Aug. 13^th  - Day 3

Busy day, but all made bearable when one can start with a good breakfast! On the bus by 8 sharp. First stop, the Vatican. Huge crowds and lines of people. Our guide, an old lady named Nora, ...said they see over 20 thousand per day, and this figure is increasing every year. Because we were with a tour, things are much simpler as one is just waved through. We still had to wait in line, but the tour groups were allowed through first.  We were all given headsets so that we could wander around a bit and still hear Nora’s commentary and instructions. We saw 3 or 4 of the 7 Vatican museums – each museum is named for a different Pope who commissioned it. They all had different interests so all the museums have different themes. – maps, statuary, etc.

Amazing art, of course. Mind boggling. All the big names – Bellini (Baroque), Michalangelo, (no Da Vinci as he did not like Rome) Michelangelo’s work is really amazing, especially when one considers that he was not really a painter, but a sculptor – but he had to paint the Sistine Chapel and more… One is not supposed to talk or take pics in the Sistine Chapel itself, but some people took no notice of the repeated pleas at all – so awful! As a result this amazing chapel was noisy and bright with flashes. All the popes have different personalities and are given nicknames. The current pope Ratzinger likes walking in the gardens and meditating, and is named the “German Shepherd.” Then we went into the crypts where dead Popes are entombed into “the largest church in the world in the smallest country in the world” – St Peter’s Basilica.  It is huge and one cannot really comprehend the scale. There is some lettering around the cupola, and each letter is 6 ft high, and they look small. The famous Pieta is there, now behind glass, since a mad tourist attacked it with a hammer. The famous black statue of St Peter of bronze has had its one foot worn away completely with all the people touching or kissing the foot for luck, and now the other foot is beginning to wear as well. We got a nice plate at a souvenir shop and shared a sandwich for lunch in the huge piazza in front of the church. We also saw the Swiss Guards. Then on to the Coliseum,

 which can hold 80 thousand people. The shows were free, with free food thrown in, and so very popular. Most of the structure was covered with marble, which was looted over time for other buildings, notably by the church for St. Peter’s. They could even cover it, and they had early lifts/elevators for cleaning and transporting bodies, etc. It had a wooden floor, covered with sand. We had a quick guided tour, then were free to wander about. It was very hot, and bright. There were even locals, dressed as gladiators, and one could pose with them for a fee. Then we went back to the hotel where we both had a nap. Back to the Trevestre ? area of Rome for dinner at 7pm. The setting, in an old square, was absolutely beautiful, and the food was the best! The wine flowed. We sat at one loooong table.

This was a famous traditional place…can’t recall the name, tho I took many pics.  We had toast with tomatoes, pasta, veal & pruscuittio & salad, with an ice cream cake studded with wafers shaped like different famous Italian buildings, like the Leaning Tower of Pisa, etc. We were serenaded by Cecilia, who put on a little show from a balcony overlooking the restaurant…very funny. We were allowed to take pretty menu as a souvenir. When we got home, N and I went for a walk by the Tiber. Things do quiet down drastically in the afternoons, so most businesses open til much later at night. So there were tents along the riverside selling things, bands playing music, ice cream stands…very beguiling.

Aug. 14^th  Day 4

After breakfast we left Rome in our comfy motor coach (which even has an on- board loo – not that we ever used it, but it was comforting to know about) We drove South towards Naples. The landscape is much more forested than I imagined, and one sees the Apennine mountains, of course, so it is a very rugged terrain. Our first stop was at a cameo factory near Naples. It was interesting to see how the cameos are carved from layers of certain shells, similar to conches. They get them from Africa, India and the Bahamas, as they do not have enough in their own waters any longer. It is very intricate, close work, requiring years of training. The pieces were expensive. I did like the red coral pieces. We drove around Naples, the 4^th largest city in Italy, and once larger than Rome. It is hilly, with some lovely homes, but also lots of ugly apartment buildings. The roads are steep and narrow. We drove towards Sorrento and saw Mt Vesuvius – which is still active. We stopped at Pompei for lunch and where we bought some great souvenirs. We met our very nice guide, Erika,

here and she led us on a tour of the Pompei ruins. Pompei is inland now, but once was right on the beach. Only three fifths of the old city has been reclaimed – there is still a lot still buried. It was a large city of about 12 thousand souls, and hillier than I had imagined. We saw the rutted streets, the baths, the red light area, the bars (99 bars in the town,

 as most people ate and drank out, the house kitchens not being that good), and a “frozen” body. It was very interesting, and it could happen again as the volcano is still active. Then I tripped on some stairs in the ruins and really scraped my knees badly – blood gushed forth. I was in shorts, of course, as it is so hot. People were very kind, pressing tissues and water on me, bathing my knees…

Erika radioed back to have ice waiting…we were pretty close to the end of the tour so I bravely struggled on, and saw the 2 open air theatres. When we got back I was told to hold ice packs to my knees while the others went souvenir shopping – luckily we had done that earlier or I would have been so upset. On to Sorrento, so pretty with cliffs, and beaches far below sporting lines of different coloured umbrellas. The streets extremely winding and steep. The hotel is amusing, like something out of James Bond era, tho I believe it is only 10 years old. Opulent in a slightly over-the-top way. Our room is all yellow tiles, in honor of the magnificent lemons in the area. The tiles were lovely and cool. We have a marble bath, and we overlook the pool area.

There is a huge mountain behind the hotel. We drove down into Sorrento for dinner – mozzarella and eggplant, pasta and broccoli, crumbed red snapper, rum cake and wine. Then we walked around the town awhile before the bus returned us to the hotel. This week is also a holiday in Italy, so the streets were even more crowded than normal. We found a great porcelain shop with amazing prices and bought 6 tiny cups and saucers for 15 Euros. In the bath my knees stung like crazy! Tomorrow is the main holiday day for the Italians.

Click here for the next page - or go back