Final day in Rome, then home .......

These last few days have been full on, and no let up today. We'd booked a 9.00am start at the Vatican Museum, and we left the apartment just after 8.00am to allow time to walk there - and even get in early if we could - which we did. Again we didn't have to queue (because of our online booking) and just walked straight in.

The Vatican Museum has so many fantastic things to see - ancient Egyptian statues, ancient Greek and Roman statues, 100m hallways lined with maps and tapestries, then onto the rooms covered in frescoes by Raphael, then room after room of modern art, then the Sistine Chapel. It was a bit overwhelming when we first walked in - so much to see, and so many people - but we took our time and listened to the audioguide and of course Michael read all about it in his book. It truly is a magnificent work of art.

After the Sistine Chapel we had a coffee and a little rest (under a tree on the terrace as it started to rain), then headed back into the paintings section - which holds masterpieces from the past 5 centuries - including by Giotto, Fra Angelico, Raphael, Da Vinci and Carravagio. This was another treat to gaze at all these beautiful pictures.

We left the Vatican museum and jumped on a 81 bus heading towards the Pantheon - one more 'must see' before we leave Rome. We were hungry by now, and the restaurant just opposite the Pantheon was offering a lunch menu of tomato brushetta, pizza or pasta, wine or soft drink and coffee for 12 euros - an offer too good to refuse. So we sat down and had a leisurely lunch watching the passing parade in the piazza and looking at the Pantheon (the oldest surviving church in Rome - built in AD 120!). We were fascinated by the huge granite columns - which the Romans had bought over from an even older Egyptian temple. Although the marble was badly weathered these columns were in great shape and were obviously still holding the whole thing up after 2000 years - incredible!

Michael was ready to call it a day - and a holiday, but I wanted to wander around a little more - which I did and bought myself a dress! Then back to the apartment to meet up with Mary and Dick for one last dinner (at the same place near our apartment). We had several toasts to success of the holiday - it had all gone better than any of us had hoped - and we were all sad to be finishing up and heading home. Then it was back to the apartment to pack for the last time.

We had a taxi booked for 5.00am, which arrived about 10 past - just as we were starting to get worried it wouldn't arrive. We got to the airport, and flew to London - Gatwick Airport and had a rather stressful time making the journey to Heathrow - having to collect our luggage, get through immigration, buy a bus ticket and find one bus to Heathrow, then another to Terminal 4, then check in, go through security, immigration and get to the gate - with only 10 minutes to spare - too tight timing for our liking!!! We had 3 hours transit time between flights, but we ended up literally running down platforms and just catching buses. Be warned anyone making that transit - give yourself at least 3 hours (the bus trip between airports is 60 minutes on its own). The rest of the trip was a fairly unpleasant but uneventful long haul - the movies were the redeeming feature - 'Beautiful Kate' was probably both our favourite.

Both Nicole and David were at the airport to greet us, and it was great to see them again. They had coped well in our absence - but seemed happy enough to see us again. So here we are, settling back into Melbourne life. Michael has already flown interstate for work, and I'm back at the hospital tomorrow.

Any last thoughts?

Was it worth it? Yes!

Would you recommend it? Yes!

Do you wish you'd done anything differently? Not really. I can't imagine what I'd leave out. Everything was great.

Would you do it again? Not the same trip, not straight away. Give me a few days and I'll probably change that answer to "Yes please. I'm ready to go again!"

Pompeii

We had booked the trip to Pompeii just the afternoon before on the internet, and we weren't too sure about the details, but we turned up on a dark side street at 7.15am, and were soon joined by some other aussies. Sure enough a girl turned up soon afterwards and opened a gate in the wall, and there was a tourist office. More people arrived and a bit after 7.30 we were instructed to walk off down the street. After a few blocks we came to a bus and jumped aboard to Pompeii!

It was a comfortable and pleasant 3 hour trip, with our tour guide Fabbio (a young archeologist telling us things along the way). Unfortunately we were slowed down by a traffic accident, so we were a bit late getting there, and only had about 3and a half hours in Pompeii.

We spent all that time wandering around the amazing city of ruins. It covers a few square kilometres and at every turn there are interesting things to explore - almost intact baths, shops, homes, temples, theatres, streets (complete with wheel ruts and stepping stones for crossing the street on wet days). It was sad to also see the plaster casts of people who had died and been buried - and their bodies had then decayed and left cavities in the volcanic ash - from which plaster moulds had been taken.

The whole site was a fantastic way to gain an insight into daily life at that time - and realise the sophistication of it -with running water to each neighbourhood and a mixture of public buildings and private homes.

We collapsed back into the bus and were whisked back to Rome - where we decided to see the Trevi fountain at night -as we hadn't got there yet. After a reasonable dinner (with a delicious tomatoe and fresh mozarella salad) we followed the tourists to the fountain. It was beautiful, but a bit overwhelmed by the masses of people there all taking photos, throwing in coins and generally hanging out. We'd had a super big day, and happily jumped on the number 46 bus home.

Rome - October 15th

Well today was my 50th birthday. What a way to spend it - In Rome!
We got up early and arrived at St Peter's Basilica soon after 8.00am to find the square deserted and no queue to enter the Basilica. Before we knew it we were standing inside that immense space. It really is beautiful. There is an integrity of design and decoration that is a delight to experience and explore. There is also quite a profound religious aspect to the Basilica that I was surprised by. Perhaps because we were there virtually on our own to start with, you could get the real sense that this was the place where St Peter died for his faith, and for 2 thousand years since, people have come to this place to affirm their belief in the teachings of Jesus. Sure it was built by Popes to show how great and powerful they were, but it is still a church where people come to pray and feel uplifted by the beauty around them.

As we were there so early, when we turned to our right after entering and saw the Pieta by Michelangelo, there was no one else there around it - so we were able to appreciate it fully. It is a remarkable statue - it's hard to believe it's made of marble - the figures are so expressive and life like.

Once we got our fill of the Basilica we decided to go up the dome - again no queue (though when we descended an hour later there would have been about 100 people waiting). Climbing up the winding stairs was hard work (though there was an elevator for the first part, so it was not nearly as hard as the Duomo in Florence or Notre Dame in Paris). We were rewarded with a great view of Rome. What was even more interesting though was a wander on the roof behind the big statues on the way down, then a walk inside the dome close up to the mosaics on the ceiling of the dome.

Next we descended to the crypt, where most of the popes were buried. Again no queue, but a big crowd inside, especially around the tomb of Pope John Paul II who died a few years ago. There were people praying and crying and throwing flowers on his grave, which was all quite moving.

After all that it was time to head back to the apartment for some lunch and a rest (after also investigating train options to Pompeii and finding out that would still be 75 Euro/head and involve changing trains in Naples). While Michael tried to recover from his cold, I ducked down to the internet shop to investigate other options - and found a bus trip for 55 Euro/head, which went from the Roma Termini station right to the entrance of Pompeii and back.

Mid afternoon we headed out to book the trip to Pompeii and take a walk down to the Travestere area. The walk along the river and through the travestere area was pleasant and interesting - with a stop in the Santa Maria in Travestere church which had some interesting frescoes and re-used Roman columns. We decided to walk back over the river (in the direction still further from home) to catch a bus from Piazza Venezia. On the way there we went through the Teatro di Marcello area, which was astonishing. Here were old ruins, like a small coloseum, that had been built onto/into and had what looked like apartments on top with people living in them! We finally arrived at Piazza Venezia - to find that there had been an accident on a major bridge, and the buses to our part of town weren't running. So we had another good hours walk home! Poor Michael, who wasn't feeling well, had gone out on a little stroll that turned into a three hour march - and we got home at 7.00pm - when we were meant to be leaving for my birthday dinner!

The dinner was at the Pomperie Restaurant - recommended by our landlady. It was in the Jewish part of town and was very good. I think we were the only tourists there, and the food was lovely. Liana had advised us to have the artichoke hearts and stuffed zucchini flowers - which we did for antipasta. Then I had a lamb and artichoke dish which was excellent. Mary tried the house special for desert - a berry and cheese pie (a bit like a baked cheescake). All washed down with a sweet sparkling desert wine which was delicious. A taxi home capped off a lovely night.

Roma, Day 1 and 2

Due to the morning bus strike, we had a leisurely departure from Montepulciano, and enjoyed a morning coffee in the main square - sitting in a sunny spot against a stone wall, protected from the cool breeze, watching the town gradually coming to life. We felt sad to leave, so we bought a calendar of Tuscan hill towns to look at and enjoy once we get home.

We had some concern that the strike would be extended past 12.30, but no, the bus drivers were all milling around the bus stop, and the 12.40 bus to Chiusi did leave on time - due to arrive in at Chiusi station at 1.30, for us to catch the 1.45 train to Rome. Tight timing! Because it was the first bus to run for the day it was jammed packed, and stopped at every stop - I calculated at least every 100m in towns and every 1km between them. Our progress was painfully slow. The driver knew he was under pressure though to make that connection in time, so every time he was moving it was at break-neck speed - I've never been in a bus with such incessant rapid acceleration and decelerration. Michael and I kept looking at our watches as we jerked through the final bit of the trip, then we flew off the train, into the arrival hall to look at which platform, then down the underpass, up at platform 4 just right on 1.45. With a satisfied sigh of exhaustion we fell onto the train (after waving our tickets at 2 people sitting in our window seats - who reluctantly got up and left - I'm not sure where to) and ate our mortedello and percorini cheese rolls the lady in the Montepulciano deli had made for us (after I'd pointed to the rolls, cheese and sausage and said in my best Italian "mangiamo treni". Luckily she realised we didn't intend to eat a train, but instead made 2 rolls and wrapped them beautifully).

Arriving in Rome, we had just over half an hour to make it to the rendez-vous at our apartment with the owner's son, who was going to hand over the key. We decided that it was wiser to just get a taxi and get there on time, rather than using this as an opportunity to acquaint ourselves with the Rome public transport system - with our luggage, a deadline looming and knowledge of bus drivers striking that day.

The apartment was lovely - larger and lighter than it had looked in the photos. 2 good bedrooms, large lounge/dining room, balcony with table and good kitchen. Unfortunately we were so busy in Rome we didn't hardly have time to spend there.

Michael had been feeling poorly all day with a head cold, so he settled in for a rest while I joined the Verweys for an exploratory walk to St Peter's square (about a 15 minute walk away). We later had a quick, cheap and reasonable meal at the Chinese restaurant round the corner.

The next day we set off to explore Rome. First stop - Castel Sant'Angelo (Hadrian's tomb turned castle, prison, papal refuge and now museum), then walking on to Piazza Navona to see the beautiful fountains there and a coffee in a cafe nearby. We were trying to track down a guide book on Rome by the infamous Rick Steves - the tourist information centre had directed us to a big book shop near Largo Argentina - and sure enough there was a copy in English. Michael was delighted and the book rarely left his hand or bag for the next 4 days (and I'm still using it now to check on spelling of names of places).

Next stop was the Colosseum. We had already bought a Roma pass at the Castel Sant'Angelo, so we were able to bypass the queue and walk straight in. It is a mighty structure - an incredible monument to Roman engineering skill. Although I could appreciate the feat of amazing construction that it was/is - I felt quite upset the whole time we were there thinking about it's purpose (as Rick informed us in great detail) - to watch killings. It was built for spectactors to watch the killing of both animals and people - hundreds of them - as a sport. The subterraneum chambers you could see - where people waited, not knowing if they'd live or die in the next few hours. The whole idea is so horrible that I couldn't wait to get out of the place.

We needed a good sit down and rest after that, as Michael was really struggling with his cold. So we had lunch at a restaurant overlooking the coloseum (shared pizza and salad). We then soldiered on through the Roman Forum - again ably instructed by Rick on the different buildings, before trudging off to find some bus companies to try to book a day tour to Pompeii. We tracked down 2 bus companies, but the tours were 115 Euros each - so we thought we'd do it ourselves by train instead (as advised by Rick anyway). We jumped on a bus back to St Peters square and poor Michael almost crawled home to our apartment. We had dinner that night with the Verweys at a good little restaurant/pizzeria just near our apartment - full of locals and a waiter who thought Dick looked like Clint Eastwood.

Montepulciano, Tuscany

We had decided we wanted to spend more time in Tuscany, instead of travelling all the way down to the Amalfi coast for basically one day of sight seeing, so we parted company with Mary and Dick who were very keen to see the Amalfi coast and headed off into the Tuscan hills instead.

The bus for Montepulciano left from the train station (not the bus station) - so we were told. Getting clear information on these sort of matters is sometimes difficult, but it turns out our source was correct, and as a bus with the sign 'Montepulciano' roared past the station we slung our bags into the hold, jumped in and headed off with a big group of school kids out into the country side. The kids all gradually got off as we wound our way though the hills and villages and finally our bus stopped at a big bus stop - from where we could see Montepulciano perched on the hill above us. We followed the others on board and got onto a little bus (then off again to go and buy a ticket, then on again, luckily it was still there ..... but as we found out, things move pretty slowly at Montpulciano, which suited us fine).

Michael's dream was to have a room with a view over the Tuscan coutryside. The hotel was called 'Bellavista', but we weren't too sure. We found the hotel, pressed on the buzzer and were over the intercom told the key was in the door of room 3, and the outer door electronically opened. We lugged the bags up a flight of stairs, opened the door and tentatively threw back the shutters - to display the most magnificent view across the Tuscan countryside. We were perched up the top of a steep hill, looking out onto farms, hills and mountains in the distance. It was beautiful.

The weather was closing in though and it started to drizzle as darkness set in. We set off to dinner at a restaurant recommended in the book (La Cantucci) but it was full, so we said we'd return the next night. Instead we ended up downstairs at Cafe Metropolitana, where we had a beautiful meal of local cold meats and pecorini cheeses, followed by a great shared ravioli and shared potted rabbit.

We woke in the morning to find the valleys below shrouded in mist, which gradually cleared as the sun rose higher in the sky. A guide book we had read in Siena ('Rick Steve's Tuscany' - more on Rick later) had sort of recommended Camere Bellavista "if all else fails you can always fall back on Camere Bellavista, but be sure to ask for Room 6 which has a balcony". So we dutifully asked for room 6 and were able to move there the next morning. It did indeed have a balcony - over the old gate to the city! With an absolutely sumptious view. Thanks for the hint Rick. The first of many from him in the week to come ......

After changing rooms, we set off on foot to explore the surrounding coutryside. So down, down, down out of Montepulciano, then off on a small road leading to Montefalconi - we think. There were hardly any signs, but it was a beautiful walk along a twisting road, then revealed gorgeous new panoramas every few hundred metres. We walked for several hours out along the road, then back again. See the photos.

We returned to our new room with balcony for a bit of a light, late lunch and a good rest, and a sit on our terrace to watch the sunset, before another delcious meal - this time at La Cantucci. It was an old fashioned trattoria, where we had a good meal, but not as outstanding as the night before.

The next day we set off for another walk, but not such an ambitious one, as we had to do business first - such as booking the bus and train to Rome the next day. The helpful lady in the tourist information station told us there would be a bus strike the next morning, so we couldn't leave town until 12.40, which would only give us 10 minutes to make our connection at Chiusi with the train to Rome! When we returned up to town we had a wander and bought a roll and some sausage from a liitle shop. It was the most enormous mortadella - almost a metre long and half a metre wide - in this little shop in a little town - it was a bit incongruous. But it seemed that it was THE mortadella shop, perhaps THE sauasage shop as there was a continuous queue of people lined up waiting for the lady to hack a few slices off - it was too big for any slicing machine.

Late that afternoon the rain really poured down and a storm swept up the valley. We were so high up in our room that we could look down on the poor pidgeons circling in the air below, being buffetted by the wind and almost going backwards as they attempted to find safe refuge from the storm. The rain had stopped by about 8.00pm and we picked our way along the wet cobbled streets to another fine restaurant - which the restautanteur had literally dragged us into the evening before and introduced us to a young American couple eating there, who told us it was the best place they'd eaten in Italy. Sure enough we had a very fine meal (we had desert for a change - tiramisu and zabliogne - delicious), accompanied by the restauranteur breaking into operatic arias every now and then.

Siena

Today we explored Siena, after a leisurely start to do some washing and catching up with the internet. We headed back to the Duomo, and went to the Bapistery (amazing frescos), crypt (unbelievable construction of the 14th century church on top of a very old one which was only just rediscovered recently), and museum - which included a climb onto the top of the wall which was going to make this church the biggest in christendom - but was never finished due to the black plague. There were great views from up here, as well as all over Siena - you just keep getting glorious glimpses of countryside between gaps in the buildings, or you get stunned by the buildings themselves.

We journeyed on to the memorial gardens, which again afforded beautiful views, both back to Siena and to the countryside. This brought us back into the top end of town, and we returned to our room satisfied with a good day's sight seeing. We then tried to organise our next leg - as we have decided not to go down to the Amalfi coast, but to spend more time in Tuscany. I booked a room in a hotel in Montepulciano for Saturday night - I hope: "Vorremo una camera per Sabato dieci Otobre, per favore." "Va bene" was the response and she hung up. We'll see what happens ....

Day 2 in Siena and we decided to head out of town San Gimignano - the town famous for its towers and views. We jumped on the bus - literally - it was close timing - the bus didn't even pull in to the curb and it was a few minutes early! It was a lovely drive through the countryside - to an interesting old town crawling with tourists. We climbed to the top of the tallest tower and enjoyed beautiful views over the classic tuscan countryside. Down again and through the civic museum (interesting rooms where they have conducted civic business continuously for 600 years).

Lunch of pasta in a little tratoria (Michael tried the truffles and found them tasty but not very exciting), then a wander into an old fort that had the most sublime views, before heading back to the bus for Siena.

La Spezia to Siena

Another day traveling on the train. Only a 3 hour trip, but 2 changes of train - one with only a 10 minute change over time. It all went smoothly and we arrived in Siena by about 2pm. We had booked rooms at Palazzo Bruchi, which looked like a great old building in the old city - and it lived up to our expectations. You enter it via a small door set into a big old pair of wooden doors, and go through to find yourself in a large lobby/ carriage yard. Steps lead off to the left, but immediately ahead is a large archway opening onto a courtyard overlooking a green valley and the hills of Tuscany. Our rooms were to the side of this courtyard, with leafy views. Large, clean rooms with books and brochures and even tea and coffee making facilities. We were very happy.

After a rest we set off to explore Siena, and we loved it. A medieval town full of life - there are even more students here than tourists, so there is a vitality and 'realness' whic we have found lacking in some towns, which have been over-run with tourists.

We wandered through the Campo, and found ourselves at the Duomo in the late afternoon. We decided to have a quick look - unprepared for the amazing experience about to unfold. This cathedral is completely full of treasures - marble inlaid floors showing beautiful pictorial scenes, frescoes on the walls and ceilings, a beautiful painted dome, an amazing pulpit all made out of carved stone, supported by 4 lions, and also a library that had 15th century manuscripts all around the room and beautiful paintings. We staggered out of there overwhelmed by all the beautiful things we had seen.

Back to the hotel in time to meet the Verweys for tea. Our hotellier recommended a restaurant that served truffles and mushrooms this time of the year. We went there but unfortunately there were no truffles - Michael and I shared a delicious taglietelli with mushrooms, followed by a small steak with a mushroom which was superb.