Bella Italia

April 2-10

Out of all the European destinations, Italy has always been number one on my list to visit.  My desire to see Italy was further influenced by taking Italian lessons at OU during my Sophomore year.  

I'm technically here at Lancaster Uni for two terms.  The first term ("Lent") ended on March 22, and the Summer term starts back up April 22 (but Summer term for me only consists of exams-- no lectures).  So, Jess and I decided to do our Italian adventure during this break.

Rome   Roma

    April 1st was the Monday after Easter, which in the UK is still considered part of the holiday.  This isn't the case in the states, so I didn't realize how many people would be at the airport on the 2nd.  The queue for RyanAir's check-in was ridiculously long and it took over half an hour to get through.  We got through security with less than 2 minutes to spare before our plane was meant to take off, so we sprinted to the gate.  Luckily, the plane didn't leave without us.

     We arrived in Rome and struggled for about 45 minutes to find our Hostel, "Hotel Beauty".  After settling into our accommodation, we headed to a nearby cafe/pizzeria for some lunch.  This was our first experience of authentic Italian food, and we opted for the pizzas.  Pizzas are much different in Italy than what we're used to; they're dominated by red sauce, with thin crust and a modest amount of cheese.  The difference is that the mozzarella is much more flavorful in Italy than in the states, so you really don't need very much of it. 

 This was also my first Italian espresso; it was served in a cup that was about the size of a shot glass.  Italians are well known for their craft of espresso-making; taking great care in the preparation, but only drinking about a shot's worth of it when all is said and done.  They scoff at us Americans with our super-sized, sugary, creamy "coffee".

    With our Italian appetites satisfied for the time being, we headed off toward the direction of Trevi Fountain.  We weren't really keeping an eye on the map, though, and ended up at the top of some stairs overlooking a huge mass of people.  We couldn't figure out why there were so many of them... the only thing down there was a small fountain.  So we went down to get a better view, and in the process realized that we were climbing down the Spanish Steps.

The Trevi Fountain

The Spanish Steps

The iconic Trevi Fountain is the largest baroque fountain in Rome and is most famous for its appearance in a scene in the film La Dolca Vita ("The Sweet Life").  It was so much larger than I imagined!  It was difficult to even get a photo that did the fountain justice.  Tradition says that throwing a coin over your shoulder into the fountain ensures that you will one day return to Rome.

the coin toss

The next major site was the Pantheon.  The word "pantheon" is a greek conjunction meaning "all gods", and the building's original purpose was as a temple for all of Ancient Rome's gods.  It's one of the best preserved buildings in Rome and has been continually used an rebuilt throughout history.  To this day, the temple is used for church services, and two of Italian Kings are buried inside. 

inside the Pantheon

Piazzas are usually the type of setting that comes to mind when one thinks of Italy.  They're essentially what we would call town squares, and are usually bustling with markets and vendors today, and full of nightlife in the evenings.  Jess and I spent the rest of the day wandering around the Piazzas of Rome; Piazza Navona and Campo di Fiori.   They were full of restaurants, gelaterias, cathedrals, and fountains.  We popped in a few of the churches and hung out by the fountains and did some people-watching.  

This quickly became tradition (Piazza Navona)

Wandering away from the Piazzas, we stumbled upon a beautiful building that we came to know as "the wedding cake", more formally known as Altare della Patria.  It was built in the honor of an Italian King, Victor Emmanuel. 

Altare della Patria

We decided the best option for dinner would be gelato.  After one bite, we knew it would be a daily occurrence.  We headed back to the hostel and met Courtney, the girl staying in our hostel with us.  Coincidentally, she came from Melbourne, the same city that Jess lives in Australia.  Their hometowns are only about an hour apart.

Ceiling in Vatican Museum

The next day, we set off early with Courtney to do a tour of the Vatican.  As I'm sure you all know, it is the official residence of the pope.  Touring the Vatican Museum takes about an hour from start to finish, terminating at the Sistine Chapel.  The draw is mainly due to its impressive decoration and architecture, but those who are more learned in Catholicism can further appreciate the religious motifs throughout.  We did a fairly quick walk-through of the museum, passing through ridiculously beautiful rooms embellished from floor to ceiling in artwork. 

Creation of Adam (I didn't take this)

I wanted to spend a bit longer in the Sistine Chapel, as I was already familiar with some of the artwork and wanted to follow along with the ceiling story.  The ceiling starts off on the far right with the initial Creation (God separates light from dark, creates sun and plants, divides water from Earth), moving left towards the creation and downfall of Adam and Eve, and then finally the three stories of Noah.  The most iconic of all is, of course, the creation of Adam.  We couldn't take pictures in most areas inside, unfortunately.

St. Peter's Square

The pope!

Upon leaving the Sistine Chapel, we noticed a huge gathering of people in St. Peter's Square, so we headed over toward the masses.  Police were arming the entry into the square, searching our purses as we walked in.  Wondering what on earth was going on, we suddenly heard a voice over the loudspeaker.  We turned around, and there was the pope!  Apparently he was giving an address to the city (we obviously couldn't understand what he was saying, other than a word here and there).  But it was definitely a highlight of the whole trip.

After stopping for gelato at what was recommended as the "best gelateria in Rome", we went to another Piazza, Piazza di Popollo, which is well-known for its great view.  We climbed a few flights of stairs and ended up on a terrace overlooking the entire city.

Finally came my most anticipated portion of the city; Ancient Rome.  Jess and I wandered through the ruins and ended up at the Colosseum, the largest amphitheater in the world.  It was absolutely breath-taking.  I tried to imagine how it may have looked during the Flavian dynasty, holding over 50,000 spectators watching animal battles, gladitorial competitions, and mythological dramas.  Unfortunately, earthquakes in the 21st century partially destroyed the architecture, but much of the original foundation still stands.  

(Brian, you asked about the floor of the Colosseum, here's your answer...) 

inner arena floor

As you can see in the pictures, there appears to be pillars standing throughout the inner arena floor.  This is because the original floor that once was built upon these pillars has degraded.  The network of stone tunnels you see today were connected to outside of the arena and were used to hold animals and performers before they came out into the open.

Constantine's Arch

We also swung by Constantine's Arch, a famous monument dedicated to the famous Roman Emperor who was the first to convert to Christianity and created a tolerance of religion throughout the empire. 

 

Continuing on our exploration through the ancient Roman ruins, we focused on the Roman Forum, where the Roman government buildings, temples, shrines, and royal residences were originally placed.  It was also the site of the main marketplace for a period of time.  This place was absolutely huge and we didn't get to see all of it, but got a good taste of the ruins.  We were getting really hungry, so left Ancient Rome and headed back to modern civilization for a bite.

We met back up with Courtney in the hostel and went out for drinks at a few bars in the city, where we made some Italian friends for the evening.  They guided us around to their favorite bars, ending up at Campo di Fiori (the Piazza we explored yesterday).  I enjoyed having the opportunity to practice some Italian with locals, but I have to admit that their English far exceeded my Italian abilities.

We had to catch a train the next day to Florence, but had enough time in the morning to do a bit of wandering around and get one last Roman gelato.  I ordered a mix of latte and nutella flavored gelato.  However, it turned out that what I thought was nutella-flavored gelato was actually JUST nutella.  The nutella complimented the latte gelato, but I couldn't stomach more than a few licks of it.

Florence   Firenze

appertivo

The few people that I've known to go to Italy have all recommended Florence, saying that it was the most beautiful and artsy city.  It worked out well that Jess had a friend, Tasha, staying in Florence, so we crashed in her room for 3 nights.  Her and some other Brits were on a work-away program, in which they worked in Florence for housing and a weekly food money allowance in return.  It sounds really amazing, and I'll definitely look into it in the future.  Thanks again Tash!

steps of the Duomo

Tasha had lessons until around 9pm, so Jess and I went out for dinner with her roommates and friends.  We went to an appertivo ("appetizer"), something that I had not heard of before.  For 6 or 7 euro, you get one drink of your choice and some food from the buffet.  It's a small-plate buffet of mostly finger foods, meaning you're meant to just have a bit here before you go out to your "real" dinner.  The Italians tend to use it as such, but then us greedy foreigners use it as a chance to load up on the plates and get a cheap meal.  Jess and I then left the group to meet up with Tasha at the stairs of the most iconic structure in Florence, the Duomo.  This is the largest and most prominent Cathedral in Florence, dating back to the 15th century (you'll see a more complete view of it in later pictures).   We just wandered around the Piazza, stopping for gelato at Grum, an all-organic gelateria, and then headed back to her flat for an early night.  Just from a few hours here, I already got the impression that Florence was much more authentic than Rome; less vendors on the street trying to sell you stupid souvenirs, little to no big "tourist attractions" other than the Duomo, and just the general presence of more locals seemed to give the city more of an genuine vibe. 

We woke up early the next day and did a day-trip out to Pisa (only about an hour train ride from Florence).  There's honestly not much to say about it... the tower is the only thing notable about the city.  We spent a bit of time just hanging out near the tower taking photos (notice my failed attempt to get a photo of Jess holding the tower... I thought she was just leaning backwards...) and then went for a sushi buffet.  The buffet was funny; "all-you-can-eat", but with the limit of 12 dishes.  You order 4 at a time, and have to finish all of it before you order the next round.  If, at the end, you haven't cleaned all of your plates, they charge you a euro per plate that isn't finished.  Jess really didn't like one of her dishes, so wrapped it in a napkin and hid it in her purse until we left.

Copy of David

Arno River

After getting a train back to Florence, we spent the rest of the day walking through the city.  From one end to the other is only about a half-hour walk, so we got to see pretty much the entirety of Florence.  We roamed along the Arno River, through the Piazza di Republica, Piazza Santa Maria, occasionally stopping at an outdoor market or popping into a local shop.  In the Piazza della Signoria, there stood Michelangelo's famous sculpture of David!  Okay, it's actually just a copy of the original.  The original can be seen in a gallery in Florence, but admission is quite expensive and the lines to see the sculpture aren't necessarily worth it.

Gates of Paradise

We went out for some drinks with Tasha and her friends that evening, stopping at a few bars but ending up staying awhile at more student-type club.  We stopped at the "gates of paradise" (dubbed by Michelangelo) on the Florence Baptisery.  These are made of bronze with relief sculptures which was really impressive.  The nightlife here was good, but there was some pretty terrible karaoke happening...

Arno River

The next day was Saturday, and since Tasha didn't have to work, she joined us in some exploring.  We started off walking along the Ardo River toward Piazza Michelangelo, which we read had the best view of the city.  Once we got near, we realized why; the piazza was up on a gigantic hill, accessible only via stone steps.  It was well-worth the 15 minute or so climb, as the view from the top was absolutely breath taking.  You can see the better view of the Duomo from here (it's prominent dome-shaped building)

 You can see why Florence is considered one of the most beautiful cities in Italy ; it's the prime example of Tuscany color and architecture.





Lunch was at a cute little pizzeria not far away from the piazza.  It's easy to eat an entire pizza in Italy because of how thin the crust is (I mean, REALLY thin) but it makes you feel no less guilty afterwards.

The next bit was my favorite experience in Florence; The Biboli Gardens.  Situated behind the Pitti Palace, these mid-16th century gardens contain countless sculptures, fountains, and areas to just relax in the sun.  And that's exactly what we did... in fact, we took a nice long nap in one of the garden squares next to the fountain.  I have to say, it's up there on my list of best naps.

That night was one of the best dinners in Italy.  Jess, Tasha, and I went to a restaurant called Terra Terra.  We split a bottle of Chianti and I had some incredible ravioli stuffed with ricotta and spinach, with a garlic sauce over top.  Then for dessert: the best tiramisu of my life.  I've always loved tiramisu and was looking forward to trying it in Italy, and it far surpassed my expectations.

Afterwards, we grabbed a cheap bottle of wine from a market and headed to Piazza Santa Maria, a popular place to hang out at night.  We just relaxed on some benches, sipping wine and mingling with some other locals that were in the square.  That's something that I think Italy has right-- drinking in public is completely acceptable, as long as you're not acting like an idiot.  We met a group of high school Belgian boys, which proved to be pretty entertaining.  On the way back to Tasha's, we stopped at the Fontana del Porellino ("Piglet").  Legend has is that if you put a coin it its mouth and it drops down into the cage below, you're guaranteed to come back to Florence.  It worked for me, so I guess both Rome and Florence will be seeing me again soon!

Piazza Santa Maria

Cinque Terre ("Five Lands")

 





 

(train) first view of the water

This was my most anticipated part of the journey, and it turned out to be my favorite place that I've ever been.  Cinque Terre is a collection of five very small fishing villages right on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, attached to one another by a famous cliff-side hiking trail.  From the first town to the last is about a 10km walk, so we broke it up into three manageable days with plenty of time to explore each town along the way.

We arrived in Riomaggiore, but immediately took a train to the next town, Manarola, as this is where we wanted to spend the night and we needed to drop off our luggage.  Cinque Terre was the only place thus far that we decided to not book a hostel ahead of time.  I was told that we could easily find accommodation just by wandering around the small towns, looking for "rooms available" signs.  In the end, we realized what a great decision this was.

After settling into a simple hostel in Manarola, we headed back to the information booth to find out how to get to the cliffside trail.  To our utter disappointment, we were informed that the entirety of the 10km trail had been closed due to dangerous rock slides.  Luckily, other trails were still available, but these weren't necessarily cliff-side.  Instead, they wound in and out of the towns, going up into the mountains behind and then back down again.  Obviously, these are much longer and more strenuous hikes, but we were up for the challenge.  We figured our best bet would be to take a quick train to the next town (Corniglia), spend some time there, and then head back to Manarola on the trail.

view of Manarola from Corniglia

Corniglia was the smallest and simplest of the town, which made it a good starting point.  After a climb up a ridiculous amount of stairs (see left), we wandered around, grabbing some gelato (honey flavor was a winner) and getting some great views, especially of Manarola.  Bear in mind that we really didn't do anything other than wander the towns, hike, and eat.  We didn't have to!  The views and general atmosphere were enough to keep us content.

the top of the climb

struggling up the incline

We then began our ascent on the hiking trail.  It was rough, to say the least.  We scaled the mountain for about 45 minutes before it finally began to level off and head south to Manarola.  Although we did stop half-way to relax in some make-shift hammocks.  But wow, was it worth it... the views from the top were breath taking!  And even though this wasn't technically the "cliff-side" trail, we were still very close to the water.  The hike was varied, from simple dirt paths to rocky, uneven grounds, to terraces and grapevines.

After arriving sore and tired back in Manarola, I took a quick shower (my first experience with a token shower- 50p per token, 5 minutes each) and then headed to dinner.  Jess ate what the area is famous for; seafood (served with pasta, of course).  She's not a big seafood fan, but really enjoyed the dish nonetheless.  I tried gnocchi for the first time (potato-stuffed shells) with the famous Cinque Terre pesto, and of course finishing it off with some tiramisu.  It was decently warm outside, so we ate in the outdoor area with a lovely heater situated right behind us.  Afterwards, we walked to the most iconic and photographed area of Cinque Terre; a viewpoint about a quarter mile away from Manarola.  This spot gives a really nice perspective of the town staggered along the cliff-side, but it was difficult to get a decent photo at night.

The next morning we headed back to the same spot to get a day-time view.  We then intended to back-track and hike south to Riomaggiore, but it was raining and the trails were closed due to slipperiness.  So we grabbed our bags and took a train to Vernazza, which is one town past Corniglia.  Keen to get our luggage out of the rain, we stopped at the first "rooms open" sign.  

 


We could not have gotten any luckier.  She gave us our key and led us back outside, through narrow alleyways and up flights of stairs, finally arriving at our room.  It was directly on the water front, with a great view of the town and the cliffs from the window.  Even better, there was a large balcony and garden area overlooking the sea.  All of this for just 25 pounds each!   This was my favorite accommodation in Italy.  Funnily enough, rooms in Cinque Terre tend to be rented out by restaurant owners, and when you stay with them you get a discount on the food.  This was the case for us, but we never ended up at the restaurant.

Vernazza

Vernazza

Vernazza

Vernazza (next day when it was sunny)

Riomaggiore

Riomaggiore

We decided to avoid hiking this day; the rain wasn't going to let up, and the rocky inclines and steep declines of the trails weren't ideal when wet.  Instead, we explored the town of Vernazza.  It was the closest to the water of the towns we've seen thus far, with the main square situated directly at water level with boats and docks.  We stopped for a small lunch, entertained by the joyous waiter/owner who walked around singing, chatting with customers, turning up his favorite parts in the music, and inviting people to dance with him.  Everyone was really friendly and genuine here; at one point, the owner just pulled up a chair at our table to get to know us.  Backtracking, we headed to back to Riomaggiore, as we weren't there for more than a few minutes initially.  At one point in the day, Jess got a hot chocolate.  It was the strangest hot chocolate I've ever seen/tasted, and resembled melted chocolate more than anything else, but it was obviously delicious.

Monterosso: view from window

Monterosso: view from window

 



Our final day was spent mainly in the "most touristy" and biggest of the five towns; Monterosso.  Its main beach area has a long boardwalk with shops, restaurants, and areas to just relax and take in the scene.  Situated behind this is a square of even more shops and whatnot, which we spent some time exploring, but the beach was definitely preferable.   I had fun scaling a huge rock while Jess splashed around in the water.  We rented a room here right on the boardwalk, and it definitely had the best view of the three rooms. 


 
Jess made the unfortunate choice to wear a somewhat short dress, and got a ridiculous amount of stares, comments, shouts (Bella! Bella! Mi Piace!), whistles, and cat calls while we were wandering around town.  To be fair, the dress wasn't even that short, but apparently the men here don't see it very often.  She was embarrassed, but I thought it was hilarious.

our knight in shining armor

After a quick bite for lunch, we headed off on another hiking adventure.  And what an adventure it was.  We started walking toward what we though was the correct trail, but ended up walking along a main road for a period of time.  I decided to stop and ask a man for help who was working in his garden, but he spoke very little English. 

the "closed" cliffside trail

 I stumbled my way through a conversation with him in Italian, catching the key phrases of what he was saying.  I thought I had a good grasp on his directions, so we thanked him and headed off again.  20 minutes later and we were still on the road.  Hilariously, a car drove past us and came to a abrupt halt.  The very same man got out of his car (in which he was driving back home from somewhere with his wife) and exclaimed, "you're going the wrong way! I knew you didn't understand" (in Italian... at least I understood that part...) and proceeded to lead us in the right direction.  I think there was just a general misunderstanding, though, because he led us to the cliff-side trail, which was supposed to be closed.  Although apparently, the "closing" was just a suggestion, as we noticed people ahead on the trail.

 

The cliffside trail was so beautiful; a bit treacherous at times, but with some lovely waterfalls along the way.  We ran into a family from Arizona and shared the hike with them for a good portion of the time.  The hike ended up being about 3 hours long, and we went through Vernazza back to Corniglia, and then took a train to Monterosso.  We both wanted to try lasagna as our last meal in Italy, so we wandered around until we found a suitable restaurant.  Jess got a meat sauce and I chose pesto.  After stopping for one last gelato, we called it a night and got ready to leave for Scandinavia the next day.

Vernazza from the trail

Overall, Italy was all that I hoped for (and more).  The main highlights were seeing the pope, Ancient Rome, taking a nap in the Biboli Gardens, and the hiking trails in Cinque Terre.  By the end of the trip, I really started to become comfortable speaking in Italian to the locals.  Cinque Terre was by far the most authentic-feeling of all the places we went, with the most cheerful of all the locals (however, the towns tended to be dominated from time-to-time with middle aged American tour groups).  Italians tend to be on the "honors system" in many aspects.  They don't check for tickets very often on trains, but they expect you to buy them anyway.  In the last two rooms in Cinque Terre, the owners didn't expect us to pay them until we were about to leave.  I guess they are just more trusting of their citizens than is the case in the states.  After trying more gelato flavors than I could count, I'd have to say that the winner is pistachio.  Honey and Baccio ("kiss", chocolate with nuts) were both close seconds, though.  This Italian trip has left me craving to see more, and I definitely intent to return one day, especially since I didn't stop at Venice.