Eric's Thoughts from Sorrento

Well, I am going to keep this very brief because we want to go enjoy the town a little more. I am having a wonderful time in this beautiful place. This is another place that I would recommend to someone who is planning a trip to Italy. I am looking foward to spending the next several days here and celebrating our anniversary. It is a wonderful backdrop for our second anniversary.

I hope everyone is well. Take care!

Good Evening from Sorrento

Oh wow, what a beautiful place we have come to! Sorrento is 70 minutes south of Naples, by train. And when you arrive here, you are greeted with incredible vistas, a fun town, and cruise ships in the bay. We had about a 20 minute walk from the train station to our hotel, and we really enjoyed it. It's such a fun town to walk through - so many different kinds of shops, selling all sorts of interesting things (not the typical touristy stuff). We have a lot of fun window shopping. We don't do real shopping because we don't have anywhere to put anything else.

Our hotel is on a cliff, overlooking the bay. We have a terrace patio off of our room, which we are enjoying. Eric described this as the perfect place to spend our anniversary. (Don't forget - it also comes with Mt. Vesuvius, which equals hiking adventures, so I think that's why Eric thinks this is perfect.) :-) Pompeii is a short train ride away, and the island of Capri is a short boat ride away, so we have a lot of fun options for what we will do with our time here. We are staying five nights, before heading to Venice.

Tonight we had a yummy dinner at a restaurant that is located in a roof-top garden. We were surrounded by purple wisteria and other beautiful plants. At one point, a gecko crawled across the wall and made a funny sound at us. I have never heard a gecko's call before, so it was interesting. (Earlier on the trip, in Bern, we heard some goats screaming for their dinner, and they sound like little kids throwing tantrums. It was so funny that Eric immitates the noise any time he wants to make me laugh. In Zermatt, we heard some sheep making a "bleahhhh" sound, instead of "baa", so I make that noise in return. It's interesting that European animals sound different than our little critters back home.)

Anyway... we are wandering around the town still, so I will keep this short. Hope everyone is doing well. Enjoy these pictures.

Pictures from the Vatican

Haircut Pictures (our new looks)

New Haircuts and an Afternoon at the Vatican

Well, it's our last night in Rome. We've really enjoyed our time here, this is a great city. We had a very relaxing morning - slept in and then went to get our hair cut. I said all along that I was going to get it chopped off on this trip, and Eric's was getting kind of thick and unruly, so we decided that Rome seemed like a good place to get our hair done.

There was a great place a few doors down from our hotel. We were the first customers there (which was a good thing, because quite a crowd of locals came throughout the time we were being worked on.) Our stylist was Robert, who spoke pretty good English, and took excellent care of us. I'm not exaggerating when I say that I think this is the best haircut I've ever gotten (Funny - I used to say that about the cut I got in Japan. I think I will just have to get 5 other jobs so that I can afford to fly to a foreign country every few months to get my hair done. Just Kidding!!!!)

Robert treated us like celebrities. I don't know if that's because we are foreigners, or because that's how he always is. He and his team of washers, dryers and stylists worked on us for a couple of hours. We were getting worried about all of the special treatment, but it ended up being surprisingly inexpensive, and they wouldn't accept a tip. One lady spent about 20 minutes blow drying and styling my hair after it had been cut, and then Robert returned (from cutting Eric's hair) to touch up my hair. Crazy, but fun. Of course, neither of us will ever be able to recreate the style. So we'll see how it looks once we're back in the Texas humidity. Notice how Eric got a "Euro-punk" haircut. It looks like a subtle mohawk in the making. (He didn't ask for that style, he just let Robert do whatever). Well, once he took a shower, that look seemed to disappear, and it's looking more normal now. Mine is crazy and sticking out all over the place. But it's fun.

Now, I have to laugh. Here I am going on and on about our hair, and Eric is typing about the Vatican. That should give you an indication of what my highlight of the day was. :-)

Ah, the Vatican Museum. What can I say? We stood in line in the blazing hot sun (Roma Pass doesn't work here), and battled our way through throngs of rude, rude, rude people. I find it very ironic that this is supposed to be the pinnacle of Catholicism, yet most people are anything but Christian.

I didn't even enjoy the museum because there were so many rude, obnoxious, oblivious people. The only time we didn't have to deal with people was when we took the hallway to the Egyptian wing, instead of following the signs to the Sistine Chapel. There were hardly any tourists in this section, and so it was enjoyable. The bad part was that it looped us back to a hot, crowded part of the museum we had already struggled through.

The other challenge of the Vatican Museum is that you have to go through all of the exhibits to get to the Sistine Chapel, which meant rooms and rooms of creepy modern Christian art, which I did not like. I would have completely skipped this disturbing section, except you are forced to walk through it.

And then you FINALLY get to the Sistine Chapel (and I'm not exaggerating - this is 4 miles later. Yes, I meant to say 4 miles.) I guess I was expecting an actual chapel, with pews to sit in and contemplate the artwork. But it is just a big room. The most horrible part were all the stupid, rude, ignorant people (can you tell I had a bad time??) There are signs EVERYWHERE saying no photography at all, of any kind - no videos, etc. And there are signs EVERYWHERE that say to be silent. There are even guards in the room, shushing the crowds and getting after people who are taking pictures. And I'm not even talking about slyly taking pictures they had their flashes going off! How stupid! The whole point of no photography is so that the artwork will last for generations to come. I just can't believe how selfish people are. And NOISY too! I just couldn't appreciate the beauty, because I was so upset by the lack of manners. The one thing I can say, is that I found it absolutely amazing and unbelievable that Michaelangelo completed this work in only 4 years. It looks like it could have taken a lifetime.

From the Sistine Chapel, we worked our way into St. Peter's Basillica. This was a little better, because there was room for people to spread out, but I was still outraged by the complete rudeness of the crowds. Michaelangelos's Pieta statue, of Mary craddling Jesus' body moved me tears, because it was so beautiful. And Eric and I did find a quiet moment to pray in a side chapel, where guards are standing to make sure no one takes pictures, and that people respect the prayerful atmosphere. But even then, one guy shoved his way past the guards to start taking pictures. I just couldn't believe it. People are pigs. Maybe I expect too much, but isn't it just common decency to show reverence and quiet? Even at regular art museums and the zoo, I've always insisted that my students remain quiet so that everyone can enjoy what is going on. Ugh! It was just an all around frustrating experience.

But, Eric and I returned, worn out and exhausted, for a siesta. We felt better afterwards and had a nice dinner out at our favorite little romantic spot. Eric commented that we shouldn't have gone to the museum, just to St. Peter's, and I agree. I do not recommend that museum at all. It is not worth it. Get a book of the Sistine Chapel, or find pictures on line. It will probably be a much more enjoyable experience. Or become rich and famous and try to arrange a private tour.

So, other than typical tourist drama, it was a good day. We are looking forward to heading to Sorrento tomorrow (about an hour south of Naples.) I am so grateful that Eric decided to take Rick Steve's advice and stay in Sorrento instead of Naples. We've learned that all of the landfills in Naples are closed because they are full, and so no garbage is being collected at all (and we hear that it is very very stinky.) So we may skip Naples all together.

I hope everyone is doing well. Ciao!

Eric's Thoughts from Rome (Day 3)

Our time in Rome is coming to a close. It is a little bitter sweet. I am sad to be leaving this wonderful city, but I am glad to moving back to the coast in Serranto.

We started the morning with a low-key and fun experience. Jenny and I both got our hair cut. It was fun trying to communicate with the stylist, and it was definitely an experience much different from getting my haircut in the U.S. Jenny and I are both happy with our cuts although Jenny jokes that I look like a Euro-punk with my new haircut.

The afternoon was interesting. I use the adjective interesting because I am still on the fence about whether I would recommend the experiences of today to other visitors of Rome. We spent the afternoon at the Vatican. The line getting into the Vatican Museum was actually not too bad. We were only in line for twenty minutes or so, but once you are inside the museum it seems like one long perpetual line from one end of the museum to the other ending with the Sistine Chapel. The sights and artwork present in this museum are amazing, but there are many times where the heat and the crowds can get to be a little overwhelming. The Sistine Chapel was a beautiful room with the famous artwork that you see pictured everywhere, but there are so many people in there that it is difficult to truly enjoy the experience. Once we got to St. Peter's Basillica, which is huge, the crowd did not seem to be as oppressive. The church is an amazing structure. I would recommend a visit to the church to anybody who visits Rome. I will post some pictures of the church in a separate post.

Anyway, I am going to sign off for now. I hope everyone is well. I will be writing from Serranto next. Take care.

Evening Pictures from Rome

Even More Pictures from Rome

Eric's Thoughts from Rome

I am having a wonderful time in Rome. Coming here as a kid is one thing, but as an adult I have a greater appreciation for the history and sights of this wonderful place. This place is another walking city where everywhere you look there is some interesting point. But today we focused are early explorations on the Ancient Roman sights (the Collesium (spelling?), and the Roman Forum), which I have memories of visiting as a kid. I even tried to replicate one of the photos that was taken of me when I was younger (the attached picture). I am not sure I pulled it off without looking more closely at the original, but it was fun to try.

We just spent the last few hours waking the city at night. It is almost 11:30 p.m. here, and the city is showing no signs of slowing down. We ate dinner at a restaurant that overlooks one of the plazas here, and there is so much going on that is hard to focus on any one thing. There are muscians, artists, living statues, jugglers, and performers of various kinds all over the plaza. It was quite the entertaining experience. By the way, I also highly recommend trying gelato when you are in Italy. Every gelato place and every flavor that I have tried has been amazing. I have never been this impressed with gelato or ice cream that I can find in the U.S.

Well, it is getting late here, and I want to post a few more pictures before I sign off. I hope everyone is well. Take care.

Rome Day 2 and a few personal notes

Hi Everyone,

Eric and I are working on two separate computers because the internet cafe closes in 20 minutes, so there may be some overlap.

First, I have to tell you about the rest of our day yesterday. We had a fabulous, romantic dinner at a place called That's Amore. Now, of course this place was geared towards tourists, but we still thought it was so much fun. Red and white checkered table cloths, candles dripping from wine bottles on the tables, and yummy, yummy food. I had gnocchi with gorgonzolla sauce and Eric had a calzone. Hanging on the wall were black and white photographs of famous people who have eaten in the restaurant, such as John Wayne, Frank Sinatra, Sophia Lauren, and a very young Sean Connery. It was fun to look at all of those photos, especially the one of John Wayne cooking spaghetti in the kitchen. It made me think of Dad and all the John Wayne movies I watched with him when I was younger.

Today was a day of "Wow!" We walked down to the Collosium (I think I spelled that wrong), and really, all you can say is wow! It was neat to see Eric so excited, remembering his childhood adventures, and trying to recreate photos from when he was a kid. I loved the Collosium - it was impressive. From there, we wandered around the Forum, the Palatine, Circus Maximo, and all sorts of ruins. Eric was like a kid on a playground, and it just made me smile. He had so much fun (and me too!) The only drawback was the heat. It is so freakin' hot here. And you know us Texans, the way we cope with heat is to crank up the air conditioner. But air conditioning seems to be a rare treat in Europe. Thankfully, our room here has it. So we partook in the tradition of the afternoon siesta, and cooled off for a couple of hours.

We headed back out around 8 pm, and the temperature was much cooler. That made it more fun to walk around. The lady running our hotel recommended an evening walk to take to a couple of different squares. It was fun to people watch, and to see how many people are still out and about, even now at almost midnight. We had a somewhat disappointing dinner - but I wasn't too surprised because it was in a very touristy spot. Our friend Rick (aka Strayshot) would have been devastated - when I asked for ketchup, I was brought a bottle called "Mato Mato" and printed all over the bottle was the word "Squiz" which I took to mean squeeze. But let me tell you, this was the grossest ketchup I've ever had. I guess Mato Mato was better than a menu item we'd seen earlier in the day which had "sheass" sauce on it. We had a good laugh over that, and avoided that particular item. :-) Afterward, we stopped for gelato. We're having fun trying all of the different flavors.

That's about it for today. Tomorrow we head to the Vatican and the Sistine Chapel. We are looking forward to it. For anyone headed to Rome, we strongly recommend the Roma Pass. It's very similar to the Paris Museum Pass, in that it allows you to skip ahead in line. That alone is worth the 20 euros the pass cost. Let me tell you, it wouldn't have been too much fun to stand in the blazing sun for an hour waiting to get into the Collosium. But the pass gets you into your first two sites for free, and then the rest of the sites are discounted, AND you can ride the bus and the metro for free.

Hope everyone is doing well. Here are a couple of personal messages:

Dad - Your comment was so funny, because I had just been discussing something very similar with Eric while we were walking today - something about how we are really at home and just posing in front of a blue screen. :-) xoxoxo

Mom - at last count, we have about 2000 pictures, so we are definitely taking tons. I think you and Dad should visit Switzerland and Rome. You would both like Rome too. But skip Milan. xoxoxoxo I miss you guys!

Julie - I don't know if Josh got ahold of you, but there are birds living in the hanging plant basket on our balcony. They have built a nest and laid eggs. This is OK with us, so don't worry if you are unable to water that plant because there are baby birds (or eggs) in there. Thanks for taking over the cat7plant care while Josh is gone, and we hope everything is going well at summer school.

Lillian - Thank you, thank you for the tickets to the palace in Venice! We are very excited about the tour and we will let you know how it goes.

Kristin - We're glad that you are enjoying our blog, and we owe you a big thank you for all of your help with getting us started on blogging. It's fun to see how many people are in the internet cafes working on their blogs. We've had many conversations with other people about which cities have cafes with the abilities to upload pictures (because many places won't let you). Hope you guys are well!

Domecq - are you still out there? Hope you are doing well!

Rick - enjoy some ketchup for me!

More Pictures from Rome

Buona Suari from Rome

Eric: We arrived in Rome today, and we are very happy to be here. The room we are staying in is small but very nice. It is extremely clean and secure. Our hostess has been extremely helpful, giving us all kinds of information about the city. We have been wandering around the streets of Rome and seeing some amazing things, such as the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps which are just minutes from our hotel. We are going to do more exploration tomorrow. I have childhood memories of this place that have come flooding back, especially when I saw the fountain (no pun intended). I am going to turn this over to Jenny now, and then we will post a few pictures. Take care everyone.

Jenny: Oh my gosh! For as much as I hated Milan, I LOVE Rome! It is amazing and incredible, and much cleaner than Milan. I can't believe how great our hotel is, especially because I booked it as we were flying out from Houston, and I can't believe how close it is to the sites. I have to admit that I was a bit sad to leave Cinque Terre, and in fact, toyed with the idea of maybe skipping out on Rome, or at least going a day later. But we had a fun train ride here- we sat with another couple, who were also teachers that taught at the same school, and we had so much fun swapping stories. That's one of the greatest parts of traveling is meeting people and hearing about their experiences. So that put me in a good mood, and just wandering around Rome has been magical. We are off to dinner and an early evening in so that we are ready to hit the big sites tomorrow. Ciao! P.S. Can you find Eric in the picture of the crowd around the fountain?

More Shots from Cinque Terre

Eric's Thoughts from Cinque Terre (Part Two?)

Well, I must say this place is awesome. These five peaceful little coastal towns are amazing (even though some are a little more peaceful than others). We have enjoyed exploring this region immensly. Today, we took a boat ride from our town of Riomaggiro to the town of Monterosso. You could clearly see the towns from the boat as we passed by them. The water is beautiful and clear, and it was yet another surreal experience. I highly recommend coming to this place too although I think that I would stay for at least a week.

Anyway, when we got to Monterosso, we rented an umbrella and chairs and spent the day on the beautiful beach and swam in the cool, blue water. The only down side to the beach is that it is a pebble beach, and the ground gets very hot, but we did not let that ruin our day. Anytime we got a little too hot, we would dive into the sea. Speaking of the sea, I went snorkeling yesterday which was amazing. The water her is extremely clear and there are fish everywhere, and I was just snorkeling in the marina right outside our room.

Well, if any of you are planning a trip to Italy, make sure you include Cinque Terre in your plans. It is amazing. That is all for now; I will probably be writing from Rome next. Take care everyone.

New Experiences with Old Friends

Yesterday we had a fabulous day with my old Big Sur Marathon Relay teammate Lillian, and her husband Don. Lillian used to work with my mom, but moved to Italy for a wonderful job opportunity. It was fun to see her again, and she took us to some incredible places. First, we saw Lerici, the city she is moving to, with its gorgeous harbor and castle. Then we went to the town of Carrara, which is famous for its marble quarries. We toured a museum (and I got lots of ideas about the types of marble countertops I want when we get our house), and then drove up to the quarries. On our way up, Lillian remarked how the hills look snow-covered, but in reality, they are mountains made of marble. We drove up to the top, and toured a marble cave. It was amazing - it was entirely made of marble. We learned all about how marble is removed from the mountain. The most amazing fact we learned was that this was the same quarry from which Michaelangelo got his marble to make his David statue. All these hundreds of years later, and there is still a mountain worth of marble! From the caves, we went to a fabulous dinner of wonderful Italian dishes, and then to Pisa to see the tower at night. It was such a fun day, and we are so grateful to Lillian and Don for being so generous to us. We had a great time!