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May 29, 2006
 " I KNOW THAT MOUTH OF TRUTH IS AROUND HERE SOMEWHERE" WHATEVER YOU DO, DON'T LET ANDREW LOOK TO HIS LEFT.
 "AND AT THAT MOMENT THE SKIES OVER ROME DARKENED..."
THE MOUTH OF TRUTH or HOW MUCH IS THIS HAND WORTH?
TRUTH OR LIE , HAND OR NO HAND. GIVE IT A GO WHEN YOU ARE IN ROME.
May 25, 2006
YOU BETTER NOT BE A SLEEP WALKER IF YOU LIVE HERE
 LUNCH AT SORRENTO OUR DRIVER AND GUIDE, VINCENZO MARRAFFINI
MORE PHOTOS
 MOUNT VESUVIUS GENNARO, OUR GUIDE AT POMPEII
SOME PICTURES -POMPEII, SORRENTO, AMALFI
POMPEII, NAPLES AND THE AMALFI COAST HEY, THROW IN SORRENTO AND YOU HAVE A LONG AND INTERESTING DAY. WE BOOKED A TOUR WITH VINCENZO MARRAFFINI, WWW.VINCENTRAVEL.COM. It COST E 650.00 FOR THE DAY, FOR 4 PEOPLE, AND I FELT WE RECEIVED GOOD VALUE FOR OUR MONEY. VINCENZO, A TORONTO RESIDENT FOR 5 YEARS, PICKED US UP AT OUR DOOR AT 8:00 AM, AND DROPPED US OFF AT ABOUT 9:00 PM . ONCE WE CLEARED ROME'S MORNING TRAFFIC IT WAS CLEAR SAILING TO POMPEII. WE HAD A 2 HOUR TOUR, PART OF THE PACKAGE, ALTHOUGH ADMISSION TO THE SITE WAS NOT, GIVEN BY GENNARO, A RETIRED TEACHER WHO WAS GIVING HIS FIRST TOUR SINCE BEING OFF FOR A YEAR WITH A BOUT OF CANCER. HE HAS LIVED IN THE AREA ALL HIS LIFE, AND WAS VERY KNOWLEDGEABLE ABOUT POMPEII. GENNARO_PETRCCANO@YAHOO.IT. FROM POMPEII WE TRAVELLED TO A RESTAURANT, OVERLOOKING THE MEDITERRANEAN, AT SORRENTO. IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL SPOT FOR LUNCH ON THE PATIO WITH THE SEA IN THE BACKGROUND. WE TRAVELLED THROUGH THE OUTSKIRTS OF NAPLES, A CITY WHICH HAS A VERY BAD REPUTATION IN ITALY, FOR BAD DRIVING AND CRIME. WE HEADED TO AMALFI, ALONG AN OLD ROMAN ROAD CLINGING TO A CLIFF 300M. ABOVE THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA. THE SCENERY WAS AMAZING AND THE ROAD WAS VERY NARROW. WE DROVE THROUGH AMALFI. THE MAIN ROAD IS SO NARROW THAT THEY HAVE TWO STREETS THROUGH THE TOWN AND BOTH ARE ONE WAY ( OBVIOUSLY IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS).
THE DRIVE BACK TO ROME SEEMED MUCH LONGER THAN THE DRIVE TO AMALFI. AMALFI HAS BECOME A MAJOR TOURIST SITE. IT HAS MANY HOTELS OF VARIOUS GRADES.
May 19, 2006
MAYBE IT IS ALL IN THE TREVI ( THREE COINS IN A....) FOUNTAIN
CHANGE IN ITALY - ITS THE LITTLE THINGS THAT COUNT
A PENNY FOR YOUR... OR IS THAT 2 PENNIES? IN ROME IT SEEMS THAT MONEY IS VERY PLENTIFUL, EVERY THING IS EXPENSIVE, BUT IF THE BILL COMES TO E 2.75, THEY WILL LIKELY HAVE A TOUGH TIME COMING UP WITH THE 0.25.
UNDERGROUND ECONOMY, SMALL BUSINESS, MINTING RESTRICTIONS, COIN- EATING RODENTS ( OR TOURISTS )? WHO KNOWS, BUT IT CAN BE FRUSTRATING IF THE SIGN SAYS "EXACT CHANGE", AND YOU DON'T HAVE ANY CHANGE.
May 15, 2006
 IS IT ME OR ...?  THESE BOOTS ARE NOT MADE FOR CLIMBING
 NOT THE EIFFEL TOWER MORE DOME
A VIEW FROM THE TOP.. OF ST. PETER'S
OH THOSE STAIRS. THE TOP OF ST. PETE'S DOME IS SOME 520 STEPS ABOVE A HORRENDOUS LINEUP. YOU CAN CHEAT THOUGH, AND TAKE THE ELEVATOR UP THE FIRST 200 STEPS - COSTS MONEY BUT IT IS WORTH IT. THEN 320 STEPS TO THE TOP AND I COUNTED EVERYONE. THE ELDERLY POLISH LADIES, IN WHO'S MIDST I FOUND MYSELF, MADE ME FEEL THAT ANYTHING LESS THAN THE SUMMIT WAS AN ADMISSION OF WEAKNESS, SO ..UP I TRUDGED. I AM STILL AROUND TO WRITE ABOUT IT SO OBVIOUSLY I SURVIVED. WE THEN WALKED DOWN ALL 520 STEPS - PIECE OF CAKE!
THE VIEW WAS PRETTY SPECTACULAR, BUT THE SPACE AT THE TOP IS PRETTY LIMITED AND VERY CROWDED. I THINK EVERYONE HAS TO REST FOR A LONG TIME BEFORE THEY VENTURE DOWN.
I HAVE NEVER WALKED UP STEPS THAT FORCE YOU TO LEAN SIDEWAYS AS YOU CLIMB. YOU ARE CLIMBING A DOME AFTERALL.
WALKING DOWN IS ALSO INTERESTING AS MANY OF THE STEPS HAVE A DOWNWARD TILT TO THEM - A LITTLE EXTRA MOMENTUM.
May 14, 2006
 YOU MIGHT HAPPEN UPON A MIGHTY
ROMAN WARRIOR HAVING HIS
SANDWICH FOR LUNCH
 ANCIENT ROMAN VISITORS
 THE FIRE BRIGADE'S FINEST HOUR - EXCEPT
FOR THAT ONE SCREW-UP
THE COLOSSEUM
EVER WONDER WHAT THE ROMANS USE THE COLOSSEUM FOR BESIDES A TOURIST ATTRACTION. THE ROMAN FIRE BRIDGADE WAS USING IT FOR A DEMONSTRATION OF THEIR SKILLS WHEN WE WERE THERE. THE COLOSSEUM WAS PRETTY CROWDED, BUT IF YOU GO TO THE PALENTINE HILL AND BUY YOUR TICKET ( ONE TICKET FOR BOTH SITES) YOU MISS THE BIG LONG LINE TO BUY TICKETS AT THE COLUSSEUM. IT IS AMAZING THAT PEOPLE DON,T KNOW, OR DON,T BELIEVE THIS, BUT THEY DON,T. NO LINEUP AT PALENTINE; HUGE LINEUP AT COLOSSEUM. ARE THEY WORTH VISITING? BY ALL MEANS. WE WENT TO BOTH TWICE WHILE WE WERE IN ROME. THE FIRST TIME WE DIDN'T HAVE A GUIDED TOUR, AND PAID 11 OR 12 EUROS TO GET IN. THE SECOND TIME WE WENT WAS MAY 1. IT COST 1 EURO TO GET IN BECAUSE IT WAS A HOLIDAY, AND THE TOUR COST 12.00 EUROS - ONCE AGAIN NO LINEUP. DID YOU KNOW THAT CHRISTIANS WERE NOT KILLED IN THE COLOSSEUM? I DIDN'T UNTIL I TOOK THE TOUR. DID YOU KNOW THAT MARBLE FROM THE COLUSSEUM WAS USED TO BUILD ST. PETER'S?
May 11, 2006
 DIANNE, MEREDITH AND ANDREW - BREAKFAST
 SWORD FISH FOR LUNCH ANYONE?
ACCORDIAN WITH THAT CABBAGE?
 THE NEWS STAND
CAMPO DI FIORI - FIELD OF FLOWERS
CAMPO DI FIORI IS THE MOST LIVELY PIAZZA IN ROME. IN THE MORNING IT IS A FARMERS' MARKET, IN THE AFTERNOON IT IS A LIKE A FLEA MARKET, AND IN THE EVENING IT IS CROWDED WITH PEOPLE HANGING OUT, DRINKING IN THE CAFES AND BAR, AND WALKING THROUGH. OUR PLACE WAS ONLY A SHORT BLOCK AWAY, SO WE WERE ABLE TO VISIT REGULARLY.
May 09, 2006
CAPO DI FERRO APARTMENTS-ROME
IN 1492 COLUMBUS SAILED ..., AND OUR APARTMENT BUILDING WAS NOT NEW. THAT BEING SAID, IT WAS GREAT. IT WAS RECENTLY RENOVATED, FURNISHED IN IKEA MODERN, AND WAS PERFECT FOR OUR NEEDS. THE CAPO DI FERRO APARTMENTS ARE LOCATED WITHIN A BLOCK OF PIAZZA CAMPO DI FIORI, AND ABOUT 2 BLOCKS FROM THE TIBER RIVER. IT IS RIGHT NEXT DOOR TO THE PALAZZO SPADA MUSEUM. OUR APARTMENT WAS SPACIOUS, CLEAN AND ON THE 3RD FLOOR. THIS WAS NOT A PROBLEM, BUT IT SURE WAS A GOOD CONDITIONER. ONE MAJOR ADVANTAGE OF THE APARTMENT WAS THAT IT IS NOT LOCATED NEAR ONE OF THE MAJOR TOURIST ATTRACTIONS SUCH AS THE SPANISH STEP, WHERE THERE ARE WALL -TO -WALL TOURISTS. WE ALSO HAD AN INTERNET CAFE AROUND THE CORNER, LITERALLY, AND A GROCERY STORE ABOUT 3 BLOCKS AWAY.
THE LOCATION WAS GREAT FOR EVERYTHING, BUT THE TERMINEE CENTRALE- NOT A MAJOR LOSS. WE WALKED EVERYWHERE, THE COLISEUM, FORUM, PIAZZA NAVONA, SPANISH STEPS, VATICAN AND MORE - THE PRICE WAS E140.00 PER NIGHT - GOOD VALUE.
May 08, 2006
THAT EARLY MORNING DEPARTURE..ZZZ
THE ALPS WERE SPECTACULAR ON THE WAY OVER
WE TRAVELLED ON AN AIRBUS 340 - GREAT LEG ROOM ( THIS IS NOT AN A340)
WE ARE HOME - FROM ROME
WHERE TO BEGIN? WE TRAVELLED AIR FRANCE BOTH WAYS AND THE SERVICE WAS VERY GOOD. WE HAD SOME TICKET PROBLEMS, RELATED TO OUR TRAVEL AGENT, AND AIR FRANCE DEALT WITH THEM QUICKLY, PLEASANTLY AND EFFICIENTLY, SO HATS OFF TO AIR FRANCE.
OUR ONE REGRET WAS THAT WE DIDN'T ARRANGE FOR A DAY OR TWO STOP OVER IN PARIS ON OUR WAY BACK- OH WELL.....
PEARSON INTERNATIONAL AIR PORT GAVE US OUR BIGGEST HEADACHE OF THE TRIP. UPON OUR RETURN IT TOOK US 1.5 HOURS TO CLEAR CUSTOMS LINEUPS - INCREDIBLE!
May 04, 2006
Rome pictures when we get home I WILL DO MORE POSTS WITH PICTURES AND COMMENTS WHEN WE GET HOME. MEANWHILE CHECK OUT MEREDITH'S SITE AT FOR PICTURES AND EDUCATIONAL CONTENT
May 01, 2006
MAY DAY ROME TODAY IS MAY 1, A NATIONAL HOLIDAY IN ROME, THAT IS THE EQUIVALENT OF LABOUR DAY. ALL THE SHOPS AND BUSINESSES ARE CLOSED AND MOST OF THE MUSEUMS. THE TOURIST SITES THAT ARE OPEN ARE VERY BUSY EG. THE COLISEUM AND THE PLALANTINE HILL. THERE IS A VERY LARGE, FREE CONCERT IN ON OF THE PIAZZAS THAT 1000,S ARE ATTENDING, SO THE OTHER SPOTS ARE NOT QUITE AS CROWDED AS THEY MIGHT BE OTHERWISE. TODAY WE MADE OUR SECOND VISIT TO THE COLISEUM AND THE PALANTINE, AND WENT ON A GUIDED TOUR OF BOTH. THE TOURS WERE QUITE GOOD. WE WENT IN REVERSE ORDER TO LAST TIME, AND VISITED THE COLISEUM FIRST AND THEN THE PALANTINE.
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" I KNOW THAT MOUTH OF TRUTH IS AROUND HERE SOMEWHERE" WHATEVER YOU DO, DON'T LET ANDREW LOOK TO HIS LEFT.
"AND AT THAT MOMENT THE SKIES OVER ROME DARKENED..."
LUNCH AT SORRENTO
OUR DRIVER AND GUIDE, VINCENZO MARRAFFINI
MOUNT VESUVIUS
GENNARO, OUR GUIDE AT POMPEII
IS IT ME OR ...? 
THESE BOOTS ARE NOT MADE FOR CLIMBING
YOU MIGHT HAPPEN UPON A MIGHTY 
ANCIENT ROMAN VISITORS
THE FIRE BRIGADE'S FINEST HOUR - EXCEPT
DIANNE, MEREDITH AND ANDREW - BREAKFAST
SWORD FISH FOR LUNCH ANYONE?
THE NEWS STAND
