European Vacation Day 1-5

“…to know the character of people, observe what they build.”

Mediterranean Winter by Robert Kaplan

Wednesday May 12, 2010

After a 10.5 hr flight (thanks volcanic ash!), we landed in Rome at 9:00 a.m. Rome time. Passing through customs was a breeze. We took a taxi to our hotel, Albergo Del Senato on the Piazza della Rotondo (right across an amazing pedestrian square sits the Pantheon).

After dropping our bags off at the hotel we walked down to Ancient Rome and toured the Forum, Palatine Hill, and the Coliseum. On our walk we also saw the massive monument to Victor Emmanuel II the first King of Italy. On the way there and back we passed by a building that had tons of armed guards and reporters at the entrance. It clearly looked important so we did some research and discovered that it was the Palazzo Grazioli, the residence of Silvio Berlusconi- the Prime Minister of Italy. We walked back (about 15 minute walk) to our hotel and settled in. We have an amazing room. And while the room is facing a side alley- the side alley has such great Italian Character. We’ll leave the window open to feel the wonderful weather and hear all the great sounds from people below.

After settling in, we toured the Pantheon. It was built as a Roman temple and is the best example of the splendor of ancient Rome. It has been preserved because it was turned into a Christian basilica. The statues of the various Roman gods have been replaced by saints of the church. It is also where Victor Emmanuel (and his son and his wife Margareta – namesake of the pizza-are buried).

After the pantheon we went for an early dinner (we didn’t have lunch) at a great outdoor restaurant on one of the side streets off of the main square. We had a carafe of wine and pizza. We then visited a beautiful baroque church: La Maddallena (Church of St. Mary Magdalene) and ate some gelato on the square. We returned to the hotel and headed to bed early to catch up on some much needed sleep.

Thursday May 13, 2010

The hotel has an amazing European breakfast. Fresh squeezed juices, tea, coffee, mozzarella and tomatoes, salami, eggs, and chocolate croissants. After breakfast, we took a taxi to Vatican Museum. The grounds and museum were breathtaking. We saw the apartments of the Renaissance Popes that included Raphael’s Transfiguration and the School of Athens. Ricky was a philosophy major in college so he nearly died when he saw the School of Athens fresco. Personally, I still loathe Plato and his ridiculous Allegory of the Cave (unless it explains the meaning of Lost). We then marveled at the Sistine Chapel. We took a little known exit and entered St. Peter’s Square. We then toured St. Peter’s Basillica. Grandiose doesn’t even begin to describe its beauty. I was able to view my favorite sculpture, Michaelangelo’s La Pieta. We then toured the crypt under the church and saw the Tomb of John Paul II. We wrapped up our Vatican visit with a stroll around Bernini’s Colonnade.

After a little siesta, we had drinks at the rooftop bar of our hotel and watched the sun set. Amazing views of Rome! We then took a night stroll over to the Trevi Fountain where we threw in our three coins to insure our return to Rome. Our last stop of the evening was the Spanish steps (there are a lot of them!).

Friday May 14, 2010

After another amazing breakfast, we walked a few blocks to the Piazza Novona (built on the site of Domitian’s Arena) to see Bernini’s Four Rivers fountain. After La Pieta, the Four Rivers was my favorite sculpture to study during my Renaissance Art and Philosophy course (big thanks to my liberal arts education!!). The square was so peaceful in the morning.

Rome is by far my favorite city. The people were so friendly and the history and culture is so rich. Plus you can find pizza and gelato on every corner! It was hard for us to leave but it was time to get ready for part 2 of our vacation- the cruise.

Right on time at 11:00 a.m. our driver picked us up at the hotel and we took a lovely hour drive to Civitavecchia. We were driven right to the dock. We breezed through embarkation and were greeted onboard the Celebrity Equinox with a glass of champagne. Our cabin is incredible and the veranda is wonderful. My parentsThe ship is huge and immaculate. There is so much to do! We signed up for a 10 day week use of the Persian Garden (Heated beds, steam baths and saunas—heaven! It’s just like the haman at the Standard hotel in Miami). I entered the spa raffle and actually won second price- a mini-facial! After the obligatory emergency drill (Mom and Dad, we didn’t have to bring our life jackets!), we headed to the Solarium deck to watch the ship pull away. We lounged in a nice cabana bed and watched the port drift away.

Saturday May 15, 2010

We woke up early and headed to the gym for a much needed workout overlooking the ocean. After the workout, we enjoyed a wonderful breakfast in our room on the veranda as the ship pulled into the port of Messina, Sicily. It was the best breakfast view ever.

We showered, got dressed, and headed to the Theater to meet for our excursion to Mt. Etna and Taormina. The trip started with a drive through Messina. Messina is special to Ricky’s family as it was the place where his grandfather went ashore during WWII. The bus then made the assent to Mt. Etna—the tallest mountain on Sicily and an active volcano that’s last major eruption was 1992. We toured the Sivelstri crater. It was 40 degrees at the crater but there was an extremely violent wind that nearly blew us off the mountain. Volcanic ash and rocks sprayed our faces and we were freezing! Afterwards we went into the mountaintop lodge for a cannoli and some souvenir shopping. The next stop was the village of Taormina. It’s a beautiful resort town perched high above the bay. We strolled down the historic medieval town center, did some more shopping, and had gelato. We then found a little café, had a carafe of wine, and did some quality people shopping. I loved watching the Italian men in their suits zip around town on their scooters!

We had time for a small rest after the excursion before having dinner in the Silhouette Dining Room (the main dining room on the ship). We had a fantastic table next to the window where we watched the sun set over Sicily as we sailed away. To make the evening even better, we saw beautiful dolphins right outside of the window! I finished my dinner with a scrumptious chocolate lava cake. Yum!

Sunday, May 16

Today is the much needed day at sea. Ricky and I slept in until 10:30 AM and then spent some quality time at the gym/sauna/Persian gardens. We had a quick bite to eat and then found two comfy chairs on the sun deck. A few frozen drinks later I took a great nap! We’ll get dressed up for Formal night in a little bit and then we’re off to Athens tomorrow morning at 9 AM.

(I emailed this blog entry so I apologize for any grammar errors! I will do edits and post pictures once we return home).