Thursday, September 19, 2013

Rome, not so bad after all

9/19/13 10:32 pm
We spent some time in the hotel room searching for the best pizza in Rome that was within a reasonable distance. We walked over near the Colliseum which took about a half an hour and found Li Rioni. As the Guardian reviewer claimed, the pizza was cracker thin and fantastic. Simple fare at a very reasonable price. When we sat down, there were only tourists as far as we could tell, but later into the evening the Italians started showing up (with their dogs), also noted by the reviewer. It was definitely off the beaten path and you would have had to know it was there because the whole building was obscured by restoration scaffolding. We had a pleasant meal and some fabulous tiramisu.
Afterward we wandered over to the Colliseum and took a few night photos. Everything is so much more grand in scale than I remember it. We have planned out some destinations for tomorrow including the Pantheon (top of my list; 1st century dome), gelato, Coliseum, The Forum, gelato, gelato, Market, gelato. We might stop for gelato at some point too.
Kevin is cooling off in the shower and I'm trying desperately not to scratch my mosquito bites! All is good, check back tomorrow!

In Rome

9/19/13 4:10pm

We've arrived in Rome and I can't say we're all that excited to be here. We have had nothing but trouble from large cities in Italy. I'm hoping this one is the exception. At the very least we found our "b&b" without too much trouble and they provided a fan! Hoping to avoid more mosquito bites. Yesterday afternoon we had a lovely lunch in an outdoor courtyard only to find 15-20 new bites each after we left! Wish I'd packed some Benadryl. Live and learn I suppose.
I'd like to take some pictures of the markets and fountains, maybe the Colliseum. And we hope to hit at least 3 famous gelaterias. That's all for the agenda. I am not looking forward to watching out for pickpockets and scammers. Hard to walk around with a camera and not look like a target. Maybe I'm just sad it's all coming to an end. We both want to see more of France in the future. Italy has been fun and I don't regret a day (even Florence was saved by Osteria L'Brincello) but the people of France were much more welcoming than Italy. Perhaps it has something to do with the austerity measures and the state of their relative economies. The French never once ripped us off or tried, but the Italians know how to do it and don't think twice. I don't speak for everyone, but get charged 5euro for a 2.50euro slice of focaccia pizza more than once and you start to get irritated. Well, that's my rant for now. We're off to go get charged tourist prices once more on a grand Roman scale! Ciao!

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Pienza & Montecchiello

9/17/13 8:33pm

We slept in today. Well deserved and needed. I think we're going to need a vacation from our vacation when we get back! Ha ha ha.

In Pienza you pay for parking from 8am to 10pm. Crazy, right?! We stayed for two hours. We stopped into a shop selling fresh meats, giant wheels of local cheese, olive oil and dried pasta from the region. We bought some Pecorino di Pienza Stagionato, sliced it up in the nearby park and added it to our baguette of mixed meats (prosciutto, Stagionato, pancetta, lobo, coopa and salame to be exact). What a fantastic sandwich. We had some fresh green olives (oh how I've fallen in love with green olives!) and mini datterino tomatoes on the side.
Tonight Kevin has cooked us a feast!

Quiet Tuscany

We are so glad to have arrived in Tuscany. We had a bit of a rough night last night after a misunderstanding in Florence. I'll spare the details now but I'm sure you can ask us later. The visit wasn't a complete loss, however, since we found a great restaurant. We ate waaaaay too much and ended the night with a shot of limoncello with the chef! It was a really fun experience with great local food and a very lively staff.
Because we were so full and the rains had died down, we decided to make a trek across the city to take a panoramic photo of the city at night. It was beautiful.
We are so glad to wake up to our own quiet escape in Tuscany. If you make this trip, just skip the big cities and go straight to the countryside! Yes, the Duomo is Impressive but you'll not regret skipping the crowds, dirt and noise of the big city. Go straight for the peace and quiet. :)

The pics are of our farmhouse studio and Leo, the mostly deaf, very sweet 12 year old watchdog.

Sunday, September 15, 2013

Firenze

It's an unfortunate reality when you're thankful you only have planned a single day in a location. That's how we're feeling about Florence. There are SO MANY PEOPLE here. It's nuts. You can barely walk through the streets it's so crowded.
We stumbled across to the other side of town in hopes of escaping the crowds. We found an Irish Bar called the Gate Pub and have been using their free wifi to look up a restaurant and photo vantage point for the evening. It just started raining again too. We're headed to San Miniato Al Monte cemetery for a panoramic view of the city and then to Pizzeria Tarrocchi.
Here's a picture of us from Ponte Vecchio.

Friday, September 13, 2013

Napping

I tried to look up the Italian word for "nap", but all I found was "nappy" and "nappy rash". I don't even know what those mean in English let alone need an Italian translation. Thanks for nothing Lonely Planet!
So, what I was going to say is that Kein is taking a short nap after our gigantic lunch and very long stroll around Lucca's city walls this morning. Less walls than an elevated park, many people, Luccans and tourists alike, use the circular promenade as a place to ride bikes, run, walk or walk Fido.
It's hard not to fall in love with Lucca. Around every corner is a charming piazza with breathtaking architecture or inviting side streets with hidden lunch spots. There are tourists here, but it does not feel crowded. The pace is much slower than many other towns we've visited so far. Lots of tourist destinations feel like the locals can't wait for you to leave, but here, they don't seem to mind as much, getting on as they otherwise would, enjoying exactly the things you are also enjoying about their beloved city.

In Lucca, it's all about the food

9/13/13 4:00pm
We just returned from our second grand lunch in Lucca. We looked up a few places on TripAdvisor and found a cute little spot next to the Camera de Commerce. The fixed price menu for 15 Euro had a number of 1st and 2nc course options. Kevin and I both chose the Tortelli Luccanese which consisted of a meat filled 1/2 ravioli type pasta with a bolognese meat sauce and polenta ragu with sautéed mushrooms. We thought the second course would be small but it was huge! With it we had a delicious vino rosso della casa. The two servers were very nice and funny also. There was an obnoxious group of Texan ladies that just got louder the more wine they drank. We, along with the server, who unlike them knew the difference between Spanish and Italian, couldn't wait for them to leave. When he came by and asked if we were German, we smiled and had to reply no. I was embarrassed to say that we were also American. We managed to get out a couple of compliments in Italian which helped. I think people here are just delighted when you try to speak their language. Probably because most tourists are too lazy or regrettably, arrogant to try.

La Spezia to Lucca

9/12/13 8:50pm
We awoke this morning in La Spezia to sunny blue skies. Go figure. We headed straight to the station to catch our 9:19 train to Viareggio. It was late by about 15 min, which turned out ok since our next train to Lucca was late by 30. Trains in Italy, as I seem to remember from my last trip, don't usually run on time unless you're traveling between large metropolitan cities.
We arrived in Lucca shortly after 11 and checked into our hotel early. The staff here is so nice! Above and beyond. We received recommendations for places to eat and an outlined route map of tomorrow's Luminaria processional. I'm fuzzy on the details, but it's a Catholic candle processional from one church to the next with representatives from all the surrounding provincial churches participating. There were men in the streets this afternoon placing candles along the doorways and windows all over the city. It should be quite a sight. We staked out a place to stand and take pictures. For lunch we stopped into one of the Trattoria that was recommended to us. For 16 euro we chose the Menu Fossi (fixed price) which included a large plate of spaghetti, veal & potatoes (when in Rome...), wine, water and espresso strong enough to knock you into tomorrow. Well, that's what we thought at the time anyway; it was very strong. Turns out after we had walked for another few hours around the city and had some top notch gelato, we were ready for a nap. This is where the story picks up. We were so tired we slept till 8 and since we are so full, decided to just turn in early. Tomorrow night will be a late one. Did I mention at 11 there are fireworks?!?!

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

To Lucca

9/12/13 8:32 am
We leave for Lucca this morning, but not without some Italian breakfast.

And a couple more pics from yesterday. Most amazing gelato ever. Blackberry and pistachio. Wow.

Rain, Mosquitos, agnolini, Manarola and Riomaggiore

9/11/13 - 9:21pm We awoke this morning to pouring rain and two more mosquito bites. Thought we got all of those buggers, but the hunt continues. Francesca, our apartment host, did manage to get the neighbor to turn off her clock so sleep was much more easily achieved. Thanks Francesca!!!
So instead of heading to Manarola to climb a thousand steps up a steep slope toward Volastra, (pouring rain+slope=potential landslide) we headed to the market! Kevin graciously offered to make dinner (which he is doing currently). We stopped at what appeared to be a food truck that had a large display of cheeses, meats and pasta. I quickly looked up the translations of some of the pastas and ran across this description: agnolini - round pasta stuffed with stewed beef, eggs, cheese & other ingredients. Winner! I started off by saying "non parlo Italiano", which received a smile. I continued to say agnolini - une cena-due personnes- which roughly translates to "agnolini for one dinner two people". She understood perfectly. Success! We also got some pancetta and fontina cheese for the sauce.
We continued using this method to but bread and pastries for the morning. I think being upfront about not speaking the language helps people understand to use hand gestures instead of words. It's working so far! France was easier since I could at least have a low level conversation. Here i feel just as lost as anyone else (ie: all of the Australians, Germans, French and Asians we keep seeing) in a foreign place. But it's fun when people respond so kindly and want to help. By the time we made it home from shopping we had both stepped in an enormous amount of water flowing through the gutter and were soaked up to our calves. We pretty much stripped down our wet clothes, made some espresso and watched Italian TV while the clouds dumped water on La Spezia. At this point we had completely written off any visit to the Cinque Terre today.
Around 4:30 though, the clouds separated and the rain let up. We decided to head out and chance it. After all, we had eaten and were well rested and had everything ready for dinner. We got off the train in Manarola and walked to the top of the hill where the church was. Took a few pictures and ventured onto a terraced hillside path. This venture proved to be quite rewarding. Around the outside of the hill toward the Med was a most incredible view with wine vineyard in the foreground and the city of Manarola in the background hanging quite comfortably off the seaside cliffs. It was an amazing sight indeed. The sun began to set so we planned to catch the next train to Riomaggiore and see what kind of night pictures we could get. The viewpoints of Manarola were definately bettter, but we had a nice time walking along the rocks to get a night shot or two.

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Vernazza

We set out this morning -Tuesday I think, I'm losing track- for the Cinque Terre and were greeted at the train station by a long line of tourists at the information booth. Luckily the women working there were both friendly and efficient so the line moved quickly! We bought each a two day national park and unlimited use train pass for total 46 euros. Not sure of individual tickets would have been cheaper but the pass simplified things immensely.
We met a nice Australian couple on the train who recommended a hiking route which we will try tomorrow. Today we trained to Monterosso al Mare, the north end of the five lands, and quickly found some street food. We had these wonderful focaccia/quesadilla type things with tomatoes, green olives and cheese. Simply delicious. Good fuel too for the strenuous part of our hike toward Vernazza.
The hike was pretty difficult at first, but leveled out. We walked on narrow hillside pathways along the Mediterranean coast with grape vines in our foreground and crystal clear turquoise water with little villages carved out of the cliffs in the background. Sound nice? It was fabulous. :)
I wish I had better pictures but for now the iPhone will have to suffice. At one of the lookouts I made use of my joby again and took another set of photos for HDR processing. I'm excited to see what comes out of that. Just google Vernazza and you'll see what I'm talking about.
When we reached the town we had a rest and a gelato, then an Italian beer at a half hidden cafe spot. We sat on the steps outside and waited for the next train. We waffled over what to do for dinner, but I decided we would go to the most highly rated pizzeria in La Spezia. Rated 7 out of 130+ restaurants, it must be good, I thought. Besides, almost all of the reviews were in Italian!
On the map it did not look too far, but as we started walking we knew we were not in a good/safe/touristy part of town. We kept walking, but with trepidation. We finally reached the location and found the pizzeria filled with locals. We must have clearly looked lost, because one of the brick oven chefs asked if we spoke English or French. I said either worked, and he found one of their staff, as it turns out a French mademoiselle, who at first spoke French to us, and then English. All was good! We ordered wine, a local specialty appetizer (will find name) and two pizzas. So far so good, and not too much need to know Italian, although I had written down and practiced how to order dinner just for good measure.
A note about Italians and pizza - everyone orders a single pizza for themselves and eats the whole thing! I have no idea where they put it, but we saw not a single to-go box and not a single plate that wasn't cleaned. Crazy! We took a long break at one point and Kevin managed to finish his, but I was really hoping for a way out. I didn't want to he rude! The pizza was great and overall we had an extremely authentic dining experience. We were probably the once per month token foreigners because everyone in that joint spoke nothing but Italian! It was so fun. At first I could sense the hesitation in Kevin, but in the end I know he enjoyed eating local (and way cheaper too!).

Good morning from La Spezia

After showering and two espressos I'm feeling a bit recovered from my night of little sleep. From what I can tell, La Spezia is definitely just a bedroom city for the real attraction of the Cinque Terre. The hillside adjacent our apartment is literally covered in apartment buildings, all 4+ stories high. We are just behind the train station but the trains don't run past 11 and don't start until 8. When they come by, though, cover your ears because it's very loud! This is an active city. There are lots of people, barking dogs, kids playing outside until midnight.
The shower was a trip. There are these poles attached to the wall, fanning out like the rods on an umbrella from which a curtain is hung. It is supposed to make a circle but the dimensions on the curtain aren't exactly right, leaving a gap on one side of the bath. What results is a ring of curtain just about 3 inches from your face. Kind of claustrophobic, but functional none the less. Definitely something I've not seen before.
Anyway, here's a picture from our balcony, and a picture of my camera attached to the joby tripod (attached to a dining chair) to take a HDR photo.

Bedtime in La Spezia

After we "went to bed" last night I heard the distinctive buzzing of a mosquito in my ear. I jumped out of bed only to find there was not one, but many Mosquitos feeding on us. We subsequently spent the next two hours hunting and killing all the Mosquitos in the house. I'm not sure why autocorrect thinks the word mosquitos should be capitalized either. To make matters worse, the next apartment over has a chime clock situated exactly on the other side of our bedroom wall that chimes loudly twice per hour. I tried desperately to sleep with earplugs but was still woken up. I ended up on the kid sized Ikea couch.
And it just poured down rain outside, so what a start to our Italian vacation!

Monday, September 9, 2013

Italy!

After a grueling 13 hours, 4 train rides, 2 inconsolable babies, and two panninis we finally arrived in La Spezia! The man we are renting from was waiting for us at the train station and led us to the apartment, which we were grateful for. And he spoke English! Fantastico! This is also the best wifi yet so plan to hear from us tomorrow. We're tired and worn, but plan to make the most of the 5 Terre tomorrow. Until then, buonanotte!