Viva Italia...my May Holiday in Italy...

Italy
So it has been a long time since I have written. Mostly because I have been busy actually doing things, and working and I haven’t had the urge to sit and write about it. But in the interest of preserving the memories for myself for later, I wanted to take a bit of time this weekend to catch up on the blog as one forgets the details of things as time goes on, and I want to remember those things that have been important to me while I’ve been here. Sooo…let me start this catch-up with the trip to Italy…

As I had mentioned in previous posts, this was “P”’s first trip abroad, so I took charge of the trip planning. Now “P” enjoys seeing cool historical sites, and I made sure to plan for that, but what he is really an expert on is fine food and wine, so being his first time in Italy, and especially being that we are both of Italian heritage and he is such an acute fine food and wine enthusiast, I wanted to be sure that we found some really special restaurants at a variety of price levels in each city. Besides, although I have been to Italy many times, this is my first trip as a professional adult (ie., not a backpacking, penny pinching student/grad student) so I was excited to experience some of the finer things.

Still…we are not rich people, so I wanted to be sure we got to try some fine restaurants and tour stuff, but also some highly recommended less expensive stuff. So, to be sure that we had the most from our experience I had done a lot of research beforehand with friends (thanks to everyone who made such awesome suggestions for things to do and places to eat), on the internet and especially with “Slow Food Italy,” and I must say it really paid off! Just about everything we did and everywhere we ate was fantastic! But let me begin at the beginning…

So…the day I left Belgrade for Rome I had to leave my apartment at 4:45am. I arrived at the airport in plenty of time and waited in line, as there are no self check-in kiosks at the Belgrade airport. After waiting almost an hour (behind a huge Greek soccer team…very attractive young men I might add), when it was finally my turn it turned-out that the airline had no record of my ticket being purchased…even though I had the receipt in hand! It was a code-share flight, JAT & Alitalia. I was checking in at JAT, but had bought my ticket from Alitalia…which was not open! So I had no way to talk to Alitalia about the issue. In different circumstances I may have waited to talk to someone and caught a later flight, but this was the only one going from Belgrade to Rome that day, and I was worried that “P” would arrive and I would not be there to meet him and he might panic…especially since I had not given him the hotel information! So I had to buy a whole new ticket, a process through which I nearly missed the flight anyhow, and ended up running to the gate as the plane was boarding.

But not matter…I was a bit frustrated with the extra cost, but I was not going to let it ruin my vacation, and after the first day, I largely forgot about this minor frustration.

ROME

I arrived in Rome about an hour before “P” and was there to meet him. We took the train into the city center and easily found our way to the hotel. Given that we had planned to see several cities in just 10 days, I booked hotels that were relatively close to the train stations, so while it was really hot outside (easily in the 80s and 90s), and we were both pretty tired (and “P” jetlagged) we got there in no time at all. Now, I had heard that there was a possibility that the neighborhood near the station would be questionable, but it was fine. Not the prettiest, but really close to everything, and located in what appeared to be Rome’s Chinatown. And while our hotel, Hotel Moscatello, was simple, it was quaint, friendly, clean and affordable – really all we required, (and for me, anything nicer than a hostel is livin’ it up at this point!).

I convinced “P” that it was important to try to stay awake until that evening, so after a brief rest and shower we headed out to the Ancient Roman Coliseum. I had been here several times before, but this time we decided to take the guided tour, which also included tours of other ancient sights. It was spectacular! Our guide was hilarious, and really knowledgeable. After the Coliseum part of the tour was finished we considered taking the second part the next day, but “P” was going strong so we continued. Again, really fantastic! We learned so much, saw so much, and got some great views and photos.

After the tours we walked through the city so I could show him Trivi Fountain, “Mussolini’s wedding cake,” and a few other sites in that area with a goal of having our first night’s dinner at a tapas type mozzarella bar, recommended by “A” & “J,” called Obika Roma. Nice food. Fancy Italians having after work cocktails and appetizers. All around a good first night’s dining after which we wandered the streets stopping occasionally at random bars for drinks and taking photos of Rome by night.

Now…our hotel locks its doors at 1am, and if you will be out later than that, you need to pay a key deposit to get a front door key. Well, given that “P” was jet-lagged we did not imagine at noon when we ventured out that we would need that key. However, we found ourselves rushing through the streets of Rome, giggling like idiots, hoping to make it back in time…which we did…by a hair!

Here’s a few pics from Rome Day 1…



Rome - Colesium

Rome - Ancient Roman Coliseum


Rome - Ancient Roman Ruins





Rome - Colesium by Night





Rome's many histories - Colesium & medival tower in background






Day two in Rome was reserved for the Vatican. We had made reservations for the Vatican’s special Scavi Tour, which is a small (10 persons max) tour of the underground catacombs of Vatican City. I had not done this tour before and had thought it would be pretty cool, but I could not have expected just how fantastic it would be! (I highly recommend this tour! You have to make reservations at least a month in advance, but it is totally worth it!) We saw a thousand years of historical/archeological stuff and had a great guide who was really super smart and charming! The tour was about 2 ½ hours, after which we stopped by Pope Jon Paul II grave site and then walked around St. Peter’s basilica on the inside – never fails to impress!


We then climbed all the way to the top for the best views in Rome. I got a bit dizzy from the super narrow winding stairs as you get into the very tippy-top of the dome, (and there is like 400 stairs, but with hoards of elderly people also climbing it seemed embarrassing to complain about it) but once you get there, it is so worth it! Truly amazing views!! After that we spent about 1 ½ hours in the Vatican shop run by nuns so we could buy rosaries and gifts for our families that had been blessed by the pope.

After our Vatican exploration, we wandered around the area a bit, walked through Parco Adriano and saw the Castel St. Angelo and made our way to our chosen dinner spot. When we arrived, we realized it did not start serving for another hour or so, but I am so glad we made the choice to wait! We went to the neighboring square for drinks before dinner, (where our senses were assaulted by embarrassing American tourists who said things like “this is not how we get it at home in America!” And “Can you take this back and put some cheese and tomatoes on it!”).

We then returned to our chosen restaurant - Hostaria Costanza - for one of the best meals, best atmosphere and best service I have ever had!! Tucked down an alley, not super easy to find, with many Italians dining there and a few tourists was our little Roman delight. Now, as you may know, the Italian dinner is served in several courses with an appetizer, then a first course [primati]which is pasta, and a second course [secondi] which is the meat and veggies. Unlike at home where you eat a huge plate of pasta alone and call it dinner, you eat three smaller courses. So we decided that in order to taste stuff and not to be stuffed, we would share our meals – family style, as is typical at most southern European restaurants, but not as typical in the US. When we told the waiter we were open to his suggestions and wanted him to recommend what was best, he took care of us like we were in his home! We shared a truffle risotto for appetizer, then he brought us the white-bean soup (best I ever had!). Our pasta dish was traditionally Roman, and then our meat – which was lamb, and which was roasted and spiced just perfectly! He had brought us a perfect bottle of wine for the meal!

The best part was that as we sat there, there were two business men (an Italian, Marko, and a Greek, Vasilis) dining beside us. As we were finishing our meal they began to chat with us, and invited us to their table to after-dinner drinks and dessert. We sat chatting and drinking with them until the place closed! It was spectacular!

Below is a few pics from Rome day 2…


View into Vatican city gardens from top of St. Peter's Bacsillica



View of Rome from top of St. Peter's

View of bridge and Castel St. Angelo - Rome

The next day we were to leave for Venice, with a one-day stop in Bologna in search of genuine “spaghetti Bolognese.” In the morning we made time for a few last sights in Rome, including my favorite of Rome’s small oddities, the Capuchin Cemetery. This is a church (interestingly called Immaculate Conception – just like my elementary school) within which there is an elaborate display of ornately arranged bones from the late 1600s-1700s. It takes less than an hour to see it all, even if you really linger over it, but the detailed mosaics and scenes that they have made with these bones really fascinates me and I need to see it every time I am in Rome. “P” also enjoyed it! You are not allowed to take photos, but they have a series of postcards for purchase with all of the scenes from the various rooms on them, so it is really worth it to buy them.

So after the Monk’s bones, we picked up our bags at the hotel and headed for the train station. Unfortunately I had misread the tickets and we missed our train. It was momentarily stressful, but we were allowed to catch the next train (for a small fee) and were on our way to Bologna.

BOLOGNA

Now I had been before to each of the major cities that we had planned to visit on this trip (Rome, Venice & Florence) but had not been to Bologna. Our hotel was amazing! It was very modern and glamorous, and stylish and still amazingly affordable. 4 Masini Design Hotel was definitely the finest hotel we stayed at the entire trip and it was the least expensive. It is very close to the train station, which means it is not as close to the city center, but Bologna is not that big, so really you can walk anywhere in 25 minutes or so.

Given that our main purpose for going to Bologna was to have the original “Bolognese” (which they actually call “pasta Ragu” in Italy) I had carefully researched our dinner place for that night. After a short rest and showers we set out to walk the city and check it all out before dinner. It is a lovely smallish university centered city – not Italy’s most beautiful, but certainly nothing to sneeze at. The restaurant we had chosen was located in a 16th century wine cellar, Osteria de poeti. Again great atmosphere and service! Fantastic good and wine. And I must say that our pasta course, “Ragu,” was amazing! In the US I typically do not prefer spaghetti Bolognese because to me it tastes too much like hamburger, but here it was a different story! The pasta itself was homemade (which makes a huge difference) and the meat is of a much higher quality (more like ground sirloin than hamburger meat). Great stuff!

Below are a few pics from Bologna…

Bologna - street scene

Bologna - Statue at entry of central city park

Bologna's 2 medival leaning towers


The next day we were to proceed to Venice, and this time I checked the train ticket times obsessively! We spent that morning walking around Bologna, and had “Ragu” and salad for lunch before boarding the train. Upon arriving in the first Venice train station, “P” said “we’re here” and we got off the train. As the train pulled away and we walked outside the train station I was totally disoriented and did not recognize anything, even though I’ve been to Venice several times. It took me a minute before I realized we had gotten off too early…silly me! But it was no real problem. We caught the next train to Venice, and took the vapporetto (like a water bus) to Ca D’Oro stop where our hotel was, Hotel Bernardi Semenzato. Of course, like everything in Venice, it was a little challenging to find, but we made it.

VENICE

So, in general, my feelings on Venice are as follows… It is a really unique and amazing place and if you have never been there, it is something not to be missed. However, it is expensive, the food is nothing special, and you will be tired of fat tourists, cruise-ship day crowds, and African immigrants selling hand-bags by the end of the trip. Italy has so many fantastic places to see and things to do! I like Venice, I like the sights and the uniqueness of it, and after my first time I couldn’t wait to go back. But every ensuing time I have been back to Venice it has struck me as more of a tourist heavy Disney world-esque place. At least we were there in mid-May, just the beginning of the tourist season, so it was not quite as bad.

The best parts of Venice for me are the Guggenheim Museum, San Marco, and the experience of wandering in the endless maze of streets. I find this to be best at night when you have to fight fewer people, but it also means occasionally running into raccoon sized rats at the edges of the canals!

Anyhow, we did get to see a lot in Venice and took a 2 hour boat tour (not gondola) of the grand canal and some of the smaller canals. We had mediocre overpriced food the first night, but we had fun getting lost and wandering for hours through the streets that night, and I had the agenda of showing the St. Mark’s cathedral to “P” by night when there are less tourists. To me this is such an interesting and special cathedral because of the blend of Italian, Byzantine, and other influences in its architecture – given all the trading from so many other cultures that had happened in Venice at that time. During the day it is a zoo, even though it is so beautiful, and it is hard to quietly appreciate it. While you have to see it during the day to appreciate the use of color, seeing it all lit up in the quiet of night allows you to appreciate the structure without fighting the tourists, sellers and rip-off artists.

The second day we walked around a bit, but the cruise ship crowds were there in full effect and getting through the narrow streets was challenging. When we got to San Marco and the line was hours long to get inside, we decided to opt instead for a boat tour of the canals. It was really lovely to see it all from that perspective, and I am really glad we did it. Still, of all the tours we did while we were there, this guide was the least strong and entertaining and I largely ignored her in favor of the views and my own daydreams.

The second night we made reservations at a Antica Trattoria Poste Vecie – reputedly the oldest restaurant in Venice and possibly in Italy as a whole (according to local legend anyhow). We had prosecco before dinner, an appetizer of various local fish specialties, a pasta course of con vongole verace and a monk fish for our secondi. It was all very good, and the place was truly beautiful. If we hadn’t had such amazing meals in Rome and Florence, I may have thought it to be fantastic. The location was great, the place was beautiful. But again, everywhere in Venice I just feel like everyone treats you like a tourist.

And while yes, we are tourists, there is a difference between cruise-ship one day in-and-out and people who really want to get a taste of the culture. It’s not their fault really, the tourist industry workers in Venice are disenchanted with the whole thing I am sure. It just makes me feel very self conscious of the fact that I am a visitor as opposed to the way the best places we went while we were in Italy made us feel like we were in their home, as if they were happy to share their specialties with us as long as we were open to appreciating them.

But there was one place in Venice where we actually felt at home and welcome…and interestingly enough, it was a bar that looked a bit cheesy from the first impression, but the guy running the place was so cool and fun and open and welcoming and interesting that we went back a second time. It’s called Bacaro Jazz, and as far as I could tell, it was a totally tourist cheesy joint, and was run by folks who are not Italian. I wouldn’t normally recommend this kind of place, but they were super cool and kind, and made the best cocktails I have had in Europe (in recollection).

So…After our dinner at Poste Vecie, we stopped back at that Bacaro Jazz, where we had made friends with the manager the day before, a guy from Bangladesh named Islam. And He made us some of his mean bad-ass cocktails! As we sat and chatted with him again that night we also met an American couple from California who we had drinks with for the evening. It was great fun! But after a bit I started to feel unwell and we started back to the hotel…

By the time we got back to the hotel, I was not feeling very well! You see, I have an allergy to octopus. I did not eat any octopus, but there had been octopus with the appetizer and it had clearly gotten on the bread that I had used to soak up the other appetizer fish. Needless to say I spent that entire night very ill…YUCK! The next morning as we prepared to leave to Florence I was dreading going into the heat and getting on the boat to take us to the train. But we had a train to catch, so green and dehydrated as I was, we made our way to the vaporetto and the train station (where, thank god, “P” was infinitely helpful and kind!)

Below are a few pics from Venice…

Venice - Grand Canal w/Gondolas

Venice - view of smaller canal with bridge

Venice - View of famous Rialto Bridge

FLORENCE

I slept for most of the train ride to Florence, and when we arrived I stayed awake long enough to get us to the hotel and then went back to sleep again while “P” did a little touristing himself.

Now Florence is my favorite Italian city, and I had been most excited to get there, so I was disappointe4d that I was feeling unwell. But, by the early evening I was feeling somewhat better, so we walked a bit around Florence, by Duomo, by Sante Croce, down the river, through the main shopping area, near the Uffizi, etc. Then I went to bed early while watching some hilarious Italian TV.

First of all, everything on Italian TV that is not originally in Italian is dubbed (instead of subtitled) so there is no chance of really watching unless you speak well enough to understand Italian. This means that the best choices are either MTV or soccer matches (which I love!). That night I snuggled in for a soccer match which appeared to be Italy vs. France. But as we watched, each time a goal was scored, the player who scored would have to sing a karaoke pop song with some hot Italian singer. At first it was confusing and really funny! We eventually figured out what was going on…it was a game between Italy & France – touted as a sort of World Cup 2006 finalists exhibition - but it was a sort of charity event and old retired players from each team were playing alongside the current team members. Anyhow…interesting.

Our hotel in Florence, Hotel Berna, was again close to the train station and while it was a loud neighborhood, the room was fine, and the staff was fantastic! They even brought us breakfast in bed each day when they did not see us come down for the served breakfast. I would highly recommend this place if you were in Florence and wanted to be near the train station. It was also just blocks from the leather market and less than 10 minute walk from Duomo – all good things. The staff was really kind, helpful and really made you feel like they were happy to have you there, which was fantastic. However, if you were going to be in Florence for more than a week, I would suggest going with something father afield, even more in the residential part, even though it would be harder to get to the main sights, because of the chaos and loudness of the neighborhood (and it seems of much of the main tourist part of the city at large).

Our second day in Florence we decided to rent bicycles to get around more of the city more easily. Of course we saw all the sites, climbed the Duomo, toured Santa Croce, and rode around the city. For dinner that night we went to a pizza place that was recommended by a colleague to be the “best pizza in Florence,” and I must say it did not disappoint! Semolina it’s called – really fantastic pizza and good service and also very hip and artistic décor!

So, in general Florence has always been my favorite Italian city and this time was no different! It did not disappoint! It is such a charming place, so much beauty, so much to see and really amazing food! The only thing is I would like to spend a more extended time there, and maybe even to stay in a place that is a little more in the countryside. Next time…

The next day we decided to rent a Vespa so we could tour the Tuscan hills in the surrounding area. I was a bit nervous at first, but this proved to be the best possible choice we could’ve made. While the initial working our way through the city was terrifying, once we got out of the urban center it was so worth it! We spent the day riding all around, seeing vineyards and generally beautiful countryside. We stopped for lunch and a glass of wine at one of the smaller wineries. It was just a really great time…possibly my favorite day…it’s a toss-up really between that and the first two days in Rome.

Our last great meal was our last night in Florence and it was by far the best meal of a whole vacation full of great meals! We went to a place I had researched called L’Osteria di Giovanni. The place had a very contemporary look to it, with the owner’s (Giovanni) private art collection on the walls. While we were there, they treated us like we were royalty, like we were restaurant critics or something! Impeccable service! The owner himself came and chatted with us for a while as we were eating! While we had the usual appetizer and primate courses, the highlight this time was the secondi – Florentine dry-aged steak! It was amazing! And they brought us just the right wine! We were so full we could barely have our after-dinner drink, but given that the owner brought us his special liquor and biscotti, we could not say no.

Below are a few pics from Florence…

Florence - Giotto's tower and the Duomo

Florence - Duomo

Duomo & Baptistery - Florence

A view of Giotto's tower from on top of the Duomo, Florence

Florence from surrounding hills - featuring Ponte Vecchio Bridge

Florence from the hills - featuring the Duomo

A view from the Tuscan Hills surrounding Florence

A view in the Tuscan Hills on the outskirts of Florence

A view in the Tuscan Hills on the outskirts of Florence

THE END OF THE TRIP

On our final day we travelled back to Rome, and took a hotel at the sea side near the airport. We were exhausted, but in all it was really an excellent trip! In fact, “P” wasn’t back in the US for a day before he was already dreaming of his next Italian adventure and plotting the time when he can retire to Tuscany! I think he caught the travel bug! As for me, I still love Florence (and Tuscany at large) and Rome as well, but would be happy to skip Venice next time in favor of either spending more time in one place, or of seeing more of the south. So much still to see…

So, in closing, If anyone is going to any of these cities in the near future and you want some recommendations for sites or restaurants or hotels, please get in touch. I’d be happy to suggest some! Sadly, because I took so long to write about all of this, I can’t recall the name of the place in Rome offhand, but can find it if you’re interested (all the more support for my argument that you should keep a daily journal while travelling! Even for ten days! When everyday is packed with so many experiences, all those things you swear you’ll never forget about day 1 fade in memory by day 10!)

Thanks for reading and enjoy the photos.

Xina