Benvenuti!

Welcome to our Italy trip journal!  Our trip lasted a mere nine days, but we managed to take over a thousand pictures and keep a pretty good record of what we did.  Now it's time for us to share all that with friends and family.  

On the left side of this page, you'll find the links you need to navigate the page.  Click on the picture of Brad taking a picture to go to our online photo album. Click on each journal entry, starting with "Airbus 340 to Roma," to read about what we did each day.

Below those links, you can read about why we called this blog "Il Dolce Far Niente," all the flavors of gelato we tried, and some of our general observations about Italy.

Enjoy!

Jill and Brad

Airbus 340 to Chicago

• Got up at 4:00 am and had breakfast at the hotel. The front desk ladies had left the breakfast room unlocked for us the night before.
  
• Walked through the deserted streets of Venice to catch the 4:55 am vaporretto (water bus) to Piazzale Roma.
  
• Took the 5:40 am bus from there to the airport for our 7:55 am flight. We flew from Venice to Madrid, then to Chicago.
  
• Back in Chicago, the rain from Hurricane Ike was just rolling in, and Italy already seemed a long way away as soon as we boarded the Blue Line for home.
  

Day 7: Venezia

• Had breakfast at the hotel.
  
• Meandered through San Marco to meet our pre-booked walking tour. For two hours, our guide led us through the neighborhood of San Marco. One interesting thing she told us was that Venice now has only 70,000 residents, but 22 million tourists came through the city last year. Understandably, some Venetians aren’t thrilled about this situation.
  
• After the tour, we had lunch in the San Polo neighborhood. Brad got panino mortadella; Jill got foccacia with prosciutto, pomodoro, mozzarella, and arugula.
  
• Walked to the boardwalk on Fondamente Zattere on the south edge of Dorsoduro.
  
• Took a traghetto across the Grand Canal to meet our boat tour. Traghettos are gondolas that go back and forth across the Grand Canal in areas where there isn’t a bridge nearby. It’s only 50 Euro cents for a ride.
  
• The boat tour took us all way around the Grand Canal. We sat up front and enjoyed the cool breeze and the prosecco they served.
  
• After this tour, we just wandered around for a while until our ghost tour began. The ghost tour led us down narrow passageways and into the lesser-known courtyards of Venice. The tour guide told us legends about dead babies haunting the Rialto Bridge, a man kidnapping babies from orphanages and cooking them into the beef stew in his restaurant, and secret high-class brothels for Venetian elites.
  
• After the tour we had dinner at Osteria Sora al Ponte, which was right beside the fish market, so we figured it was a good bet they’d have great seafood. We ordered from the fixed price menu and got seafood lasagne, calamari fritti, stewed squid with polenta, potate fritti (French fries), insalata misto, and a half liter of delicious prosecco. 
  
• Headed back to the hotel to rest up for our early flight the next morning.
  

Day 6: Venezia

• Got up, checked out of Hotel Martelli in Florence, and walked to train station to catch a train to Venice.
  
• Walked from the Venice train station to our hotel. Whew! We crossed eight small bridges and two larges ones, all of which had steps up and down, with our huge suitcases! At this point, we realized that Venice is basically a maze and that no expertise at map-reading would help us.
  
• Had lunch at Snack Bar Mio, a tiny place where a lot of gondoliers eat lunch. Brad had a shrimp sandwich; Jill had a crab with rocket sauce sandwich. Still not exactly sure what rocket sauce is, but it was delicious.
  
• Wandered around and looked at many of the thousands of glass shops for which Venice is famous.  Jill bought some glass candy and a small Venetian mask.  We were amazed at every single shop we entered.  All the glass trinkets, even the cheap tourist stuff, was absolutely gorgeous.
  
• Went to the meeting place for our pre-booked “gondola serenade.” Our Hulk Hogan-looking gondolier, Sergio, smoked a cigarette and yelled to his fellow gondoliers the entire time. At one point, he pulled up to the side of a canal and accepted a beer that someone offered him, cracking it open and drinking it while rowing us along. So much for the idea of a romantic gondola ride.
  
• After the tour, we had dinner at Trattoria al Vaporretto, which had no English subtitles on the menu. We both ordered from the fixed price menu and shared all the items: spaghetti al pescatora (seafood), risotto con scoglia (squid), calamari fritti (the best calamari either of us had ever tasted), sepia in umido con polenta (stewed squid), insalata verde, and a half liter of pino grigio. This was one of the best meals we had.
  
• Wandered back to the hotel, stopping outside the opera on the way. We sat on the steps of an adjacent building and listened to the last song of the night.

Day 5: Firenze

• Woke up early and took the 7:30 am train to Firenze.
  
• Checked in to our hotel and checked our email at a nearby internet place.
  
• Walked to the central market, where they have lots of leather goods and cheap, lame tourist crap. We found the snack stand we had read about where Brad got a panino con bollito (beef sandwich).  
  
• Walked past the Duomo and Piazza del Republica across Ponte Vecchio to the apartment where Brad's Aunt Waddie used to live.
  
• Aimlessly meandered through Aunt Waddie's neighborhood, crossing back over the Arno River at Ponte Alle Grazie.
  
• Walked to lunch at Cantinetta del Varrazzono. Brad had focaccia with pesto, pomodoro, and olives and a glass of red wine; Jill had focaccia with peas and cheese.
  
• Back to the hotel for a siesta.
  
• Walked around and agonized over restaurants until we found Borgo Antico. We shared red wine and a pizza with eggplant and spicy salami.
  
• Walked home and drank a bottle of wine on the roof of the hotel.
  

Day 4: Orvieto

• Got up early and walked to the East side of town in hopes of catching the sunrise, but we were a bit late.
  
• From there we walked along the parkway path along the northern edge of town, stopping at a few overlooks for pictures. Our plan was to throw the frisbee somewhere, but we never found a good spot.
  
• Meandered through the town, outside the western wall of town and then back to the Duomo.
  
• Back to the hotel to clean up.
  
• Out again for lunch at same place as yesterday, where we both got pizza margherita,  orange Fanta, and water.
  
• From there we walked around town aimlessly, stopping in lots of shops and buying another bottle of the same wine we had the night before. Our plan for this bottle, though, is to open it exactly one year from now and drink it to remember our trip.
  
• Back to the hotel for a siesta, then out on the terrace to write postcards.
  
• Tried to have dinner at La Polomba, but they were completo (full). We walked until we found a trattoria and shared several dishes: prosciutto and melon, limbrichelli arabbiatta, pasta with rabbit, wild boar cacciatore style, and red wine.
  
• Meandered through town and stopped to see a street performance. The performer picked Brad out of the crowd to ride a bike in a circle. He tried speaking to Brad in Italian, but Brad obviously didn’t understand. When he asked where we were from, Brad said, “Chicago, in America.”  The performer said, “Americano?!” and put his hands on his head and ducked as if from a bomb dropping.  
  
• We got some gelato on the way back to the hotel.
  

Day 3: Orvieto

• Slept in late at hotel in Rome, got up at 9:30 am and missed breakfast. Checked out and took a cab to Termini train station.
  
• Took the Eurorail to Orvieto - about an hour ride.
• Once we reached Orvieto, we took the funicular (trolley) up the steep hill into the city. The town was built on a steep rock plateau back in 300 BCE by the Etruscans.
  
• Walked to our hotel on Corso Cavour (the main street of town) and checked in.
  
• Walked to Piazza de Poppola, where the market we wanted to walk through was just closing down. We found out that the markets usually close down before 2 pm.
  
• We ate lunch at a little bar – we each got a ham panino and orange soda for a mere 7.80€ total!
  
• Walked to Torre del Morro, the clock tower, and climbed to the top for beautiful views of the town and surrounding countryside.
  
• Headed to the Duomo, stopping at many shops along the way, including a gelateria. The Duomo was gorgeous, with gold plating and intricate carvings of scenes from the Bible.
  
• We sat at a small park on the southern edge of town overlooking the countryside. There we watched an Italian family play soccer for a while.
  
• Walked back to the hotel, buying a bottle of wine on the way for later in the evening.
  
• Took a siesta at the hotel, cleaned up a bit, and went for a passaggiata (evening stroll). We walked through a quaint residential neighborhood to reach the west side of town. There we watched the sun set over the distant hilltops, covering the small vineyards and olive tree orchards nestled below in shadow.
  
• Walked to dinner at Tipica Trattoria Etrusca. Brad had rabbit in a green herb sauce; Jill had ravioli in black truffle sauce. For dessert we had the now-famous Etruscan cake (amazing!) and panna cotta with a berry sauce. We vowed to figure out how to make Etruscan cake.
  
• Walked to Le Grotte Funaro to drink a bottle of wine. This restaurant is built into a cave!
  
• Walked back to the hotel to drink the bottle of wine we purchased earlier on the third floor terrace next to our room.
  

Day 2: Roma

• Got up early and had breakfast at the hotel.  The continental breakfasts aren't anything to write home about, but we did have excellent espresso to wake us up.
  
• Walked to Vatican City where we went through the museum toward the Sistine Chapel, which was completely packed with people craning their necks to look at the ceiling. We then went to St. Peter’s and walked the 550 steps to the top of the winding dome for some great panoramic views.
  
• Walked to the Campo di Fiori outdoor market where we purchased some spices, cream de pepperoni, and dried kiwis and sampled some black truffle sauce.
  
• Had lunch at Enoteca Corsi.  Brad had baccala (cod) with potatoes and tomatoes; Jill had caprese salad.  These were not our original orders.  When we tried to order the first time, the server shook her head and crossed off several items on the menu that they were no longer serving that day.  Italian restaurants are much more concerned with the freshness of their food than whether the customer gets exactly what they wanted.
  
• Walked to the Coloseum, toured it for a while, and saw the Roman Forum nearby.
  
• Walked back to the Pantheon just as the sun was starting to go down. There we sat in an outdoor patio facing the Pantheon with a fan-mister behind us cooling us off from the 90 degree day.  
  
• In the same square, we moved to the steps of a big fountain to people-watch.
  
• Walked to dinner at Trattoria del Pallaro for the fixed price meal. Drinks: mineral water and a ceramic pitcher of white wine. First course: olives, fried potato balls, fried sausage cakes, the best salami we've ever tasted, prosciutto, lentils, some kind of cabbage (meant as a palate cleanser maybe?), and bread.  Second course: rotini pasta with tomato sauce and grated parmesan cheese.  Third course: stewed baby zucchini, baby mozzarella balls, potato chips, and slices of pork.  Fourth course: custard-topped cake with apricots and a small bowl of peaches. The restaurant was run by one old woman.  Entering and exiting through the open kitchen doorway directly beside our table, she would put her hands on her hips and survey the dining room, deciding which tables were ready for the next course. Many guests seemed to know her, and she greeted them with a playful slap or a kiss on the cheek or head. 
  
• Walked back to hotel, stopping to hear a street performer play the fiddle and sing in Campo di Fiori and browse through the artists' booths in Piazza Navona on the way.
  

Day 1: Roma

• Landed in Madrid at 8:00 am on one end of the airport and had to hurry to reach our connecting flight at the opposite end of the airport.
  
• Arrived in Rome at 11:45 am and caught a shuttle directly to our hotel.
  
• Checked in and immediately walked to Piazza del Poppola. Apparently there was a movie being filmed here. The piazza was roped off, and there was a 60's-looking VW van parked there with some people dressed as hippies milling about the set.
  
• Walked to the Spanish Steps. There was a large fountain at the base of the Steps where people were filling up water bottles and drinking directly from the spout.  A couple of women even washed their faces in it.   There must be some kind of legend about touching water from that fountain because people were lining up to have their pictures taken in the act.  We climbed the Spanish Steps, which offered a lovely view from the top of the crowds of people below.
  
• Walked to the Capuchin Crypt, which we dubbed the Bone Church.  Each room in the crypt was elaborately decorated with the bones of former members of the church.  You have to see the pictures to understand the creepiness of this.  We're talking hip bones arranged in the shape of flowers, and a whole skeleton dressed as the grim reaper hanging from the ceiling.
  
• Walked to Trevi Fountain and enjoyed a beer and soda, taking advantage of the legality of drinking on the street.
  
• Walked back to the hotel for a nap from 6:30 - 8:00 pm, then we went back out to explore and have dinner.
  
• Sat outside at the restaurant. Brad had spaghetti carbonara; Jill had ravioli with salmon; for dessert we had tiramisu and espresso.
  
• Strolled through Piazza Navona, walked to the Pantheon, then back to Trevi Fountain all lit up for the night. Had another espresso at a nearby cafe.
  
• Got back to the hotel after midnight, blew the fuse with Jill's hair dryer, and then went to bed.
  

Airbus 340 to Roma

• Woke up early in Chicago had breakfast at Nookies.  Our plan was to get up really early so we'd be tired enough to sleep on the plane ride.
  
• Arrived at O’Hare for our 4:45pm flight.
  
• The sheer excitement of going to Italy dashed the plan of sleeping on the plane, even canceling out the effects of sleeping pills and physical tiredness.