Nov 16, 2018 - Last Day In Rome, Italy

Mamma Mia!! We have to go home tomorrow!! Good news - Bad news!! It will be very good to get home and sleep in our own bed!!! But we have enjoyed our travels so much that we will miss all of the adventure!! Today we visited the Borghese Museum. It is a private collection of statues and paintings but almost as beautiful as the Vatican Museum. We couldn't take pictures so you'll have to take my word for it. It did have a beautiful park surrounding it!! Then we got on the Hop-On-Hop-Off bus for a ride around Rome. It was wonderful to see...

Nov 15, 2018 - Rome, Italy, Day 4

Today was the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel!!! It was wonderful!! Not many people were there and we took our time just taking in all the beautiful works of art. Of course there is no way to see everything; it is just too huge. The pictures will show you a selection of things we saw - statuary, ceiling paintings, and the Pope's carriages and cars. The Sistine Chapel was the highlight! We were able to find seats along the wall and spent an hour looking up at the beauty. We had audio-phones that tried to explain the painting to us,...

Nov 14, 2018 - Rome, Italy, Day 3

Today, Luca our guide, takes us on a walk to the Jewish ghetto. The dictionary definition of ghetto is a part of a city in which members of a minority group live, typically as a result of social, legal, or economic pressure. Of course during World War II when Jews were forced into certain parts of a town or city and were called ghettos, it became a negative word. In Rome, Jews were forced to live in this area, but then later were free to live anywhere and the walls and gates were torn down. Now this Jewish Ghetto has become a very trendy...

Nov 13, 2018 - Rome, Italy, Day 2

Our first full day in Rome!! We start out early walking, since old town Rome is not that big. We walk toward The Spanish Steps down Via Condotti. This street has stores of all the famous Italian fashion designers. Prices are out of this world. We arrive at the Spanish Steps. The monumental stairway of 174 steps was built when a French diplomat gave money to have them built in order to link the Spanish Embassy with the French Church. Of course there is much more to the story, but suffice it to say they could have been called the French...

Nov 12, 2018 - Rome, Italy, Day 1

Today we left Malta and flew to Rome, Italy!! We got here about noon, checked into our beautiful hotel and met our new guide, Luca. He gave us a short walking tour around our hotel to show us the many places to eat. He also covered the schedule for the rest of the week. He then left us on our own. We're with another couple, Roger and Sandy. We strolled the streets to find something to eat. We found this wonderful hole-in-the-wall pizza place with the best pizza ever!! See photos!! Then we found the next most wonderful place to eat, the...

Nov 8, 2018 - Siracusa, Sicily, Italy

Since we were at sea this morning sailing to Sicily, we had a lecture on the Mafia. Very interesting how crime syndicates can rule a country. You will see a "Godfather" t-shirt we saw in a shop. It was a beautiful sunny day!! Finally!! We had a walking tour through the city; visiting a beautiful cathedral. Siracusa was part of a Greek colony in the eight century BC. Before the colony settled in what we know as Siracusa today. Europe's oldest ritual baths can be found in the Jewish quarter. And of course, Silvia had a surprise for us again....

Nov 7, 2018 - Otranto, Italy

Otranto is in the far eastern corner of Italy's boot heel. Once a strategic port during Roman times, today Otranto is known for its white-sand beaches, famed Aragonese Castle, and eleventh-century Romanesque cathedral. The Strait of Otranto, to which the city gives its name, connects the Adriatic Sea with the Ionian Sea; all of which are part of the Mediterranean Sea. The harbour is small and has little trade. Our tour guide, Silvia, as usual bought us a treat - pasticciotto!! See the photos!! We got back to our boat early since it is...

Nov 6, 2018 - Matera, Italy

Matera is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. It is thought to have been settled in the 3rd century BC. It was variously occupied by Romans, Greeks, Byzantines, etc., over the centuries. Matera has gained international fame for its ancient town, the "Sassi di Matera". The Sassi originated in a prehistoric troglodyte settlement, and these dwellings are thought to be among the first ever human settlements in what is now Italy. The Sassi are houses dug into the chalky rock itself. Many of them are really little more...

Nov 5, 2018 - Alberobello, Masseria, Monopoli

Alberolello is known for its cone-shaped houses called Trulli. It's a feature of this part of the Puglia region which gained UNESCO recognition as a unique building technique. The story is that when the King at that time, gave the land to a certain family, he said they could not build anything on the land. Well, of course, that's no good. So it was decided in the family that the buildings would not be permanent and could be easily torn down if the King's inspector came. So they built the buildings out of stones from the area and stacked...

Nov 4, 2018 - Bari, Italy

The main Castle in Bari was the home of Frederick II, built in 1233. This Swabian Castle also served as a Renaissance residence for Isabella of Aragon and her daughter Bona Sforza and became a playground for the artists, writers and powerful dignitaries that the two would host. Saint Nicholas' bones are kept in the Basilicaa of Saint Nicola, commissioned in 1089 to house the stolen relics of Bari's Patron Saint. We know Saint Nicolas as Santa Claus. The legends were built around him because he saved little children from harm and gave them...

Nov 3, 2018 - Ortano, Italy

Ortano is an ancient seaport on the Adriatic which dates back some 3000 years. The old town was a jumble of narrow buildings crowded together on a steep promontory thrusting out into the sea. It became an important battleground during the Italian campaign during World War II. Ortano offered the Allies a supply port on the Adriatic and was fiercely defended by the Germans. The struggle between the German paratroopers and the 2nd Canadian Infantry Brigade attracted the attention of the international press, leading this battle to be known as...

Nov 2, 2018 - Urbino, Italy

AW, Grand Circle didn't come through with the thunder storm!! No rain!! Just a little overcast. So a great day! Urbino is a walled city in central Italy. It's known for the turreted, 15th century Ducal Palace (Duke's Palace). Inside the palace, the National Gallery of Art features paintings by Titian and Raphael. Raphael was born in Urbino. Urbino is also a university town. It is a World Heritage Site notable for a remarkable historical legacy of independent Renaissance culture. The town is nestled on high sloping hillside and retains much...