlooking the southern cliffs preceded a ride on a funicular tram back down to the Marina Grande.
Before returning to Sorrento, we took a boat ride around the island to see the Blue Grotto, the lighthouse at Punta Carena, and other sights not accessible by road. Along the way the boat made a quick and slightly precarious pass through the natural arch in a large rock/small island known as Faraglioni. The passage is quite narrow, and the waves really rush through. Get it wrong and you would end up being slammed into the rough rock walls. This one is best left to the professionals.
That evening we had a pleasant "farewell" dinner at a nice little restaurant on the Sorrento waterfront. Then it was off to bed and an 0-dark get up. A minibus ride to the Naples airport began a nearly 24-hour series of three airplane rides back to the good ol' US-of-A.