Stunning!

Today was an "optional experience."  That means, of course, that you have to pay extra.  We drove to Positana, along the Amalfi Coast.  The road went up and up and up and then down and down and down.  What an incredible view of the town perched on the hillside.  It used to be able to be reached only on foot or by boat.  Evidently the celebrities come here and play.  We didn't see any today, but we saw such beautiful scenery!  The drive was very windy on a very narrow road, so a bit harrowing, but our driver was very competent.  There were many shops in Positano with very expensive items, so we didn't end up buying anything.

We arrived at our hotel at around 7:00 and had dinner at 8:00.  I'll just talk about dinner in Italy for a minute.  So when you sit down at the table, there are a number of things already there.  Some possibilities are bread, homemade potato chips, olives, toasted broad beans, cheese with honey.  Next often come little plates with a few of something on it--little pizza squares, breaded zucchini slices, little omelettes, little spinach squares, salad, etc.  Next comes your dish of pasta usually just with tomato sauce.  Next is the main course--meat of some kind with roasted potatoes and veggies, and then finally dessert with tea or coffee.  Along with this meal comes wine and bottled water.  Needless to,say, exercise and less food wil be on the menu when we get back home.

Our hotel in Sorrento is lovely.  Looks like it will be a beautiful spot to spend some time tomorrow afternoon.  In the morning we are off to the Isle of Capri.

Sunday continued...

In the afternoon we took the bus to Alberobello, a town filled with these trulli houses.  We did some shopping, had some gelato, and then boarded the bus for our dinner place.  Dinner was at a home which was a working farm.  We had a fabulous time with good food and good conversation with people we didn't know very well.  A great day!

Sunday

Today we...

walked through the town of Puglia.  It is a resort town, filled with these trulli houses that have little domes with some kind of finish at the top.  They date back to the 1500s or earlier.  Some of these are newer of course, and people just have them built as part of their homes.  We saw amazing homes that we're sure only the very wealthy can afford.

On our walk we had amazing panoramic views of the valley below and the sea.  Again, it was so hot, so when we got back to the hotel we washed out our clothes and then spent some quality time...in this amazing pool.  One of the lifeguards got a whole bunch of us in the water to do aerobics!

On the bus

We left Rome this morning at 8:00, after another amazing breakfast. We drove to the town of 

Tivoli which has the Gardens of the Villa D' Este.  This was an optional experience which means you pay extra for it.  We decided not to do this, because there are some other excursions coming up that we'd rather spend our money on.  The gardens were supposedly amazing and beautiful, which I'm sure they were.  Instead, we, another couple, and our tour guide walked the streets of this charming town for a bit, and then found a place for cappuccinos and fresh croissants.  We also found a fresh food market and bought fresh figs which were delicious.  We did a little more exploring in that town and then got on the bus and proceeded to our place for the next two nights--a beautiful hotel in Puglio in the southern part-- right in the heel of the boot.  This bus ride took the rest of the day. We had two "comfort stops"-- in other words get out and pee, and we stopped at the British Commonwealth War Memorial.  What a beautiful spot and so well taken care of.  Tonight we had dinner at the hotel--again, lots of amazing food.  Tomorrow we are foregoing another optional experience and we're going to walk around the town and spend some time in the beautiful pool at the hotel.

WOW!!

We were impressed over and over today as we toured The Vatican and The Sistine Chapel.  We spent about 2 hours there, and only saw such a little bit of it.  Thousands of people were there with us--the chapel was wall to wall people--everyone looking up, and every once in awhile the guards told us all to be quiet.  

After that came St. Peter's Basilica.  We would have liked to have a little more time there, exploring on our own.  That place is huge--45 metres high and 600 metres long.  There is no artificial light in the centre part.  So incredible!

Every leader of a group holds a stick with something at the top.  Our guide had a green fish at the top, so we just had to keep looking for that.  People, people everywhere!!  

Around 11:00 am we were left at a spot that had a restaurant of sorts, and a souvenir shop.  We spent an hour there, had a little to eat, and sat on the curb to rest our feet.  Then we headed off to the Colluseum with thousands of others.  It was quite impressive to go inside, climb the stairs and look around. It took 8 years to build it with people working 24-7.

Now we are spending a little time in the cool hotel room.  Later this afternoon we plan to try our hand at the subway and go to a popular square called Piazza del Popolo.  Dinner will probably be from the grocery store. 5 euros for a bottle of wine and 3 for some cheese.  We still have crackers from another night.

Lots of walking'

Yesterday began with an amazing breakfast buffet at our hotel.  Then we put on our walking shoes and walked to the park that includes the zoo (we did not go in there) but also includes the Museum of Modern Art and the Galleria Borghese.  Very impressive!  The Borghese Museum not only is filled with incredible artwork, but is an amazing work of art itself.  Every room has a vaulted ceiling with paintings and sculptures.  Even the doors between rooms are painted.  So incredible.

We met the people on the tour for the first time last night. We went out for a "light meal," but had lots to eat--homemade potato chips, little sandwiches, salad, pizzas and dessert.   We are going to have to keep up the walking if we don't want to gain too much weight!  

After dinner we took a short bus ride "around town," and had the opportunity to see St. Peter's Basilica at night.  Beautiful. Today is our opportunity to go into the basilica, the Sistine Chapel, the Colluseum and the Forum.  We are really looking forward to the day!

It's hot in Rome!

We arrived safely in Rome this morning after basically one day and one night of traveling with no sleep. Who sleeps on these planes anyway?  We were hoping that it counted if we just keep our eyes shut for a few hours.

We couldn't get into our hotel room yet when we arrived, so we left our luggage at the desk and did some sight seeing on foot.  We walked to the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, (which was under construction...really too bad), then past The Forum and The Colluseum, and then we headed back toward our hotel with a stop on the way at the Santa Maria Basilica.  All of this took about 4 hours in bright sunshine and 30 plus degrees.  The shower felt so great when we finally got back to the hotel room.  Just had a little nap and now, what's next?  ...

No pictures with this post because we didn't have the iPad with us.

One more sleep!

Well, probably only one half of a sleep, because we'll be awake half the night worrying about missing the alarm.  Anyway, we're almost all packed and ready to go.  From what we know from the weather network, it's hot in all parts of Italy...30 give or take a couple degrees.

Getting Excited!
Only 11 more days before we depart YVR for Rome, Italy!  The excitement mounts!