Let me start off by saying a big IM SORRY to my sister Jenifer for mis-spelling her name in the last post, and a thank you to my sister Lindsay for the warning on the last post. :). Typing on a German keyboard is a little difficult because the letters are not in the same place, so it takes 3 times longer to get anything written, much less spelled well. We are sorry Jay!
Well, we are back, with an update on our third (and last) day in Prague, as well as our first two days in Munich. This will be a long post as we will catch you up on 3 days of travels. On our last day in Prague we needed to find a place to leave our luggage. The previous day we had checked out the luggage lockers at the train station, which were less than encouraging. In three different travel books they had recommended to use the manual baggage check (where you leave your bags with an actual person ) versus the locker checks. When we went to the train station we discovered that there was no more manual baggage check, only the lockers. And in contrast with the lockers in Vienna, these had an actual key that could have been duplicated by any person who wanted to pull the key out for a moment, have it duplicated and return it to the same locker. So there could be hundreds of people with thousands of keys for each locker. Needless to say, we would have carried the bags on our backs from 11:00am -8:00pm rather than leave them in these lockers.
Luckily Jan, the man who rented us the room, said we could keep the bags in the main kitchen area for free until 6:00. Somehow Tim worked out a "gentlemens agreement" with him, after he wanted to charge us 25 euros for the late checkout if we decided to keep them in the room. This was such a blessing to us, and though we were slightly skeptical, we decided it was the best of all of the options. We locked all of our bags together, and were off for the rest of the day. After lunch at a restaurant called "the two cats" we decided to spend time in the last of the things we wanted to see and do on our last day. We looked at the main square again, and went into some of the souvenir shops. We also went to a few glass stores, as Tim and Michelle wanted to pick up a piece of Czech glass, and we were able to find one that we liked. We also went to a black light show, which is a play that includes elements of black light reflecting on the white parts of the clothing of the actors. It was an . . . interesting show, called Aspects of Alice, which was loosely associated with the Alice in Wonderland story. And by loosely, I mean loosely.
It was a great day of walking around, talking, and making one last visit to the grocery store before we headed over to the train station. We picked up our bags and made the 15-20 minute trek to the train station. By this time it had started to sprinkle, which made the trip a bit harder. The streets in Prague are beautiful, with different colored stones making simple mosaics on the side walks, but once they get wet, they are very slippery. So you add a 25 lb pack on your back and walk for a mile, and it is a bit . . . precarious.
We finally made it to the station and had about 1.5 hours to wait for the train. This was the hardest train station to be in, as the interior is not designed to be aesthetically beautiful, and has little by the way of creature comforts. It may have been more beautiful at one time, but has since fallen into a bit of disrepair. This is not a station that we would choose to spend much time in. The nice thing is, the police presence is felt, and that is a great comfort as we were there for a while. We finally boarded the train, and after a while Duane and Brandon were able to switch rooms to Michelle and Tims. We were alone for about 30 minutes when two other men joined us. They were from Long Beach California and were pretty nice guys. They were also traveling around Europe, and since they were on the young side, we were able to share travel stories and suggestions. They were supposed to have tickets on this train, but their travel agent reserved their tickets for September, even though their Eurorail tickets ended in the middle of August. So the train personnel were very nice and did not fine them for traveling on the train without tickets, but our two extra beds were the only ones on the train that were open for the night. So there were 6 of us on one very small room. It was not the best nights sleep for any of us, but we managed.
When the train came to the train station we were excited to see Marina and her mom already there waiting for us. It was a beautiful sight to see people we already knew there. We were warmly welcomed, and we soon came to love Marnias mom. Her name is Renata, and she speaks English very well. We made introductions and made our way to the ticket agent to make reservations for our way out of Munich. It turns out that the German schools began their vacations on the day we arrived, and the first train we could get out of Munich was a day later than we planned because all of the previous trains were full with vacationing students . Renata was nice enough to allow us to stay for 4 days instead of 3. We are so blessed to be able to have such great friends.
We then left the ticket agent and Renata bought us our first pretzels with butter on them, which was a great treat since we had not eaten anything since lunch the previous day. We hopped on the S-Bahn train and made the 20 minute train ride out towards Marinas house. It is a beautiful house with three stories (3 on top, one basement). The first story (ground floor) is the kitchen, dinning room and living room, the second story is Renata's room as well as the office and Marinas room is a large on on the very top. It is about as big as Tim and Michelle's first apartment. WOW! Renata has given Tim and Michelle her room, and Duane and Brandon are sharing the office nearby. It is wonderful to have such accommodations after the smaller quarters we have had so far.
We had a great breakfast full of pretzels, butter, jam, and bread with tea and coffee. After showers and a small nap break we were off to explore the sights of downtown Munich. We looked in on two different churches, one of which was built into the surrounding buildings that you could almost miss it as you walked down the street. They were both so beautiful In one we climbed to the top of the bell tower, and Marina and Renata gave us a tour of the surrounding areas. We also walked in the square and into a few gourmet shops selling pastries and lunch type meals. We bought some pastries and ate them in front of the Opera house, which was a great view to see. We then went in front of the main clock to watch the glochenspeil (the parts of the clock that move at each hour). Unfortunately only 1/3 of the glockenspeil was working as the rest was not operating due to renovations. It seems that many of the sights that we have seen have had some form of restoration, which has limited the amount that we could see and experience. Sad, but at least we were able to see some of it.
Once we were finished with the glockenspeil we made our way to the Hofbrauhous. This is one of the most famous beer halls, which has wall to wall tables and beer flowing everywhere. They do serve food as well, and our party ordered both. Tim had something called a Radler, which is 1/2 Sprite and 1/2 dark beer. It has a sweeter taste to it, which was good. Michelle and Duane had the lighter beer, which was also very good. They were all 1 litter beers, which looked so big, and the steins were so heavy that Michelle had to lift hers with both hands. The food was good as well, and we enjoyed looking at all of the other people in the hall that had a bit too much to drink. We were there early, and were able to find a table, but by the time we left the place was very full. Others were happy to get our table.
After dinner we continued walking the town and had some ice cream. We walked a bit more, then headed home on the S-bahn. We tucked ourselves into bed and enjoyed a good nights sleep. It was a great day, and we were glad to share it with good friends.
In the morning we again enjoyed a great breakfast, this time full of cheese, meat and more tasty bread, as well as Nutella and jelly. Brandon has now realized that he loves Nutella, and it was hard to pull the container away from him! He was very excited to learn that you can buy Nutella in the states!
After breakfast we loaded into the rental van that Renata had rented for the 6 of us to take us to Neuenschwanstein Castle, which is the one that Disney modeled their castle out of. It was a 1.5 hour trip out to the castle, for which we had reservations already established. We also had a surprise, in that we were picking up Pia along the way to the castle. Marina and Pia were both exchange students with Tim and Michelle two years ago, and they had not seen her in two years. It was a great treat, and we were excited to see her. The seven of us headed up to the castle.
Once there, we learned that our reservations were not fully completed, but the kind counter lady allowed us to join the next English speaking tour, which was 2 hours away. This was fine, as we had a 45 minute hike up to the castle itself, from the ticketing area we were in. We slowly made our way up the hill, and enjoyed a small bit of lunch once we were there. The castle tour was great, and the castle itself was beautiful. If Renata had not rented a car for us, I don't know how we would have made it over there, as it was not close to town at all. Thank you Renata! We all enjoyed our time, and Duane bought a book on the history of the castle that Michelle is excited to read about when she can get her hands on it. :)
After the castle we all loaded into the van, and promptly fell asleep. Once we dropped Pia off at her Vespa so she could go home, we made a scenic tour back to Marinas home by stopping off at a different town for coffee and pastries. We visited an old church with original stained glass windows that were beautiful and took some great pictures. Renata gave us a history of the town and the walls surrounding it, and we visited one of the walls just outside the city. We then headed home. On our way we stopped off at a German grocery store, which was enjoyed by all. So many great things we have never seen, especially the great cheese and meats at the deli counter.
Once at home Marinas sister had homemade lasagna and appetizers waiting for us, as well as red and white wine. It was a great meal, and I think we all ate way too much. Marinas sister is named Bettina, and she is a urologist in a local town. So after a hard days work and some complicated surgeries, she came to Marinas house to cook us a meal. What an amazing person, and since she speaks wonderful English she is a great addition to dinner conversation. After dinner we had lemon ice cream with lemoncello liquor over it. With all of the days happenings we are feeling like royalty. It was one of our best meals of our trip, and it is nice to feel like you can let down your guard and be at home. It will be hard to leave in another two days!
That is all for now. Tomorrow we are off to the Dachau concentration camp, which should be a somber experience. We will make a day of it, by sleeping in a bit, finishing laundry and making our way over to the camp. Renata is concerned that we don't do this as our last thing, so that our last memory is not the camp. It will be an enlightening experience, if nothing else.
More to come . . .
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Monday, July 30, 2007
Czech me out . . . of Prague and onto Munich!
Before we start this post, Michelle wants to send a big Happy Birthday to her sister Jennifer. It was her 27th birthday on the 25th, and though this wish is 5 days old, know that I was thinking about you on your big day. We love you Jay!
Well we are back, and no longer in Prauge. But before we get ahead of ourselves, let us catch you up on what has been happening since we last posted. We settled into our room in Prague, and since we had the use of a washing machine (and a ton of laundry to do) we threw in a few loads in the wash. Unfortunately no dryer, so our room looked like one big huge clothes line by the time we went to bed. On the first day we slept in for quite a while. Once we all awoke and had showers (which we were badly needing at the time) we were off for a walking tour of Prague. The city is absolutely beautiful, with amazing architecture and old world charm. We can see why people were saying that Prague was not a city to be missed on a tour of Europe.
We walked all the way across the St. Charles Bridge and up to the castle of the Hapsburgs. The bridge is a beautiful place with many people selling their homemade crafts. Very tempting to buy them all, except transporting them across Europe is always in the back of our minds. The bridge is lined with statues of the saints, and there is one that everyone touches the feet of for good luck. When you look at this statue it is covered in black, but the place where people touch is a bright gold. It makes you wonder how beautiful they could be if they were all cleaned.
At the castle we saw that at the front they had two guards at the gate. We had fun getting pictures with them, as they could not move. We tried not to be too annoying, and compared with others there, we were easy on them. We toured the church within the palace walls, but as we arrived late we were not able to tour the castle. It was on our list, but we were never able to get back to that area of town. We know that we will see a big castle in Munich when we are with Marina, the one that the Disneyland castle was modeled after, so we are not too sad. Part of the problem with getting back to the castle was the rather large hill you had to climb to get to the top. As much as we love to walk, when you walk over 20,000 steps in a day, climbing hills a second time looses its appeal. Aside from the hill, it was a beautiful castle area and church, and we enjoyed our time there.
After the castle we walked down the hill and continued to explore the town. We then turned in for the day, as we had a long night the night before.
The next day we again walked around the town. We made a point to get back to the train station to confirm a train to go to Munich the following night. Unfortunately there were not 4 beds in the same compartment, so we were separated, at least on the books. We were determined to switch bunks with someone so that we could be in the same room. It makes sleeping much easier when you are not worried about someone stealing everything you have at the moment.
As we were walking we were surprised to see a big parade of people dressed in what we assumed to be traditional Czech clothing playing instruments we had never seen before. We stopped a moment to watch them pass by. Later on in the day when we walked past the old town square they were again playing music and dancing. It was amazing to watch. In the midst of this, we spent a few moments in the tourist information office and then it began to rain. And when we say rain, we mean RAIN. With thunder and lightening. An wouldn´t you know that the dancers did not miss a beat. All of the spectators ran for the overhangs, but they kept on going. And as we left the windows in our room open (with all the laundry hanging) and our umbrellas in the room, we were off as well. We ran through the streets, just like the crazy Americans we are, laughing all the way while everyone else stared in amazement. Some people laughed, and one even applauded, but I think they could all see how much fun we were having. It was a great moment.
We had dinner at a restaurant together and decided to see a marionette show. These are the puppets on a string. The one that was recommended was for Don Giovanni, which is like our Don Juan. It was all in the original Italian, so some of the action was understood, and some was not. It was in interesting show, and Duane commended that it was much better than the Punch and Judy shows he remembered. A good time was had by all.
We will have to update you on the third and final day in Prague as well as the night train to Munich and the first day in Munich tomorrow. We will try to get online and do that during the first part of the day, as we have a traveling day planned tomorrow. Marinas mom has rented a car to take us to the Neuschwanstein castle, which we are all excited about. Marina and her mom have already been so amazing to us, and it is great to know and be staying with locals in a city. More to come!
Aufwiedersehen!
Well we are back, and no longer in Prauge. But before we get ahead of ourselves, let us catch you up on what has been happening since we last posted. We settled into our room in Prague, and since we had the use of a washing machine (and a ton of laundry to do) we threw in a few loads in the wash. Unfortunately no dryer, so our room looked like one big huge clothes line by the time we went to bed. On the first day we slept in for quite a while. Once we all awoke and had showers (which we were badly needing at the time) we were off for a walking tour of Prague. The city is absolutely beautiful, with amazing architecture and old world charm. We can see why people were saying that Prague was not a city to be missed on a tour of Europe.
We walked all the way across the St. Charles Bridge and up to the castle of the Hapsburgs. The bridge is a beautiful place with many people selling their homemade crafts. Very tempting to buy them all, except transporting them across Europe is always in the back of our minds. The bridge is lined with statues of the saints, and there is one that everyone touches the feet of for good luck. When you look at this statue it is covered in black, but the place where people touch is a bright gold. It makes you wonder how beautiful they could be if they were all cleaned.
At the castle we saw that at the front they had two guards at the gate. We had fun getting pictures with them, as they could not move. We tried not to be too annoying, and compared with others there, we were easy on them. We toured the church within the palace walls, but as we arrived late we were not able to tour the castle. It was on our list, but we were never able to get back to that area of town. We know that we will see a big castle in Munich when we are with Marina, the one that the Disneyland castle was modeled after, so we are not too sad. Part of the problem with getting back to the castle was the rather large hill you had to climb to get to the top. As much as we love to walk, when you walk over 20,000 steps in a day, climbing hills a second time looses its appeal. Aside from the hill, it was a beautiful castle area and church, and we enjoyed our time there.
After the castle we walked down the hill and continued to explore the town. We then turned in for the day, as we had a long night the night before.
The next day we again walked around the town. We made a point to get back to the train station to confirm a train to go to Munich the following night. Unfortunately there were not 4 beds in the same compartment, so we were separated, at least on the books. We were determined to switch bunks with someone so that we could be in the same room. It makes sleeping much easier when you are not worried about someone stealing everything you have at the moment.
As we were walking we were surprised to see a big parade of people dressed in what we assumed to be traditional Czech clothing playing instruments we had never seen before. We stopped a moment to watch them pass by. Later on in the day when we walked past the old town square they were again playing music and dancing. It was amazing to watch. In the midst of this, we spent a few moments in the tourist information office and then it began to rain. And when we say rain, we mean RAIN. With thunder and lightening. An wouldn´t you know that the dancers did not miss a beat. All of the spectators ran for the overhangs, but they kept on going. And as we left the windows in our room open (with all the laundry hanging) and our umbrellas in the room, we were off as well. We ran through the streets, just like the crazy Americans we are, laughing all the way while everyone else stared in amazement. Some people laughed, and one even applauded, but I think they could all see how much fun we were having. It was a great moment.
We had dinner at a restaurant together and decided to see a marionette show. These are the puppets on a string. The one that was recommended was for Don Giovanni, which is like our Don Juan. It was all in the original Italian, so some of the action was understood, and some was not. It was in interesting show, and Duane commended that it was much better than the Punch and Judy shows he remembered. A good time was had by all.
We will have to update you on the third and final day in Prague as well as the night train to Munich and the first day in Munich tomorrow. We will try to get online and do that during the first part of the day, as we have a traveling day planned tomorrow. Marinas mom has rented a car to take us to the Neuschwanstein castle, which we are all excited about. Marina and her mom have already been so amazing to us, and it is great to know and be staying with locals in a city. More to come!
Aufwiedersehen!
Friday, July 27, 2007
Alive and well in the Czech Republic
Much has happened since our last post, the least of which is that two days have elapsed without an update from us. We have been doing some major traveling, beginning with leaving Florence and heading for the day to Venice. We boarded a morning train and arrived around 10:00 am. We checked our baggage at the train station (which keeps getting heavier and heavier with each day) and were off for the craziest little city we have seen so far. Arriving in Venice, this was the first time we have handed over all of our possessions to a complete stranger (aka luggage checking - no lockers available), as we were just staying for the day. The twists and turns in the roads are enough to confuse even the most map savvy individual, but you add in all of the roads that end in canals with no bridges, and it is a recipe for disaster. Luckily we had the guiding prowess of Tim, who used the map like no ones business. We were navigating our way easily. We walked all around the major square, and many of the off track streets. Quite a few of them had multiple names, which made Tim's map skills even more impressive. We took a side trip by vaparatto to the island of Murano, which is famous for their glass making. As soon as we stepped off of the vaparatto we went into a shop that was giving demonstrations. It took them about 5 minutes to make a beautiful vase with different colors. Then a second artist came along and made a glass horse. The impressive thing was, the horse had to be finished in less than a minute or else the glass would become too hard to manipulate. And he did it perfectly, showing a horse raised on its hind legs, with the front legs in the air. And the piece could balance perfectly on the two back legs and tail. Now that is impressive.
We had a great lunch/dinner at a restaurant called Vino Vino, and enjoyed a good local specialty strawberry wine. It was called fragalino, and we are hoping that it is available in the states. Since we were taking a late train out, we also picked up some snacks for the road. We bought rolls, salami, cheese and Duane also picked up some olives (yum!). We ate all of this on the steps of the train station, overlooking the grand canal. The food was so good that Duane and Brandon went back for more. And what a beautiful view we had.
Next, we picked up our luggage (surprise - it was all still there!). I can't believe no one wanted all of our dirty clothes! They must have put our bags somewhere "special", so that the smell would not contaminate any of the other bags (it is amazing how your standard of cleanliness changes as you are backpacking throughout Europe - kudos to Michelle for hanging out with the boys). We boarded a night train bound for Vienna, Austria and were planning on spending one day there as well on our way to the Czech Republic. The trip to Vienna was our first experience in a sleeper train (cochette) and we all slept pretty well. It was like summer camp, only on rails and the cabins were smaller. We all fought for top or bottom bunk position, with Tim and Michelle winning the bottom bunks for this trip. We will make up for it by taking the top bunks on our way to Germany in a few days. Brandon really wants to keep his top bunk, but we are worried about this, after he fell out of the top bunk on his bunkbed in Rome. Hopefully he will not have this problem on any of the night trains.
Once in Vienna, we again checked our baggage, this time in some cool looking lockers. These were significantly cheaper than the checked baggage we had in Vienna (about 1/4 of the cost) and it was all automated. I am sure that it was an easy process, but since it took us a while to figure out that there was an English translation button, we stumbled around a bit.
Vienna was beautiful, we toured the city a while, bought Viennes pastries and even toured the Habpsburg Palace Treasury. They had some beautiful pieces in their collection, including the worlds largest emerald and some golden roses that Michelle did stop to smell (Mom - so we are remembering to stop and smell the roses! - hum 24 carat, now I know what I want for my next anniversary!). We also made sure to eat dinner at a place Tim's boss Steve Shinsky recommended - the Figlmuller. Tim and Duane had their special platter, the schnitzel, which was mighty tasty. We all made sure to get a bite.
Around 6 pm we boarded another train to Prague. It was a late train, so we arrived and secured our lodgings for the next three nights. We are staying in a room in the center of town, with a great breakfast place below, which was somehow included in the price of the room. We are still not really sure how, but after Italy, we will take it. We are paying around 1/3 of the cost of our lodgings in Rome and Florence. Nice on the pocketbook. The manager, Jan and the housmaid Lanka are both nice and speak great English. They are even helping Duane learn a little Czech.
We will update you tomorrow on all of the happenings today, as the internet location is closing. Much love to you all and know that we are safe and still having fun!
We had a great lunch/dinner at a restaurant called Vino Vino, and enjoyed a good local specialty strawberry wine. It was called fragalino, and we are hoping that it is available in the states. Since we were taking a late train out, we also picked up some snacks for the road. We bought rolls, salami, cheese and Duane also picked up some olives (yum!). We ate all of this on the steps of the train station, overlooking the grand canal. The food was so good that Duane and Brandon went back for more. And what a beautiful view we had.
Next, we picked up our luggage (surprise - it was all still there!). I can't believe no one wanted all of our dirty clothes! They must have put our bags somewhere "special", so that the smell would not contaminate any of the other bags (it is amazing how your standard of cleanliness changes as you are backpacking throughout Europe - kudos to Michelle for hanging out with the boys). We boarded a night train bound for Vienna, Austria and were planning on spending one day there as well on our way to the Czech Republic. The trip to Vienna was our first experience in a sleeper train (cochette) and we all slept pretty well. It was like summer camp, only on rails and the cabins were smaller. We all fought for top or bottom bunk position, with Tim and Michelle winning the bottom bunks for this trip. We will make up for it by taking the top bunks on our way to Germany in a few days. Brandon really wants to keep his top bunk, but we are worried about this, after he fell out of the top bunk on his bunkbed in Rome. Hopefully he will not have this problem on any of the night trains.
Once in Vienna, we again checked our baggage, this time in some cool looking lockers. These were significantly cheaper than the checked baggage we had in Vienna (about 1/4 of the cost) and it was all automated. I am sure that it was an easy process, but since it took us a while to figure out that there was an English translation button, we stumbled around a bit.
Vienna was beautiful, we toured the city a while, bought Viennes pastries and even toured the Habpsburg Palace Treasury. They had some beautiful pieces in their collection, including the worlds largest emerald and some golden roses that Michelle did stop to smell (Mom - so we are remembering to stop and smell the roses! - hum 24 carat, now I know what I want for my next anniversary!). We also made sure to eat dinner at a place Tim's boss Steve Shinsky recommended - the Figlmuller. Tim and Duane had their special platter, the schnitzel, which was mighty tasty. We all made sure to get a bite.
Around 6 pm we boarded another train to Prague. It was a late train, so we arrived and secured our lodgings for the next three nights. We are staying in a room in the center of town, with a great breakfast place below, which was somehow included in the price of the room. We are still not really sure how, but after Italy, we will take it. We are paying around 1/3 of the cost of our lodgings in Rome and Florence. Nice on the pocketbook. The manager, Jan and the housmaid Lanka are both nice and speak great English. They are even helping Duane learn a little Czech.
We will update you tomorrow on all of the happenings today, as the internet location is closing. Much love to you all and know that we are safe and still having fun!
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Davidmania purchases Ufizzi and Great Food
Today was another very long day, but well worth every blistered step. We literally picked up lunch on the run...a couple of boxes of juice at a grocery store, a croissant from a local bakery, and we were on our way. We were able to see Michelangelo's David at the Academia. (Thus finishing our Michelangelo Sculptural Trifecta ...Pieta, Moses, and David) Wow! It took us all several minutes just to digest the magnitude of this masterpiece. We probably spent 30-40 minutes (at our pace, this is equivalent to a day) staring, absorbing, and playing with the 3-D computer animation of this awe-inspiring work of art (thanks Stanford U.) Does it sound like we use these superlatives too often? It's just because we really were not prepared to take in the scope and the magnitude of the artworks and historical significance of all we have seen this past week. History and art appreciation have truly been realized in just a few days.
After the Academia, we noticed it had rained while we were inside the museum, but had finished by the time we left. Poor us, we missed the rain and were also able to enjoy the just rained air. This was yet another example of God's provision since none of us had our raincoats or umbrellas.
We then picked up lunch in a local cafe, did some shopping in the open air market where Tim and Duane enjoyed exercising their prowess for negotiation. (Those Hardley boys sure love a great deal!) We then went to the Uffizi Museum... room upon room of amazing artwork from Michelangelo to Rembrandt, Raphael, and Da Vinci.
We ate dinner at Mama Gina's... our best meal thus far.
With love,
The Traveling Hardleys AKA four crazy Americans on their European Grand Tour
After the Academia, we noticed it had rained while we were inside the museum, but had finished by the time we left. Poor us, we missed the rain and were also able to enjoy the just rained air. This was yet another example of God's provision since none of us had our raincoats or umbrellas.
We then picked up lunch in a local cafe, did some shopping in the open air market where Tim and Duane enjoyed exercising their prowess for negotiation. (Those Hardley boys sure love a great deal!) We then went to the Uffizi Museum... room upon room of amazing artwork from Michelangelo to Rembrandt, Raphael, and Da Vinci.
We ate dinner at Mama Gina's... our best meal thus far.
With love,
The Traveling Hardleys AKA four crazy Americans on their European Grand Tour
Monday, July 23, 2007
Under the Tuscan sun
This is going to be a quick update, without a lot of the usual fandfare as we did quite a bit of travleing today, and we are all pretty tired. Add inthe fact that it is 10:00 at night and we have yet to eat dinner, and you can understand our urgency.
Today we hopped on a train to Pisa to see the leaning tower. Upon arrival we headed over to the tower, which was an impressive sight. Much larger with a huge Duomo and other buildings. Not just the tower in the middle of nowhere that one usually thinks. Duane and Brandon secured their tickets for later in the afternoon, while Tim had his heart set on swimming in the Mediterranian sea. Tim and Michelle headed by bus to the sea while Duane and Brandon waiting for their reservation to climb the leaning tower. Duane and Brandond spent their free time until their appointment window shopping, eating a simple meal with an incredible view of the tower.
After Tim's sea dip, the tentitive plan was to meat up in Siena with Brandon and Duane. There were no set plans to meet at any location or time, as both groups were unsure where and when they would be finished with their separate trips. But again God,s hand was in the planning, and they happened to jump on the same train from Pisa to a small town called Empoli. Neither group knew the other was on the train, however. It was not until we boarded our second train which was to take us to Siena that the two groups met. It was another train station miricle, and was enjoyed by all. God is so good.
Reconnected the group enjoyed their time in Siena, walking around all of the streets and getting "lost" and "found" yet again. Tim and Duane enjoed smaples of all of the basalmic vinigar and olive oil that the shops had to offer. We made a few purchases and then stepped into the last store before heading home. It was operated by the owner, Antonio, and was a shop called Antica Pizzicheria - al Palazzo della Chigiana. He was an extrordinary character who reminded us a bit of Mario in the Super Mario Brothers game. He sold meats, salame, cheeses and wine and had a good sense of humor. However, don't take any pictures of him, as it is forbidden and his wife will chew you out. We learned the finer points of his craft among the hanging ham legs curing.
A quick bus ride back to the train station and we hopped onto a train bound for home (Florence). Another busy day seeing the coast and a bit of the Tuscany countryside.
Well, we are off to eat, shower and sleep. Tomorrow we go see two fot he finest art galeries in Europe. Ciao!
Today we hopped on a train to Pisa to see the leaning tower. Upon arrival we headed over to the tower, which was an impressive sight. Much larger with a huge Duomo and other buildings. Not just the tower in the middle of nowhere that one usually thinks. Duane and Brandon secured their tickets for later in the afternoon, while Tim had his heart set on swimming in the Mediterranian sea. Tim and Michelle headed by bus to the sea while Duane and Brandon waiting for their reservation to climb the leaning tower. Duane and Brandond spent their free time until their appointment window shopping, eating a simple meal with an incredible view of the tower.
After Tim's sea dip, the tentitive plan was to meat up in Siena with Brandon and Duane. There were no set plans to meet at any location or time, as both groups were unsure where and when they would be finished with their separate trips. But again God,s hand was in the planning, and they happened to jump on the same train from Pisa to a small town called Empoli. Neither group knew the other was on the train, however. It was not until we boarded our second train which was to take us to Siena that the two groups met. It was another train station miricle, and was enjoyed by all. God is so good.
Reconnected the group enjoyed their time in Siena, walking around all of the streets and getting "lost" and "found" yet again. Tim and Duane enjoed smaples of all of the basalmic vinigar and olive oil that the shops had to offer. We made a few purchases and then stepped into the last store before heading home. It was operated by the owner, Antonio, and was a shop called Antica Pizzicheria - al Palazzo della Chigiana. He was an extrordinary character who reminded us a bit of Mario in the Super Mario Brothers game. He sold meats, salame, cheeses and wine and had a good sense of humor. However, don't take any pictures of him, as it is forbidden and his wife will chew you out. We learned the finer points of his craft among the hanging ham legs curing.
A quick bus ride back to the train station and we hopped onto a train bound for home (Florence). Another busy day seeing the coast and a bit of the Tuscany countryside.
Well, we are off to eat, shower and sleep. Tomorrow we go see two fot he finest art galeries in Europe. Ciao!
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Lost and found - aka a funny thing happened on the way to Florence
The day started with an early morning Mass at St. Peter in Chains church, and a view of Michaelangelos Horned Moses. An impressive piece of work to be sure. We then packed up our belongings in our ever growing backpacks and checked out of the hostel. The night before we had found what we hoped would be a great room in Florence, and we were eager to get there. The promise of air conditioning was too great to stay for a moment longer.
At the station we found that we had an hour to burn waiting for the train to leave, and Michelle had the bright idea to visit a bookstore. And that is where the fun really began. The English section was on the top level, not air conditioned of course, so Tim and Michelle headed downstairs to leave the store, while Duane and Brandon stayed behind to finish their purchases. A promise was made to meet at the bin (train platform) for the train to Firenze (Florence). Tim and Michelle ended up "waiting" for Duane and Brandon outside of the bookstore instead of moving to the train dock directly. Unfortunately, there are two exits to the bookstore, guess which one Duane and Brandon took, versus the one that Tim and Michelle were waiting at? You guessed it, opposite exits were chosen by each group. And to make matters worse, our train was not ending in Florence, so that Florence would show on the platform, but was ending in Bolognia. Our stop was one the train was making along the way. Added to the confusion was another train that was ending in Florence, but was leaving at a earlier time. Since Duane and Brandon did not have the tickets, they did not know the train number and so could not find the right bin. Or so Tim and Michelle thought. It turns out they did locate the right train, after thoroughly checking the wrong train, while Tim frantically raced up and down the platforms trying to locate them. Michelle was guarding their baggage from the thieves (there really were none, but of course she was panicked the whole time). Finally, as the clock ticked down (less than 10 minutes until the train left, and still separated) Tim and Michelle made their way to the train to get an announcement made over the loudspeaker paging them. Tim went to find a conductor near our train, and Michelle had just turned to begin her own frantic sprint around the train station when she heard a loud "Michelle" said by Tim. She turned the corner again and saw the most beautiful sight she had ever beheld: Brandon and Duane, packs in tow waiting by the train. Later we found Brandon and Duane had made their own search for Tim and Michelle, making two laps inside the train checking every seat. We must have missed each other on several occasions by seconds. Our God is so good.
Safely on the train, and again dripping sweat (did we mention it was hot over here!) we had made the train by 2 minutes. It was now a first class ride to Florence with the first activation of our Eurorail passes and our new home beckoning. The ride was 1.5 hours through some of the most beautiful countryside in Italy that we have seen so far. And after the stress that preceded it, the ride was a welcome moment of relaxation.
Once in Florence Tim and Brandon adeptly navigated the crazy streets. The streets are not on 90 degree angles, which makes it difficult to see where streets begin, as there are many new ones that will pop up as off shoots of other streets. And to make matters more confusing, there are at times two names for the same street (sometimes with one sign right below the other) and the street addresses indicate different things. Address numbers in red indicate businesses, addresses in black indicate private homes. So you could have the same address in two different colors on the same street. The only way you can prevent yourself from disturbing a private family at an early morning hour is to know the color difference. They also don't number their buildings consecutively, so building number 41 could be next to building number 78 and the next one could be building number 5. This all makes things, shall we say, a little difficult to navigate. :)
Once we found the building we were greeted by a very nice woman speaking very little English. We found towards the end of the conversation that she did speak Spanish fluently, so that made things a lot easier, as Duane could communicate with her well. So you students out there, if you want to travel, learn another language. It can come in handy someday!
The room we have is amazing, especially compared to the last room. Vaulted ceilings with tile floors, a tv and three separate beds (Tim and Michelle actually get to sleep in the same queen sized bed - there are a few perks to being married). There is a fridge with coffee, tea, and snacks as well as the best air conditioning ever! It was our shangrala.
We quickly turned on the tv and tried to follow along with the Italian channels. Ironically enough, and to Brandons immense pleasure, the only channel in English was MTV. This was discovered while Duane was in the shower, and we were solidly hooked on it by the time he emerged. When he came out, he stared at the tv quizzically and said "Wow, my Italian is great, I can understand everything they are saying!". We all erupted in laughter when he realized it was English, and even now as we write this it still is making us laugh hysterically. It was great that we were still able to laugh together after the stress of traveling.
After we recovered, we did not last long and were soon fast asleep. First to drop was Brandon, then Tim, and then Duane, after assuring me 2 minutes prior that he did not need a nap and was not tired. Sensing defeat, Michelle set the alarm and gave in to sleep as well.
Once we awoke, we left the room to do a walking tour of Florence. As Tim said, "No maps this time (they were still in our pockets), we are going to get lost in Florence". We meandered around the city, found a good place to eat, and kept right on going.
Ok, we are getting cut off from the internet store. They are closing. We will fill you in more tomorrow!
At the station we found that we had an hour to burn waiting for the train to leave, and Michelle had the bright idea to visit a bookstore. And that is where the fun really began. The English section was on the top level, not air conditioned of course, so Tim and Michelle headed downstairs to leave the store, while Duane and Brandon stayed behind to finish their purchases. A promise was made to meet at the bin (train platform) for the train to Firenze (Florence). Tim and Michelle ended up "waiting" for Duane and Brandon outside of the bookstore instead of moving to the train dock directly. Unfortunately, there are two exits to the bookstore, guess which one Duane and Brandon took, versus the one that Tim and Michelle were waiting at? You guessed it, opposite exits were chosen by each group. And to make matters worse, our train was not ending in Florence, so that Florence would show on the platform, but was ending in Bolognia. Our stop was one the train was making along the way. Added to the confusion was another train that was ending in Florence, but was leaving at a earlier time. Since Duane and Brandon did not have the tickets, they did not know the train number and so could not find the right bin. Or so Tim and Michelle thought. It turns out they did locate the right train, after thoroughly checking the wrong train, while Tim frantically raced up and down the platforms trying to locate them. Michelle was guarding their baggage from the thieves (there really were none, but of course she was panicked the whole time). Finally, as the clock ticked down (less than 10 minutes until the train left, and still separated) Tim and Michelle made their way to the train to get an announcement made over the loudspeaker paging them. Tim went to find a conductor near our train, and Michelle had just turned to begin her own frantic sprint around the train station when she heard a loud "Michelle" said by Tim. She turned the corner again and saw the most beautiful sight she had ever beheld: Brandon and Duane, packs in tow waiting by the train. Later we found Brandon and Duane had made their own search for Tim and Michelle, making two laps inside the train checking every seat. We must have missed each other on several occasions by seconds. Our God is so good.
Safely on the train, and again dripping sweat (did we mention it was hot over here!) we had made the train by 2 minutes. It was now a first class ride to Florence with the first activation of our Eurorail passes and our new home beckoning. The ride was 1.5 hours through some of the most beautiful countryside in Italy that we have seen so far. And after the stress that preceded it, the ride was a welcome moment of relaxation.
Once in Florence Tim and Brandon adeptly navigated the crazy streets. The streets are not on 90 degree angles, which makes it difficult to see where streets begin, as there are many new ones that will pop up as off shoots of other streets. And to make matters more confusing, there are at times two names for the same street (sometimes with one sign right below the other) and the street addresses indicate different things. Address numbers in red indicate businesses, addresses in black indicate private homes. So you could have the same address in two different colors on the same street. The only way you can prevent yourself from disturbing a private family at an early morning hour is to know the color difference. They also don't number their buildings consecutively, so building number 41 could be next to building number 78 and the next one could be building number 5. This all makes things, shall we say, a little difficult to navigate. :)
Once we found the building we were greeted by a very nice woman speaking very little English. We found towards the end of the conversation that she did speak Spanish fluently, so that made things a lot easier, as Duane could communicate with her well. So you students out there, if you want to travel, learn another language. It can come in handy someday!
The room we have is amazing, especially compared to the last room. Vaulted ceilings with tile floors, a tv and three separate beds (Tim and Michelle actually get to sleep in the same queen sized bed - there are a few perks to being married). There is a fridge with coffee, tea, and snacks as well as the best air conditioning ever! It was our shangrala.
We quickly turned on the tv and tried to follow along with the Italian channels. Ironically enough, and to Brandons immense pleasure, the only channel in English was MTV. This was discovered while Duane was in the shower, and we were solidly hooked on it by the time he emerged. When he came out, he stared at the tv quizzically and said "Wow, my Italian is great, I can understand everything they are saying!". We all erupted in laughter when he realized it was English, and even now as we write this it still is making us laugh hysterically. It was great that we were still able to laugh together after the stress of traveling.
After we recovered, we did not last long and were soon fast asleep. First to drop was Brandon, then Tim, and then Duane, after assuring me 2 minutes prior that he did not need a nap and was not tired. Sensing defeat, Michelle set the alarm and gave in to sleep as well.
Once we awoke, we left the room to do a walking tour of Florence. As Tim said, "No maps this time (they were still in our pockets), we are going to get lost in Florence". We meandered around the city, found a good place to eat, and kept right on going.
Ok, we are getting cut off from the internet store. They are closing. We will fill you in more tomorrow!
Saturday, July 21, 2007
A pope, a park and a trip to the circus
Buongiorno! Out day began at a local cafe and a quick bite to eat. Our tour bus picked us up at the hostel only twenty minutes late - not too much stress and away we went. We were then transferred to another bus, luckily we got on the right one this time! Next stop the Vatican! The line was intimidating to go in, and we were so blessed to be part of a tour group, as the line for those with out a group wrapped around 3 sides of the Vatican City walls. Let me tell you, it stretched on, and on, and on. We were lead to a "shorter" line that only stretched around 2 sides of the wall, but moved much quicker. We soon found out the reason why, many of those in front of us were single families not on a tour, and they were in the wrong line. Woops, what a bad way to begin their day!
We made it in with our dapper guide named Michel, our resident Michaelangelo of the day. His assistant equipped us all with headphones and he expertly lead us through the miles of paintings, tapestries, busts, murals, sculptures . . . insert any other artistic form you could think of, and they probably have it! High points, of course, were the Sistine Chapel, where the Hardley boys gave Michelle chest palpitations. No, not because they were oh so cute that day, or because they smelled good (that won't happen for a while) but because there is no picture taking ever allowed inside the chapel. Duane of course had the bright idea to take his "oh so cool camera that can shoot great pictures in complete darkness with no flash" and take contraband photos of the chapel. Not only that, he also had the great idea to challenge the guard to a visual showdown, thus drawing attention to himself and causing the guard to come towards him. In yet another moment of brilliance, Duane says to Michelle, "Here, hold this" with the camera still on and the red light on it flashing as he then walked away, drawing the guard with him. Once Michelle remembered how to breathe again, she remembered that this was supposed to be a fun trip, and who can have fun without breaking the rules a smidgen. We are all a bunch of crazy Americans! And let's give credit/blame where it is due, as it was Justin Buzzards brilliant idea and instructions that Duane was following when he was almost busted, taking Michelle down with him.
Just to let you know (and by you I mean my wife Christina) Michelle definitely took some creative license with that last bit of prose.
Ok, now that Duane has cleared his conscience :) let's get back to the drama. The Sistine Chapel was beautiful, awe inspiring, more than you thought it could be and more than you could ever comprehend. The Vatican and St. Peter's Basillica were much of the same. Duane was a picture freak today, and rather than describe the sights we saw, we will have to do a slide show once we get home. We are all still struggling to find the words to describe what we saw today, which amounts to a small country of the WORLDS finest art. A definite must see if you are ever in Rome.
The next stop was a return to our favorite (said with a health dose of sarcasm added in), the Spanish Steps, where we again walked the entire length of the steps (around 100 in all - for the 3rd time in as many days) on our way to the Borghese Gallery. It is a small gallery filled with some amazing pieces commissioned by one of the cardinals. There is a 25 acre park surrounding it, and we walked almost the entire length in our misguided attempt to find the Gallery. We had a lot of Roman help in the misguided part, but we did manage to find a fountain in which we dipped our feet for a bit. The high points would be Bernini's David, art by Tishan and Raphael and a great audio guide to explain what we were seeing and why it was important. Michelle's favorites were the sculptures, one of which detailed a woman naked with a sheet around her waist (yes, yes, I know, but it was Tim's favorite too!), another of a man chasing a woman as she was turning into a Laurel tree (with some amazing sculpting - you could almost see her as she was changing) and one of a man carrying a woman on his shoulder (where the artist was able to capture the pressure of the man's fingers on the woman's arm and leg - remember, this is in marble!).
Now that we are leaving tomorrow, it is important to let you know that we have finally figured out the Metro system. It figures! Kudos to Tim who is our Metro guide and the one that makes sure we are always pointed in the right direction.
Our last stop of the day was to the Circus Maximus, from the Spanish steps straight there via the metro, which meant minimal walking. Praise the lord for a good metro system we finally understand. And the purchase of the Roma pass gave us three days of unlimited use of the metro and two free museum entrances. This was the best buy of the trip, as there were a few occasions early on where we got on the metro on the wrong side of the tracks, and had to go out and come in the correct entrance. An expensive mistake when you multiply it by 4!
Back home, a bit of stress on determining where we will stay tomorrow. It looks like we have a great place lined up, but we are not sure if this includes internet (as it did at this hostel). We will update as we can. The hostel does include air conditioning (OH MY GOSH YEAH!), tv (eh, cool, but we have been out from 8 am to 10 pm every day so far) and a great central location. We are excited about the next leg in the journey, and look forward to the sights that Florence has to offer.
Just so you know, you can always add a comment to the bottom of any post we make. We can read these, and sometimes a little touch of love from home soothes a minor bout of homesickness. Feel free to comment away!
Ciao from Roma, see you in Firenze
We made it in with our dapper guide named Michel, our resident Michaelangelo of the day. His assistant equipped us all with headphones and he expertly lead us through the miles of paintings, tapestries, busts, murals, sculptures . . . insert any other artistic form you could think of, and they probably have it! High points, of course, were the Sistine Chapel, where the Hardley boys gave Michelle chest palpitations. No, not because they were oh so cute that day, or because they smelled good (that won't happen for a while) but because there is no picture taking ever allowed inside the chapel. Duane of course had the bright idea to take his "oh so cool camera that can shoot great pictures in complete darkness with no flash" and take contraband photos of the chapel. Not only that, he also had the great idea to challenge the guard to a visual showdown, thus drawing attention to himself and causing the guard to come towards him. In yet another moment of brilliance, Duane says to Michelle, "Here, hold this" with the camera still on and the red light on it flashing as he then walked away, drawing the guard with him. Once Michelle remembered how to breathe again, she remembered that this was supposed to be a fun trip, and who can have fun without breaking the rules a smidgen. We are all a bunch of crazy Americans! And let's give credit/blame where it is due, as it was Justin Buzzards brilliant idea and instructions that Duane was following when he was almost busted, taking Michelle down with him.
Just to let you know (and by you I mean my wife Christina) Michelle definitely took some creative license with that last bit of prose.
Ok, now that Duane has cleared his conscience :) let's get back to the drama. The Sistine Chapel was beautiful, awe inspiring, more than you thought it could be and more than you could ever comprehend. The Vatican and St. Peter's Basillica were much of the same. Duane was a picture freak today, and rather than describe the sights we saw, we will have to do a slide show once we get home. We are all still struggling to find the words to describe what we saw today, which amounts to a small country of the WORLDS finest art. A definite must see if you are ever in Rome.
The next stop was a return to our favorite (said with a health dose of sarcasm added in), the Spanish Steps, where we again walked the entire length of the steps (around 100 in all - for the 3rd time in as many days) on our way to the Borghese Gallery. It is a small gallery filled with some amazing pieces commissioned by one of the cardinals. There is a 25 acre park surrounding it, and we walked almost the entire length in our misguided attempt to find the Gallery. We had a lot of Roman help in the misguided part, but we did manage to find a fountain in which we dipped our feet for a bit. The high points would be Bernini's David, art by Tishan and Raphael and a great audio guide to explain what we were seeing and why it was important. Michelle's favorites were the sculptures, one of which detailed a woman naked with a sheet around her waist (yes, yes, I know, but it was Tim's favorite too!), another of a man chasing a woman as she was turning into a Laurel tree (with some amazing sculpting - you could almost see her as she was changing) and one of a man carrying a woman on his shoulder (where the artist was able to capture the pressure of the man's fingers on the woman's arm and leg - remember, this is in marble!).
Now that we are leaving tomorrow, it is important to let you know that we have finally figured out the Metro system. It figures! Kudos to Tim who is our Metro guide and the one that makes sure we are always pointed in the right direction.
Our last stop of the day was to the Circus Maximus, from the Spanish steps straight there via the metro, which meant minimal walking. Praise the lord for a good metro system we finally understand. And the purchase of the Roma pass gave us three days of unlimited use of the metro and two free museum entrances. This was the best buy of the trip, as there were a few occasions early on where we got on the metro on the wrong side of the tracks, and had to go out and come in the correct entrance. An expensive mistake when you multiply it by 4!
Back home, a bit of stress on determining where we will stay tomorrow. It looks like we have a great place lined up, but we are not sure if this includes internet (as it did at this hostel). We will update as we can. The hostel does include air conditioning (OH MY GOSH YEAH!), tv (eh, cool, but we have been out from 8 am to 10 pm every day so far) and a great central location. We are excited about the next leg in the journey, and look forward to the sights that Florence has to offer.
Just so you know, you can always add a comment to the bottom of any post we make. We can read these, and sometimes a little touch of love from home soothes a minor bout of homesickness. Feel free to comment away!
Ciao from Roma, see you in Firenze
Friday, July 20, 2007
Planes, trains and automobiles (with boats to come!)
Ok, to clear the air a bit and mention another highlight of our first day (see comments) Justin timed a perfect call for our arrival at the Sandy hostel. Not 10 minutes after we first checked in, Greg, the hostel manager, let us know that we had a phone call. To which I (Michelle) brilliantly said "On the phone?" and then mentally said to herself "Here's your sign". Of course, Tim, Duane and Brandon were not too far behind in their support of my cultural difficulties. Greg was also quick to follow with a "Yes, even in Italy we have phones" Douh!
The call was from our friend Justin, who has been on many a European adventure and helped us plan ours. It was good to hear a familiar voice, especially after having just arrived in the country. Thanks Justin!
Ok, onto our adventures today. We woke up at 7:00 with the best of intentions of getting to the Vatican and St. Peters Basillica. We took our first metro trip today and learned that during rush hour, those metro cars can hold A LOT of people. Once you think the car is full, in comes 10 more people. There is no such thing as personal space on an Italian metro train! We arrived at the American Express office to find it closed until 9:00 am, which just happened to be in 10 minutes. To pass the time, we walked to the Spanish Steps and enjoyed the view. We successfully dodged the pressure washers. Future notes, it is the walker beware in Italy!
In the American Express office we learned that we missed the tour for the Vatican and St. Peter's Basillica for the day (you have to book a day in advance), but that we could get tickets to Pompeii. So we quickly booked tickets for the Vatican for tomorrow and reserved the train to Naples/Pompeii. After a quick dash home (and another metro ride, this one much less crowded), to change out of pants (required for the Vatican tour), we filled water bottles got snacks and we were off.
It was another hot day, so we must have smelled nice after we hopped onto the train. Luckily it was air conditioned, so we were soon presentable again. Our seats were not together, but were across from each other. In between us were some very nice Italians, only one of whom spoke English well. His name is Alfredo, and he is a train conductor for the same train company we were riding on. He was going home to his wife after a long night of working, but did not mind talking to us the whole ride there. Tim was the first one brave enough to speak to him, and they carried the majority of the conversation. One of his three sons is in the B class of professional soccer players for the team in Naples. He was in the paper that day as he had just been signed. And like a proud dad, Alfredo had bought a copy of every paper with his son's picture in it. :) The B class is like our AAA baseball teams, almost in the big league but not quite there. Except their B class pays MUCH better for their players than our AAA salaries. His annual salary is close to 280,000 euros. Since the dollar is now trading around 1.477 for every euro, I will let you do the math. WOW!
Upon reaching Naples, we asked for some final directions from Alfredo and were surprised by an invitation to ride in his car! It turns out that he lives about 1 km from the ruins, and offered to drive us right by the entrance. Of course, we jumped at the chance to ride around the crazy streets of Italy by a true Italian! It was just that, absolutely crazy with cars weaving in and out only a hairsbreadth separating them. The craziest part was that 5 people fit into what would be a subcompact car in the states. A tight squeeze to be sure. Alfredo let us know that there are not many cars without bangs (dents) in them, but there are rarely fatal accidents. Oddly enough, they don't expect people to follow the rules in southern Italy so when they don't they can typically compensate for it. In northern Italy, where they expect others to obey traffic laws, they have more fatal accidents because they cannot easily adjust when others disobey the traffic laws. Alfredo safely dropped us off (no bangs for us!) near the entrance of the ruins and we exchanged e-mail addresses. He would not accept any money from us, but we offered to let him stay with us if he and his wife ever come to the states.
We had a nice lunch at a small eatery outside the ruins, amongst some of the biggest lemons we have ever seen. About the size of a small child's head, they were hanging from mesh baskets on the ceiling. This was our first panini (sandwich) in Italy, and it was amazing. We headed over to the entrance of the ruins, where we were barraged by local tour guides (we think everyone in Naples may be a tour guide in addition to their normal jobs). We finally selected one, who lead us through a hour whirlwind tour of the ruins, then went 15 minutes over the hour and wanted us to pay him more. We firmly told him that his lack of time keeping was not our fault, and that we were not giving him any more money. After a lecture on proper etiquette, and this coming from the guy who made sure to point out all of the pornographic features in Pompeii, he left in a huff. Which was fine, because we were ready to move on.
The ruins were amazing, especially the fact that so many rooms have been restored since Michelle was here 13 years ago. And they are continuing to work on them as well, as a few of the places had been sectioned off and you could hear workers in the background. One of the most impressive things was to see the modern houses that they had built over the ashes, which gave you a perspective of how much the ruins had been covered over by ash. Imagine building your new house and never knowing there was another entire house below yours. That was the sight we saw today, as well as hitting the major highlights of the rest of the ruins.
Did we mention yet how stinking hot it was. If Rome is hot, Pompeii is an inferno. We now know what it feels like to be in Mt. Vesuvius. :) When you have been so hot or so long, and sweating all day (yes mom's we did drink plenty of water) that you no longer care that you are sticky and gross, that is where we were today. Even now, at 12:30 am (yes, AM people!) we are all sweating. We all will be glad to head further north, if only for the cooler weather (fingers, toes and anything else we can cross is crossed right now).
We took a good train ride from Pompeii to the Naples station, then explored a bit of what Naples had to offer. This was the land of near misses for us, as the Palace we wanted to see was under restoration (no tourism happening there), we tried having dinner at a pizza place that Alfredo had recommended, only to find it closed for the afternoon, and the boys bought watermelon gelato, which they have loved at every other stand, only to find this one with some added chocolate chips in it. Not a good combination. And in our haste to get out of Naples and into a cool train, we walked onto the wrong one and evicted two people from their seats before one woman pointed out that this train was not going to our destination. Woops! We go off about 3 minutes before the train pulled out of the station. Praise God we were not on it. While waiting for the real Naples-Rome train, which was 30 minutes late, (ironic isn't it) we had more than enough time to relive the highlights of the day. Upon arrival to Rome we ate dinner at a kebob place. If you remember nothing else we have written about Rome, be sure to eat gelatto and kebob. We will probably repeat this meal another time during our trip.
Well, off to bed and getting ready for another day! Ciao for now!
The call was from our friend Justin, who has been on many a European adventure and helped us plan ours. It was good to hear a familiar voice, especially after having just arrived in the country. Thanks Justin!
Ok, onto our adventures today. We woke up at 7:00 with the best of intentions of getting to the Vatican and St. Peters Basillica. We took our first metro trip today and learned that during rush hour, those metro cars can hold A LOT of people. Once you think the car is full, in comes 10 more people. There is no such thing as personal space on an Italian metro train! We arrived at the American Express office to find it closed until 9:00 am, which just happened to be in 10 minutes. To pass the time, we walked to the Spanish Steps and enjoyed the view. We successfully dodged the pressure washers. Future notes, it is the walker beware in Italy!
In the American Express office we learned that we missed the tour for the Vatican and St. Peter's Basillica for the day (you have to book a day in advance), but that we could get tickets to Pompeii. So we quickly booked tickets for the Vatican for tomorrow and reserved the train to Naples/Pompeii. After a quick dash home (and another metro ride, this one much less crowded), to change out of pants (required for the Vatican tour), we filled water bottles got snacks and we were off.
It was another hot day, so we must have smelled nice after we hopped onto the train. Luckily it was air conditioned, so we were soon presentable again. Our seats were not together, but were across from each other. In between us were some very nice Italians, only one of whom spoke English well. His name is Alfredo, and he is a train conductor for the same train company we were riding on. He was going home to his wife after a long night of working, but did not mind talking to us the whole ride there. Tim was the first one brave enough to speak to him, and they carried the majority of the conversation. One of his three sons is in the B class of professional soccer players for the team in Naples. He was in the paper that day as he had just been signed. And like a proud dad, Alfredo had bought a copy of every paper with his son's picture in it. :) The B class is like our AAA baseball teams, almost in the big league but not quite there. Except their B class pays MUCH better for their players than our AAA salaries. His annual salary is close to 280,000 euros. Since the dollar is now trading around 1.477 for every euro, I will let you do the math. WOW!
Upon reaching Naples, we asked for some final directions from Alfredo and were surprised by an invitation to ride in his car! It turns out that he lives about 1 km from the ruins, and offered to drive us right by the entrance. Of course, we jumped at the chance to ride around the crazy streets of Italy by a true Italian! It was just that, absolutely crazy with cars weaving in and out only a hairsbreadth separating them. The craziest part was that 5 people fit into what would be a subcompact car in the states. A tight squeeze to be sure. Alfredo let us know that there are not many cars without bangs (dents) in them, but there are rarely fatal accidents. Oddly enough, they don't expect people to follow the rules in southern Italy so when they don't they can typically compensate for it. In northern Italy, where they expect others to obey traffic laws, they have more fatal accidents because they cannot easily adjust when others disobey the traffic laws. Alfredo safely dropped us off (no bangs for us!) near the entrance of the ruins and we exchanged e-mail addresses. He would not accept any money from us, but we offered to let him stay with us if he and his wife ever come to the states.
We had a nice lunch at a small eatery outside the ruins, amongst some of the biggest lemons we have ever seen. About the size of a small child's head, they were hanging from mesh baskets on the ceiling. This was our first panini (sandwich) in Italy, and it was amazing. We headed over to the entrance of the ruins, where we were barraged by local tour guides (we think everyone in Naples may be a tour guide in addition to their normal jobs). We finally selected one, who lead us through a hour whirlwind tour of the ruins, then went 15 minutes over the hour and wanted us to pay him more. We firmly told him that his lack of time keeping was not our fault, and that we were not giving him any more money. After a lecture on proper etiquette, and this coming from the guy who made sure to point out all of the pornographic features in Pompeii, he left in a huff. Which was fine, because we were ready to move on.
The ruins were amazing, especially the fact that so many rooms have been restored since Michelle was here 13 years ago. And they are continuing to work on them as well, as a few of the places had been sectioned off and you could hear workers in the background. One of the most impressive things was to see the modern houses that they had built over the ashes, which gave you a perspective of how much the ruins had been covered over by ash. Imagine building your new house and never knowing there was another entire house below yours. That was the sight we saw today, as well as hitting the major highlights of the rest of the ruins.
Did we mention yet how stinking hot it was. If Rome is hot, Pompeii is an inferno. We now know what it feels like to be in Mt. Vesuvius. :) When you have been so hot or so long, and sweating all day (yes mom's we did drink plenty of water) that you no longer care that you are sticky and gross, that is where we were today. Even now, at 12:30 am (yes, AM people!) we are all sweating. We all will be glad to head further north, if only for the cooler weather (fingers, toes and anything else we can cross is crossed right now).
We took a good train ride from Pompeii to the Naples station, then explored a bit of what Naples had to offer. This was the land of near misses for us, as the Palace we wanted to see was under restoration (no tourism happening there), we tried having dinner at a pizza place that Alfredo had recommended, only to find it closed for the afternoon, and the boys bought watermelon gelato, which they have loved at every other stand, only to find this one with some added chocolate chips in it. Not a good combination. And in our haste to get out of Naples and into a cool train, we walked onto the wrong one and evicted two people from their seats before one woman pointed out that this train was not going to our destination. Woops! We go off about 3 minutes before the train pulled out of the station. Praise God we were not on it. While waiting for the real Naples-Rome train, which was 30 minutes late, (ironic isn't it) we had more than enough time to relive the highlights of the day. Upon arrival to Rome we ate dinner at a kebob place. If you remember nothing else we have written about Rome, be sure to eat gelatto and kebob. We will probably repeat this meal another time during our trip.
Well, off to bed and getting ready for another day! Ciao for now!
Thursday, July 19, 2007
To do as the Romans do
Well, we made it, safe and sound! We are securely tucked away in our little hostel room, it was a balmy 37-38 degrees Celsius today. I will let all of you determine how hot it actually was. I am afraid to as we barely survived the heat today. We have learned a new personal motto: never pass up the opportunity to refill your water bottles. To know what the temperature was today would dissuade us from ever leaving our room!
Tim, Duane and I had the great idea of staying up all night and forcing ourselves onto European time the night before we left instead of struggling through the adjustment once we got here. We were far kinder to poor Brandon, as he was allowed to get about 2 hours of sleep. :) We stayed up for a grand total of 27 hours before boarding our plane. Then, in anwhere from 30-45 minutes, all three of us crashed. The sleep was not good, as a variety of crying babies and children who just did not want to sleep (and who let their mothers know this wish at the top of their lungs) kept us awake and somewhat alert. I am not sure what it is, but I (Michelle) seem to be a magnet for children who do not like to fly. It happens every time. We did manage to sneek in around 4 hours of sleep before we hit the Da Vinci airport at 7:13 am. Air Canada is our new favorite carrier, as they had the hospitality part of flying down pat. . . didn't hurt that they were the cheapest tickets we could find either.
After checking into the hostel and stowing away our gear, we headed across the street for our first taste of Italian gelato. I had the strawberry and black cherry (oh so yummy!) and Tim sampled nearly all of the flavors and settled on Kiwi and Strawberry. So far today, amidst the sight seeing we have had gelato 3 times. And it is only 7:00 PM! Still tons of time to get in another scoop or two . . . or three!
We had friends tell us not to plan much on the first day, as it typically ends up a wash, since you are so jet lagged that it is hard to get anything touristy done. Well, I think as a by product of our odd method of assimilating into the new time zone, we are actually doing quite well. Despite the heat we managed to see the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, the capital building (with a cool changing of the guards routine) the Pantheon, the Santa Maria Maggiore Basillica, the Piazza Navrona, the Castel Sant Angelo and the Trevi fountain. We drove by the worlds largest MacDonalds, but could not bring ourselves to go in on our first day in town. Tomorrows plan is to hit the Vatican, St Peters Basillica and the Vatican Museum, and maybe catch the Musee Borghese, which is supposed to be a great museum. We will see how much of this we get to.
Some interesting differences we have noted between the US and Italy:
1. In some public areas you must pay to use the toilette (Michelle found this out when she did not have any money to pay, and the kind gentleman let her slip out.)
2. Water is available throughout the city and is fed by aqueducts - if it was good enough for the 1st century, then it is good enough for us!
3. Pedestrians beware. Vespas do have the right of way and they have no problem riding on the sidewalks or the opposite side of the street if their path is crowded. Apparently there may be laws against this, but we watched them do this in front of the police. So these laws are more like "guidelines". We would love to see someone try to drive like this in California!
Well, off to the showers and prepare for dinner, or maybe a few more scoops of gelato! Ciao!
P.S. From Dad - Christina and Joshua, I Love and Miss you so much!!! Brandon and I are having a great time and have already seen a ton of historically cool things. Kiss and hug Joshua lots for me!
Love, Duane (Joshua that's dad or papa to you... not Uncle D)
Tim, Duane and I had the great idea of staying up all night and forcing ourselves onto European time the night before we left instead of struggling through the adjustment once we got here. We were far kinder to poor Brandon, as he was allowed to get about 2 hours of sleep. :) We stayed up for a grand total of 27 hours before boarding our plane. Then, in anwhere from 30-45 minutes, all three of us crashed. The sleep was not good, as a variety of crying babies and children who just did not want to sleep (and who let their mothers know this wish at the top of their lungs) kept us awake and somewhat alert. I am not sure what it is, but I (Michelle) seem to be a magnet for children who do not like to fly. It happens every time. We did manage to sneek in around 4 hours of sleep before we hit the Da Vinci airport at 7:13 am. Air Canada is our new favorite carrier, as they had the hospitality part of flying down pat. . . didn't hurt that they were the cheapest tickets we could find either.
After checking into the hostel and stowing away our gear, we headed across the street for our first taste of Italian gelato. I had the strawberry and black cherry (oh so yummy!) and Tim sampled nearly all of the flavors and settled on Kiwi and Strawberry. So far today, amidst the sight seeing we have had gelato 3 times. And it is only 7:00 PM! Still tons of time to get in another scoop or two . . . or three!
We had friends tell us not to plan much on the first day, as it typically ends up a wash, since you are so jet lagged that it is hard to get anything touristy done. Well, I think as a by product of our odd method of assimilating into the new time zone, we are actually doing quite well. Despite the heat we managed to see the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, the capital building (with a cool changing of the guards routine) the Pantheon, the Santa Maria Maggiore Basillica, the Piazza Navrona, the Castel Sant Angelo and the Trevi fountain. We drove by the worlds largest MacDonalds, but could not bring ourselves to go in on our first day in town. Tomorrows plan is to hit the Vatican, St Peters Basillica and the Vatican Museum, and maybe catch the Musee Borghese, which is supposed to be a great museum. We will see how much of this we get to.
Some interesting differences we have noted between the US and Italy:
1. In some public areas you must pay to use the toilette (Michelle found this out when she did not have any money to pay, and the kind gentleman let her slip out.)
2. Water is available throughout the city and is fed by aqueducts - if it was good enough for the 1st century, then it is good enough for us!
3. Pedestrians beware. Vespas do have the right of way and they have no problem riding on the sidewalks or the opposite side of the street if their path is crowded. Apparently there may be laws against this, but we watched them do this in front of the police. So these laws are more like "guidelines". We would love to see someone try to drive like this in California!
Well, off to the showers and prepare for dinner, or maybe a few more scoops of gelato! Ciao!
P.S. From Dad - Christina and Joshua, I Love and Miss you so much!!! Brandon and I are having a great time and have already seen a ton of historically cool things. Kiss and hug Joshua lots for me!
Love, Duane (Joshua that's dad or papa to you... not Uncle D)
Monday, July 16, 2007
Less than 48 hours!
Yesterday, while celebrating our 7 year anniversary (woo hoo!) we finished packing and shopping for the last of the "necessary" items. On our last trip to Tennessee we checked with the airline to see how many pounds of luggage we could take with us. Fifty-five was the magic number we were told, which we both thought was crazy! If our bags for 1 week in Tennessee were verging on 45 lbs, how could we ever survive with only 55 lbs for three weeks! Well, let me tell you, when you are backpacking - and I mean really backpacking - through Europe, suddenly 55 lbs becomes the most oppressive weight you could ever imagine. It makes you take a long look at what you are bringing, because you, yes you, will have to lug that around for 3 weeks straight!
Rest assured, neither of our packs even approach 55 lbs. I am sitting at a slightly comfortable 26 lbs and Tim is around 23. He has the wine packaging for the wine we want to bring back, so although I have the heavier load now, he will be coming home with much more weight than I. A friend was telling us that you could bring back 3-4 bottles of wine, but the last time he was over was pre 9-11, now with the new carry-on restrictions, I doubt we can find 3 oz bottles of wine to carry on the plane. So Tim has a 3 bottle Styrofoam packaging system in a cardboard box, and we are hoping that it works!
We took the packs out for a spin last night around the block. We walked for an hour straight, at a brisk pace, logging in 5,246 steps on the pedometer. Imagine two people with backpackers backpacks walking down the middle of your street at 9:30 at night. Yup, that was us! We both were a little sore at the end, but held up well. Yes Mom, my knees and ankles were OK, and yes I would have said to stop if they were not well, and yes I know it is OK to tell people if my joints are not feeling well and yes I know not to push myself too hard. :) I have to add that in, as I know where my mom's mind is going right now as she is reading this. :) Love you mom!
So with a few odds and ends to clear up over the next couple of days, it looks like we are all set. Hopefully the next post will come from a charming little Internet cafe where we are slowly eating gelato or sipping on Italian coffee! Ciao!
Rest assured, neither of our packs even approach 55 lbs. I am sitting at a slightly comfortable 26 lbs and Tim is around 23. He has the wine packaging for the wine we want to bring back, so although I have the heavier load now, he will be coming home with much more weight than I. A friend was telling us that you could bring back 3-4 bottles of wine, but the last time he was over was pre 9-11, now with the new carry-on restrictions, I doubt we can find 3 oz bottles of wine to carry on the plane. So Tim has a 3 bottle Styrofoam packaging system in a cardboard box, and we are hoping that it works!
We took the packs out for a spin last night around the block. We walked for an hour straight, at a brisk pace, logging in 5,246 steps on the pedometer. Imagine two people with backpackers backpacks walking down the middle of your street at 9:30 at night. Yup, that was us! We both were a little sore at the end, but held up well. Yes Mom, my knees and ankles were OK, and yes I would have said to stop if they were not well, and yes I know it is OK to tell people if my joints are not feeling well and yes I know not to push myself too hard. :) I have to add that in, as I know where my mom's mind is going right now as she is reading this. :) Love you mom!
So with a few odds and ends to clear up over the next couple of days, it looks like we are all set. Hopefully the next post will come from a charming little Internet cafe where we are slowly eating gelato or sipping on Italian coffee! Ciao!
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
We'll Start at the Very Beginning
So here it is, the first blog post of our European adventure! We will be updating this site as much as possible with details and pictures of our wanderings, so that you can all know we are alive, well, and hopefully having a blast in Europe. Tim did have a few doubts that this blog would ever happen. Well babe, here it is! Now my hope is that there are enough internet cafe's in Europe that we can keep this up to date!
We are officially one week from our departure date. By this time next week we will be in the air, flying over . . . somewhere on our way to Europe. The plan is to stay in various towns in Italy for almost a week, spend a day in Vienna, Austria, then a few days in the following countries: Prague in the Czech Republic, Munich, Germany (where we hope to see our foreign exchange students Marina and Pia!), Paris, France and then leave from London, England.
We are pretty excited, although I (Michelle) am already off work so I can get more excited than Tim who still has one more week of the 9 to 5. Poor man! Hopefully for him the week will go fast!
We are officially one week from our departure date. By this time next week we will be in the air, flying over . . . somewhere on our way to Europe. The plan is to stay in various towns in Italy for almost a week, spend a day in Vienna, Austria, then a few days in the following countries: Prague in the Czech Republic, Munich, Germany (where we hope to see our foreign exchange students Marina and Pia!), Paris, France and then leave from London, England.
We are pretty excited, although I (Michelle) am already off work so I can get more excited than Tim who still has one more week of the 9 to 5. Poor man! Hopefully for him the week will go fast!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)