I apologize if you’re getting tired of our escapades, but it’s almost over. Soon we’ll be back to reality and realty!
 One of the statues in Assisi |
 Basilica of St Francis |
 Enjoying Capri |
 Pizza & Champagne at our B&B in Sorrento |
 One of the sites of Pompeii |
 Our terrace in San Agnello (Sorrento) |
 Charlie's favorite ad in Rome |
 Inside the Pantheon |
 I just couldn't resist... |
Tuesday, September 28
We drove the 6 km to Sarzana in the pouring rain and drove another 16 km looking for a parking place! This all took place in the pouring rain too. Finally found a place to park by the train station and sat in the car hoping for a break in the weather. Good thing we left much earlier than we thought necessary. The skies finally cleared (sort of) and we were able to walk and search for our destination, the Church of Santa Maria. Still early, we walked around hoping to find a cheap umbrella, just in case. Of course, the day before, men were selling them every 6 feet and we didn’t think it necessary. Ha.
Cheri had a little mini-pizza thing with a slice of what turned out to be hot dog on top. Oh well, we’re in Italy. Headed back at the appointed time and saw John discussing job opportunities with a beggar. John says he finally gave him 20 cents to get rid of him and told him to find a job. Looks to us like he already had one!
Hopped in John & Rita’s car and they drove us back to ours. We started the journey to Assisi with a stop at an AutoGrill on the Autostrada. Be careful where you park – when we came out there was a semi blocking our exit. Charlie found the driver and he said he’d be right there but he lied. Finally, the car next to us was able to work its way out which gave us room to maneuver. Another good reason for the small vehicles in Europe because this appeared to be an everyday occurrence.
Got into Assisi, John (the one with the Garmin) missed a turn and the Garmin took us down a donkey path to the entrance of the city. One parking place near the hotel we hoped to get into and guess who didn’t get it. Rita said “look for a parking place on this street” which we did and we drove, and drove, and drove through tiny little streets wondering if we’d every find where they parked again. Of course Charlie found his way back (my hero) and John was jumping up and down pointing to the parking place just a few cars ahead of his. Went to the Hotel Belvedere where there were no rooms. The owner kindly called two places and got rooms for us because no hotels had two rooms for two nights. There was some sort of cycling group in town.
John & Rita opted for the closer B&B which only seemed closer but it was a one way street to get back to it and they were heading the other direction. The hotel owner who had helped us so kindly stepped out to see where we were and said “no problem”. She hopped in the driver’s seat of John’s car, Rita hopped in thinking they were going to go turn around somewhere and with a quick grinding of gears, she backed up the one way street, spun the car around, found a free parking spot (and I mean FREE, no charge) and Voila, they were at their B&B.
We, however, were not so lucky. Failed to write down the hotel name and the woman never returned, nor did the Drakes. Charlie said it was only 300 meters which should have been 100 paces and sent Cheri off to see the world. We knew the stairs were near the fountain…. Okay, 600 paces and Cheri found the fountain and about 600 more stairs. What she didn’t find was the hotel entrance. Walked back to the car and then Rita and Cheri made the trek again. This time we found someone who pointed us up more stairs that wound around the corner and there was the hotel entrance! Now, back to the car again and we all drove up to the fountain. John watched the car and the three of us hauled our luggage up to the room. A very nice room, actually. Free wi-fi, breakfast, no view but 1 Euro cheaper than the B&B with no wi-fi!
Found a parking place by the Drake’s car (also free) and we set out to see the town together.
Dinner was at the Hotel Bevedere to thank them for being so kind. Charlie and John had the “menu” which was spaghetti in red sauce and a pork cutlet with artichoke sauce. Rita had gorgonzola ravioli and a side of spinach. Cheri was feeling adventurous and just pointed. What she got was a very tasty but tough pork chop and a salad of chopped celery, tomatoes and arugula. Wine was fair, gelato was great!
Off to bed after catching up on email and journal. Still no tv in English….
Wednesday, September 29
Cute little breakfast room upstairs where there were a whole bunch of women from England, Australia & New Zealand. After breakfast we met John & Rita and started to the Basilica of St. Frances. Found a gift shop and spent a lot of time there but a lot of people should be very happy one of these days! Then we continued on to the Basilica. Charlie relaxed outside while we toured the interior. Thanks to Rick Steves, it was a very informative tour.
Charlie decided it was time to hike to Rocca Maggiore which was pretty much straight up. Charlie found a donkey trail and we weren’t sure where we were going to end up but as usual, he was right! The views were glorious and the sky was clear blue. After photos and a cool drink in the courtyard, we hiked back down by way of the paved route instead of the donkey trail.
Found a little café and had a sandwich and frites. Split up for an afternoon siesta and met again at 6 pm. Enjoyed a glass of wine at an outdoor table and listened to Charlie & John tell Air Force stories. After that we wandered around more shops and Rita and Cheri bought scarves. Unfortunately, when the shopkeeper tried to take the tag off of Cheri’s scarf, she put a hole in it so the money was refunded.
Dinner tonight was at another restaurant where we were the only people! The food was very good though and we didn’t have any screaming kids or loud table-mates. We ordered the “tourist menu” again because it just sounded good. Charlie had soup for a first, then some sort of beef cacciatore and roasted potatoes. Cheri had spaghetti w/pesto and a pork chine with bacon. John & Rita had lasagna & lemon chicken and soup & lemon chicken respectively. Guess what we drank with it…
No dessert tonight – full to the brim and an early morning tomorrow.
Thursday, September 30
After breakfast, we hauled our luggage down the stairs and made the trek to the parking lot on the far end of Assisi. Got there just a little before John & Rita then we started our drive to Sorrento. The weather was beautiful and the scenery great. We made good time and even with a couple of stops got there before 3:00, before John thought we’d get there.
Casa Mazzola is beautiful and we have two rooms with gorgeous views of the Gulf of Napoli. Our hosts, Luigi and his son Hugo are charming and the whole setting is wonderful. We took the car to Sorrento and wandered around doing a bit of shopping. Cheri bought some scarves, and Charlie finally found his Bisquit Cognac. Life is good! Two bottles – one for our travels and one to take home.
We went back to the B&B and got directions to a great restaurant in San Angello. It was a family run place with very few tourists. For dinner we had an insalata caprese then Charlie just pointed to something that turned out to be a delicious pork chop, of all things! Cheri had fresh pasta with porcini mushrooms and probably a pound of butter. Gad, it was good!
Friday, October 1
Breakfast outside at the B&B and then Hugo drove us to Sorrento so we could catch the jet boat to Capri. It was a hot, crowded ride over there and we could hardly see the sights, let alone get a breath of fresh air. But we made it and were glad to get off the boat. 14 Euros each for the trip one way. Rode a very crowded funiculare to the Piazza. Found an information booth and paid for 2 maps and sent Charlie off searching for the Bancomat that the woman had waved a hand towards. Since he was gone so long we decided to sit at a café and have a pick me up. When the waiter came, we asked where the Bancomat was and saw it was about 30’ from us, upstairs! Charlie finally made his way back and we pointed it out to him, but let him sit and have a beer before he walked up the stairs (and found that it rejected his card for some reason). Cheri tried her card and the cash flowed. John went to pay the bill and almost set off WWIII when he found out it was over 33 Euro! He argued a bit and eventually it was around 27 Euro. Still a lot of money for coffee, Coke, a beer and glass of white wine!
We set off in search of Giardini Augusto and after several false starts, wrong turns and misunderstandings, found our way there. Beautiful! The views looking down to the water were incredible and it gave us an inkling of what the water in the Blue Grotto must be like. We spent quite some time there just looking and taking pictures and then started the long, long walk down to Marina Piccola. It was definitely time for lunch but we decided to hop a bus back to the Piazza first.
We stopped for a Pizza and Calzone at a restaurant and decided Charlie & John would go back to Sorrento while Cheri & Rita went on to Villa San Michele in Anacapri. We parted ways and the girls headed for a bus. It doesn’t sound so bad on paper but we were crammed onto this tiny bus with just a few seats, none of which we had. As we’re holding on for dear life starting up the hill, the woman in the seat near me crossed herself. That was ominous enough but then we started meeting the buses coming down, being passed by taxis, etc. The view down was straight down! I would have taken a picture but we were crammed in so tight I couldn’t get my camera out! As we started up one particularly shoulder-less road, the woman crossed herself again and so did Rita!
We arrived safely and it was just a short way to the Villa. It was definitely worth the trip! The views were gorgeous, the whole villa was fascinating and we really enjoyed ourselves. Bought a book on the way out.
Got on a bus going back to Capri and it was just as crowded as the last one. When we got off, we decided to take the 10 minute walk down to Marina Grande rather than ride the funiculare. It was a long walk, but we made it. We went and bought jet boat tickets and with ½ hour to spare, enjoyed a gelato while walking to the gate. We were some of the first people to board and got great seats! Even managed to get off in the first wave. Then we climbed what felt like 1000 stairs to get up to Sorrento proper. Found our men waiting for us right where they said they would.
Another long walk to San Agnello where we called and Luigi came and picked us up and took us back to the B&B. Too tired to think about going to dinner so we had Luigi call and order us a family size pizza from the restaurant we ate in the night before. In just a few minutes we had a very large pizza for only 10 euros, delivered! Enjoyed champagne from the cave in Chaumont that we had visited and then Disarrono (no ice) for dessert. Off to bed because tomorrow we head to Pompeii.
Saturday, October 02, 2010
Got dropped off pretty close to the train station in San Agnello and only waited about 10 minutes for the train to Pompeii. The weather cooperated again, although it was a little hot for our NW bodies. At least it wasn’t as hot as it was the first time we were here. And we were able to get booklets in English this time! Enjoyed it much more that way. Charlie has some pretty bad sores on his feet so he didn’t enjoy it as much as he could have. Next time, tennis shoes!
Spent about 4 hours wandering around, had a bite of lunch and caught the train back. Decided to just go to our B&B and relax for a change. Sunshine, blue skies, blue water, Chianti…. Doesn’t get much better than that. Around 7:30 we headed for dinner. Another success!
Chatted on the deck for awhile and we decided to turn in early because it had been a long, hot day.
Sunday, October 03, 2010
Breakfast as usual and packing to head to Rome. News says that there’s a travel advisory being issued for Europe. We’ll be extra watchful but won’t let it upset our trip. Off to Rome!
The trip was uneventful until we got off the “A” just outside Rome. Charlie and Cheri went through the credit card lane and John and Rita went through the cash lane. There was a bit of confusion and we both thought the other had gone on. Needless to say, we were well ahead of them and had no clue where we were going! We had the name and address of the hotel but face it, Rome is BIG! Took two policemen, a few tears and a lot of wrong turns, but we finally made it!
The Residence Villa Tassoni isn’t too terribly far from the Vatican and is a fairly nice hotel. We have a separate sitting room, terrace with a view of walls and a bathroom with a shower over the toilet. Other than that….. Oh, why not add a travel advisory for Europe and throw in a terrorist alert! Nothing like a nice, relaxing holiday.
Relaxed in our room until time for dinner and found a place just a few blocks away. Charlie had cannelloni that was out of this world! Cheri had some great eggplant parmagiana. Don’t remember what John & Rita had but they liked it. Since we weren’t overly stuffed for a change, dessert was in order. Ricotta pie for Cheri, tiramisu for Charlie.
Monday, October 4
Walked down to the bar for a pastry and cappuccino and then to the market for supplies. We decided it would be a good idea to do a dry run to the meeting place for our Tuesday tour. Walked to the Metro and figured out where we needed to go. Strolled around a few piazzas and then went to the Trevi Fountain for a few photos since it’s supposed to rain during our tour time.
Cheri got christened by a pigeon but luckily his aim wasn’t too good and it landed on her shoulder instead of her head. Still felt “icky”.
We then tackled the metro and city bus to the Catacombes of San Callisto. Got off the bus and walked back to what we thought was the entrance. Walked about 15 minutes into the site, dreading the return walk to the bus stop. Just as we got to the ticket booth we saw a sign for the bus stop. If we had turned left instead of right, we would have walked half a block to get where we wanted to be! Caught a tour in English and were lucky to only have 12 of us in it. The tour guide was from Pakistan or something like that and was very difficult to understand but it was an interesting tour.
Waited in the rain for the bus back to the metro station. Luckily, Rita had an extra umbrella. The bus was crowded, hot and stuffy. We weren’t looking forward to the metro after that but it actually wasn’t too bad. By the time we got on the 2nd line we were able to get seats and it was nice and cool.
Dinner was different tonight – Chinese! It was very good and Cheri & Rita had enough room left to go searching for gelato afterwards. Charlie & John just went to the room. Unfortunately, there were no gelato stores open so we settled for a pastry.
Tuesday, October 5
Got to sleep in today. Made a breakfast of bread, salami & cheese. Charlie worked on the map to figure out where we’re going tomorrow.
Took a walk and found a great indoor market. Cheri found the sweater she was looking for and we bought grapes for later. Stopped and bought mortadella to have with our bread and cheese for lunch in the room.
Met the Drakes about 2 and we headed for our tour pick up point. Only about 18 of us in the tour and we had headsets so it was pretty easy. Lots of walking but plenty of interesting sights/sites. Charlie slipped into a shop and bought two bottles of perfume for his sweetie! At the end of the tour we tried to catch a bus but there was no way to squeeze on. No way to squeeze on the other one either. Finally went across the street and caught a bus going a different direction but someone on the bus told us it didn’t stop where we thought it did (and where the sign said it did). Long story short, we walked another couple of miles to get back to our neighborhood. John & Rita went to the restaurant we were at a couple nights previously and we went to the pizza place. Wine was great, pizza was wonderful, all in all a good day but a long one. Felt good to get back to our room and take our shoes off. Tomorrow we leave for Como, north of Milan. Kind of a change in plans but it should be interesting!
