On the Road Again

Today we woke and got on the road, well almost, first we had to pick-up our car. Kristen ordered a Ford car that fit 6 people. As we walked to the Hurtz location, Aunt Karen, Mom, and Dad road in a taxi with our bags. The driver was none to pleased that we had 6 huge bags, but oh well, he survived. Once we got to the car rental place, they brought us our car.....er.....bus.....the nickname Traveling Wilbury's never seemed more appropriate.

We loaded up the 9 passenger minibus with bags and Wilbury's and were on our way out of Florence and into the streets of Tuscany. Nyle, our fearless driver, handled the streets well and got us to the Autostrade where his race car driving skills really came in handy-I'm not kidding. He had that minibus humming along at a good clip. I don't think Sheila's hand left the handle above her head and Aunt Karen kept reminding, "This had a much higher center of gravity." Alas, we made it to Montepulciano, a magnificent town.

Our host, Nico, at Sant'Antonio is fabulous. He was born/raised in Kenya, went to university in England and owns/runs a villa and several apartments in Montepulciano. Let's just say Nico is going alright for himself.

He is so gracious and helped get the Wilbury's and the minibus to town and parked. After that he took us to the apartment and sat and chatted for quite some time about traveling and such.

We then took naps and ventured out for wine/prosecco tasting in the streets.

Once we got out there and bought our glass, I was like, "This is just like Beer Fest in Decatur, Georgia, which I experienced back in October. Obviously a bit different feel, Italy over Georgia, but both so fun. We meandered and just had the best time tasting different wines and proseccos. My family has never had prosecco, which we drink all the time in Chicago. I've been thinking about of my lovely Amanda--a huge fan of the prosecco!!! Eventually making it to dinner, we sat and ate while others sat in the main piazza and watched the World cup on the big screen.

 A band even came through the streets.

Sheila brought an arsenal of fans to Italy. I told her it would be warm and she runs about 10-15 degrees warmer than the average human anyway, so she took note and brought personal fans. In Rome, at the Colosseum, she broke out the fan/bottle with a mister. It was classic. We laughed, but Aunt Karen has requested it since. Most often she has used her personal dollar store fan to keep cool. But tonight, I'm using her bedside personal fan.  My room in this apartment in Tuscany is on the wrong side of the building. They are getting a wonderful breeze in their room, so Sheila said, "Take this fan" and I did and wow, I'm not saying another word about the fans.  I have to say, kinda glad for the fan!

All in all, it has been quite a trip. I leave in one day to meet up with Miss Lesley Weber in Paris for Bastille day, so I will savor my time in Italy with my wonderful family!!

P.S. Check out my new blue suede shoes!

The Magic of Florence

Where do I start? Florence, Italy is one of the greatest cities around. You walk one step in any direction and there is art. It is an open air art museum. The Traveling Wilbury's had a great time. My father's first words were, "Why are we here?" He meant, "What are we going to see?" much like the Colosseum in Rome, he wondered what sights? Three days later he said, "I really like Florence." What I gather is that he got it. There are sights, but more, Florence is just in and of itself, amazing.

The vibe on the street; the energy is alive. It is a big city, but not massive like Rome, so it is walkable and manageable. The Michelangelo's David is a sight to see and it is so impressive. I didn't go to see him again, but my family went. Minus Aunt Karen, they didn't know what to expect. I just told them they had to see him. They were all blown away.

We spent a lot of time viewing the Duomo, another impressive sight. Did you know that it was created BEFORE Columbus "sailed the ocean blue?" Now that is old. I climbed the 414 steps of the campnile(bell tower)to get some shots of the Duomo.

 Over 150 years, and way before Columbus, the Duomo was build with no assisted structure around it.

Campanile

In Italy I'm most impressed by the age of the buildings. These are over 2000 years old whereas one of our most iconic buildings in America, the White House, is only over 200 years old. WOW! Needless to say, the Wilbury's enjoyed Florence, as did I, ten times more than I did 11 years ago.

Other favorites:
The Ponte Vecchio-the only bridge in Florence not bombed by Hitler during WWII.

A beautiful sight

Eating a panini on the street

Scenes like this

So hot you could fry an egg

 The energy on the street

 Gino and Gino on a Sunday morning stroll

Besides the sights, we did a lot of gelato tasting, market shopping, and meandering in the piazzas. I bought a couple of scarves and my prized possession, blue suede shoes!!! Tommy bought shoes too and Kristen as well, with a purse tossed in there. Aunt Karen battled the heat of the market to walk away with some scarves and shoes too. I think Sheila walked away with no less than 3 purses. I'm not THAT close to the female mentality to understand the draw of a purse, but shoes....now shoes I get.

Overall, I think Florence was a great part of our trip. We had a couple of great meals, one at Osteria where the waiter/son, loved Madonna(Parents made the food)and her picture was all over.  This place only had about 6 tables.

We also randomly found a bar that played some of the World Cup and had good food. The atmosphere was enjoyable. The city is alive!!

Florence, I'll miss you.  Ciao!

This and That in Italy

When I encounter people along my journeys, I often stop and wonder, Who Do These People Associate with? As my mother would say, “Doesn’t he have a wife?”  I counter that with, “Or friends, or really anyone who will help him out?”  In Rome I found the man who should be in the Guinness Book for “Longest Ear Hair.” 

 Look closely, just above the collar.

Bruchetta in Positano was simply sinful.  Just look at it?  Fresh tomatoes, basil, and olive oil-forget about it.

 SO good!

Good use of a bidet?  Cleaning clothes.

I happened upon a statue of my friend Courtney’s Great Great Great Great Grandpa Giovani Genovese.

 At Boboli Gardens in Florence

Boy bars in Florence are an underground operation.  I think they are hidden behind the façade of a gelateria or something.  I can’t find them and I have 3 addresses!

Aunt Karen is like a museum siren in Italy.  First, she skipped the line and walked up to a guard at the Vatican and he waved my family in.  Then at the Academia Museum (The David) in Florence she got everyone in and then headed to the Uffitzi and skipped the line and walked right in.  I tell you, some things come with experience and age.

It is quite fun to watch the dudes selling illegal stuff get chased by the cops in Florence.  They have signs that say it is illegal and the patron can be fined too.

  This dude setup shop RIGHT in front of the sign.  That takes balls.

Now that is a nice ass!

I hope rubbing this boar's nose brings me good luck, as they say!

Florence-Oh How I Have Missed You!

We left Positano yesterday afternoon.  Our original ticket was for 11a.m. but we wanted to stay longer at our hotel Villa Rosa so we changed our reservation online the night before.  After our InnerCity train experience, we went for the nice, fast train.  When we got to the station we tried to print our ticket but nothing would print.  Off to the information stand we went.  There the guy told us that we were fine even though we didn't have a ticket.  I didn't believe him, but who am I?  Off to the train.  We got stopped for our ticket.  I showed the girl and she said we needed to go back to the ticket office.  At this point we would have missed our train.  After talking to two gentlemen, who told her it was fine, we were on the train and off to Florence.

The view from one of our rooms.

We ventured out for dinner and found the place we wanted, with only about 3 tables.  They couldn't seat us so we made a reservation for tonight and went on our way.  We ended up at a place and had the best time.  We met a Canadian woman and son(totally a friend of Dorothy)and chatted with them for quite some time.  After a good dinner and even better limoncello, we had the waitress bring us her favorite after dinner drink.  It was like gasoline, but had a bit of good flavor.  While we were there Spain beat Germany and the streets were full of Spaniards with flags singing their national anthem.  It was great to witness.  Then we headed to the Duomo so people could see it for the first time.

Duomo @ night

On our way back to the hotel Kristen, my cousin, said, "Where's Mom?"  We looked back and found Aunt Karen trying to buy a watch or something.  If we don't keep our eye on her she wanders. 

I haven't really written about my accommodations on the trip yet.  The first two locations, Rome and Positano, I have been roomies with Aunt Karen.  Besides what seemed like some late night teachings of Italian jibberish, it has been great.  In Positano they served us breakfast on our balcony/patio overlooking the ocean and town.  It was really heaven.  Now we are in Florence, right in the center of town and I'm sharing the honeymoon suite with my parents-it's lovely.  The bed is on the firmer side of hard as a rock but I'm in Florence so life could be worse.  Mom has her breathing machine and Dad is sufficiently passed out from the limoncello, so I think I'll try to get some rest too.

Ciao!

The Best of Positano

We are getting ready to leave Positano for Florence this morning.  One last breakfast on the patio-delicious and the view is even better.  Positano has been glorious.  The beach had a lot more candy for me to view yesterday-thankfully-and it has just been relaxing.  Here are a few of my favorite pics.

Purple Buganvilia everywhere.

Pizza and Coke Zero on the beach-life is good!

One funny story is that Sheila(my mother)was trying to order something at a counter.  She asked so many questions that the guy gave her a wave away and said, "Too confusing" and waited on another customer.  It was bound to happen.  "No soup for you!"

Goodbye Positano.  It was nice to have met!

Where Have All the Hotties Gone?

It has been gorgeous at Positano.  I we woke up yesterday, our first morning here and had breakfast.  They deliver it and we ate on our patio.

Do you like my farmer's tan?


Then I ventured down to the beach where I was hoping to find lots of European hotties.  Alas, I found nothing.  Nada.  Zilch.  ZERO!  Remember the '90s song, "Where Have All the Hotties Gone?", er, cowboys?  Well, they aren't here.  I was hoping for hot men in speedos and all I found were old, fat men in speedos.  Sheesh, I wasn't even being picky.  I would have taken a hot woman in a bikini for all I cared.  I just wanted to see hotness.  All I found were women in bikinis who SHOULD NOT be in them.  But then I thought, well good for them for not caring what people think, and then I shielded my eyes.  MY EYES MY EYES!

The rest of the day I spent listening to my iPod and eavesdropping on the people around me.  A couple in front of me was from Canada.  Then a couple from Alabama sat down next to them.  I'll sum up what ensued.  Canadian couple likes to drink.  They told the Alabama couple all the things to do by Positano.  Then they continued to drink.  After about 6 cocktails the Canadian girl started to get loud and talk about how awesome Miller Chill is, "Only 64 calories!" with a rock of the fist in the air.  Perhaps she should be drinking more of the 64 calorie Chills than the high calorie fruity drink she had in her hand.  Just saying....her boyfriend then started in with, "I make 6 figures plus.  You guys must be doing pretty well too.  Poor people don't vacation in Positano."  I can only imagine the reactions on Alabama's face, who seemed to be classy Southerners.  After more drinks, Canada started to share that he and his girlfriend have been "rock stars" in bed this trip, having sex more than 20 times-at least."  Then female Canada chimed in with a huge smile, "I'm sore."  My assessment of the situation, Canada has a small penis.

The rest has been very chill around here.  I'm just sitting on my patio trying to keep an internet connection long enough to update.

"It's the best."

After a long sleep following the previous night's adventure, we did our own thing on Saturday.  The family went to the Vatican and Sistine Capel.  I went back to the Pantheon to find the best gelato EVER!  I drew a picture in my journal from 1999 and found the place.  It has a different name but the same woman is there and the gelato is just as I remember-the BEST EVER!  I also hit up Piazza Navona.  Then I ventured to the Jewish Ghetto, seemed a lot like Brooklyn to me, and the Trastevere across the Tiber River.  It was HOT on Saturday.  Like, I was soaking wet.  When I got back to the hotel the family was there and they loved the Vatican, especially St. Peter's.  The lines are usually really long but apparently Aunt Karen was able to woo the guard, cut the line and bring the family along.  They didn't wait a second to get into the place.  We pretty much had dinner after that and packed up for our trip to Positano.

The train ride to Naples was quite an experience.  When we got on the train we entered the wrong door so we had to make it all the way back down to the end of the car.  There was a cluster of people speaking all different languages(one of my favorite parts of traveling)so we had to communicate the best we could.  We stood and stood and stood waiting for people to figure it out.  The way it works is most people, including us, buy a ticket and get reserved seats.  However, many times if you have a rail pass you don't have an assigned seat.  So people with no seat were in other people's seats.  That was the confusion.  After, I would say, 20 minutes and kicking two guys out of our seats, we were ready to go.  Sitting next to Kris was Francesco, a young Italian cutie pie. 
I took a picture on my small camera but don't have the proper cord to upload those photos.  He immediately took out a Rubix Cube, held it in front of us and said, "What?"  Kris took it and started playing with it.  Francesco spoke no English so she just had to show him. It was back and forth between them trying to figure it out, but then we had to get off the train.

When we arrived in Naples our drivers, Joseph, another Italian cutie, and Gui-something, I preferred to call him Tony Soprano, pulled up in their Mercedes to take us to Positano.  They were both super nice.  After a stop off at a fruit stand, we arrived at Villa Rosa.


100 steps later, we arrived to the room.  It wasn't without complaints from the Wilbury's, but the view is simply AMAZING from our room.  We are on the top floor, well because, "It's the best," right Vivian Ward?  Right!

The view from our room/patio.

*We have been here a couple of days but the internet is slow so I have been unable to update.