True love in a small world

Driving into Orvieto – in the Umbria region – took my breath away. Our B&B owner picked us up at the train station, and thank goodness she did. This particular town requires a bus and/or a funicular to reach it. High up on a hill, this special place wasn’t bombed in World War II: everything else around it was, but Orvieto was salvaged. Beneath the city is a whole other world of caves, some dating back 3000 years. These caves were used for everything, from the production of olive oil, to mining for water, from providing quarry rock, to breeding pigeons. And these caves stay between 14 and 15 degrees Celcius all year round. Mom and I took a tour of them. We also hiked up yet another tower; to see a view from an already high place was so very stunning. And we had it all to ourselves! We just missed the bells going off by a couple seconds, both on the 30- and 45-minute marks. We were smart enough to duck back inside the stairwell before our ears were blasted off. We had an amazing dinner out. We shared a bottle of local wine and had some locally-made pasta (mine was with artichokes…yum)! They brought us dessert wine to accompany our melt-in-your-mouth tiramisu. It was a real treat.

Our accommodations themselves would suit me as living quarters. We had a quaint bedroom loft – living area and kitchen on the main floor, and bedroom and bathroom upstairs. It was lovely! When the owner dropped us off, she gave us the keys, and asked how we liked our eggs for breakfast the next morning. We knew we were staying in a really old building, because it’s actually marked on the map as one of the sites. It’s five hundred years old! At breakfast we learned that this old palace has been in the owner’s family for three hundred years. The other apartments are occupied by her nieces, nephews, cousins, brothers, sisters, etc. So fantastic! We were very sad to go, and decided that next time we would definitely stay there as a base, because Rome is only about 90 minutes away, and Florence a couple of hours. Yes, I definitely need to explore Umbria more!

Our last day in Rome was wonderful. We had very little on our agenda – just having gelato and pizza – and it was fun to come back to a familiar place. Plus, of the three big cities (Rome, Venice, and Florence), I like Rome the best. We wandered back to our favourite areas, and had already planned our last dinner venue: a pizza place we noticed at the beginning of our travels, that was always CRAZY lined up. We got there and it was open for dinner yet, so we got gelato at the place next door. It was SO good. There was another mother/daughter pair doing the same – turns out also from K-W! Such a small world! Mom and Joanne actually have mutual contacts in their work circle, and Katherine is a teacher and has done lots of travelling too. We definitely had lots to talk about. The next gal to stand in line for this apparently world-famous pizza was Joo, a South Korean native! I got her contact information, as she lives close to Seoul, and we’ll keep in touch and hang out too! The five of us ended up sitting together, as this place gets so busy and lined up. It was quite the event. The owner is walking up and down the line – this cute, old Italian man – yelling at people here and there. A real character. And the pizza was pretty darn good!

We went to the Trevi Fountain, one last time, to see it at night. We threw coins again, as we had already returned to Rome since our first throw! Mom had an early flight Friday morning, so here I sit, alone again.
Forgot to mention that at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, mom and I ran into some folks we know from K-W! Of all places! We had a nice catch-up, chatting in front of a Da Vinci I think it was!

Oh, Italy, I would like to thank you for your espresso, your pizza and pasta, your gelato (of which mom and I compiled a list of all the flavours we tried while here!), your well-dressed men, your passionate artisans always wanting to share their stories, your warm hospitality, and your beauty and art. If I had to choose a favourite spot, I’d have to say Capri, and I’d also throw in Orvieto. The Amalfi Coast and the Umbria regions are pure bliss.

Rome-ing

Ciao readers! I apologise for not writing sooner but mom and I have literally been on the go everyday! Boy do our heads hit the pillow hard each night. I haven’t slept this well in a very long time; I haven’t slept in a proper bed since leaving Canada. I suppose you can count hostel beds as beds, because that’s what they are, but sleeping on the saddest excuse of a futon in Radom for the past nine months hasn’t exactly made for the sweetest of dreams. Enough about beds…

I had a smooth getaway from Radom, very early in the morning. The original plan was for me to leave my keys in the mailbox for my boss to pick up. That changed and she decided to come at 6:30 in the morning, when I wanted to leave. Oh well. Slept on the train to Warsaw, had one last stop at Coffee Heaven, then made my way to the airport. I kept just the right amount of cash on hand, and it bought me a nail polish at the duty free, and an iced tea. I slept on the flight too. Then came the reunion! My flight got in about 15 minutes before mom’s. I went to her terminal and there we were, together in Rome! We caught a shuttle into the centre, and found our way to our accommodations. We spent the evening getting our bearings.

First full day in Rome, check this out: the Coliseum, the Roman Forum, Palatine Hill, the Pantheon, the Spanish steps (and another set of steps that we mistook for the Spanish steps…it was in fact the Spanish embassy), Trevi fountain, and gelato. We threw coins over our shoulders, though we didn’t know which shoulder to throw it over (like a continental soldier) so hopefully there isn’t a wrong way and we won’t be cursed with seven years bad luck. The Coliseum is monstrous. You really don’t believe it until you see it. I saw an amphitheatre in Pula, Croatia last summer, and thought it was huge. It has nothing on Rome’s. It was fun to sit on the Spanish steps and people watch. There are lots of men who sell single roses, among other (useless) things, and they put them in people’s hands and then expect money in return. It’s quite amusing to watch. Mom and I started thinking up really annoying questions to ask them about the products they peddle, so they see how it feels to have someone in their faces so much.

Day two was no less full: the Campo de Fiori market in the morning, the Vatican museum, and Piazza de Popolo, and back to the Coliseum for a night-time view. It sounds like less, but it really wasn’t. On our long walk back to our place, we found a great little pizza bar and had a really amazing slice of pizza with some Italian beer. It was just what we needed. The market was wonderful and full of aromatic spices, produce, breads, cheeses, meats, and nuts. Later in the day I had some sort of coconut drink – which I thought was granite – but it was fluffy and creamy and smooth and delicious. I still don’t know what it was. Josy? Thoughts?
Day three was my favourite: we first went to the Callisto Catacombs, then walked through a big flea market, spent some time in the Trastevere neighbourhood (my favourite) and had a pasta lunch there, and then went to the Piazza Novanno. In this area I had read about vintage shopping…I found a wonderful vintage dress. The owner was a delightful mid-thirties man who I would love to just take with me in my pocket. He was so sweet. I was humming and hawing over the dress, but then he insisted he wanted to see it on me. “Be my model!” Then he brought me another that he thought would suit – I ended up with the first choice – and he let me pick out a scarf just for fun. He grabbed my hand and was showing me around the shop. A memorable experience indeed. After that mom and I bought a glass of wine each (to take away; goodness I love Europe for that), and sat in the Piazza with it. Then we made our way back. In the catacombs we were 11 metres underground, the oldest and largest where everyone used to be buried. Because it’s so large and there are many pathways, you must enter with a guide. How I wish we were given 20 minutes of free time to wander and get lost in the labyrinth.
The next morning we headed out to the train – Naples bound en route to Sorrento! In a nutshell, we walked everywhere and saw most (if not all) of the main highlights in Rome!

PS. I totally navigated us around Rome. I am a map-reading all-star.