Category: 2016 – Italy

From Pirates to Romans

Saturday, June 18, 2016

Just three days ago, Alisha, John, Jackie and I were selling Marty Magic jewelry at the NorCal Pirate Festival in Vallejo California. 
Alisha & John, Brotherly & Sisterly Love at the NorCal Pirate Festival
Brother and Sister Love, NorCal Pirate Festival
After hours with Marty Magic

The following blog posts are about our month long trip to Italy, Croatia and Amsterdam.  Although we had fun, the trip was not a vacation but rather a marathon of visiting world-class museums and archeological sights. Most days we were up early and out late and the family dynamics of the three of us traveling together were sometimes challenging. The trip was artistically rich and visually inspiring and I feel creatively recharged for my busy fall and holiday season.

The Get Away – Tuesday, June 21 

I am leaving the Marty Magic business to take a trip to Italy, Croatia and Amsterdam. My husband Art, our son John and I will be away close to a month and I must pass the Marty Magic baton into the capable hands of our daughter Alisha. Today is a frenzy of list checking. Alisha and I cross reference orders, check inventory and plan for the month ahead.  I fit ear cuffs to be shipped in my absence and sign checks to keep the business afloat until mid July. This past Sunday night, Alisha, John and I returned from the Nor Cal Pirate Festival, and I unpack Pirate costumes and do laundry so as to use the same suitcase to pack for my European adventure.  As the washing machine whirls, I make a dash to the bank, pick up the pre-ordered Euros and swing into AAA and in less than 20 minutes, have my international driving permit. The AAA representative asks me to check the permit and verify that all the information is correct? My scary mug shot stares back at me and I wonder if any car rental agency would rent this woman a car?

At 5:30 P.M. we load our minimal luggage into Alisha’s SUV for the drive to the S.F.O. airport. There is little traffic winding North on Hwy 17 and the afternoon sunlight bathes our route with a magical glow and we realize that it is the Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year. We stop for dinner at Andale’s Mexican Restaurant in Los Gatos, and John jumpstarts his vacation with an immense Cadillac Margarita. Art and I are more moderate and Alisha our designated driver is abstinent. We enjoy a family meal together and relax into our vacation.  The traffic is light along 280 and Alisha drops us at the S.F.O. Airport Vagabond Inn a little before 8:00 P.M. After parking lot hugs and kisses, Art, John and I head to our room and Alisha makes the return drive to Santa Cruz.

The Misadventures of the Water Bottle

Wednesday, June 22nd S.F.O. to Chicago to Rome

I wake 3 minutes before our 5:15 A.M. alarm and am first into the shower. At 6:00 A.M. we head downstairs for the included continental breakfast and to wait for the 6:30 A.M. shuttle to the airport.
We arrive 2 ½ hours before our flight and check in is a breeze. John and I each check one small bag and Art chooses to carry his onboard.  Art queries John if he is sure that he has everything and John flippantly replies, “Yes, Papa, I’ve traveled before!”  Our priority boarding passes are TSA Pre-Check and Art and I breeze through security wearing our shoes and jackets. John does not breeze quite so easily because he has forgotten to empty the water from his aluminum water bottle. He is pulled aside for the blue rubber glove inspection of his bright orange back pack and informed that he may either relinquish his water bottle or be escorted back into the terminal by security. He may not drink or dump the water on this side of security.  John is attached to his decaled water bottle and chooses to go through security a second time. The stern TSA woman escorts John outside and Art grimaces. We wait for our well traveled son to snake the security lines a second time and return to us.  Since we have allowed plenty of time we are more amused than stressed and twenty minutes later, John sheepishly rejoins us. I laugh and tell him that it is things like this that give me something to write in my blog. 

We are 1-½ hours early to our gate when my phone rings. Strangely, it is American Airlines calling me with an automated update that our departure flight to Chicago will be delayed because of bad weather. Art is quick to note that the earlier flight to Chicago has not yet departed and we rush to the kiosk to see if we can switch to the earlier flight. One of the attendants magically switches our bags from the delayed flight to the earlier flight and within minutes we have new boarding passes. In twenty minutes we board the earlier flight to Chicago which in reality leaves 15 minutes later than our initially scheduled flight but will presumably get us into Chicago in time for our connecting flight to Rome.

Tornado Shelter Signs, Chicago Airport

The flight between S.F.O. and Chicago is 3hr 20 minutes and I pass the time writing this blog and reading the Rick Steve Italy guide book. John rereads my father’s book Surf Casting for the Normandy Invasion and Art listens to history pod casts about Ancient Rome. So far so good:)

We land in Chicago at 3:30 in plenty of time for our flight to Rome, now delayed until 6:15 P.M. We wonder why our S.F.O. to Chicago boarding passes have “priority boarding” stamped on them and hope our American Airlines Platinum Visa will open doors to the Admiral’s Club. John and I watch our belongings and Art sets sail along the polished floors of the airport terminal in search of the lounge. He returns 15 minutes later with “virtual” cuts and bruises. The lounge bouncers deny him access so the three of us wander the crowded airport in search of a peaceful restaurant or corner in which to spend the next couple of hours. We share a chicken salad, an overpriced bottle of water and nibble on nuts and seeds.

It is 6:30 when boarding is called and the three of us push through the waiting passengers to the priority boarding line.  As John hoists his orange backpack onto his shoulder, the look on John’s face tells me something is wrong? He exclaims that his water bottle is missing and jogs back to where we were sitting to look for it. He returns empty handed with his second sheepish grin of the day and Art rolls his eyes in disbelief and amusement.  He has left his troublesome water bottle on the previous flight.

We are grateful to be boarding at last and file through first class to the cheap seats in economy and squeeze into our three inline seats. I have used frequent flyer miles to book our three tickets and only now wonder how many more miles would have been needed for the luxurious and spacious first class seats? Our plane sits on the runway for 1 1/2 hours before we are cleared to take off. There can be no drink or meal service until after we are airborne so we impatiently watch movies until we are cleared for takeoff.  Once airborne and level, the stewardesses are efficient; serving us a disappointing chicken and rice concoction that I pick at. I am grateful for the accompanying generous glasses of red wine, watch two mindless comedies and at 11:00 P.M. dole out sleeping pills and Art and I manage a solid four hours of sleep each.

When in Rome – Part One

Thursday, June 23, Arrival in Rome
We touch down in Rome just before noon.  Fortunately for John, he has slept the entire way and we all groggily disembark into the muggy heat of the day. Immigration is the easiest that I have ever experienced and we breeze through passport control; disappointed that our passports are scanned and not stamped. We wait 20 minutes until our bags appear on the revolving carousel and push through the doors of the terminal to street beyond to find transport to Hotel Antica Locanda in the Monti district of Rome.  We appreciate the Rick Steve’s guide book advice which suggests that for parties of 2 or 3, taking a taxi into Rome is easier and more economical than taking the train and transferring to the subway.  Forty-five minutes and a set 48 Euros later, our taxi drops us off at our hotel. 


Il Vittoriano, Piazza Venezia

Our hotel is ideally situated in the old town, perched on the corner of a narrow and picturesque cobbled street. We are graciously welcomed and showed to our triple room two flights up. There are no elevators and John cheerfully carries my luggage. The room is a tiny jewel with gleaming wood floors, a brick ceiling and crystal wall sconces. The gleaming bathroom has a faux baroque mirror, a ceiling chandelier and a sleek glass shower enclosure.

Lace Curtains and Crystal Chandeliers
Ornate Bathroom Mirrow


By 2:00 P.M. after quick showers we walk through the Monti district in search of lunch.  For our family, getting our bearings in new cities when jet lagged and hungry is usually challenging and todays unfolding scenario is typical. I am hungry and my blood sugar low and want food immediately while Art wants to read menus and carefully choose where to eat our first meal. Disoriented and with John’s wishes to also consider, disharmony rises and by the time I desperately choose an outdoor café we are all snapping at each other. The food is absolutely terrible.

Colosseum

Obelisk

In spite of the disappointing meal, we manage to salvage the afternoon and walk the short distance to the Coliseum and the Roman Forum and instead of snapping at each other, we are snapping photos.  We are not up to tackling either of these sights today but wander along the perimeter taking photos and people watching. The temperature is in the high 90’s and the sun is brutal. I have left both my hat and dark glasses in the hotel and before long I feel dizzy and need to return to our air-conditioned hotel to rest. We wander slowly back and once out of the sun, I feel better. John has let his hair grow long, partially out of laziness and partially to be in character for the Pirate Festival but in Rome, the men are trimmed and stylish and John feels noticeably out of place. When we pass a barbershop John decides to get a haircut. It is air conditioned inside the two-chair shop and John asks the elderly barber the price for a haircut. It is $20 and Art and I collapse onto an ancient couch and John mimes the style of hair cut he wants and then turns to me and asks if I have a photo of him a year ago at “Grandpa’s” 98th birthday? I pull a photo up on my I-phone and John shows it to the barber. It is cool inside and for a few minutes, Art and I watch as John’s long locks fall to the floor but our hotel is just around the corner and we leave John on his own. When John returns, he preens in front of the mirror, delighted with his new look.

The Roman Barber
When in Rome, look like a Roman 

After a two hour rest and a second round of showers, the three of us set out walking towards the Spanish Steps. John and Art navigate our route and after a few wrong turns, an unpleasant hike through a long traffic congested tunnel and a steadily uphill climb, we find ourselves at the top of the Spanish Steps with a hazy view of Rome below. The steps are under reconstruction and visually and physically cordoned off by high fences. We wind down an adjoining street to the cobblestone plaza below where hopeful horse pulled carriages wait for passengers and where people congregate around the Sinking Boat Fountain, designed by either Bernini or his father.  All the fountains in Rome are aqueduct powered and I watch as people fill water bottles and take drinks from smaller drinking fountains where the water is sweet and pure. 

Spanish Steps under reconstruction
Art and John, Piazza di Spagna

Designer Shops
Marty, Piazza di Spagna





Designer shops line the perimeter of the plaza and the radiating streets and we wander past Gucci, Armani, Versace and Cartier, their opulent and glittery window displays suggesting a perfect life should one be rich or thin enough to afford the finery. 

After much wandering, we choose a café bar a block off the main street and order drinks.  Art and John order Campari and Soda and the accommodating waitress suggests a mulled strawberry drink for me. When she brings our drinks, she sets down a plate of crudities and Art’s cheerful demeanor vanishes. He is certain that there will be a charge for these since at lunch we were charged for bread that we did not order. I surmise that these will be included in the price of the drinks and John and I nibble guiltily on the tiny sandwiches and cheese puffs and when the bill arrives, there is no additional charge. 
We make our way to the Trevi Fountain which glows aqua in the fading evening light. The surrounding fountain is packed shoulder to shoulder with tourists and I stand on a stone bench to take a photo above the heads of the crowd.  Although beautiful, the ambience is not that of La Dolce Vida or Three Coins in a Fountain. 

Trevi Fountain Crowds
Trevi Fountain

Trevi Fountain



We walk back to our Monti district and spend another 30 minutes choosing a restaurant for dinner. Art makes the call tonight, and the food is mediocre at best. Happily, the wine puts a harmonious glow on our otherwise uninspired meal.    

John toasts to our first day in Rome

Our Roman Holiday – Part Two

Friday, June 24rd – The Vatican Museum and Roman Coliseum.
  

Our alarm goes off at 6:00 A.M. and we shower and dress quickly. The hotel calls for a taxi and minutes later we are zipping through an already warm Rome and by 6:45 we are deposited at the entrance to the Sistine Chapel. I have arranged for an “early entrance tour” with the tour company “The Roman Guy” and already there are groups of tourists with their guides gathering on the stairway across the street. We joke that soon there will be an ‘’early early entrance tour” for an “extra extra” charge. We sit at an outdoors tourist café and each order a cappuccino (mine a double) and share two toasted ham and cheese sandwiches.  By Starbuck standards, our espresso drinks are excellent but about as pricy and we pay the 30 Euro bill for our minimal breakfast and walk back to find our tour group. Booking a Vatican/Sistine Chapel/Saint Peter’s Basilica tour is complicated. There were literally hundreds of tour companies to choose from and pricing was varied vastly depending on the company, entry time and number in each tour. There is even a special private evening tour for some $3500 per person. 

View of Vatican City and Saint Peter’s Basilica
Vatican Cafe














When our tour is over we will rate our guide as mediocre at best but twelve of us dutifully follow her to the snaking line in front of the museum and shortly after 8:00 A.M. we are gliding along the polished marble floors of gorgeous Vatican Museum galleries. Although there were many other early entry groups, the Vatican Museum is immense and for a delicious 45 minutes we have expansive views of the hallways and galleries mostly to ourselves. 
Vatican Museum Gallery Hallways

Marty, Vatican Museum












We wander through a hallway of tapestries, a marvelous cartography hallway and galleries of Greek, Roman and Egyptian sculpture. 
Cartography Gallery Hallway
Map detail



Art, Marty, John, Cartography Gallery








The walls and ceilings are frescoed, frosted and gilded and we crane our necks to admire the swirling scenes above us. 
Ceiling Fresco, Vatican Museum
Looking Up, Vatican Museum










The highlight is of course Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel where talking and photography are not permitted. Our guide briefs us prior to entry and we are allowed twenty minutes inside the Chapel where I desperately try to absorb and retain the genius of this place. The famous ceiling consists of nine panels of scenes from the Book of Genesis but it is the immense end wall with the painting of the Last Judgment that takes my breath away. The frescos have been recently cleaned and the colors are vibrant.  I’ve visited the Sistine Chapel several times before but my last visit was some thirty years ago and at that time, the colors were muted and parts of the Chapel were cordoned off with scaffolding. 
We continue touring the vast museum stopping to admire Raphael’s famous painting of the School of Athens. 

School of Athens, Raphael

Battle Scene

Our three-hour tour includes and ends at St Peters Basilica, the largest Cathedral in the smallest country in the world. We circumnavigate the cool interior of this vast Basilica, admiring its opulence and gazing up at the immense dome. 

Crowds inside Saint Peter’s Basilica

Saint Peter’s Basilica







Interior dome, Saint Peter’s Basilica
Angel, Saint Peter’s Basilica











John wants to climb to the top of the dome but I’m not up to it in the heat and my still jet lagged state. When we exit, the heat and bright sunlight outside is a shock to my senses. I wait by a large drinking fountain, in the shade of a courtyard while John and Art make the climb. 
We head back to the Monti district and find a restaurant just around the corner from our hotel that seems to please all of us. Back at our hotel we take showers and a much needed two-hour siesta.
Panorama of the Roman Colosseum

When possible, we travel with the Rick Steve’s guidebook and he recommends purchasing the Roma pass, not so much because it can save some money but because it allows you to skip the lines and in the height of the tourist season, lines are terrible. At 4:30 we walk to the Colosseum, activate our Roma passes and skip the line. We are fortunate that there is room on the 5:15 P.M. guided tour that proves to be excellent. A young French woman, studying for her PHD in archeological restoration, leads our tour and afterwards we wander the perimeter of the adjoining Forum, which is closed for the day. 

John, Marty, Art, Roman Colosseum

Roman Colosseum

Roman Colosseum
Wedding Photos










Our guide has recommended two restaurants but we are unable to find either but leisurely stroll in the direction of our hotel in search of dinner.  We follow another suggestion and back track several block finding the suggested restaurant but they are fully booked for the night.  Once again, we end up at yet another second rate restaurant and order three prix fix dinners. The pasta course is good but my roast chicken leg and thigh is inedible and the salad is pathetic.  We are obviously not doing well in the gourmet department and it is the Campari Spritzers and a good and inexpensive bottle of a crisp white wine that saves the evening. 

Bistro Bar in the Monti District
End of the day toast
Although it is already late we have after dinner drinks at a colorful restaurant/bar in the Monti. Art orders another Campari, John a Negroni and I order another bottle of white wine to share. It is a refreshing blend of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Grigio and the wine goes down like water on this still warm evening. We get to bed just before midnight.

Roman Holiday – Part Three

Saturday, June 24th The Roman Forum, Palatine Hill and Borghese Gallery
We enjoy our first generous and delicious breakfast in the charming dining room of our hotel . We are welcomed with strong coffee with milk, croissants, cured slices of ham and thick slices of cheese, yogurt and orange juice. 

Breakfast at Hotel Antica Locanda
Breakfast at Hotel Antica Locanda

The morning is brutally hot as we walk to the Roman Forum. Our Roma passes allow us to skip the lines and John rents an audio guide which isn’t well organized and we wander the extensive grounds of the Forum in a disorganized manner. We drink water constantly, refilling our water bottles from the stone water fountains throughout the vast Forum.

Arch of Titus, Roman Forum
Temple of Antonius, Pius & Faustian












Although I don’t know for sure, it feels like the temperature is over 100 and we try to keep to the shade. We climb the many stairways, wander the ruins, and when I am about to expire, we cool down in the museum. 

View of the Roman Forum
Looking up to Palatino Hill





View of the Roman Forum




View of the Temple of Vesta




Museum Murals








Palatino Hill Plaza


Palatino Hill Courtyard












Palatino Hill adjoins the Forum but it is high on the hillside above requiring the climbing of many stone steps. At the top there is another small museum and I rest gratefully and watch a short movie about Palatino Hill. For the first time I grasp the essence of the cultured and brutal civilization that inhabited these ruins and how the civilizations rose and fell and how this extensive city morphed throughout the ages. We spend five hours exploring the Forum and Palatino Hill and I am exhausted by the time we start the walk back towards our hotel. 

We have lunch at the same restaurant around the corner from our hotel and the air conditioning and food revives me. Art and I order excellent artichoke and chicken salads and John orders a squid cannelloni. After refreshing showers we set our alarms and sleep for two hours to be recharged for our 5:00 P.M. reservation to the Borghese Gallery.

Pauline Borghese as Venus
Bernini’s David









One needs prior reservations to visit the Borghese Gallery with its renowned collection of Baroque sculpture by Bernini, and paintings by Caravaggio, Raphael, Titian and Rubens. We take a taxi to the museum and use our Roma pass to pick up our reserved tickets downstairs. There are many disappointed people who didn’t know that reservations were required or who paid for online reservations but because they were traveling, were unable to print out their ticket vouchers. After collecting our tickets we have just enough time to grab a cappuccino at the museum café; much needed to clear the cobwebs of our brains after our afternoon siesta. We are required to check all bags including my purse and the museum check provides a small clear plastic bag into which I may put just my wallet, passport and phone to carry inside. Precisely at 5:00 P.M. we are allowed entrance into this sumptuous jewel of a museum.  

Detail of the Rape of Proserpina
The Rape of Proserpina, Bernini


This 17th century museum was the Cardinal Scipione Borghese mansion and Cardinal Borghese collected much of the finest Renaissance art of the times.  Each room features a Baroque masterpiece and the intimate experience is awe inspiring. The breathtaking Carrera marble sculpture of Pauline Borghese as Venus, by Antonio Canova reclines scandalously in the first gallery. In another room, Bernini’s David puts a rock into his sling to slay Goliath but it is Bernini’s Apollo and Daphne that takes my breath away. Daphne’s fingers and toes morph into roots and leaves as she is magically transformed into a tree to escape the advances of Apollo. 
Apollo and Daphne, Bernini
Detail of Apollo and Daphne 










Bernini’s, The Rape of Proserpina, created when he was just 24 years, is masterful and he turns the marble into living flesh. The immense hands and fingers of her captor leave impressions on Proserpina’s voluptuous flesh and a single tear slips down her face.  The painting galleries are upstairs and there is an entire room devoted to the work of Caravaggio and Titian.

Caravaggio
Titian












Each gallery showcases one exceptional piece but is also filled with other remarkable works and the walls and ceilings are sumptuously painted with frescos, rococo iced and gilded with gold leaf. 
Borghese Gallery fresco
Borghese Gallery ceiling fresco










We loose John somewhere in the museum and Art and I wander together through rooms filled with remarkable masterpieces. In the midst of all these masterpieces, a small painting by Jacopo Zucchi, the Allegoria Della Scoperta dell’ America, captures my eye. Water nymphs hold coral and rays and shells ripe with pearls. A jeweled treasure of shells and coral surrounds Neptune, crowned with coral. When we catch up with John later he remarks on this painting and tells me it his favorite painting in the museum.

Allegoria Della Scoperta dell’ America


Our Roman Holiday – Part Four

Sunday, June 26th – The Pantheon and the Heart of Rome Walk.

Pantheon 

Taxis are affordable in Rome and we take an early morning taxi to the Pantheon and enter the cool and uncrowded building. Art has downloaded the Rick Steve’s audio guide onto our phones and we listen to the history of this monumental Roman temple and admire the immense dome that inspired the domes of Brunelleschi’s Duomo in Florence and Michelangelo’s St. Peter’s Dome. 
Pantheon 

Interior dome of the Pantheon







Interior of the Pantheon
Interior of the Pantheon

We leave the cool of the marbled Pantheon and are stuck by the heat as we wander towards Plaza Navona to admire the Plazas  three fountains. At one end of the plaza is a fountain of Neptune wrestling a giant octopus and coincidentally, Art is wearing an Octopus T-shirt from Apo Islands in the Philippines. John takes photos of Art beside the fountain. 

Fountain of Neptune battling a giant octopus. 
Art wearing Octopus T-shirt


The center fountain is the most famous; the baroque Bernini, Four Rivers fountain that is crowned by an Egyptian Obelisk and where horses plunge through rocks and exotic flora and fauna. The third fountain at the opposite end of the plaza is a Moor wrestling with a dolphin but it is the Octopus fountain that most impresses me.  

Four Rivers Fountain by Bernini
Four Rivers Fountain










John wants to go to Castel Sant’Angelo, a middle age castle, prison and tomb for emperors. The  formidable castle is build of ancient bricks and stands at the edge of the Tiber River. John walks the quay while Art and I stroll above and towards the elegant bridge to cross to the Castle. Our Roma passes get us a deep discount and we spend two hours within its stonewalls looking at armory and admiring the structure itself. The view of the St. Peters Basilica, the Vatican and Rome from the battlements is wonderful. 
Panoramic View of St Peter’s Basilica from Castel Sant’Angelo
Art, John, St Peter’s Basilica
Castel Sant’Angelo

River view, Castel Sant’Angelo 

View of the Tiber River from Castel Sant’Angelo









We continue the “Heart of Rome” walk; step into a stunning Cathedral and pass the crowded Trevi Fountain again and eventually pop down into the Metro near the Spanish Steps. 
Interior, Santa Maria Sopra Minerva
Santa Maria Sopra Minerva

Tree installation,  Santa Maria Sopra Minerva
Egyptian Obelisk






















We take the metro to the train Station to buy tomorrows  tickets to Naples and onto Sorrento. John and I hope to still make it to the Catacombs of Priscilla (open on Sunday) but by the time we have figured out the train tickets, time is short. Art is more interested in horizontal time than exploring the Catacombs and we part ways. Our three-day Roma passes get us free bus and metro travel and the bus to the Catacombs leaves from the train station. As we wait for our bus, I pull out my Roma pass and realize that I have Art’s pass as well. I don’t want him to have to walk back to our hotel and scan the plaza in front of the train station. Miraculously, I spot him crossing the street a block away and John sprints towards him. When we catch up I give Art his pass and John and I return to wait for the bus but it’s after 3:00 P.M. and last entry to the Catacombs is at 4:30.  Reevaluating, I am afraid that this might be a wasted trip and when I scan the plaza I see National Sculpture Museum of Rome at a far corner. This is the main branch and according to Rick Steve’s, our new best friend in Rome, houses the greatest collection of Roman art anywhere. John and I flash our Roma passes, get a nice discount and spend two hours looking at the collections of Roman Sculptures and an extensive collection of Roman coins. 

Bronze Sculpture 

Discus Thrower – Roman Copy

Fish Mosaic

Mosaic








Marble Roman Carving

Ancient Roman Coin














Last night, John made reservations for dinner at a Monti neighborhood restaurant. Our reservations are at 8:00 P.M. and we have a reserved table on the street.  It is by far the best meal we have had in Rome and I regret that I didn’t  jot down the restaurant’s name or what dishes we ordered. 

Sorrento

Monday, June 27th, Rome to Naples to Sorrento
View of the Sorrento Harbor

Our morning train to Naples is delayed 40 minutes. We know that when we arrive in Naples we must transfer to a different train line for Sorrento. When we arrive, Art asks a cluster of loitering men for directions to the local trainline platform. One disheveled, middle aged man, reeking of alcohol, takes it upon himself to escort us through the terminal and to the local line. I’m quite sure that his escort will come with a price, but he does his best to reassure and charm us and repeatedly tries to help me with my luggage.  Indeed, when we are reach the ticket turn style, he asks Art for ten euros. Art chuckles and hands him five and we join the other passengers gathered on the platform to wait for the local train. It arrives shortly and there is a rush and push to board the crowded train and we stand, sardine-style, much of the way to Sorrento. During the push to get aboard, Art is blocked and jostled by several men and when he settles on board he discovers that the button to his cargo pants pocket is undone. He is upset, but fortunately, still has his wallet. (This episode will inspire Art to purchase a decoy wallet in Sorrento into which he will put a small amount of cash and keep in his upper accessible pants pocket. He will also buy a pack of safety pins to pin closed his lower cargo pants pocket where his will keep his real wallet.)  

Sorrento
The Lemon-House; Air BnB Sorrento Italy













Our Air BnB host, Gisieppie, picks us up at the train station and drives us the ten minutes to our accommodation at the Lemon House. She is in her mid 50s, large and gregarious, and we are grateful for the direct delivery to our room. This is the first Air BnB that we have stayed at and the room is exactly what is pictured on the web site. Unfortunately, the drive to the Lemon House is mostly uphill and I realize that the “short walk to town” will be more like a hike. We settle into the immaculate and spacious room with a queen bed and a pull-out sofa for John. The bathroom is updated and more than adequate, but Gisieppie rambles on with complicated instructions about how to close the shower door properly. She suggests tours to Capri and tours along the Amalfi Coast and although we want to do both, I simply want to be left alone and to read travel details in the Rick Steves guide book and check my email. I feel that she is annoyed that I don’t commit to one of her tour suggestions where she likely receives a commission but I feel equally annoyed and pressured by her. She eventually leaves us alone in our room and we attempt to log onto the Lemon House wireless. The connection is painfully slow and will continue to be problematic over the next several days. 
Waiting for our laundry to wash
Technical challenges – soap dispenser











We bag up our dirty laundry and, with map in hand, walk into town with finding a Laundromat first on our agenda. Once again, our friend Rick Steves gets us directly to one of the two laundromats in town and I watch with amusement as Art and John try to figure out how to purchase soap from the dispenser and operate the washing machine. (I have learned that trying to help in these “technical” situations only leads to disharmony). When the comedy of errors is over and the machine is agitating our laundry instead of the men, Art and John tell me they are off to buy sandwiches and leave me to guard our laundry. They are gone a very long time, but in the meantime I make many friends at the laundromat. 
Although I am alone to begin with, a newlywed couple arrives, the young woman looking terrified with the prospects of domestic duties. Soon a group of seasoned and gregarious Australians arrive and the sterile laundromat turns into a party as they open bags of dirty laundry and bottles of beer. They struggle to operate the machines but I watched Art and John carefully and I am forthright in disclosing the idiosyncrasies of the machines. Art and John return just in time to decipher the mysteries of the dryer cycle and to confess that they have been watching a soccer game while I watched the laundry spin.

With stuff bags filled with clean laundry, we set out to explore the more interesting parts of Sorrento. It is late afternoon and the sun basks the city in a golden glow. The Italy versus Spain soccer game is underway followed by the England and Iceland game and all the cafés are filled with enthusiastic fans. Art and John want to watch and they manage to find a shared table at an outdoor café where they can sit, watch and drink beer.  

Art and John watching a Soccer Game in Sorrento Italy
A winning soccer maneuver, Sorrento










Not a sports fan, I take this opportunity to stroll the picturesque city alone and I stumble upon a cliffside elevator down to the marina several hundred feet below where I hope to investigate times and prices of tickets to Ill de Capri. The elevator pops me out at beach level and although it is late in the day there are still people enjoying the fading sunlight.  

Private beachside cabanas
Peter’s Beach, Sorrento

The various beaches are all private with deck chairs and dressing cabanas alongside a narrow boardwalk that winds between the steep cliff and the various beach enclosures. The scene is picturesque and I make the mistake of stepping onto a private deck to take a photograph and am reprimanded for my intrusion. The marina is just a short walk ahead and when I arrive I find the ferry office still open and pick up a printed schedule so that we can plan tomorrow’s trip to Capri. 

The New Marina, Sorrento


I meander back on the narrow boardwalk, enter through the turnstile for the cliffside elevator, pay my half euro, and am quickly transported back up to Sorrento. The elevator regurgitates me onto the cliffside square and I walk to the railing to admire the view of the marina below. After inhaling the view, I leave the park and see a Franciscan Church adjoining the square. 

Sorrento View
Franciscan Cloister
Franciscan Cloister













I have read about this church cloister in our Rick Steves guide book and step into the courtyard. The courtyard glows in the late afternoon sunlight; bougainvillea bright against the Gothic stone archways. I stroll the perimeter and decompress before heading back to the main street to join Art and John and to partake of the soccer festivities. In between cheers for the teams, Art is in conversation with two British couples and they heatedly discuss Brexit and what it signifies for the U.K. and the European Union. 

When the game finally ends, we walk down to the Grande Marina in search of dinner. The winding cobblestone pathway descends steeply toward  the sea and we arrive at the marina just in time for sunset. 

Walking down to the Grande Marina

Sunset at the Grande Marina









Sunset over the Marina



The lighting is magical and we are in good spirits. Because it is sunset, the many inviting restaurants are filling up quickly and choosing which one to dine at is stressful but we see one with an available table at the edge of the patio and sit down impulsively. 

Grande Marina Sorrento, Italy
Close up at the Grande Marina











The silver sheen on the water is lovely but the service is slow and although Art’s seafood pasta is good, John’s and my dinners are disappointing. We stroll along the waterfront after dinner, find the bus that departs every 30 minutes and take it back up into town. The evening is balmy and we enjoy after dinner drinks at an outdoor café, and when the bill arrives they also bring us shots of limoncello, the local aperitif that Sorrento is famous for. The thick sweet liquor tastes like melted lemon jello with a kick.


Campari and Limoncello

Limoncellos









From there we hoof it through the town center and uphill “the short walk” to our Lemon House Air BnB. When we crawl into our beds it is after 11:00 P.M.

Over-hyped – Ile de Capri

Tuesday,  June 28th, Sorrento to Capri Island

Art wants to spend a relaxed day in Sorrento while John and I go to Capri to visit the Blue Grotto. The three of us walk the long and now familiar hill from our Air BnB down into Sorrento. John and I are catching the early ferry to Capri in hopes of beating all the tourists visiting the Blue Grotto. We part ways above the marina leaving Art to wander in search of his morning cappuccino at the perfect café.

Arriving in Capri Harbor
The Ferryboat to Capri


When John and I arrive on Capri, we find that the Blue Grotto is closed because of the tides. We wander the touristy and very boring waterfront hoping that the tide situation will change but when it does not, John and I choose to take an around-the-island tour instead. Our island tour doesn’t depart until 10:00 a.m. and we buy sandwiches and drinks for the boat and overpriced flip flops for John. Our open boat is lovely and there are about 20 of us on board. We cruise past the Blue Grotto with its entrance mostly submerged by the tide. I wonder if this situation is more the norm than the exception but that tourists aren’t informed of this so that we continue to take the ferry boats out to Capri and book other excursions instead? Our boat continues to motor around the island stopping at the Emerald Cove and squeezing through an impossibly small arch opening in the rock. The weather is blissful and it’s a lovely two hour circumnavigation of the island and we are only slightly disappointed that we are not allowed to swim. The passengers from the private boats are swimming cliffside in the intoxicating blue-green waters. 

Emerald Cove, Capri Island


Cliffside Caves of Capri

Cliffside Caves of Capri

Silhouetted Rock Archways

Back at the Capri harbor, John goes swimming off the narrow pebbly beach where young and old, thin and fat, play in the mild surf and sun bathe on blankets. Although I am happy to be experiencing this pebbly beach, I question how this island and the Amalfi coast became so popular for the rich and famous? In my mind it lacks just about everything that the perfect beach should have. One cannot leave footprints in non-existent sand and the pebbly impressions on my behind are less than glamorous. Where are the beautiful people?  I am just one more flawed tourist on this over-hyped beach although I see eyes turning to admire John’s youthful physic and his confident swagger. 

John on Capri’s Beach
Sunbathers on Capri’s Beach







Sunbathers on Capri’s Beach


Cordoned Swim Area – Capri’s Beach
















We catch a 1:00 p.m. fast ferry back to Sorrento, walk the boardwalk beneath the vertical cliff back to the elevator and whoosh up to Sorrento above. 

John and I hike back to our Air BnB. Art is resting and John and I shower and get horizontal for an hour before walking back into town to arrange tomorrow’s tour along the Amalfi Coast. The tourist information office is very helpful, giving us directions to the chauffeur and car rental service we request. Naturally, the office is on the other side of town but after a few wrong turns we find the office and manage to book a shared car and driver for tomorrow. We will be the first three to be picked up in front of a central Sorrento luxury hotel (unfortunately, we are not guests at this hotel). We are promised that there will be no more than 7 of us, plus driver, for an all-day excursion along the Amalfi Coast in a Mercedes mini-van. The price for this is 85 euros per person; or about $300 for the three of us.

John and I are famished and we search desperately for a place to sit, relax and to eat a late afternoon snack. As is typical, one or the other of us find something wrong with each café we pass. It is hot, we are all tired and we are not having a good time. Eventually, Art suggests we go to the restaurant where he had breakfast earlier but naturally we have strolled in the opposite direction. We turn around and walk the several blocks back and enter a lovely garden café with rabbits grazing in the grass. Cool drinks and a light lunch revive both our bodies and our spirits.


Sorrento Garden Cafe
Garden Cafe Rabbit













The fact that our Air BnB is not centrally located is putting a damper on our Sorrento experience but as we walk back to our hotel, we pass a shop with a ceramic octopus in its shop window. Inside the artist is cutting intaglio octopus carvings into the surface of ceramic cups and bowls. His work is delightful so we buy several of his pieces and Art takes a photo of me with the artist and his octopus sculpture. 

Sorrento Ceramic Artist with Octopus Sculpture


We trudge back uphill to the Lemon House to clean up and to rest before dinner.

Hiking Home to the Lemon House


Scott, my ex-husband, and his wife Shari have been to Sorrento several times, love the town and have suggested that we eat dinner at the Foreigners’ Club. Music is playing as we enter the open air dining patio and we are escorted to a table not far from the railing overlooking the ocean below. Unfortunately, dinner is far from memorable and the music is not to our taste. Art is unusually quiet and eventually tells us that he doesn’t feel well. Two wedding receptions are in full swing on the expansive patio and we amuse ourselves watching one of the parties perform overly choreographed line dancing at the same time trying to control one very drunk and out-of-control guest. Three limoncellas accompany the bill and we slurp down the too sweet liquor and return to our hotel.  

Amalfi – The Coastline of the Rich and Famous

Wednesday, June 29th, The Amalfi Coast

Giuseppina serves us breakfast in her garden and her two tiny dogs bounce around our legs begging for food. There is plenty of bread, butter and jam and freshly squeezed orange juice, but only one cup of coffee each and I wish for a second cup. 

Amalfi Coast Beachfront
Breakfast in the Garden



We walk ten minutes down the road to Hotel Antiche Mura, our pick-up location for our chauffeured tour down the Amalfi Coast. We are the first three of six passengers and Art sits in the front seat of the pearl grey Mercedes mini-van. John and I choose the window seat that will face the ocean on our drive down the coastline. John sits beside me with a clear view ahead and to my right. Next we pick up a well-dressed Finnish/Russian couple, followed by a young woman from New York who works for a Jewish Birthright non-profit and is taking a short break in Sorrento. Antonio, our experienced driver, is charming and narrates his well-rehearsed commentary as he expertly maneuvers the car along the narrow and twisty road. 

Amalfi Coast Hillside Villages

Village houses cling precariously to the cliff sides high above the Tyrrhenian Sea. The rugged coastline is very Big-Sur-esque and I snap hundreds of bad photos out the van window, most of which I later delete. We have read about the white knuckle Amalfi Coast road but I feel no angst with our competent driver and a stone guardrail separating us from the sea below. We make a rest stop at an upscale café/tourist shop and John and I order cappuccinos. The blue of the counter visually melts with the blue of the ocean beyond. 

Blissful, Amalfi Coast Cappuccino


Amalfi Coast Vista
Too Cool on the Amalfi Coast













The ocean below is dotted with boats and some extremely large yachts. Our driver tells us that many of the hotel rooms in the area rent for over $1,000 a night, making owning a yacht rather like having an upscale motor home. We stop at the Emerald Grotto and take the elevator down to the beach, pay our 5 euros each and enter a small cave with a few stalagmites and stalactites. The six of us climb into a long wooden boat with bench seats and our guide rows us around the tiny cave giving us a lame and repetitive commentary. The grotto tour is short and we are grateful that our guide does not break into song like the boat tour before ours. 

Our next stop is Ravello, the furthest town south on our Amalfi Coast itinerary. By stopping at Ravello first and returning North  along the Amalfi Coast we hope to avoid the majority of the cruise ship day trippers. These famous and picturesque towns are all built into the hillside and Antonio drops us off at the top of Ravello town so that we may walk downhill into the town center. He suggests that we start with the view at an upscale hotel and we walk into a plush lobby overlooking the valley and ocean beyond. The terraced hillside is picture postcard perfect, dotted with villas, vineyards and olive and lemon trees. 

We have precisely two hours to visit this hillside town and to partake of lunch. Antonio recommends a rustic restaurant in the lower part of town but we are not charmed by their inside tables or the prices on the menu. We wish to celebrate this beautiful day outside and we find a deli where we buy sandwiches and tiny bottles of Campari Orange and champagne and have a picnic in the nearby park. The view is delicious and the champagne goes down like water and we soon send John back to the deli for more of the tiny bottles of libations and enjoy a perfect al fresco lunch overlooking the terraced valley beyond. 

Al Fresco Picnic with Campari and Champagne in Ravello


I am not interested in the touristy shopping street so we climb the stairs back to the upper plaza, drink cappuccinos at an outdoor café and eventually wind our way back down along narrow cobblestone lanes and through the tunnel to a congested parking area where we meet Antonio to continue our Amalfi Coast drive. 

Walkways in Ravella


Cappuccinos in Ravella












  
Antonio drives North towards Sorrento and we keep our seating positions so that those on the inside of the van earlier now have the cliffside vistas. The road winds down to beach level and we have an hour in Positano Village. Sun worshippers rent yellow and green beach umbrellas and recline in their shade, the umbrellas so closely spaced that they touch each other. 

Positano Beach Umbrellas


We start our walk from the jam-packed beach parking area and climb up into the town crowded with tourists and lined with gift shops. John and Art pop into a knife shop and John buys a ship in a bottle for a friend, but the tourist souvenirs and shops selling crisp linen clothes and Italian pottery have no appeal to me. Precisely an hour later we are back in our van and heading north to Amalfi.

Amalfi Coast Beachfront


In spite of the fabulous vistas, I grow sleepy on the return drive and find myself nodding off as we are chauffeured to Amalfi. This time we are deposited at the top of the town and walk down the cobbled shop-lined street. An overhead trellis of bougainvillea shades much of the pedestrian walkway. We find a café and sit down for service but after being ignored for five minutes by at least four idle waiters we leave and order cappuccinos at the stand up bar instead. The drive from Amalfi to Sorrento is less than an hour and we watch the countryside scroll past and inhale the dramatic views of the coastline far below. 

Because we are the first of our group to be dropped off, Antonio drops us off at the bottom of our hill and we hike back to the Lemon House to shower and change before enjoying our final dinner in Sorrento. 

Art vs the Lobster


O Canonico Restaurant
O Canonico Restaurant, Sorrento














We splurge on an upscale dinner at Restaurant ‘O Canonico in the main square. We sit on the restaurant’s raised outdoor terrace and are welcomed with a glass of prosecco and a vegetable and crouton appetizer. Our main entrees are a delicious lemon and butter baked fish, a lobster pasta and duck in a balsamic wine reduction. We share a bottle of red wine and when the bill arrives, are surprised that the bill has already been paid?  John paid the bill earlier in the evening when he excused himself to go to the restroom. It’s been a lovely evening and a lovely surprise to be treated to dinner by our remarkable son. 

Early evening in Sorrento



In Sorrento, the main street is closed to traffic at 8:00 p.m. each evening so that pedestrians may stroll, shop and drink. Art and John buy gelatos and we continue our stroll. Eventually we find an outdoor café where we can sit and order drinks. Art discusses the Brexit with the Irish couple sitting at the adjoining table. The walk back to our Air B&B seems especially long tonight.

Pompeii to Florence

June 30th, Sorrento to Pompeii to Florence

Art wants to add a Florence leg to our Italian itinerary so we wake early, eat a quick breakfast in the garden and Gioseppina drives us to the nearby train station. There are no fast trains between Sorrento and Pompeii and the local train stops at all the stations. We arrive at the Pompeii Scavi stop at 8:00 A.M. The opening information in our guidebook is wrong and Pompeii opens at 9:00 A.M, not 8:30. We are one of the first in line but the morning is already hot and we stand impatiently in line to purchase our tickets. Like bulls out of the shoot, we rush into the site along with throngs of other early bird tourists.

Hurrying to enter Pompeii

Immense paving stones to slow chariots



Pompeii Central Forum

Pompeii Forum
Column detail, Pompeii

Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD and put an end to the prospering city of Pompeii. The impressive archeological site spans many acres and we attempt to follow the Rick Steve’s pod cast but many of the routes have been diverted and some ‘avenues’ closed for renovation so we are frustrated and confused following the audio narrative. Nevertheless, Pompeii is amazing and I am in awe of the public squares and forums with immense, if incomplete, columns surrounding the perimeters.

Listing to our Audio Guide
Streets of Pompeii

We enter a stunning and beautifully preserved public bath house with ornate carvings still intact and faded frescoes on the walls.

Public bath house Pompeii
Ceiling decor
Detail of bath house

The stone streets are paved with immense stone blocks with obvious chariot wheel grooves cut deep into the rocks. This city prospered in the first century A.D. prior to the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius and had a sophisticated aqueduct and lead pipe water delivery system.  We see remains of private estates with re-created manicured gardens and shopping streets where restaurants once thrived.

Private estate garden
Stone work
Estate fresco

Restaurant counter with cooking holes

Art heads for the entrance but John and we retrace our path along uneven stone streets in the sweltering heat until we come to the plaster casts.  Discovered in the 1748 the body cavities within the ash have been filled with plaster and we gaze with compassion at these figures who suffocated in the ash some 2000 years ago.

Plaster casts of Pompeii casualties

Before going to our prearranged meeting place to meet Art; John and I visit the exquisite Temple of Isis and the impressive Amphitheater.

Amphitheater, Pompeii

When we arrive, Art is just leaving the Amphitheater so after our intense four-hour visit of Pompeii we rush to the train station to catch yet another slow local train to Naples where we will change trains to Florence. We are traveling well as a family, each of us contributing in our own way. John with his youthful strength hauls suitcases up and down stairways and carries our day pack; Art figures out train schedules and our plan of attack for Florence and I keep our tickets organized and our valuables safe. Once on the train between Naples and Florence we all relax and nap to the rhythm of the train. 

The fast train to Florence
We have no hotel accommodations in Florence but walk across the plaza to the Tourist Information Office and while I am buying our Florence sightseeing passes, Art calls a nearby hotel that happily has a triple room available for two nights. The Florence pass is expensive, 72 Euros for 72 hours of sights and we expect to be in Florence for just 36 hours and to use these passes for just one full day of sightseeing. Nevertheless, the pass will allow us to skip the lines and we have come to Florence to see the art.

Hotel Montreal, a two-star hotel just two blocks from the station is simple but acceptable. Our triple room costs 109 Euros and although worn, is clean and has a great bathroom which we immediately take advantage of to wash the Pompeii dust and sweat from our bodies. Refreshed we head out to get our bearings and to find dinner. Florence is a small jewel of a city and the Duomo is within walking distance.

The Duomo facade

The Duomo, Florence

The evening light casts a golden glow on the multicolor marble of the immense cathedral and we stroll around the bustling plaza, people-watching and stopping to admire the bronze Ghiberti doors of the Baptistery. These doors are old friends of mine but are no less impressive on my fifth visit to Florence.

Harikrishna
Sunset on the Arno River
Ponte Vecchio Bridge

We walk down to Arno River and across the Ponte Trinita Bridge. Bicyclists and a parade of Harikrishna are just part of the entertainment. The late afternoon light is magical and we sit upon the stone block banister of the Ponte Trinita bridge and see the covered Ponte Vecchio Bridge beyond.

We have worked up an appetite and meander back along narrow cobblestone streets in the direction of our hotel reading all the restaurant menus. We suffer our usual indecision but eventually settle on a small restaurant just down the street from our hotel. Art orders a mushroom fettuchinni, John a pizza and I order a chicken breast in wine sauce which is served pitifully naked and unaccompanied on a plate. I ask to taste the red house wine before ordering a carafe that is sadly uninspired and the waiter bring me a taste of another red wine, also uninspired. Resigned, I settle on a carafe of the house wine for 9 Euros. We share the warm and watery wine, pay the modest bill and return exhausted to our hotel.