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round-the-world in 2005

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Italy

July 24 - Aug 24, 2005

Italy was one of our 'must sees' before we left, and it lives up to expectations Napoli street

24 Jul 2005 Naples, Italy

Dark, Dirty & Dangerous
We awoke on the ferry with people walking past and the sun shining through the window - no more sleep for us. Rob slept on the floor for comfort while Clare was straddled between two chairs, and all night the light stayed on. The ferry arrived in Naples at 9.30am, and being a Sunday the tourist office was closed as were most other shops in town. We went directly to a hotel - the check in was done by a little old lady who was rather intoxicated for 10am. Pompeii is a 40 minute train journey, where we spent the afternoon exploring this huge ancient Roman city. Many of the buildings and murals are well preserved. We were very tired after this very long hot day, with minimal sleep. After a quick taste of some Italian food, we headed home. We got a bit disorientated in the dark and dodgy streets on our way home, but fotunately made it safely back to our beds.

Roma Tomatoes

25 Jul 2005 Crotone, Italy

Late for the relatives
We got a glimpse of Napoli town on our walk to the train station. Today we are heading for Crotone to stay with some of Clare’s Italian family. Our 9.30 train was one hour late, however the view traveling along the south coast was very pretty. We now have some time to cram some Italian to help us converse with the relatives. We missed our connecting train, so we got the next one giving us hope to get there on time, but this one was 30 minutes late as well! Luckily Aurelia was still waiting for us to take us to her parent’s place (Teresa and Vincenzo). Teresa is the sister of Clare’s grandmother. We were welcomed like the long lost prodigal sons. We had a great Italian meal, then drinks with their son Virginio’s family who are staying just up the road. Lucky for us Virginio, his daughter Vera, and Aurelia all speak some English. It is still very hard to communicate with our limited Italian vocabulary though, and the next few days are going to be a challenge.

Crotone beach

26 Jul 2005 Crotone, Italy

Milo and Pythagoras
We were invited to join Virginio and his family at a beach 20 minutes up the Calabrian coast. The sea was flat and refreshing - great for some volleyball in the water. We returned for a big family lunch of lasagne (pasta al forno) plus heaps more Italian goodies. Ossana and Vera took us on a guided tour of the Crotone town centre - there is an interesting old part of the town and some museums to see. We discovered that Crotone is the birth place of the Ancient Olympian Milo, and the death place of the famous mathematician Pythagoras. We finished with a cold drink on the sea shore. It is a surprisingly interesting and pleasant town. Back home our surrogate grandparents were waiting for us - providing another great meal and trying to fatten us up by overfeeding (in the typical Italian way)!

Beach volleyball with the relos

27 Jul 2005 Crotone, Italy

Burnt out
We went to the beach again with the Le Rose family, as there is not much else to do. We went to the town beach, which was not as nice as yesterday, and it is a hotter day today. We played another long game of volleyball and got a bit too much sun. In the afternoon we planned some more of our Italy trip, then got a lift back into town to book our next train and accommodation in Amalfi, on Italy's west coast. We had dinner at Virginio’s place - three kinds of fish and the usual piles of delicious food. Italian hospitality at its finest!

Olice Grove inthe south

28 Jul 2005 Crotone, Italy

Italian Dreaming
We got a lift the 4 km into town with Antonio to do some chores. We worked out the bus system just in time to get a ticket and catch a bus back home for lunch, which like every other day is a big family affair. Afterwards we did like almost all others and retired to our room for a rest. Later afternoon we went for a stroll through the surrounding countryside among the olive groves and fruit and vegetable gardens. We also checked out the wine making equipment in the shed and the outdoor oven ideal for wood-fired pizza. We had a glass of Vincenzo’s home made wine with dinner, then went outside in the cool evening air to chat while the men played cards.

Amalfi town

29 Jul 2005 Atrani, Amalfi Coast, Italy

Leaving Home
After packing things, we gave some gifts of thanks and said goodbye to our Italian family. It has been wonderful staying with them, at first it felt a bit odd staying with people we had never met, but by the end of our stay they had made us feel so welcome and comfortable - just like family. Aurelia gave us a lift to the station only for the train to be late (again). After three trains, and some home made lunch, we got the bus along the coast of Amalfi. This is an absolutely unbelievable coastline of cliffs falling into the ocean with splattering's of houses and towns and tiny beaches. It tops the ‘great ocean road’ and the ‘big sur’ easily. We are staying in Atrani which is in the next bay to Amalfi town. After checking in we walked the 100m to the beach to cool off - our bus had no air-con and it is super hot and humid here. We took a short walk to Amalfi, then enjoyed some pizza near the sea.

view

30 Jul 2005 Atrani, Amalfi Coast, Italy

Roving Ravello
We were provided a nice free breakfast of coffee and croissants, before heading off on our trek. We hiked the high mountains that tower over Atrani, to a beautiful tranquil hilltop town called Ravello. Here we saw an inspiring Bennetton exhibition, one of the lovely manicured gardens, and ate lunch in a park with a perfect view along the coast. We continued our hike to Patone, where we had a drink to cool off as the temperature was soaring, then to ‘Torre Dello Ziro’ an old tower, and back down the hill to Amalfi. This was an epic day of 9 hours hiking up and down in the heat - we were knackered. We had only energy left for a swim to cool off, a quiet beer and some easy cook pasta.

Patterned umbreallas, Amalfi Coast

31 Jul 2005 Atrani, Amalfi Coast, Italy

Pebble Beach
After yesterday’s effort we wanted a quiet restful day. We walked around the point to Amalfi and wandered among the tourist shops, buying a couple of gifts, and visited the very old cathedral and museum. Back in Atrani, we borrowed a beach umbrella and sat on the gray pebbled beach for a couple of hours, with occasional short dips in the sea. We couldn’t resist and had to have a beer on the beach, then back to make ourselves some pasta.

Round about fountain

01 Aug 2005 Rome, Italy

Long Windy Road
We walked around the corner to the Amalfi town bus stop. It all seemed sweet as the nice air-conditioned bus headed off - until we realised it was heading in the wrong direction! Luckily we were paying attention and were able to get off quickly. Unluckily the correct bus had just left and we had to wait for the next. The bus trip was spectacular - one and a half hours of narrow winding road along spectacular rugged cliffs and houses hanging to the sides. We transferred to a train back up to Naples, then changed for Rome. Not wasting any time, we hit the streets of the capital, with fountains and piazzas on every corner. Our first stop was Barberini Piazza with a couple of fountains by Bernini. We then wound our way through the streets to the French built Spanish steps, then along to the Trevi fountain. Not bad for an afternoon. We missed the free pizza at our hostel but bought our own great one down the road. It was a long and frustrating night, as the partying continued in our dorm room until 4 am (not for us, we were trying to sleep!).

Inside of the Roman Colloseum

02 Aug 2005 Rome, Italy

Ancient Rome
We started today by planning our attack of the big city - we have a couple of days but there is so much to see. Our first stop was one of the oldest churches in Italy, with a spectacular interior. The ‘must see’ Coliseum was next, which of course was packed with tourists, but worth the wait to see for ourselves this huge fighting arena. Nearby was the ‘circo massimo’ the ancient chariot racetrack, and the Roman Forum, the ruins of the original Roman city centre. Piazza Venezia contains an elaborate monument and building that is said to look like a giant typewriter. The Pantheon all preserved with it’s massive domed roof is a testament to the skills of the Roman builders and architects. Last stop was another piazza, Novona, with three fountains by Bernini, and more churches and some market stalls to cater for the tourists.

St Peter's Bassilica dome form the inside

03 Aug 2005 Rome, Italy

Roaming
We woke to rain, which nearly washed out our free breakfast of pastries and coffee. The clouds cleared for us to continue our exploration of Rome. We checked out a couple of churches with spectacular frescoed ceilings, which is not uncommon around here, and took shelter in another when it started to rain. It did not last long, and actually made it quite cool. St Peter`s Basilica was huge, as was the round square in front of it. We lined up for an hour to climb the dome for a great view of Rome. We walked along the River Tiber, past some familiar territory, and found a nondescript church with the famous ‘mouth of truth’. We had had enough of walking so we caught the subway home. The hostel provided a quality free chicken dinner.

Spiral staircase at the Vatican museum

04 Aug 2005 Rome, Italy

Popes and the popular popolo
Day three in Rome and another hot day to see everything we missed in the last two days. We took a walk to the flower and food market on the way to the Vatican to see the tomb of John Paul II. After lunch we visited the Vatican Museum, which contains the famous and equally beautiful Sistine Chapel. The art collection here is very large and overwhelming. We posted a letter from the Vatican post office, before heading to the Piazza Popolo. This large piazza contains an Egyptian obelisk, and the nearby church contains some Cavaggio and Bernini art work and sculptures.

Tuscany landscape

05 Aug 2005 Orvieto, Italy

Top town
Our hopeless hostel lost the key to our safe, where our valuables were ‘safely’ locked away, which delayed us enough to miss our train. Two hours later we were headed 100km north of Rome to a small, off the beaten tourist trail, town of Orvieto. When the train pulled in we thought we had not made the right decision. But behind us there was a funicular train leading up a hill to a medieval hilltop fort town. The highlight was an amazing Romanesque Gothic cathedral (Duomo di San Brizio). We also visited an old underground cave of which there are many all under this town. In the evening, we came across the Umbrian final for the ‘Miss Italy’ quest, so we hung out to observe.

Ballet in the town square

06 Aug 2005 Perugia, Italy

Pizza on the Piazza
We caught the morning train to Perugia, the capital of the Umbrian region. We had great difficulty trying to find the hostel we had booked into, but thanks to a very helpful Nigerian local, we found it. For the afternoon we bussed to the town centre, which is full of well preserved Medieval buildings, situated on top of a hill. We visited all the main sites - churches, palaces and piazzas. We stumbled across a great modern art exhibition in an underground tunnel within the walls of the city. We enjoyed pizza in the piazza (square) for dinner, before watching a ballet performance in the main piazza, with a stunning back drop of 12th century buildings. Then the last bus home.

Medieval rooftops

07 Aug 2005 Assisi, Italy

You’re Assisi
We couldn’t find accommodation in the nearby town of Assisi, so we made a day trip from Perugia. It was only 20 minutes by train, then a bus up the hill to the town centre. Assisi is well known as the home of Saint Francis, and lesser known as the home of Saint Clare. Consequently, the main attractions were numerous churches, which we ended up visiting most of. There was also an impressive fort, on the highest point with views of the surrounding green valleys. Late afternoon it poured rain, but by then we had had enough, so we headed back to our HI hostel in Perugia.

Sienna square

08 Aug 2005 Siena, Italy

Seeing Siena
Today we moved onto Siena, the much praised town in Tuscany. We were staying again at the cheap HI which is out of town, as it is fairly busy time of the year. We bussed into yet another old fortress town, to visit the travel information centre and have a little look around. The piazza in the centre is an enormous fan shape, surrounded by imposing Gothic buildings. This is where the famous Palio bare-back horse race is run annually, a mad event which attracts huge crowds. We headed home after a nice pasta meal in town.

Church floor

09 Aug 2005 Siena, Italy

Misguided
We embarked on our self guided walking tour of Siena, maps provided by the info centre, beginning from the main square (Piazza del Campo). It was a combination of tours giving us a rigorous schedule for the day. We visited the amazing Duomo (Cathedral) with its elaborately decorated marble floor, library of illustrated hymn books, and other art works. We scaled the mighty tower of the town hall, over 500 steps to the top to get a birds eye view of the fan-shaped piazza below. Other sites included Gothic style buildings, fountains, piazzas, narrow streets, arch covered alleys and views of the surrounding countryside. A lovely town to visit despite all the fellow tourists.

Bridges over the river

10 Aug 2005 Florence, Italy

Free watermelon
It was only a short bus trip from Siena to Florence. Our first mission was to purchase a pot for cooking, as the hostel has a nice kitchen except you have to provide your own cookware. As we are here for a few days we should get the most out of our investment. As it was the feast day of Saint Lorenzo, we saved a few euros with free entry to the Medici Chapel, which included some statues by Michelangelo. We bought our lunch supplies at a large indoor market full of exotic meats and cheese. We ate the very crusty rolls in the only park area around. A siesta perked us up a little, and after a feed we continued the celebrations for St Lorenzo with a nice classical concert in the piazza followed by free pasta and watermelon. We walked back to the hotel via the lively ‘ponte vecchio’, the old bridge.

David overlooking th square

11 Aug 2005 Florence, Italy

Down pour at David
We attempted to avoid the massive queue to the cathedral by starting early, but still had to wait more than an hour for the mostly disappointing church. We have been so spoilt and overwhelmed with churches in the last couple of months. We went to the National Museum at the Bargello building, which was full of masterworks by Michelangelo and others, but baulked at the five hour line to the Uffizi Gallery. Luckily we could reserve a ticket, but not until Saturday afternoon. While admiring the replica of the Michelangelo’s David statue in the Signora Square, a huge downpour occurred and we joined the hundreds cowering under cover. It cleared soon after so we could resume our tour of town. We walked up to the old fort, getting away from the crowds and having a great overview of the city. After another home cooked meal of risotto, we went out for gelati.

Lit tower

12 Aug 2005 Florence, Italy

No line for us
We started to line up at the Accedemia Gallery, but it was too long so we flagged it, thinking we would come earlier tomorrow! Instead we visited a few architectural gems around town, including the Pitti Palace and a couple more churches. We spent the afternoon looking for a place to burn our photos and buying some sunglasses for Clare.

statue again

13 Aug 2005 Florence, Italy

More famous artwork
We were up bright and early this morning to avoid the line at the Accedemia Gallery, which contains Michelangelo’s David, and the Slaves, plus other sculptures and 13th to 18th century paintings. David is an amazing work of art, perfectly detailed even with veins. We visited the San Croce church, which had a lovely green outdoor area, the tombs of Michelangelo, Galileo and Dante, and a display of woodcut art. Some shopping and lunch were squeezed in before going to the pre-booked Uffizi Gallery, which contains a plethora of famous artwork, like Botticelli’s ‘Birth of Venus’. Since it was our last night in Florence, we took a last walk through town to see the bustling and musical nightlife of the main piazzas.

Leaning tower of Pisa

14 Aug 2005 Pisa, Italy

Leaning Over
After a train to Pisa we walked to our camp ground just outside the walls of the city. We passed through the quiet streets, as it is Sunday, and past the leaning tower for our first view. We thought we were staying in single sex dorms, but when we arrived they didn’t want to split us up, so they gave us a self-contained villa at the same price! We relaxed with a siesta and a swim in the pool, with our obligatory swimming caps on. After lunch we made our way back to the lovely grassy piazza, the only one we have seen in all of Italy. We visited the beautiful cathedral next to the leaning bell tower. We decided to pay the exorbitant fee and climb the leaning tower, we were fortunate to do this at sunset.

feast in Sienna

15 Aug 2005 Siena, Italy

Backtracking
We decided to back track a little, and return to Siena for the big Palio horse race. It seemed such a shame to miss it only by a few days. We strolled to the Pisa train station, past the tower for one last tilted look, photo and souvenir purchase. When arriving in Siena, it was interesting to have the feeling of knowing where we were going. After checking in we headed back into town to watch the practice race around the piazza. The streets were even more packed than last time, and the tension is certainly building for the big race tomorrow.

Palio horse race

16 Aug 2005 Siena, Italy

The Palio
Today is the midpoint of our trip, we have been away for six months, and still going strong! We were locked out of the hostel at 9.30am. We headed to the supermarket for our day’s supplies. It was still quiet in town so we did some internet searching. Clare bought her Italia T-shirt and Rob a scarf in the colours of one of the local regions (contrada), which we later found out was not in today’s race. We followed the crowds to one of the local churches, where in a bizarre ceremony the priest blessed one of the horses in today’s race. The piazza slowly began to fill and by 4.30pm they had locked us in the centre of the track with still a couple of hours before the race. In the meantime we downed a couple of warm cheap bottles of red while watching the stunning medieval parade of flag wavers and drummers. The race itself was very emotional for the crowd around us - from tears of despair from the calling of the lineup to tears of joy when their horse won. We were right amongst it all and it was an amazing experience.

Morning light

17 Aug 2005 Cinque Terre, Italy

Aldo’s Place
We trained back north past Pisa again to the Cinque Terre Coast, so named for the five somewhat isolated towns along this stretch of coast. From south to north, they are: Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, Monterosso. We headed to Manarola, one of the smallest, but without an accommodation booking. The hostel was closed all afternoon, and while we were waiting for it to open, an old man approached us offering us a room at his place. It turned out to be a lovely room, much nicer than any youth hostel, and cheaper too. This town reminds us in many ways of Atrani, on the Amalfi Coast. A small quiet fishing village perched on a hillside overlooking the sea. It only took half an hour to explore all of the town, and we finished the day with a pasta meal at a restaurant.

Bay through the arch of a church

18 Aug 2005 Cinque Terre, Italy

Where no cars go
We were staying at the 2nd of the five towns along the coast, so we trained back to the first to start the number 2 walk from end to end, which takes five hours. The first part of the walk was along Via Del 'Amore (lover’s lane) which spectacularly hugs the cliff overhanging the sea. After the relatively easy walk between the first two towns, the track gets narrower and steeper, which thankfully meant less people, nicer landscapes, and views and a more rewarding hike. Each town is a bit different. They promote this area as being only accessible by walking tracks, but in fact you can drive up to most of them (just not drive around town) or catch the train between each. It rained a little but it was still hot and muggy, and at the last town, Monterrosso, we went for a swim on the pebble beach. We caught the train back home then on to La Spezia, a large town further along for a wander and a feed.

Cinque Terre coastal town

19 Aug 2005 Cinque Terre, Italy

Lover’s Lane revisited
We walked back along Via Del 'Amore to Riomaggiore, then on the train to Vernazza to buy a hat to replace the one Rob lost in Siena, and to climb the old stone tower on the point for nice views of the coast and town from above. We then caught the train to Monterosso from where we started another hike, this time up the hill behind the town. It was a hot day and the climb was long and steep, made worse by a 40 minute wrong detour. It took two hours to reach an old church, then we followed another track across the slopes with more spectacular views, then down to Vernazza. Our short walk today had taken nearly as long as yesterday. It was too late for a swim so we headed home to refresh then some cheese and crackers and a bottle of red wine on our private balcony.

Verona opera

20 Aug 2005 Verona, Italy

La Boheme
A train from our tiny town of Manarola to the slightly larger Verona, took most of the day. After four changes and a surprise bus ride, we arrived in the very pleasant town of Verona, home of Romeo and Juliet. We walked to our hostel via the ticket office, to purchase some tickets to the opera! There is a summer festival of opera in Verona’s famous arena, which is the best preserved Roman amphitheatre in Europe. We only had a short time to get to the show to get some good seats, so we quickly grabbed some picnic supplies for the evening. What a surreal feeling being in the very full 25,000 capacity ancient amphitheatre, sitting on marble seating, lit by candlelight, watching an authentic Italian opera - our cushions helped, as did the guidebook to the ‘La Boheme’ which gave us the outline of the story in English.

Romeo and Juliet's wall

21 Aug 2005 Venice, Italy

Where for art thou Romeo
It was raining this morning, so we donned our raincoats and headed out to explore Verona. We did not get to see inside the cathedral as it is Sunday and a mass was in progress, so we headed to the main square where unfortunately the rain had prevented their famous markets. However there were some lovely buildings, an interesting gothic tomb and some fountains to see. We passed Juliet’s house, with balcony and the lover’s wall with graffiti galore, to the grassy Piazza Bra where the arena is situated. We had to buy an umbrella as we found out that Clare’s raincoat was not actually waterproof! We were very waterlogged but had time to see the old castle on the riverbank before our train to Venice. It was not long before we arrived in Venice, unfortunately the hostel we had booked as not actually in Venice, as we were led to believe, but one train stop before. We reluctantly returned to an average hotel, planning on only staying the one night. We had a chinese meal, a welcome break from the typical Italian pizza and pasta.

One of thousands of pidgeons

22 Aug 2005 Venice, Italy

Water, water, everywhere
The weather forecast was ‘awful’ said the receptionist. It was still raining, so we bought another umbrella as our other raincoat fell apart. We started the day with the obligatory ride down the Grand Canal, towards the famous Piazza San Marco, which is filled with tourists and pigeons. The main basilica here was amazing with the whole interior covered with sparkling gold mosaics. By now the church and piazza were flooding with the rain and hide tide. We visited the Doge’s Palace and museum, plus a few other museums nearby. We decided to head home after some internet as it was still raining. One last water bus ride, and a bus across the lagoon and we were home.

A quite canal on one of Venice's islands

23 Aug 2005 Venice, Italy

Island Hopping
We checked out of our dodgy hotel and headed towards the HI Hostel on one of Venice’s islands. It was raining early again, but it soon cleared up. Our adventure for today was to explore the islands in the Venetian Lagoon. The first stop was a small island which was mostly an old cemetery. Then nearby was Murano, an island known for it’s glass. We had our lunch on the shore, and visited the glass museum which was not as bad as it sounds. The next island was Burano, known for it’s lace production, and the quaint coloured houses. It was very peaceful walking along the canals, and felt a long way from the bustle of the main part of Venice. The final island was Torcello, once a thriving town, now only a couple of old buildings, but a nice piece of greenery to relax in. Back at our hostel, we went for their convenient but very tasty pizza meal, then across to the main island of Venice to explore the streets at night, getting a little lost before just getting back for the 11.30pm curfew.

morning light

24 Aug 2005 Venice, Italy

Romance Overload
We visited the lively fruit and veggie markets near the Rialto Bridge, then the train station to organise our ticket into Slovenia for tomorrow. As we walked the streets we stumbled across a small church that had been converted into an exhibition space, in which we laid on mattresses and stared up at weird images projected onto the domed ceiling. Something a bit different. The Modern Art Museum was very interesting, pretty small but of high quality. We still had time to spare, so we caught a ferry out to the Lido, the thin strip of land facing the Adriatic Sea, which has the only beach in Venice. It was nice for a stroll, but we would never pay what they were asking just to lay on some of the sand sections. Back in Venice, we celebrated our last night in Italy with a pleasant restaurant meal.

 

next we cross over the border into Slovenia.

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