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Blogs from Italy, Europe - page 7
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April 25th 2013
Thursday April 25 2013 Cruising the Strait of Messina Today was a sea day. First thing in the morning we cruised through the Strait of Messina, the narrow passage separating Sicily from mainland Italy. There are no pictures as M was still in bed with a stinking cold and cough. Didn't take part in many activities on board. Went to the Mediterranean Highlights lecture which turned out to be a hard sell of the ship's tours. We didn't eat a breakfast as we had been invited to an Indonesian Buffet at 11 am. D didn't eat much as it was too early but M tucked in to the satay dishes with gusto. M didn't go to craft as tissue paper flowers didn't rock her boat. We went to the quiz and came equal 1st and lost ... read more
April 24th 2013
Well two weeks today I will be up and away to yet enjoy another escapade!! Longing to return to Venice has been a 12 year wait but thankful that I am able to get there - AND... to bring in my high jump into my 60'th year. A long time planning will come to fruition soon...So humbled by the people making this detour into Venice to celebrate with me for a few days, and of those choosing to share their holiday with me. I am taking a 7 day tour of the Lakes area in Italy, then back to Milan overnight to meet up with Deb when she arrives on May 17. The following day we head down to Venice from Milan and enjoy exploring the myriad of alley ways of Venice and expect to get ... read more
April 24th 2013
Wednesday April 24 2013, Naples, Campagnia, Italy We had a quick breakfast in the Lido Restaurant and then disembarked the ship and made our way to the railway station where we purchased our tickets and boarded a train to Sorrento. Neither of us had visited before and as we had been to Pompeii fairly recently we decided to visit this famous coastal town (Seagulls over Sorrento) and to take in Herculaneum (the other famous ruins near Naples) on the way back. The journey to Sorrento took approximately 1 hour and a half. Located on the Penisola Sorrentina, over steep white cliffs, the town has been a favourite tourist destination for centuries. Very little of the ancient town has survived to the present day. Many excavations have revealed that the city was once totally surrounded by walls ... read more
Gretchen's birthday in Bagni di Lucca
Published: April 26th 2013Europe » Italy » Tuscany » Bagni di Lucca
April 24th 2013
The 24thApril is a day I always look forward to because once it comes around Gretchen becomes the same age in years as me, well at least for just over 2 months. I think she would have rather been celebrating it in ‘almost heaven,Umbria’but we were too late to change the booking in Bagni di Lucca without incurring a cost. Never mind with the shutters open the day is revealed as fine and sunny and the whole place, even the small room we have, looked quite different. It’s amazing what some sunshine can do for the spirit. We have to pay for the internet here at €2 per hour so we needed to time our usage with care and with that in mind we connected and tried to make contact with family on Skype, just in ... read more
April 23rd 2013
Now I mentioned yesterday that Gretchen said she wasn’t going to leave the place we arrived at last night in the Umbrian countryside and this morning when I opened the shutters to let the sun and the sounds of the birds in the garden into our room and admired the countryside, even I was convinced along with her. This really was like the places you see in the tour brochures that encourage you to take a visit to Umbria and soak up the ambience and relax. What a life the owners of these places must have! Our overnight stay had been in an apartment that was one of 5 in the main building of an old farm house that had been converted for accommodation. The apartment had a large bedroom, separate toilet and shower as well ... read more
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April 23rd 2013
When we last gave you an update we were heading by train from Pisa to the Cinque Terra, or five lands, region of Liguria. Sadly since then while we had wifi at all our accommodations we didnt encounter another actual physical computer/internet cafe that we could use to upload photos!! Therefore we will need to do the last reports having returned back home to Oz. Apologies for the untimeliness of the updates!!! So back to the Cinque Terre........ After our whirlwind visit to the Leaning Tower of Pisa which involved getting off our train, storing our luggage at the train station, catching a bus to the precinct and then repeating in reverse during a tight two hour turn around time we were back at the train station ready to resume our journey. Can I just add ... read more
You can still learn life lessons at age 61 ! - Spoleto and Assisi
Published: April 24th 2013Europe » Italy » Umbria » Castiglione del Lago
April 22nd 2013
As the title may suggest to you we were to be reminded that even at our venerable age (Gretchen is almost there) we can still learn valuable lessons on the road. More of that later. We woke in Teramo to a partly cloudy morning which looked substantially better than the thunderstorm and rain from last night. The road sweeper was out keeping the streets cleaned which we are finding is more obvious now we are further north in Italy. Shame that the towns in the southern part of the country haven’t invested into these machines. Breakfast was good and the coffee strong (one morning coffee Ruth and Owen and you would have your equivalent for a whole year!) We knew that the journey from Teramo to Spoleto was going to take over some lesser, country roads ... read more
April 22nd 2013
Sunday 22nd April 2013 - Livorno, Italy We awoke this morning to find that the toilet had stopped flushing again and although we had sailed overnight we still had no hot water. We went to breakfast in the restaurant which was excellent. We caught the shuttle bus into Livorno. We spent a couple of pleasant hours wandering around the canals and the market. The main attraction on this walk was the Fortezza Vecchia, one of Livorno's most important historic monuments. This stately fortress is the result of a number of superimposed additions made over the centuries. It was actually closed for repairs but as M leant on the 'padlocked' gate to take a photo it swung open. M only just managed to stay standing but the result was that we were inside! We looked at the ... read more
April 22nd 2013
Ciao! We’ve been in Italy for two weeks now and are living on a diet of pizza, risotto, pasta and ice cream (and our first BBQ of the trip!) which is gorgeous but I imagine will show on the scales! Italy seems to be much faster passed than France, still with the long lunches where everything closes down from 12-4, bigger waist lines and scarier roads! We thought that French drivers were a bit mental….but all is forgiven! A lot of the roads here seem to have lost their markings, their edges, and the resulting free for all can be interesting especially as everyone’s in a rush (but then the shops do close at midday!). The language thing is harder too, as even though before we left I would have said I couldn’t speak a word ... read more
April 21st 2013
Todays gelato flavour = No gelato today but substituted with two delicious Italian sweet treats and cappuccinos in a stylish setting Back to the 1m x 1m shower cubicle with the wobbly sliding half doors this morning and to add to our showering experience was a semi rigid shower hose that came out of the wall opposite to where the shower head was resulting in a tussle with the hose as you turned in the cubicle.At least there was plenty of hot water. Although our room at the B&B was clean and tidy it was very basic and no comparison for value to the B&B Nacore of last night and it was another €4.50 for the night.We decided that pilgrims will pay to get accommodation to be part of the Saint Pio experience. Being Sunday there ... read more
