Kelly Around the World: September 2010

Roaming around Rome...

"We travel, some of us forever, to seek other places, other lives, other souls."

The train to Rome was about four hours so we got in in the early evening, but still wanted to make the best of it so we did a night tour with Rome(ing) Tours that was being offered through our hostel. It stated at 9 and lasted about two hours. We saw the Piazza Republica, Piazza Barberini, Triton fountain, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, and Piazza Navona---I know, it was a lot!! It was cool to just walk around and have someone explain in understandable English what everything was. We had a really cool American tour guide who started this tour company with a friend. We ended up taking three tours when them while we were in Rome and they were all SO worth it! The next day we did some sight seeing of our own until 3 o'clock. We wanted to see the Trevi fountain in the day ("It's so much cooler than the one in Vegas"-Haley). We took a tour in the late afternoon where we saw the Colosseum, Pantheon, Circus Maximus, Mouth of Truth (where at least three-hundred Asians were lined up to stick their hands into the mouth of truth and get a picture; it was pretty funny) The Jewish Ghetto, the Roman Forum, and Trajan's Column. It lasted about 5 hours and by the end we were pooped!!! So much information, and SO much walking!! We went out to dinner at a place near out hostel and were very disappointed in the food (sadly, the food in Rome was nothing like Florence), but the atmosphere and service were great. We even got a complementary bruccetta since we were single!! haha Those Italian men! Although we wanted to hit the town and see what Rome's nightlife was all about, we were WAY to exhausted and called it an early night once again!! All this sightseeing is SO tiring! So the next day, my last in Rome :( we did yet another tour!! We went to St. Peters Bacilica, The Vatican, the Sistine Chapel, and the Cupola........out of time!

Florence, Italy

We ditched the rain in Pisa and got on a train to Florence. We arrived in the afternoon and were anxious to get settled in out hotel. After checking in and spending some time on the internet, we decided to walk around and find a place to have an early dinner. We went to Trattoria Nerone Pizzeria because it was relatively near by, and recommended by the guy at the front desk of where we were staying. IT WAS AMAZING!!! We sat out on their cute little patio with candles and flowers all around. This was without a doubt my BEST meal of the trip. Haley and I split spinach ravioli and gnocci. YUMMMM. After a looong dinner and two bottles of wine, we decided to pass on dessert (...for now), and hit the streets of Florence. We found a big square with tons of people walking around and lots of entertainment, so we got some gelato :) and people watched. We walked up and down so many streets we actually got turned around and had to pull out a map to find our way back. We got to bed early because we knew we had a lot planned for the next day! We got up early to catch the big bus tour which had a stop about 5 minutes away from where we were staying. We went into the first bakery we saw to grab breakfast- I got a chocolate and orange biscotti that looked more like a scone, OMG it was so good!! and HUGE. We got on the bus and headed to our first stop Piazzale Michelangelo which had a spectacular view of the city as well as the bronze 'David' statue. It was quite a sight. We hung out there for a little while, got some gelato (for lunch?) and did some souvenir shopping. After getting back on the bus we got a tour of tuscany, it was SO beautiful. Although it was FREEZING on the top of the bus, Haley and I cuddled up and stuck it out for the amazing view of the vineyards. We next got off at the Ponte Vecchio, a bridge over the Arno River filled with jewelry shops. It was pretty cool to window shop and see all the beautiful things! Our next stop was the Palazzo Pitti (we found out was the square we came across the first night) I couldn't believe how beautiful and intricate it was in the day light- it was quite a sight. After the tour, we were starrrrving and we went out for another fabulous meal. The next day we wanted to go to see Michelangelo's David at the Galleria dell'Accademia. We waited at least an hour in line until we finally got in and saw him. It was just like I had imagined it; I couldn't believe how big it was though-WOW! After leaving the museum we went for lunch at Nerone!!! We couldn't resist, we had to go back before we left. After we hopped on the train to Rome!! I was definitely a little sad to say goodbye to Florence (& the food), but couldn't wait for Rome!

the bronze "David"

the real David in the Accademia museum...note my very discrete photo taking skills!

leather market

@ our favorite restaurant Nerone

some delicious biscotti!!!

"gelato thighs & pasta bellies"

"Life is a combination of magic and pasta." - Federico Fellini

I was in a seven day food coma in Italy....!!

2 gelatos a day

pasta, pasta, pasta

delizioso!!!

Le Cinque Terre

“You may have the universe if I may have Italy ” - Giuseppe Verdi

for those of you who don't know

le cinque terre

are 5 small beach towns

which you can walk to one by one

totaling 8 miles long & est. 3-5 hrs walk

We took a train from Pisa to Riomaggiore (one of the 5 towns in Cinque Terre). When we arrived we went up to the office of the place we were staying and met this little old Italian man who then led us up a alley of rock stairs that were all different heights and widths and winded all the way up at least 100 steps to our little apartment. We were EXHAUSTED from carrying our backpacks up that far, then when I walked in the apartment there was a sign on the wall that said "Please be quite after 11pm, older couple lives above!" I couldn't believe I was tired from the stairs and there were older people who had to go farther up the hill!!

So we put our things down, changed into our swimsuits, and headed to the beach! Riomaggiore is the first of the 5 towns and is a tiny fishing village. We walked down to the water which was lined in restaurants, gelato places, and tiny family owned shops. We walked around the cliff of the town and got to the beach! The water was absolutely perfect!!! We swam for awhile before we walked to the next town.

The 2nd town is called Manarola and its about a 20 minute walk from where we were. The walk is called Via dell' Amore and is the "lovers walk". It was so beautiful, there were THOUSANDS of locks along the trail that couples bring and lock somewhere and throw away the key as a symbol for eternal love. aww! There were also lots of paintings/graffiti at one point of the trail with symbols of love. Manarola was so pretty and seemed to be a little bit more lively than Riomaggiore (as far as tourists). We stayed for about 30 minutes, walked around and looked at the views until we headed for the next town, Corniglia ( about a 40 minute walk) . Corniglia, I'm guessing, is the smallest of the 5. It was basically vacant with very few shops, and mostly housing. We went into a wine/deli shop and picked up some things to have a picnic dinner (olives, a baguette, pesto, salami, 2 local cheeses, and a bottle of wine). We found a gorgeous spot and parked ourselves on the stairs overlooking the Mediterranean for about an hour or so. :)

We weren't able to go to the next town because it had rained the day before so the trail was closed due to mud slides. We decided to take the train back to Riomaggiore. The train is included in the Cinque Terre pass we bought to walk to trails, and can be taken to and from everytown. Once we got back we bought a bottle of wine and sat by the water and people watched before bed.

The next day we were leaving for Florence, but couldn't go without making it to the 5th town, Monteroso (the beach town) so instead of walking for 3-5 hours we took the train and were there in less than 5 minutes. Monteroso was PACKED! There were multiple beaches and lots of hotels along the strip. We found ourselves a nice spot on the beach for a bit until we could see a storm heading. We beat the rain and went back to pack up and we were off to Florence!