Toronto, Switzerland, Italy

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Hi Folks! Sorry I haven't sent any blog updates. I've been so busy and, of course caught a cold in Venice on top of everything...perfect timing as usual, but I am much better now. I'm just making this update from the Business Center at the St. Regis Hotel in Rome since we had a 'free' evening (no planned activities). Here are some of the pictures I have taken so far on our vacation. I decided to throw in a couple of pictures from our one day stay in Toronto. We took a city tour of Toronto but didn't have much time to explore, other than go up the CN Tower, which is a radio tower.

The weather was on the chilly side the first day in Switzerland (in the 50's), but warmed up to the upper 60's. Beautiful scenery on Lake Como and Bellagio, and also as we drove through the Tuscan hills, with the leaves turning color for the fall. We haven't had much rain fortunately.

It's been a very smooth trip so far and the tour company has taken very good care of us. I kind of feel like I'm on a field trip from a Western Civilization of Europe class at times...so much history of the Crusades, Middle Ages, Dark Ages, Renaissance, Baroque periods...I can't remember all of the info the tour guides have given us, but it certainly helps us understand everything that we have seen.

We have been traveling via Motor Coach from Milan to Switzerland, and from Switzerland to Venice. Then we took a boat taxi to our hotel (the Hotel Danieli). Then from Venice we went to the train station and rode the Euro Star down to Florence (very smooth and comfortable ride in the first class car). Then from Florence to Siena to Rome we rode in the Motor Coach. Rome has been a little more crowded than usual because yesterday it was All Saints day, which they treat as a holiday, and usually make a 4 day week end out of it. Although the longest we have had to wait in any lines was about 15 minutes which was at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, so I really can't complain.

The food has been delicious. Haven't had a bad meal yet. The pasta is prepared al dente, which isn't the way it is cooked in the US restaurants that I dine at, but it still tastes great. Even the Margherita pizzas (cheese and tomato sauce only) have been delicious.

Being in a group tour, I've had to practice my social skills (mingling with other people in our tour group), which wasn't easy for me, but everyone has been quite nice, which makes it easier. Coincidently, there is one couple in our tour group that lives about a half mile down from my sub-division, so we've been dining with them mostly. They looked familiar because they also attend the same Saturday vigil mass we attend. What a small world!

Only a few days left to go. These vacations take so long to get here, and then they go by so quickly.

Talk to you later.

Take care.
Rob

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Photos

View of BMO Building
From the CN Tower in Toronto (114 stories up). The Bank of Toronto (BMO Building) is the tallest building in Toronto.

View from Glass Floor
From the CN Tower, view from the glass floor looking down 113 stories.

Duomo in Florence
Florence has the largest duomo (cathedral). The professor that gave us a dissertation on the highlights of Florence referred to this as the 'super' duomo.