E Ticket To Italy!

We are here! Ahhh, Bella Italia!

Lufthansa does it again!

It has been nearly two years since we have seen our daughter, Laura and her family. We have saved our money and longed for the day to be with them again. It is hard to be apart, especially when our little grandsons are growing so quickly. The only time the 7,000 miles between us is even remotely appealing is when we get to go and visit them in Italy. But it would not matter where they were, we would be just as thrilled to be making this trip to see them. And a whole lot of hugging and snuggling and chatting will have to be done before we can focus on the joys of another vacation in Italy! We are so happy that Jim's mom is coming with us. This means so much to Jim and I am thrilled he can have this experience with her. In a perfect world both sets of our parents would be with us and all the siblings and cousins too. We are big on family around here and love spending time together more than anything else in the whole wide world. So it's Christmas time and family time and we are so excited! Come along and enjoy the sights and sounds of Buon Natale in the old country!

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We arrived via my brother, Steve, at SFO without a hitch. I was so grateful to finally get there after the weeks of preparation and saying to myself that last day, "Surely that is the last thing I have to do," when yet another thing would pop into my head. We prefer flying at night so the 9:00 pm departure sounded great to us. Sleep seemed more likely after doing last minute stuff all day long. When we arrived at the Luftansa desk, we were informed our flight had been delayed as a passenger on the flight coming into San Francisco had become seriously ill and they had to stop the plane in Canada. They were expecting only an hour and half delay, but that only gave us 25 minutes to connect to our flight in Munich to go on to Naples. Our situation was not unique as there were over 200 passengers making other connections on the flight. It is astonishing how one person's plight can disrupt many lives. It was worth it though to save a life. Fortunately, once airborne we had just a normal, cramped in a tiny space, flight. For the most part it was smooth sailing and for that we were all thankful! Getting through security in SFO was a hassle as Jim's mom, Gloria, set off the red lights with her hip replacement. SFO was child's play compared to Germany. When you fly out of Munich you know there is no possibility of a hijacking! It is comforting; in an invasive kind of way. However, that delayed us considerably and long story short we missed our plane to Naples. After rushing like crazy and Jim running ahead he saw the flight bus to our plane pulling away from the curb! When we reached the Luftansa rerouting desk we were able to use their phone just in time to call Laura and the boys. They were just getting into their car to come and get us. We were all so disappointed to know that we had to wait until the next day to see each other. I felt badly for the boys!

After all the rescheduling we were instructed to go to the baggage areas and follow the signs to the Hotel buses. 45 minutes later we finally found it. (Note to Lufthansa..a map to the pick up area would be so helpful!) In the process of wandering all over we discovered this great place in the airport that was an outdoor covered ice rink and Christmas Market.

Jim and Mom at the outdoor rink in the Munich airport.

It was very cold and festive and beautiful. The Germans really do Christmas well. We wanted to stay a bit but felt we should push on to the unknown and unmarked place where we were to be picked up.

The Christmas Tree in the Lobby of the Sheraton.

Luftansa set us up in a beautiful 5 star Sheraton Hotel, with shuttle service to and from the airport, two beautiful rooms, and two fantastic meals. Once we got over not being able to see the family that night we relaxed and thoroughly enjoyed this serendipity luxury experience. The Germans are wonderful cooks or so has been our experience the two times we have stayed overnight there. Their food is very hearty and tasty and different in a good way from American food. We enjoyed some beef stroganoff and lots of wonderful things we had never tried before for our late dinner that night. Jim and I had a wonderful night's sleep but Gloria fell asleep, and woke up and thought her watch said 5:00 am but it was really 11:25 pm so she got all dressed and waited for us to knock on her door to get up. Poor Grandma, she was exhausted and good-natured about the whole thing the next morning. So many adventures and we were not even to our destination until nearly noon the next day!

Past Due Reunion

Finally we got onto the last leg of the flight. The view was gorgeous and we would have missed flying over the Alps in daylight and this beautiful sight had we flown in on the original plan.


At this point we were pretty excited and felt like we really were going to see our kids at last! Robert was gone on Navy business but Laura, Spencer and Rossie met us with happy faces and welcome signs! So sweet and wonderful to be together again after nearly two years.


I am not overly thrilled with these photos but I think we were just too excited and happy to focus literally and figuratively. The one I took of Jim and the kids was terribly blurry and just plain awful. Suffice it to say, it was a great moment in spite of the photography!

Within minutes we were unloading our luggage and getting settled in their beautiful home. The Christmas decorations and being with them made it finally feel like Christmas! I'll include some photos of their home as things progress.

We spent most of this day getting settled, dealing with a little jet lag and getting $ exchanged and passes to get onto the base for the month we are here. Spencer had helped make a delicious white bean chowder and we enjoyed our first Italian crusty bread in a long time. We went to bed anticipating our day trip to Naples on Tuesday the 14th. Some of us (mostly me) had a few nightmares about all the things we heard about the Naples experience, I have to admit I felt pretty scared but that is just me. Me being overly cautious to balance out Jim's cavalier attitude and adventuresome spirit. I think our kids needed both of us growing up! We are Yin and Yang here, no question about it!

Napoli, Napoli!

The streets of Napoli!

Naples...what can I say? It was not as scary as I had imagined, but it was a little edgy and very interesting. They simply live so differently than we do. It is another world altogether!

Each time I have come to Italy I have been impressed by the hard life they live here. You see so many people with physical infirmities that you just don't see much in America (i.e., club feet) and the beggars are everywhere and they are for real. It is very sad. Everything is frenetic and fast paced in one way and very old world and laid back in another. It is really hard to explain and almost needs to be experienced to be understood. It is crowded, noisy, lots of people talking loudly, sirens, horns honking, merchants selling their wares...etc.


Naples is known to be a very rough and tough place. One of the things that had me a little freaked out is that there is no way we could blend in with the crowds. Jim and Gloria yes, as she is full Italian and he is half but when you get down to Laura who is a quarter and her kids that are an eighth....hmmm, not really. Jim has been dressing so cool over here and he totally looks the part; charcoal pants, black pullover and a 3/4 length black dress jacket and black scarf. Perfecto!

Months ago I bought him a small "man bag" so he can keep his sun glasses, lip balm, meds, phone, tape measure for school and iPod all in one place. There was a method to my madness...this way less gets misplaced each day. It is a very masculine thing, small black canvas and has a Swiss Army insignia to make it definitely a "guy thing." In spite of all that, he has taken some pretty heavy kidding about it in the states from his friends. Sure of himself, he has held his ground and really likes the convenience of it.

Over here in Italy these bags are extremely popular and they make total sense. So not only does he look awesome in his Italian attire the man bag completes his outfit! He is going to crack up when he reads this or ask me to delete it. We blondies, real and imagined, cannot fit in no matter what. The only thing that is bothersome about that is it can make you a much easier target for gypsies and pick pockets so you just have to be a lot more careful. So we were and we did just fine. We took the metro train into Naples and that was an experience both directions. It is just so weird how people just pack in tighter and tighter until you don't have to hold on the crowd holds you in place. I love people watching in Naples.

Spencer in front of the Duomo of Naples

The most impressive place we saw in Naples is the Duomo (cathedral) of Naples dedicated to the patron saint of Naples, Saint Gennaro. Each year a vile of his blood liquefies (really?) Anyway, people come for this event once a year and it is said that even scientists have studied this curiosity?? The interior of this cathedral is beautiful and immense.

The Alter at Saint Gennaro's

They have candle sticks to the side of this alter area that have to be 25 feet tall. The silver alone in this building is totally over the top.

What's a Duomo without a Cupola?

We also walked down a long narrow road known as Christmas Alley with our destination being the museum that holds the sculpture, The Veiled Christ. It is closed on Wednesday so we went on Tuesday...but in Italy anything goes and it was closed when we arrived. Most of the things in the Alley were very tacky, trinkety type things and we wondered how it could stay open and manage to sell anything year around. It has a bit of the SF China Town type of a feel to it.

Naples is such a mix of elaborate and elegant places and some very slummy areas and everything in between. I am glad I went but as for me once is enough. Jim went last time we were here but for some reason I didn't. I don't think I'll be going back except when we fly out in a few weeks. I prefer the less chaotic, more predictable parts of Italy.

Bella Roma!

flickr

We spent Wednesday through Friday in pursuit of Roman adventures. We found them! Actually it really only equated to one full day in Rome and two part days but it was just enough, (believe me!) Rome is a wild and wonderful experience!

The kids live in a suburb of Napoli so the drive to Rome is a few hours. We had some errands to run before we left town so it was nearly 3:30 by the time we arrived in the city. The driving in Italy never ceases to amaze. Laura is just so good at it and as we have discussed why there seem to be so few accidents we came up with the idea that you cannot drive in Italy without giving it your full attention! They don't need a law about foregoing your cell phone usage while behind the wheel because you simply cannot do it here. You don't eat in the car or drive on auto pilot because you cannot survive doing it.


We a had our GPS and Laura's and we still had trouble finding the apartment that she had rented for us for the two nights. Travel tip: Lengthen your life by never going to Europe and driving without a GPS! If you saw the movie European Vacation and remember the scene where Chevy Chase is driving around and around the round about to get to Big Ben, then you have an idea of what we went through.

Jim in his glory for the first 30 minutes of the search for lodging!

Our apartment was in the heart of the city and just within walking distance of the Pantheon and Piazza Navona, if you are familiar with the area. Think very old, stone buildings and very narrow winding alleys that never see the sunshine in this cavern and you get the idea. Add in every other street being a one way or too narrow for a Honda Pilot to pass through, no real street signs and pepper in people on Vespas roaring by on both sides of you, and pedestrians everywhere and you start to feel the love. And let us not forget we have a car full of luggage and food and even though we all brought just a little, there were six of us with coats, suitcases, etc. There is no place to unload without halting the traffic and there isn't a parking space to pull over in for miles. Imagine now ten cars honking at you if you hesitate for a moment or need five minutes (Mamma Mia!) to unload and you're there. Jim did the driving here and he was phenomenal.

Our GPSs could not get a signal in the caverns. Laura had to get out and find it on foot while we double parked on a crazed, larger street a few blocks away during rush hour. Are you having fun yet? Finally we found it and in the frey, Laura landed up in the driver's seat and then was off alone trying to find safe overnight parking. She landed up at The Vatican and had to walk back (30 minutes) with two large bags and Grandma's suitcase that got left in the car in the panic of emptying the car with all the honking behind us. We were all glad we didn't recognize the cursing in Italian in the background. Once inside the apartment we felt some sanity returning but it was not complete until Laura got back, over an hour later. Only a Mom can appreciate that feeling! Welcome to Rome!...

Our apartment's tiny piazza

We Got Our Girl Back~All Is Well!
(This may be the only photo you will ever see with our naked faces in all their glory!)

When In Rome Do As The Romans

Piazza Navona located just a few blocks from our apartment

Rome like any diamond is multi-faceted. There is so much to see and do. Last time we saw a lot of the high-lights and walked our legs off. This time, staying in the heart and belly of the city...we lived more like the Romans. We were so taken with their traditions and their life style and their community. Each little neighborhood almost seems self-contained, self-supporting and interdependent. This is something so lacking in our country.

In Italy it is all about the neighborhood, the camaraderie and being outside on foot or public transportation. People know each other and they stop and chat when they see their friends and family. Looking out our window early in the morning the tiny piazza was filled with the hustle and bustle of everyday living and a lovely, fresh, vegetable market is set up each morning at dawn. Rain or shine people are out getting their fresh veggies for the day.


At about 1:00 pm everything closes down for 'riposo' and everyone takes a 2-3 hour break before they continue on for the day. This is a tradition throughout Italy. In the square below our apartment the market is replaced by an outdoor cafe, covered with heavy plastic during the rainy season being readied for the remainder of the day and evening. In the city there are several more hours of work for everyone and then dinner hour and night life starts at about 8 pm. In our little neighborhood the tiny roads are filled with shops and street vendors every night. It is really delightful and the locals all come out for their evening stroll and social hour.

This is what they do instead of shutting out the world and hunkering down with the TV like so many do in America. You can tell it is good for the soul and at that time of day they share the events of their day and they look happy. You see old folks, women with baby carriages and everything in between. Most are dressed very nicely for the big nightly block party. We enjoyed this and loved strolling through the tiny cobblestone alleys, hearing the chatter and ogling the beautiful jewels, leather, scarves and other wares for sale.

Everyone should buy a handbag, purse or something like that in Italy. The selection is phenomenal. So far I have gotten a fantastic new bag and a few bracelets. Laura also bought a gorgeous, alligator, patient leather, red bag. Here is the one I found in Rome!

This is a large, soft, suede bag with alligator straps~it is very scrumptious and something I would never buy in the US. In Rome it was affordable. The competition between street merchants and shop keepers help to keep the prices down. Lucky us! It's more a camel color, definitely not yellow.

Is it not the weirdest thing that we found this bag for me? Laura and I are a deadly combination in the market place she insisted it had to be mine and my arm was easily twisted.

We enjoyed visiting Piazza Navona at night and also the next morning. The three fountains are amazing and immense. It was cold and just right for getting into the Christmas spirit, someone was even roasting chestnuts on an open fire!

One of the fountains

The merchants are everywhere and the spirit
is a festive one enjoyed by all.

Laura took the boys back home
and Jim and Gloria and I had a
lovely dinner in the neighborhood.

Merry Go Round in the Piazza
the next morning on the way to the
bus to tour around the city.

Our boys having a fun time on the tea cup
portion of the Merry Go Round!

The kids have been amazing and fun and are the light of our lives! They have been to Rome many times but indulged us in this pleasure, yet another time, with no complaints after the initial..."Mom....Rome again?"

Roma~The Second Time Around

The Colosseum

We enjoy going to a place twice because you learn from the first time the things that make the second time better. Rome wasn't built in a day and you cannot see it in a day either.

Accommodations:

Last time we stayed in a hostel and staying in the apartment was much better. The hostel was cheaper but way less comfortable. When you travel in Rome you need a place to relax, stretch out, and enjoy your personal space (at a premium in Roma) at the end of the day.

The hostel slept 6 and thankfully the other five were family members so that was comforting. Not everyone there could say the same. I cannot imagine sleeping in with five strangers! The apartment slept six also with two bedrooms and a pull out in the living room. The apartment also had a kitchen, dining area and two bathroom in the mix and you didn't have to go down the hall. There are no cheap places to stay in Rome, even the hostel was pricey, so spend a little more and have a place you can enjoy and where you can relax.

Living room and adjoining dining area

Kitchen=Save $

Queen beds much better than bunks! No brainer!

The hostel was not centrally located and we had to bus to the center of things each day. Staying there to begin with, in the apartment, made a lot of sense. Note: European standards can be a lot different than what you are use to in the US. What I wish I had brought..(new bar of soap that was for our family's use only) so I didn't have to shower with shampoo.

Transporting Yourself Around:

Palentine Hill near the Colosseum

Rome is huge. Rome has cobblestone everywhere. It is uneven and hard on your feet and legs. Last time we walked ourselves into exhaustion. This time we got a "Hop on Hop Off" bus pass. It is a double-decker touring bus and made for travelers. They give you a map and you can get off at any stop, at any time and stay as long as you want and then hop back on. The bus goes in a big circle and you can find your way around without speaking Italian (woohoo!). That is worth it's weight in gold. You do have to be prepared to relax between places as the traffic can be pretty slow paced during some parts of a day, but at least you are not too exhausted to enjoy the day. So five stars go to the "hop on hop off" plan.

The boys always find something fun to do

Ross and his pigeon fascination!

Length of your Stay:

You could spend a life time becoming familiar with Rome but you should plan on no less than 3 days. Don't try to see everything, it won't happen and you'll be frustrated. Wear black (it is practical here where things can be dirty to sit on, laundry is a hassle, etc.) and buy a colorful scarf (the locals love to see you supporting their economy) to add color to your clothing and wear comfy, really comfy shoes. The look on the faces of the women who decide to wear heels is self-explanatory. And the white tennis shoes are a dead give away that you are a touring target American.

How to Save Money:

Bring everything you need as buying toiletries, etc. is expensive when you could buy fun jewelry and bags instead~just sayin'. Eat out occasionally but do some fun picnicing in famous places. The local shops have great bread, cheese and other things that make a nice lunch. Plan ahead.

Lunch at the Colosseum

In restaurants check your tab, they usually include the tip and so you do not need to leave another one and they actually consider it to be rude?? Anyway, whatever...do it their way and save Euro!

The Vatican

The Pieta

Jim and I really wanted to return to the Vatican. We are not Catholic but we both enjoy the beauty of St. Peter's Basilica and and the emphasis on Christ here. The Pieta is absolutely beautiful and it is hard to imagine that Michelangelo was only 22 at the time he sculpted it. There is just something welcoming about this whole area and we enjoy it very much. The Basilica alone covers seven acres. It is hard to imagine a building that big. It can make you feel so small and insignificant. Here are some of the shots we took.

Approaching St. Peter's parking garage!

Grandma Gloria and Spencer.
Why we like to travel in the winter!
Have you seen this square filled with a million people?

The Fountain in the Square

The sun shining through the window was beautiful!

The Dome from the interior of St. Peter's.

The shadow of the dome from the
top overlooking the Pope's apartment.

View from the top of the Dome of the Papal Coat of Arms.

View of the Obelisk in Vatican Square
from the top of the Dome.

Gloria on the way down the 321 steps~
She is amazing for her age!
With Jim were the oldest and youngest people
climbing the Dome at that time.Spencer (10) and Grandma (83)!

While they did that, Laura, Ross and I were climbing other summits in the shopping district of Bella Roma! This is when the Bon-Bon bag sprang out of the shop and onto my arm! We had a little Gelato and also bought some ties for the men to put in their stockings from a street merchant!

On our way out of town we wanted to stop on the Appian Way at the catacombs but when we arrived they were closed so we went back to the Naples suburbs and enjoyed our reunion with Robert! It was so wonderful to see him again. Nobody gives a great hug better than Robert!