Roma

Wow! Where do we start? For us, Rome was the place that if we weren’t able to go anywhere else on this trip, we had to go to Rome. We have been running pretty hard this entire trip but we ran really hard in Rome, trying to see everything in 4 days. Once at our campsite which was right on the Tiber River, we trained into Rome that evening. Shopping and wandering the cobblestone streets, we found the Spanish Steps and Trevi Fountain. The fountain was one of our favorite spots, especially in the evening when it is lit. Our first meal in Rome was really good and set the bar pretty high for the rest of our stay there. With assorted Cheeses and focaccia bread, two plates of pasta later – we were satisfied.

The next day, we saw the Colosseum, Roman Forum, Palantine Hill and Pantheon. We were blown away when we stepped off the metro and the Colosseum loomed right in front of us. We both just stopped in our tracks and gasped in amazement. After taking 5 semesters of Latin in high school, it was truly awesome to see all of the places that I had learned about. We can only hope the pictures show the beauty of what we saw.

The following day, we headed to Vatican City. We toured the Vatican Museum and St. Peter's Basilica. Our favorite items in the Vatican Museum included: mummies, Greek statues - Laocoon, Tapestries, Map Room, Raphael's Papal Wallpaper and of course the Sistine Chapel. We were particularily impressed with Michelangelo's The Last Judgement and even though not allowed, we did sneak a couple of pictures. St. Peter's Basilica is absolutely breathtaking! It's central dome was based upon the dome in the Pantheon and when we walked in the beams of sunshine spread all over the nave. Michelangelo's Pieta is very moving, showing Mary holding the dead body of Christ.

The last day, we went to the National Museum of Rome and saw many sculptures, jewelry and coins. We also went to the Baths of Diocletian which was used to cleanse 3,000 Romans at one time. It has now been turned into a church which houses La Meridiana which acts as a sundial and calendar.

Our last evening in Rome, we spent strolling along the streets. We ate a wonderful meal at a Trattoria near the Trevi Fountain. After sharing the best Tiramisu yet, we headed to the Trevi Fountain as our farewell to Rome.

Rome was amazing to see and experience. We headed to Volterra, Pisa and Cinque Terre after we left. More to come on those amazing places. For now, we leave Levanto (on the Italian Riviera) and head into Milan for the U2 Concert.

We hope you all are doing well and that you had a safe and happy 4th of July. It's hard to believe that we have been gone for almost a month and will be home soon.

Love to you all,

Bert and Jen

The second day,

Siena and Tuscan Hill Towns

Tuscany

Tuscany has to be one of the most wonderful places on Earth! We were fortunate to see several Tuscan Hill Towns on our way to Rome. The first of which was Siena, just south of Florence, where we celebrated our anniversary! The different regions of Italy are very distinct – it is very easy to notice when one has entered Tuscany. The drive to Siena via SS-222 is rolling hills filled with vineyards, castles and farmland as far as the eye can see. We pulled off the road at least 5 times on the way to Siena to take pics and soak it all in. We can only hope that the pictures that we have taken will do the region some justice.

Once in Siena, we hopped on our scooter and headed into town in search for a great place to have dinner. Siena is amazing! The center is a maze of streets and alleys that make for surprises around every corner. In the heart of Siena, there aren’t any sidewalks so it felt as though we were driving in a place we shouldn’t. After much debate and a beautiful flower later, we decided on a place just off the beaten path called Ristorante Guildo. We shared a fabulous meal in celebration of our one year anniversary. With baked goat cheese, risotto with saffron and asparagus, and filet covered in a wine reduction, we were having the perfect meal.

It is simply amazing how no matter how hard we try, we can not find a way into a town that will let you travel the same way back as you entered. This makes for very difficult navigation on poorly marked roads. Somehow, we manage to find our way every time and for that we are extremely grateful. Bert has gotten used to driving on the narrow roads and is quite good at it. By the time we get back to the states, he isn’t going to know what to do with the enormous roads.

We went into Siena for another day to shop and visit the Duomo (church) which was beautiful. While touring the Duomo, we thought we heard thunder in the far distance. We both looked at each other wondering if we would make it back to the RV in time. Once we left and were headed back to the scooter, there was no sign of rain yet but we knew it was coming. By the time we reached the scooter, the temperature had dropped and it was sprinkling and we knew we just had to get back as quickly as we could. In less than half a mile later, it was pouring. I was holding on to Bert as hard as I could, thinking of warm places - trying to trick our minds into thinking we were at a beach somewhere. Every 5 seconds or so, I would hear Bert say “Ouch!” because a raindrop traveling at 100 mph had just stung his face. At one point, I was asking him if it was hailing and he just laughed and said no that’s what rain feels like when it is pouring and you are traveling 40 mph. Thankfully, we arrived back at our RV unharmed but possibly in the beginning stages of hypothermia. It is pretty funny looking back on it…not quite so funny at the time.

Once thawed, we were headed south toward Rome with plans to stop at little towns along the way. One town, Montalcino was almost a ghost town when we were there. Most of these towns get bus loads of tourists by day and are quiet down by night. These towns are also quite protected (completely enclosed by walls and some even have castles or fortresses) since they were built in the days when they needed to protect themselves from neighboring towns or the barbarians even. We spent the evening walking around and looking at the stunning views of the countryside from the town walls. We had an amazing meal with wild boar stew, homemade pasta with tomatoes and basil and breads with different homemade sauces. We have yet to try something new that we haven’t thoroughly enjoyed.

The next day with plans to spend the night on Lago del Bolsena, we headed south. As we were driving, we passed Stuart cycling on the way to the Lake as well. It was almost a little bit of home when we were able to honk and wave at a familiar face in a foreign country. We made a side trip into Orvieto and we gasped when we saw this little town sitting atop a mountain. It is beautiful! We ate lunch, toured this town’s Duomo and walked around just soaking up the town’s charm. By mid afternoon, we were headed to the lake.

We spent the night right on the water, right outside of Montefiascone. Oddly enough, it was too cool to go swimming. We spent the evening in jeans and long sleeves (not that we are complaining by any means, just surprised) throwing frisbee and playing Pente. Little did we know, Rome would make up for all of the cool temps we were having. The next morning, we arrived on the north side of Rome, excited about seeing the Colosseum, Roman Forum, and Vatican City. It is hard to believe that we’ve seen so many things that we have only read about; things that have existed for thousands of years.

We will try to get the Rome blog up quickly but as mentioned before, internet access is limited. We hope you all are doing well!!

Bert and Jen