Dad had given mom a trip to Italy for Christmas and we
thought coming at the end of my semester made the most sense. So she and cousin Maggie came on Good
Friday. I met them in Rome at the Hilton
hotel by the airport. I found them getting ready to take naps. No people you
can’t take a tap; we’ve got places to go, things to see, and pizza to eat! So
we rallied and headed to the city center and wandered around. Now most people
have never been to Rome in their lives or have gone once, but this was my fourth
time in 3 months. Rome is a cool city don’t get me wrong, but I didn’t quite
have the curiosity or excitement that I had during my first visit. The pope held Stations of the Cross at dark
at the Colosseum and that was just awe inspiring. We only stayed for a little bit because we
were exhausted. Saturday I had eggs for
breakfast paired with a nutella croissant of course, but people I got scrambled
eggs after several months. Yippy! We toured Rome some more and went to the
Vatican. What a pretty place it is. There are two simple requests when in the
Sistine Chapel-no photos and no talking. People just love to find ways to do
both. You know those people who try and sneak their phones up their sleeves to
get a picture. It’s so much more beautiful in there when it’s silent and people
can follow two simple requests. We had
to get gelato before we got on the bus back to the hotel and thought we’d
indulge on the bus, but the bus driver had another idea for us-throw it away!
No sir we can’t just throw good gelato away, we’ll scarf it down in two minutes
instead. Sunday, Easter, one of my
favorite holidays. We were up before 5am to head to the Vatican. We dressed in
our Easter dresses and headed through the parking lots, over barriers, dodging
cars and made it to the bus. We arrived
outside the St. Peter’s Square gates at 7:15 and they opened at 8. Imagine day after Thanksgiving shopping, but
times 10 worse and people speaking just about every language imaginable. When
the gates opened you are forced to push them, hug them, dance on them to
survive. My hands couldn’t even go down
to my sides. But we made it, and found
seats. You are supposed to fax in a letter to the Vatican office 2-6 months
before the service to get tickets to special masses. It’s not completely
necessary though as lots of people who came early enough got seats. We were to
the right of the stage only 15 rows back.
There were over 150,000 people in the square all the way back to the
river. It was a perfect day with not a
cloud in the sky. On my life list has
been to attend Easter or Christmas mass at the Vatican and it did not
disappoint my hopes. Papa Francesco is so loved all around the world and it was
evident in the crowd with different nationalities represented and many young
people in attendance. Ah it was just perfect. An experience of a lifetime. Being there and actually understanding some
of what Papa Francesco was saying and seeing him wave around in his convertible
pope mobile was awesome. We wandered around Rome the rest of the afternoon as
did about 2 million other people. It wasn’t quite like my first trip there in
January where you didn’t have to wait in line for things.
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| Easter mass at the Vatican |
If you’re going to go to Rome, or Italy for
that matter go November-February even though you won’t have great weather. It’s
worth it! Monday we rented a little Fiat Punto and headed out to the
hills. I was impressed with mom’s
driving; navigating through crazy aggressive drivers, bicyclists and whatever
else may be on the road. We went to the city of Viterbo which looked like a
little Italian ghost town. The day after Easter is a holiday in Italy and we
probably didn’t see more than 100 people in town. We enjoyed a delicious lunch
of lasagna with at least a pound of cheese and some sort of red vegetable. And chocolate cake for dessert of
course. Maggie headed back to Rome to
continue her trip to Greece and mom and I continued to Siena. The drive was beautiful around a huge lake.
We stopped in Siena and wandered for a while. I can see why my friends loved
studying abroad there. We then continued
to Florence back to my pensione to pick up my luggage.
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| mom's experience at Gusta Pizza |
We ended up spending the
night there because our Air B&B place didn’t come through. I’ll never forget that smell of cat pee as
you walk in the building. Tuesday was
spent touring Florence-seeing David, my school, getting mom’s daily cappuccino,
walking up Piazza Michealangelo, eating gelato twice, Pitti Palace, Boboli
Gardens, the leather market and one last trip to Gusta Pizza. I think that was at
least my eighth trip there and it’s definitely a must eat in Florence. Again Florence was crowded but it was nice to
run through the city one last time. We
headed off toward Padova in our little Punto.
After a few missed turns (because who needs a real paper map when you
have a couple of pictures and your own brain) we finally made it to our hotel
in Padova just after 1am. Wednesday we
headed to Venice. Think of what you picture Venice to be. Maybe it’s only what
you’ve seen at the Venetian in Vegas or maybe you’ve seen glorious photographs.
After a day spent wandering around the canals a and islands of Venice I can say
that looking at those glorious photographs is better than a visit. Our experience was walking around graffitied
streets with tons of people. Just when we thought we’d seen it all we turn
around and there’s a massive cruise ship coming into port. We spent some time
at the island of Murano, famous for glass blowing, to watch a demonstration and
consequently buy some glass. If you’re
looking for that romantic gondola ride make sure you bring 80Euro and you don’t
mind your 25 minutes being spent along side motorboats.
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| Portofino |
Thursday was a pleasant drive to Lake Garda spending time
lounging by the lake with fresh OJ and a croissant. The lake is a beautiful mix a beautiful
Mediterranean hue and snow capped peaks in the background. We then continued on to Portofino on the
coast for dinner. Such a beautiful town
and definitely worth the visit. After
taking a dirt, one-way road we made it to our hostel. Yes, mom stayed in her third hostel in a year
at the age of 52. Pretty cool right? It
was an awesome place that looked like a home from Lord of the Rings. The stars were brilliant and we enjoyed
catching up with world travelers. Friday
we set out to hike the five villages of Cinque Terre. The coastal trail was closed and probably
will be for another year. Mom was a little anxious that we hadn’t planned much
but quickly learned, yet again, that most times when you try to plan something
in Italy it just doesn’t go the way you thought it would. We took the ferry to Riomaggiore and began
our trek up stone stairs, along the highway and down through forests. We stopped in Corniglia, my favorite of the
towns, for a pesto lasagna lunch. The
popular town of Vernazza was definitely popular that day. We were amazed at the
crowds. The last leg to Monterosso was
along the coastal trail that was another but a walk in the park. Overall the hike was beautiful. I’d suggest
going during the week in the off season, sometime after the trail opens next
year. Find out which town is your
favorite. Gelato was our reward in
Monterosso before we began the three hour drive to Turino. Upon arrival in Turino we didn’t have a hotel
so we drove around for a while before finding one. Saturday we explored the
2006 Olympic city of Turino nestled at the base of the alps. Beautiful city as
was the little town of Susa. Ahhh Susa I
could live there. After fueling up on
cheese bread, apples and chocolate we headed to George Clooney’s home. Okay not
actually his home, but Lake Como where he does have a house. Lake Como is stunning right along the
Switzerland boarder. Nice and peaceful watching float planes take off and
couples enjoy strolls along the shore.
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| Riomaggiore |
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| Turino |
This is the second
time I’ve gotten to take a trip with just one of my parents. When I was 16 dad
and I went to Ireland for 9 days and drove around the Emerald Isle. Pretty cool
to be able to travel like that; to live on the road in a foreign country and to
be with your mom or dad. My warning to anyone driving in Italy-be ready to pay
lots of tolls and practice your aggressive and defensive driving. Go to Italy
in the off season if you can or find little towns away from all the crowds,
unless you’re into that sort of thing. Rent a car and let your mind and body
wander. Stay in hostel, talk to a stranger and try a new food!
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| thanks for coming momma |
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