Parting Shots

For the third day in the last four days, main roads have been closed due to protests. Since I really stink at understanding italian, I don't know what the protests are about, but they don't look like the same groups of people. Anyway, because the bus routes are abbreviated, it gave me the opportunity to walk around and around. This is the second day of beautiful, though chilly, weather. As long as there's no rain, I'm happy.


There is no rhyme nor reason to these photographs. I just walked around, shopped, ate, checked everything out, etc. and snapped a picture whenever something caught my eye.

So just take them for what they are - parting shots of Rome. My way of saying goodbye....... until next year?!

I walked around some of my favorite places and went to a couple parts of the city that I'd not yet seen. Sort of a variety. The first thing I did, though, was walk to St. Peter's. Yep, that's right...... you understood me. I left my apartment, and just strolled on over to the largest cathedral in the world. How cool is that? (Didn't take a picture, though, just appreciated.)

Then I walked around town; some busy sections and some quiet vicolos. I walked along the river Tiber and crossed a couple of bridges. I do so love, love being able to walk and walk without running out of sites to see or people to watch.

Thanks for checking in with me during my stay here in Italy. I'll drop a link if something else interesting happens in my life. Until next time..........

Reflections

My 4 weeks in Rome have come to an end. This is a look back. The things I did right:

• The month transportation pass was great because it gave me the freedom to move about Rome without concern knowing I could always find a bus or metro to get me back to an area I knew. A definite plus.
• The train pass saved me 50% on train fare. It worked because I took many one day trips in which I was required to only use one day of the pass. Definitely something to look into in the future - but watch the reservation fees that aren't included.
• Trastevere is a great location in Rome. It's within walking or bus distance of anything I want to see, but it an established neighborhood full of shops, restaurants, and colorful folk. I like staying a bit away from the tourist-y areas.
• Choosing a place that has its own computer/internet. Such a bonus to not have to lug my computer on the plane or look for internet cafes throughout the city. I loved having my own little office already set up for me.

Things I could have done better:

• I have missed my slippers every single day here. Don't leave home without them.
• I had to buy a rolling backpack to take home purchases. Either stop shopping while here (not gonna happen) or bring a large carry-on to take care of that.

Last Day in Rome

How is it possible that 4 weeks have gone by so quickly? I just saw my brother off at the train station and it was sad to see him go because I enjoyed his company, but also because it means that I leave tomorrow. My time here has been magical and I don't at all regret staying this long. I have visited a local language school in hopes of returning next year for 4 weeks of language training -- I am very determined to learn this language! The owners of this apartment and I have also spoken about my renting it again next November, sooooooo........... Who knows what a year will bring, but perhaps I will return next year.

This first picture was taken by Michael the day after I left Florence. He went high up into a tower to take a picture of this overview of the city. Since it rained the entire time I was there I like seeing the city in a better light. I knew the beauty was in there!

Last night while walking around "my" neighborhood we were treated to this great street musician. He was the whole package --- eccentric, personable, and really a good musician. He was funny and played to the crowd. While it looks like a hodgepodge of instruments, it all worked together to be quite entertaining. A group of college students began clapping and dancing, so he got right on in it, pulled out a train whistle, and made train music while they all marched around. It really was fun and I realize I will miss the colorful assortment of people here.

I've cheated with this last picture because I wasn't there. Michael went to Cinque Terre (a group of 5 sea towns) and took this shot. The entire area is gorgeous. It is one of my incentives to return and a reminder that there is much I have yet to experience in Italy.

Venice during high tide

Venice at high tide. What an experience. I can only imagine what it's like to deal with this every day. Rubber boots are certainly the fashion. This first picture is just outisde of our hotel about 45 minutes after high tide. The hotel is in a part of the city that doesn't flood as much as other areas. Can you believe that?

I invented a new word in Rome and now one in Venice. In Rome, when women wear narrow heels on the cobblestones, they become "hobblestones". In venice they put out these raised walkways during hightide and I've named them "tidewalks". Get it? Sidewalks used during high tide. I'm so clever, aren't I?

I love these next two photographs. Along Piazza S. Marco are many nice restaurants. Not letting high tide affect business, you can still sit outside and enjoy your morning caffe' and pastry. Simply put on your rubber (or as some tourists use: baggie) boots, pull up a chair at a nice table, and well dressed waiters wearing boots will serve you. Ingenious, no? It is a testament to the determination of the italian people to continue with living full lives in spite of the circumstances.

You have to remember that this is a daily experience. Life must go on. People have to get to work, children to school, shopping, eating, laundry, etc. You have to be careful where you walk so you don't walk off the flood sidewalk into the canal. I was grateful to have my rain boots with me while we were there, although my boots are only rubber to the ankles and, as you can see, much of the water is above ankle depth so, while meeting Michael at S. Marco, the water did flood into my boots. They and my socks dried much quicker in rain boots than in my leather walking shoes.

It is an experience not to be missed. Too fun.

Venice

Venice is truly an amazing city. The canals, the boats, the quiet streets without any cars, the views..... just everything was amazing. We were blessed with fabulous weather even though the forecast called for rain. It is a city that I would enjoy spending more than 2 days exploring. Michael's hotel was wonderful. It was well maintained, beautiful, and had an amazing bathroom complete with bathtub which means room to shower without elbowing the walls!

Piazza S. Marco is quite large and has many restaurants and shops along both sides. The church, like much of Italy, was under renovation so the scaffolds took a little away from the beauty. Just a little.

We walked along the streets and over many, many bridges while we explored Venice. It has a feeling of tranquility when you get away from the main tourist areas. The hotel was in an area of town far away from the touristy sites, so it gave us a starting point to explore. Michael was staying another day and 2 nights, so I'm sure he saw places we didn't have time to see. The last picture is what I think of when I think of Venice. Isn't it like a postcard? Venice gets 2 blog entries because I've added one just for Venice during high tide. That, in itself, is quite an experience. Be sure to check it out.

Milan

It's almost midnight here and I just returned from a 3 day trip to Milan and Venice. I was pleasantly surprised by how spotlessly clean Milan is. After so much time in Rome, I didn't expect that. My first stop was the Duomo, a 14th century cathedral that took 400 years to complete. It has 135 spires on the roof area and over 3400 statues. Michael and I climbed the over 200 stairs to the roof area for a spectacular view of, not only the city of Milan, but the


intricate work on the outside of the Duomo. I was amazed that each statue and spire are different. I didn't realize there could be so many variations of shapes, faces, animals, etc. It was pretty amazing. We

were blessed with good weather for a portion of the day and certainly took advantage of it. The colors of the marble used for the construction of the cathedral shone various hues in the sunlight. Many other people took advantage of the opportunity to climb to the top and it was a little strange to see so many people walking and sitting on the massive roof.

After visiting the Duomo, we ventured just across the street to walk through the Vittorio Emanuele II shopping mall. It's actually open aired on all sides, but covered with a glass roof. It was built in the 1870's and houses many designer (read that really expensive) shops. One can easily spend the better portion of a year's wages in just one or two shops.

Sforza Castle is a Renaissance palace. It was actually lived in. The oldest section was began in 1360 and finished 10 years later. Other towers and areas were added later. There is a huge park area behing the castle that, to my understanding, used to be a garden area that is connected to the castle by underground tunnels so that, during seige, soldiers could still have access to fresh produce. Pretty smart, no?

Our final stop that night was a reservation at Santa Marie delle Grazie for a viewing of the original Last Supper painting by Leonardo da Vinci (no photos allowed). To be honest, this wasn't high on my list of things to see. I mean, I've seen pictures of it many times, however it was a highlight of my visit to Milan. It was originally painted on the back wall of the church's dining hall and is 15' x 29'. The church has been bombed, destroyed, pillaged, and the wall was used for target practice. But the painting, though faded and restored, remains. Seeing it in person helped me understand why such a big deal is made of it, not only because of the subject matter, but the actual brilliance of the painting. First of all, da Vinci depicts the moment when Jesus tells the disciples one will betray him and it shows the various reactions. (Other paintings of the last supper have focused on Judas dipping his bread - showing him to be the traitor.) Secondly, it actually looks 3 dimensional. The shading and composition are truly amazing..... and I know next to nothing about art appreciation. I am grateful that Michael took it upon himself to get us tickets to the viewing.

Tune in tomorrow when I will fill you in on our 2 days in Venice.

Rainy Rome

It was another rainy beginning of the day followed by a clear, warmish afternoon. Today is an early day for me because I will rise early tomorrow to catch the train to Milan. I won't have the opportunity to post again until

Saturday but I promise some wonderful, albeit wet, photos of Milan and Venice. I was able to wear my flea market inexpensive rain boots today and am pleased to report that my feet remained dry - no wet toes or soggy socks. I am sure they will be my main attire for the next few days as the weather forecast calls for a relatively dry day in Milan followed by two wet days in Venice.

I am looking forward to seeing my brother tomorrow morning, hopefully at the train station when I arrive at 9:30 after a 3 hour train journey. Check back Saturday for an update of this little side journey of my trip to Italy.

Sorrento Revisited

Sorrento has to win the award for posing for the prettiest photos, doesn't it?
I did find a spot in the town where you could sit and look down at the sea. How pretty is that water? It was just crystal clear. I was standing up quite a ways and I could see right down into the water. Today is just some of my favorite shots from this quaint town. For some reason, the shopping area reminded me of an alpine village. Now, I've never been to an alpine village, but that thought kept coming into my mind.



This shot was looking right from where I was sitting. Actually, I just sat there for a while and pondered things. Read a book, watched the very few people that walked by, marveled at the beauty of life in general. It was a pondering group of moments.

This was the view looking to my right. How cool is that? Doesn't it just look very old and medieval? I found myself wishing I was some sort of professional photographer with various lenses and a tripod. This town seems to just pose for pictures. To be there in various lighting would be cool. I'm guess it looks totally different throughout the year.

The last photo may just become my favorite Italy picture of this trip. Not only did I get in my laundry shot, but colorful vegetables, a great colored building, and Christmas decorations. What more could you want from a Italy poster shot?

Wandering aimlessly around Trastevere has become my favorite pastime here. It is such a lovely, old part of Rome. It has become touristy, but is still so authentic a neighborhood that it feels like home. Doesn't the term "wander aimlessly" sound so much better than "being lost"? I don't have to worry exactly where I am because I'm on vacation, right?

Sunday is flea market day at Porta Portese, which is just a couple of tram stops from me. You can, quite literally, walk for 2 hours and not come to the end of it. Clothes, shoes, household goods, antiques, etc., etc. The photos I took are from the sidelines because you can see nothing if you actually get in the thick of it.

My favorite part is this: there are tables here and there with piles of clothes for 1€. That's about $1.50. Too fun. The next time I come I will bring only one change of clothes and hit the market for all the things I will need for my stay. Seriously! It's too fun. Crazy, but fun. Some things are new and some are used. You can get heavy coats for 3€ or 5€. I got a really cool pair of dress shoes (used) for 3€. I am going to have to be really creative when I pack to return home because, though I have plenty of room, my luggage was close to the weight limit when I came. Hmmmm. My carryon backpack is going to be mighty heavy.

I got cussed out in italian for the first time today. I'm not exactly sure what he said, but it was clearly dramatic. I was walking between two tables and knocked over 2 shoe boxes. I was picking them up and this older gentleman came screaming at me and motioning for me to just leave. Now, I was totally boxed in and would have been happy to leave, but couldn't get past people. I just smiled and said, "I'm sorry, I don't speak italian. I don't understand what you're saying." He was not happy. I also got to briefly (pun intended) meet my upstairs neighbor when I knocked on her door to return her panties that had fallen from her clothesline onto my porch. She was sweet.... just laughed and said thank you, thank you.

Look at this picture of one of the many, many pastry shops I have to walk past every day. It's just not fair. Everything looks so good and, trust me, it tastes even better. Between pizza, gelato, and pastry every block, I may have to be one of those fliers that has to purchase an extra seat due to the fact that I won't fit in just one. Goodness.

As I was walking tonight I happened upon this cool group of kids playing in a piazza. There is always someone painting, playing accordian, singing, playing guitar, etc., on various spots in exchange for coins. There are also beggers at every church, on the trains, some busses, etc. This group was very good....... talented, colorful, energetic. Their instrument case was filling up quite rapidly as there was always a crowd around watching them. I enjoyed them. When I walked back toward home about one and a half hours later they were still going at it. Dancing, clapping, singing, and playing. I loved it.

Vacation Day

I took a vacation from my vacation today, so I've posted a few photos that didn't make the previous blog pages due to lack of space. I simply walked around today without direction or camera. I just absorbed. I did accomplish one thing; I went to the Termini and made reservations for the rest of my train excursions. This is what's in store for the next week: Monday - train to Sorrento for a return day trip.
Wednesday - early morning train to Milan where I'll meet up with my brother, Michael.
Thursday - Michael and I head off to Venice.
Friday - I train back to Rome alone in the evening.
Sunday - early train to Florence for a full day of museums with Michael. Home late that night.
Michael arrives in Rome on Wednesday, the 24th for a few days with me before we head off home to Florida.
Enjoy the photographs. And, in case you didn't know, you can always click on a picture to enlarge it.

Napoli: no, no. Sorrento: si, si.

Today was a loooong, but wonderful day. I found that, for me, Naples isn't somewhere I am comfortable. It's the first time in 18 months, since I've been traveling alone, that I have felt uncomfortable. Being a woman alone, I have to trust my senses. Rome is a quiet city compared to the confusion, crowdedness, and unpleasantness I found in Naples. There was, however, only one motorcycle driving on the sidewalk, so I guess sidewalks are relatively safe. The city is filled with the constant (and I do mean constant) sound of horns blowing. Being from the states, I just found it rude beyond rude. The people I encountered in the city were unfriendly and somber. I'm sure there is beauty there, I just couldn't find it. I walked to the port (about 45 minutes) and decided the ferry to Capri was more than I wanted to spend, so I headed back to the train station. I decided to give it another shot and, since I had a walking tour with map from Rick Steves, I began that, but quickly decided that I simply wasn't comfortable in the city, so I headed back to the train station and got a ticket to Sorrento. Thanks to Carrie Baker for suggesting that I see Sorrento, or I would have missed it.
The only pictures I took in Naples were of run down buildings along my walk. I couldn't find anything interesting to shoot. As I was on the train (after being on two, yes two, wrong trains) the scenery began to change.... thankfully. I did find some nice women on my second wrong train who overheard the english speaking employee of the train station guide me once again to the wrong train. After the second or third stop, a lady approached me and told me that the train didn't go to Sorrento and that I would have to change trains. Another woman worked with her to decide which stop would be the easiest for me to board the correct train. Thankfully, the change was an easy one.

This picture is at a bus stop in Sorrento. How would you like for that to be your bus stop? It was along the coast and I found the walk out of the city to be refreshing and fun. The town of Sorrento itself is beautiful and is already decked for the holidays. I didn't include any photos of it here because it's similar to other quaint towns that I've included in the blog. I do, however, have some lovely photos of the town. One thing I did notice, however, is that, although the town is so near the sea, you can't see the water while in the town because large hotels front the ocean and have tall walls that hinder the view. Seriously..... you can't see any water from the town. But a short walk outside the city and your senses are overloaded by the beauty all around.

I was above the town and looked down to see the boats harbored below. The colors of the buildings looked nice against the color of the sea. The water was very blue and calm. There are amazing cliffs on which the town sits. I found a little park along the sea that had this sweet set of steps. I know, I love concrete steps. They seem natural and inviting to me. These were under some great trees and it was cool, quiet, and peaceful sitting amongst that setting. I wish I had brought a book along to read for an hour or so.

In the main part of the town I found this communal garden loaded with fruit trees. It was just hidden above the main street, but, because there were great concrete steps leading to it, I had to check it out. I was so surprised to find this place! How special it must be to be a part of this. I'm ending the blog with my favorite picture of the day. I took quite a few pictures of the cliffs hoping to get one that somewhat captured how awesome this place is. I think this picture begins to do that. After figuring the days I have planned to travel by train, I have one train day left on my pass and I'm trying to decide whether to return to Sorrento (which I would love to do) or spend an extra day in Florence. Having not been to Florence yet, I'm not sure which I will choose. Because I began the day by spending over 2 hours in Naples, my time in Sorrento was shorter than I would have liked so I look forward to being able to more thoroughly explore this town in the Umbria region of Italy.

Spoleto

Before I headed to Spoleto, I ventured into a church on the way to the train station at the Piazza della Repubblica. I was pleasantly surprised to find that they had a display of information and works by and about Galileo. It was beyond interesting and I will definitely go back there when I have more time. Unfortunately, there was no photography allowed indoors. Then, it was off to Spoleto.

Spoleto is a medieval hill town in the Umbria region of Italy. It is a walled town build on a hillside whose most famous site is Ponte delle Torri or Bridge of Towers. It took one and a half hours by regional train to reach it. The rain was finished by the time I arrived. The first photo

shows where I headed off to from the train station. As usual, the direction to the city was uphill. It took almost 2 hours to reach the bridge, though it was mostly a gentle climb with beautiful sights to keep me company. As I walked, I went through the quaint center of town on narrow roads that were just fabulous. The second photo is of the rooftops of the lower city as I made my way up.

I had to take a picture of clothes hanging on the line because I am always drawn to that view. It just screams "old Italy" to me and causes

me to visualize times past. I've learned that electricity is quite expensive here and that's why most people don't own dryers. It's simply less costly to let them air dry. I actually was thrilled when I got home tonight to notice that my neighbors had hung their laundry today so, in the morning's light, I'll have to snap a picture of my "local" laundry.

The bridge was truly a spectacular sight because it crossed a deep gorge. The sun was high in the sky so it was difficult to get good scenic photographs that captured the immensity of the view, but you'll just have to take my word for it.


The Duomo (or main church) is being refurbished, but the inside was intact. I had to wait for a bit for it to open, but was kept company by two young boys who made very good use of the long span of gentle steps with their skateboards. When I first saw them walking with their boards, I thought it would be a shame to not take advantage of the cobblestone steps --- they didn't disappoint. As well as laundry hanging between buildings, I just love all the rosette shaped windows on the churches here. I have more photos of them than a person should. This is a short post because I am very tired and tomorrow is an early day because I'm planning to head for Naples. I'm unsure of what that day will be like because I want to see Naples and I want to see Capri (which is about an hour from Naples by ferry) and I want to see Sorrento (which is about an hour by train). I don't know how to squeeze it all in during one day. If I enjoy the day at all, I'll have to add another day to Naples on my schedule. I've heard that it is a very busy, chaotic city so I'm going to take it one day at a time.

Thanks for checking in. I'll see you soon.