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Italy

September - October 2023
A 33-day adventure by Kelly Read more
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  • TravelerItaly
    Day 1

    Toronto Pearson Airport

    September 12, 2023 in Canada ⋅ ☁️ 64 °F

    Today we are on our way to Italy. All are excited to let this adventure begin. Some started with wine but I only got to observe some humble pie. Ronaldo forgot his passport and had to return to Barrie. Mr. Organized got caught in a tizzy and left the one important thing to pack. All went well and we still sat around for hours. Spent $17 on a tuna sandwich that was below average.Read more

  • TravelerItaly
    Day 2

    Rome

    September 13, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ☁️ 82 °F

    Arrived in Rome after an overnight, great flight at 1145. Slept a little and felt like I was on Rome time. We took a private van to our apartment in a busy area of historic old Rome. Fabio, our driver, was very informative about the monuments and historical sites as we passed by them. They drive crazy here as if there are no rules or laws on the road. You need to pay attention when driving or walking. The afternoon was spent walking around and picking up a couple of bottles of wine. We had a nice chianti, which was very dry but smooth. Picture included of wine(14.5€). We went out to a nice restaurant for dinner. We were seated in the basement. The rock walls gave it a cozy Italian feel. I ate an el dente pasta dish with crispy pork cheek, periconio cheese, and tomato sauce. It was simple and tasty. The bruschetta was excellent. Crusty bread with garlic-infused olive oil, topped with cherry tomatoes, olives, and fresh basil. Wine was again a Chianti that was pretty much the same as previously. Ron picked up the bill. We all returned to the apartment and hit the sack by 830 p.m. We were all pretty exhausted. Great first day.Read more

  • TravelerItaly
    Day 2

    Rome day1

    September 13, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ☁️ 88 °F

    Arrived at Rome Airport at 1145. We had an awesome flight that was quite smooth. I did sleep a little, which has been beneficial for getting on Rome time. We had a private driver from the airport to our apartment. Fabio was very informative when we drove by a monument or historical site. They drive crazy here and our life was definitely in his hands. Our accommodations are very nice for an overnight. High ceilings, an old elevator to the 2nd floor. Miriam, Jane, and myself went for a walk in the neighborhood. We came back and took pictures of the sites and home. We arrived back to drink some wine. We had Poggio delle Sassaie Chianti(19.5€). It was smooth but dry. We headed out for some dinner around 630pm. An early night as we are tired and have a journey tomorrow.Read more

  • TravelerItaly
    Day 3

    Cinque Terra

    September 14, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ☁️ 77 °F

    We left Rome early in the am for our arrival in Cinque Terra. A short walk but difficult with our heavy knapsacks. If we don't lose weight on this trip, there is a problem.

  • TravelerItaly
    Day 3

    Cinque Terra day3

    September 14, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ☁️ 77 °F

    To continue, we took a fast train to La Spezia, which was quite a beautiful ride in the countryside. We would see little towns, and the next thing we were, by the ocean enjoying its beauty. We saw the Carrara quartz mine on the hills of Carrara. You could see the pattern of quartz chipped out of the mountainside. At first, it looked like snow, but it is just too damn hot for that today. A regional train took us on a short trip to Corniglia. We missed the original train due to a delay, but we had no issues. Ron tried a few times to see if Linda would get off the train to get him a coffee before it left for the next station. She did not bite for that, and we are learning that the sibling rivalry is only going to get worse as the weeks go on. The fun began as we stood in the hot sun baking, waiting for the town shuttle to pick us up and bring us to the center of town in Corniglia. When we finally got on, we were packed like a can of sardines. I sure said my prayers as we are pretty high up and the roads are slim.
    Our accommodations are beautiful. All the single ladies have a full apartment with beautiful views of the ocean and town. The married ones have bedrooms pretty much, but a lovely garden terrace. Our first priority was going for gelato at Alberto's. 5€ for a large cup with two flavors. My choice was caramel and pistachio. There are so many flavors so many days to try it all. No one was disappointed. We enjoyed some local wine before going for dinner. Ron's wish is to have his Eat, Pray, Love story on this holiday. I quote him as saying, " I hope I find love on this holiday." He started by getting a single candle, but it is going to take much more than that, or he will just get burned. Our next blip was a mix-up with our reservation at the restaurant across from our door. Our mistake took us to a restaurant across town for dinner on short notice. CC for short came recommended by our Airbnb host. They took our reservation last minute, and the meal was a totally spontaneous fish dinner, head and all. It was an expensive piece of fish at almost 250€. It was served with potatoes, green salad with olive oil, and balsamic vinegar and bread for soaking. Again, it is very simple and enjoyable. We enjoyed a dry local white wine with dinner. Dessert was offered and taken. Tiramisu, lemoncake, chocolate cake, along with our first complimentary lemoncello in Italy. It is a panty remover compared to what we have experienced at home. The wait staff at the restaurant were awesome and did well with their recommendations. The town of Corniglia is quiet at night, and we were the loudest echoing off the walls of the town. We all went to bed after as we have a full day ahead for hiking, swimming, drinking, and eating tomorrow.    Read more

  • TravelerItaly
    Day 4

    Corniglia, Vernazza,Monterosso

    September 15, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 73 °F

    Well, today was a challenging day, so to speak, as we all tried to figure out the 7 of us. It started as a beautiful day, and don't get me wrong, it stayed that way for the whole day, but we had our ups and downs literally. Today was the day we hiked to Vernazza. A leisure hike, simple, they said, but OMG, whoever wrote that, lied in the literature. The trail was rock and stairs pretty much the whole 3.2 km. It was challenging, but we all did it. Painful for some, due to aging and injury. It was very scenic along the way. We all took in the breathtaking views of the mountains, Ligurian sea, and towns. We stuck it out to the end as a group, and then it fell apart. Jane, Bernie, and Nicole all thought that Ron, Miriam, Linda, and I were behind on the trail when we were waiting for them on the main street of Vernazza. Jane communicated and found us, but we had to find Nicole and Bernie. The search began, and we realized we had a breakdown in communication. We looked around Vernazza up and down the main road. We walked by a gelato place and stopped. I chose Cinnamon Gelato today, and I totally forgot who Bernie and Nicole were. After a failed attempt, we started off to Monterosso. We figured they would find us on the beach. We searched the streets of Monterosso with no luck. Searching the beach for 2 people is like searching for a needle in a haystack. We all then decided it was enough, we started our well-deserved swim in the sea. It's very refreshing. Low and behold, who do I see but Bernie and Nicole having a leisure stroll on the beach. We were reunited like two members had been kidnapped from our party, and we were whole once again. After a refreshing bath in the sea, we decided to get some food. It was happy hour. I had a pesto Foccacia and a thirst-quenching Aperol spritz. We strolled through Monterosso before heading back to Corniglia. Dinner tonight was a self-made charcuterie of coppa (100gms), prosciutto (200gms), and salami (100gms), olives, brie, periconio cheese. The wine was red and local and enjoyed by all. We had some great laughs before settling in for the night. The funny thing about today was that the turtle(Linda) won the race as the first person to to finish the trail with Ron. Slow and steady!!Read more

  • TravelerItaly
    Day 5

    Barberesco

    September 16, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ☁️ 75 °F

    Tonight I am tired and it will be short. It was a travel day today and it was a rainy day. We left the seaside for some agriturismo in the Piedmont area of Italy. Ron's favorite wine in all of Italy. We had three trains to catch today. For some reason, Linda still needs 2 hours and 5 expresso to wake up for the day and we have deprived her of that. So much so that she thought it would be a great idea to hop off the train in Vernazza, one stop past our starting point to catch the next one. Thanks to Jane she pulled her back in before the train took off again. Ron didn't even ask her to get him a coffee this time!! We laughed so hard on that one. I guess a leash is needed for Linda. Bernie and Miriam were feeling a little woozy on the fast train. We thought it would be a good idea to test a TikTok theory I saw. They thought it would be a good idea to sniff alcohol to see if the nauseous feeling would go away. We only had a hand sanitizer wipe of 70 % to sniff. Verdict- FAIL! The picture says it all. We all arrived at Agriturismo Rivella Silva thanks to our private driver Giorgio. The first stop in Asti before continuing was a gelato stop. We had to feed Nicole something or she was just going to fade away. Hey, I started the day with Cherry Crunch gelato, it's like yogurt with fruit and that's my story I am sticking to it. After arriving at our accommodations, which is beautiful even in the rain. We took pictures of the grape fields and basked in its beauty. We had a winery tour and tasting session. Enrico, the son of the winery owner shared his wealth of knowledge with us about the region, family involvement, the winery old and new, grapes, wine-making, and taste-testing. Boy did we enjoy a nice Barbaresco, thanks to Ron? He is in heaven today, a kid in a candy shop! Thanks, Ron for letting us share your dream portion of the trip. Talk about dreams, Nicole is dreaming of food. Of course, while the rest of us live like we are intermittent fasting, she can't afford to lose weight like the rest of us. We have to feed this girl! We walked into Barbaresco to Koki Wine Bar for a light dinner. Can you imagine we went to a wine bar and didn't order any wine? To be honest we all had enough this evening and want to have an early night. We have a big day tomorrow having a homecooked meal and a tour of the area.Read more

  • TravelerItaly
    Day 6

    Barolo

    September 17, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ☁️ 75 °F

    Today we had a private driver, Giorgio, take us to Barolo for wine tasting. Our day started with a wonderful breakfast at our Agriturismo. We enjoyed fresh bread, including the best Foccacia I have ever tasted. We were well treated to fruit, yogurt, juice, and omelets, all locally sourced. We left early and walked around La Morra to enjoy the spectacular views of the grapevines on the hills in a 360 view. You could never capture the beauty in a photo that you see with your own eyes. We visited 2 castles, one of which had an interactive museum about the history of wine-making throughout time starting with honey(Mead). The other castle belonged to the first Prime Minister of Italy. It was okay but it was not the highlight of the day. Just before that castle, we had the most disappointing meal of our life. Only joking it was the opposite. We went to La Cantinetta in Barolo. We enjoyed a wonderful lunch that included a raw sausage/cream cheese appetizer, veal with tuna cream sauce. The next course was our pasta dish which was light and tasty but the next dish was my favorite mushroom risotto, ending with a light-tasting delicious panna cotta with raspberries. Mama Mia. Our waiter was the owner and took great care of us with his generosity and humor. The meal itself was an experience of all our senses. We just didn't want it to end but our bellies were full. The next wine tour brought us to Marchesi di Barolo winery. Compared to yesterday's wine tour this was more corporate than local. The wooded barrels were twice the size and produced 1 million liters per year. At this point, we were all fading. We returned to Rivella Silva with some wine and groceries to enjoy by the pool. The weather was not the greatest today but the rain held off. We had no blips in our day today and it was enjoyed by all thanks to Giorgio riding us around. Tomorrow we head to Milan for the night.Read more

  • TravelerItaly
    Day 7–8

    Milan

    September 18, 2023 in Italy ⋅ 🌧 77 °F

    Day 6 was a travel day from Barbaresco to Milan. It was an early start. Part of a hilarious moment when Bernie announced that Nicole's beaver was hanging out. We all laughed as he adjusted it. Okay so apparently Nicole's beaver is the back covering of her knapsack. She was glad that he cleared that up. When we arrived in Milan we had to figure out the Metro. We were spinning but the thoughts of the TTC helped a lot and the map. It is a pretty good system. Our destination was the party spot of Navigli. It is a canal area of bars and restaurants. We stopped and enjoyed food and drink. We were awaiting terrible weather but it overpassed us for an hour. Newcastle football team( British) made it to the finals and were chanting and stomping "We are going to Milano" over and over. Quite exciting. Next was Duomo and the Galleria shopping center of high-name brands. The rain came down the lights came on and we headed back to our Airbnb. A light snack, a nightcap of wine, and we all died in bed.
    Today we did the "Last Supper" by Leonardo da Vinci. It is spectacular and the preservation of it is interesting. The history and hidden messages in the painting are fascinating. We continued the tour through Milan visiting churches, castles, parks, the Duomo, and Galleria, and ending at the statue of Leonardo da Vinci. Lunch was by the Galleria, Ristoranta da Gennaro. All of us enjoyed our meal. Caprese like
    Pizza was my lunch today and was very good. Some enjoyed Ceasar's salads, and gnocchi. No complaints from anyone. We stored our luggage today by the train station and finding it was a struggle. We walked a little farther than expected with our luggage on. So today we earned our gelato. We left Milan in the late afternoon for Verona via fast train. Our accommodations are fabulous. It is an apartment on the second floor (more stairs). Very modern and she left us a bottle of wine and water. My favorite place so far. Not far either to the train station or the Pl za Bra. Went for an evening walk like the Italians do and of course got our gelato. It was the end of a wonderful day and our looking forward to tomorrow's Verona adventures.    Read more

  • TravelerItaly
    Day 8–9

    Verona

    September 19, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 81 °F

    Well, we arrived in Verona in the early evening and had to do a 20-minute walk from the train station to our Airbnb. It is quite exhausting lugging our backpacks everywhere. I am feeling a lot stronger as the days go on, but this Jillian Micheal's weight-loss program sucks a big one!! So, being the sabbatoger that I am, gelato was dinner tonight. From all the walking we did today in the heat and catching a train, no one felt like eating. We went for our dinner a short distance away in Plaza Bra. Returned and went to bed. Our accommodations are beautiful here in Verona. Very modern and contemporary in an old building. If too many electrical items are on, we blow the circuit breaker. Verona is the city of love ❤️ due to the fictional story of Romeo & Juliette. A city that is skipped by many tourists because it is underrated. I loved Verona and its leisure lifestyle. People take walks at night, sit in a trattoria, and just people watch. Everywhere you turn, there are neat things to see. From the hilltop, you can see the old city encapsulated by the clay running water of the river and more industrial on the outside. It is beautiful and I felt very comfortable walking around. On day 2 of Verona, we did a food, and wine tasting/history tour. Our guide, Alicia, was very informative and funny with her tidbits of history and folklore. We enjoyed pastries and sweet and savory snacks. A nice pasta lunch with a local Valpolicella. A wine and cheese shop with a tasting of Valpolicella, and Amarone. Finally a gelato stop. We met wonderful people on the tour.Read more

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