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Day 19 June 10, 2023 (Manarola) We were up early today, around 6 a.m., and decided to grab a few groceries and then take the train to Vernazza for the day. We took a brief walk around the town before the crowds and snapped a few pics. We caught the 9:30 train and walked all […]

Day 18 June 9, 2023 (Manarola) Today we hiked the trail from Manarola to Riomaggiore and let’s just say it was a challenge. It is only ¾ mile long, but it is almost a straight up and straight down hike. Literally 800 feet up and 800 feet down. Luckily, there are lots of places to

Day 17 June 8, 2023 A little history about where we are staying – Manarola, where we are, is one of the five villages that makes up Cinque Terre. The other villages are Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, and Riomaggiore. It’s a six-mile stretch of coast first described in medieval times as the “five lands” (cinque terre).

Day 16 June 7, 2023 Today we traveled from Venice to Manarola. We had to change trains twice, which was interesting as we did not have much time in between to get from one to the other. The first leg of the trip (over an hour) we had assigned seats and plenty of room for

Day 15 June 6, 2023 Today was an easy day as we started to do some packing before heading to Padua for the day. It’s only a 25-minute train ride so we got there about 11:30. We went to the Basilica of St. Anthony. Friar Anthony of Padua was Christ’s perfect follower and a tireless

Day 14 June 5, 2023 It rained last night and this morning, so we were in no rush to head out. I had a chance to post two more blogs, which almost has me caught up. It was close to noon before we ventured out and it was a little cooler because of the rain

Day 13 June 4, 2023 We had a leisurely morning and then decided since the weather was not going to be great on Monday, we would take the train in to Verona and spend the day there. We have been using a lot of Rick Steves’ Italy guidebook and he has his own version of

Day 12 June 3, 2023 So, today’s plan was to be an easy one – we head to the Lagoon Islands, walk around a bit, grab a bite, then head back to Venice. When it comes to John and I, that never seems to happen. We bought an all-day pass for the vaporetto (water bus)

Day 11 June 2, 2023 Today we were up early – 5:50am and ate breakfast in the room so we could make it to our 8am tour of The Doge’s Palace and St. Mark’s Basilica. We left our BNB at 7am. It’s about a 1 mile walk from our end of Venice to St. Mark’s

Day 10 – June 1, 2023 Today we went to the Accademia Art Museum and saw some wonderful paintings. We spent over 2 hours going through the gallery. Most of the art was behind plexiglass, so there was a glare when trying to photograph them. We then walked all around the little back streets getting

Day 9 May 31, 2023 Today we left Rome to go to Venice. We took a high-speed train (~150 mph) from Roma Termini to Venezia Santa Lucia, and the trip took about 4 hrs as there were some stops along the way. We arrived at Venezia Santa Lucia at 14:35 and had about a 5-minute

Day 8 May 30, 2023 Today we decided to leave the city and head to the little town of Tivoli. It is about 20 miles away, but about an hour by the Metro. We went to the Parco Villa Gregoriana, located at the feet of the city’s acropolis, and was commissioned by Pope Gregory XVI

Day 7 May 29, 2023 Today we did a 6-hour tour of the Appian Way Catacombs and Roman Aqueducts EBike tour. We got to explore the Roman countryside and navigate the highlights of the area including the 2300-year-old Appian Way, the 3rd century Aurelian walls, and the Roman Aqueducts. Our guide was Francesca, and she

Day 6 May 28, 2023 Walked to the Borghese Gallery where we had a 2-hour tour of the gallery and the gardens. The gallery has a collection of world-class Baroque sculpture, including Bernini’s David and Apollo and Daphne (these sculptures were just amazing!!!) as well as many paintings by Caravaggio, Raphael, Titian, and Rubens. Two

Day 5 Saturday, May 27, 2023 Today was a “do whatever” day. We left around 9:30 and headed towards the Trastevere Neighborhood. We wove in and out among many streets through the Jewish Ghetto and we saw the Fontana D. Tartarughe (Turtle Fountain). Leaving the Jewish Ghetto, we saw the Teatro Di Marcello (an unexpected