November 12th, 2003: Vatican & Rome

As it turned out, this journal entry was written on the day of our 10th wedding anniversary. So there I was in Rome wishing my handsome groom were there with me so that we could celebrate our special day. On the other hand, what better place to find the perfect anniversary gift than Rome? Read on:

Wednesday - 11/12/03

• Woke up early to get ready for "Papal visit"
• Breakfast at Hotel Domus Mariae. No "Cafe Americana" only STRONG Italian coffee.
  Gorgeous... no wait, "exquisite" hotel!
  
• Taxi to USO for escort to St. Peter's Square. Took photos & waited for Pope John Paul II to arrive
  The USO gave us tickets for the Papal Visit, the experience of a lifetime.
  
  
  Traffic in Rome, Italy
  
  
  Waiting for Pope in St. Peter's Square
  
  
• "Papal Car" arrived & toured around audience before driving Pope to stage
  
  
  There goes the Pope Mobile
  
  
  Cruising up to stage
  
  
• Reading after Pope's welcome in which he read from script in Latin. Translations were then read by Cardinals who interpreted in French, English, Spanish & Italian.
  
  
  Pope giving welcome address
  
  
• Each Cardinal presented list of groups who attended to greet the Pope.
  
  
  Pope & Cardinals
  
  
• Pope gave special blessings to those who attended and requested to receive it.
• Shopping in St. Peter's Square (Pope items)
• Lunch at restaurant in Rome (Mom had fruit salad, me soup/bread - BLAND!, Allen steak & egg meal)
• St. Peter's Basilica - toured & took photos (obelisk & St. Peter's Basilica)
  
  
  TEMPLVM VATICANVM
  (on wall inside basilica)
  
  
  Pietà by Michelangelo in St. Peter's
  
  
  Tombs beneath St. Peter's Basilica
  
  
• Back to USO to pick up items
  Left our shopping finds there instead of schlepping them all over Rome.
  
• Shopped at gift shop (gifts for family/friends - rosaries for Jeanne, etc.)
• Trevi Fountain - threw coins & took photos
  
  
  Throwing coins over shoulders
  
  
  Fontana di Trevi - beautiful fountain!
  
  
• Byzantine Tower Obelisk - "Column of Marcus Auraleus" - St. Paul on the top
  
  
  Column of Marcus Aurelius
  
  
• Walked by Parliament - lots of media & security outside. Later learned a suicide bomber blew up the Italian security (?) office in Iraq!
• Saw Pantheon & Mom sat at small restaurant (outside) & waited at table while Allen & I toured & took pictures inside the Pantheon.
  
  
  Pantheon
  
  
  Tomb in Pantheon
  
  
  Madonna & Child
  
  
• Discovered the jewelry shop down street where purchased anniversary gift (needed brand new battery for final delivery, merchant went out to get one - store closed so he agreed to deliver 11/13 with reduced price.)
  The merchant, Bertini & De Matteis, was actually called an "Orafi e Argentieri". His son did all of the legwork in finding a watch battery by running all over Rome. This kind of customer service was shocking to me - they treated my purchase like it was the most important sale of the week!
  
• Walked by the Piazza de Venezia ("Wedding Cake" - white) where we saw the guards outside the "tomb of the unknown soldier"
• Took Metro to McDonald's (dinner)
• Back to hotel - shower/sleep

Tomorrow: Vatican Museum & Sistine Chapel

November 11th, 2003: Rome

And now my world gets even bigger as we head to none other than ROME, ITALY. Still pinching myself! As before, original journal in text with comments italicized below:
(click photos to view)

Tues, 11/11/03

• Metro train to Verona
• Eurostar to Rome
  
  
  Ready to board Eurostar
  
  
• In Rome, took wrong turn getting off underground metro (like subway)
• Allen (Dad) called USO & we found our way after meandering thru city
  The USO was such an incredible resource for us during our visit. Those people are saints.
  
• Mom & I were annoyed and felt ridiculous but no one noticed (too many tourists)
  We were clueless but grateful not to be the only ones. You can't look "lost" in a sea of tourists.
  
• At hotel - unloaded (I grabbed swch & snacks)
  
  
  Standing on hotel steps - swanky!
  
  
• Walked back to main plaza, people watched & window shopped
• Bus to Piazza Venecia
• Next bus - Colosseum & Forum
• Dinner at "Al Gladiatore" in front of Colosseum (Rocco entertained us!)
  
  Italian wine at Al Gladiatore
  
  
  Rocco, my new Italian host friend
  
  
  Posing w/Italian waitress
  
  
• Walked around side of Colosseum & by Forum
  
  
  Colosseum in darkness
  
  
• Metro back to main plaza
• Returned to hotel & called hubs before crashing for the night

Coming up: Pope John Paul II and St. Peter's Basilica - a definite doozy.

November 10th, 2003: Venice

As before, original journal is in regular text, my comments (from today) italicized beneath:
(click photos to view)

• Metro to Venice - VERY crowded train (something wrong w/previous train causing overload)
  This is when I learned my lesson about "personal space" in Italy. Rule of thumb: there is no such thing. We were all crammed right up against one another. You just deal.
  
  
  
  
  Peace out, yo.
  
  
• African HOSTILE couple - girl punched Mom & pushed me
  Apparently this was just an ordinary lover's spat.
  
• Italian Arline flight attendant talked to us about her experience
• Train station in Venice - sat for a few minutes on front steps w/Mom
  
  
  View from train station steps
  
  
• Met Allen after he purchased water, bus tickets
• Wrong water bus taken on opposite route (wanted Grand Canal but had a new "adventure")
  
  
  Me & my lovely mother
  
  
  View from water bus - Venice, Italy
  
  
• Walked to San Marco Square "The Pigeon Place"
  
  
  San Marco Square - in front of Basilica
  
  
• Ate in San Marco Square - small restaurant (had veggie/multi-colored pasta - peas!!! yum)
  
  
  Campanile, San Marco
  
  
  Piazza San Marco
  
  
  Piazzetta San Marco
  
  
• Shopping/saw gondola drivers & dock
  
  
  Actors in Piazetta San Marco
  
  
  Where's my gondolier?
  
  
  There he goes...
  
  
• Returned on water bus -> metro
• Called hubs late after sandwich snack

Next stop: Rome

November 9th, 2003: Castles

So far, my first few journal entries are short and sweet, mostly because we're driving through THE ALPS. (Yeah, try writing in a journal while being tossed around the backseat of a VW bug in the mountains - I dare you!) Anyway, I'm including some links to tourist spots for reference and to make up for my lack of wordiness:
(click images to view)

• Shopped in street market in Garmish
  
  
  Photo taken on our hotel patio
  
  
  Front of Clausing Post Hotel
  
  
  Street market in Garmisch
  
  
• Lunch in Ober Anmergua at restaurant w/"Magician"
  
  
  This guy was too fun! (Read:
  Embarrassed the crap out of me!)
  
  
• Traveled to Linderhof castles
  
  
  
  
• Tour of 1st castle
  
  
  
  
• Others closed but toured town & took photos (Neuschwanstein & Hohenstein)
  
  
  
  
  Standing in front of castle
  
  
• Returned home through Austria
  
  
  Under Austria Sign
  (too dark, sorry)
  
  
• Ate at ski resort resaurant (ate "Chef Boyardee" penne?!!)
  The German cook poked fun of my mother and me, aka the "Turtleneck Twins", or so it seemed since we aren't fluent in German. And the joke was really on us when we sat down to eat our nice German dinner that tasted exactly like a can of Chef Boyardee.
  
• Home
  Back to Italy for repacking.

Next up: Venice!

November 8th, 2003: Italy!

This is the first official journal entry of my very first trip visiting my folks in Italy. As before, I'm posting the original journal text below with italicized comments (from today) beneath it. I actually found original photos that correspond to my journal entry - woohoo!

• Arrived in Milan airport
• Mom/Allen/I returned to their house
• ATM/McDonald's - met Allen's colleague
  
  
  Photo of Italian McDonald's, definitely
  unlike any other seen in the USA.
  
  
• Home/pack for Germany
• Returned to McDonald's on the way out to find my waist pack (It was still intact!)
  Yes, my entire lifeline - PASSPORT, MONEY & ALL - found completely untouched when we returned to find it in McDonald's.
• Left for Austria/Germany
  
  
  Winding roads through rain, vine-
  yards and mountainous terrain.
  
  
• Garmisch, Germany stop where we settled into hotel
  
  
  Taken from backseat of my folk's
  VW bug.
  
  
• Ate dinner in hotel restaurant (Clausing Post Hotel)
• Called Hubs & called it a night
  
  
  Just wait until morning - this view
  is actually amazing in the daylight!

Tomorrow: We get all GERMAN.