The Amalfi Coast from Positano to Amalfi

The highlight of the morning  was breakfast at the small Hotel where we are staying.

We have had a cornetto and coffee every morning for breakfast so far,so it was with some relief that we were able to have muesli, yoghurt and fruit salad ....and cornettos as well as course! And I had my first cup of tea since I left home: it's the small things that give you pleasure when you're travelling! But I will be back on board with everything italian from here on, after this small lapse, I promise!

Mind you, I did have a headache for most of the morning which I think might be because I have developed a coffee addiction. After a couple of coffees in the afternoon - one of them a very nice granita - the headache disappeared. I'm sure that's a bad sign.

After a quiet morning we attempted to book tickets for a boat tour but were told the weather was too bad. Now there had been showers during the night, and it looked a bit grey, but there are two things we have learned about italian weather:
A. Do not pay any attention to the weather forecasts as they are invariably wrong.
B. The weather changes more times in a day than Melbourne.

Despite the doom and gloom of the boat operator it has been mostly sunny and beautiful today with a few random spots of rain only.

So we decided we would see how the other half lives, and we caught the bus to Positano which is the equivalent of Noosa on the Amalfi I would say, although far more exclusive. We had a wander around,which in Positano basically means you go up and down stairs. The only flat land is the actual 'beach' and the road (which is great if you want to play Chicken with the trucks, buses, cars, motorcycles and occasional crazy cyclists!). To avoid spending lots of money in some very tempting shops we left!

We decided to see the next best resort and caught the ferry to Amalfi which took about 25 minutes, It  was a great way to appreciate the tenacity of those who live work and play along the coastline. Anyone who is happy to trudge up lots of stairs to get to anywhere from their abode deserves a medal. The photos show how steep the cliffs are and the ingenuity that has gone into the buildings, lemon groves and roads that cling to them.

As you can see from the photos Positano is a vertical town: the photo with the circular ledge shows how the roads are constructed : that ledge is not on solid ground and is actually part of the very narrow road which is the main access to Positano. Amalfi and all of the small towns along the coast are the same and some dwellings seem so high on the mountains it's impossible to see how they would be accessed as roads are few and far between.

After we had climbed a few long sets of stairs - me puffing and panting, and Ewan's left achilles causing pain - Ewan made the classic comment (as he looked at even more stairs to reach someone's front door): " You wouldn't want to be trying to get a fridge in there - small appliances would be the go!" Very practical my husband!

If you're thinking the beaches of the Amalfi Coast are white sand and picture perfect forget it: basically you pay for a beach chair to sun yourself on, in preference to lying on grey pebbles. Sand?? What's that??

We finished a lovely day by having dinner on the terrace which hangs out over the cliffs here in Praiano. There were even fireworks to celebrate the festival of Saint Maria. After a fairly ordinary dinner here last night ( the worst lasagna I've ever tasted) I ordered a pizza with vegetables hoping it would be OK, and it was fabulous. The old man who owns the hotel (we think!) fired up the wood pizza oven and the pizzas he produced were great. To Ewan's great excitement he also owns two red Fiat Bambinos - one 40 years old and the other 25! Both of them very tiny compared to the current version.

Tomorrow we have a big day catching the ferry from Salerno to Messina in Sicily - we will probably arrive there at midnight after a 9 hour ferry trip.

Time to make the acquaintance of the mafia!

your brave traveller

Dianne

PS For our daughters: you might be interested to know that your father has FINALLY listened to your fashion advice about NOT wearing two different checks or stripes at the same time. He specifically bought a plain shirt today as the only clean clothes left would have caused a clash and he knew you wouldn't approve! Miracles do happen! DA

Mount Vesuvius and the coast

Day 2 in Naples meant a train trip to Pompeii to absorb some of the history of ancient times.

We managed to negotiate the metro station and the Circumvesuviana train line with only one small hiccup: I nearly got on the wrong train! It was the right platform at the right time, but the wrong train - I dashed on board to get a seat ( the competition for seats is tough on Italian trains sometimes! ) only to hear Ewan's booming voice saying "Get off the train NOW!" which I did .

Finally sitting on the right train, it was as if we were at the United Nations: every tourist seems to go to Pompeii so there was almost every nationality represented. The trains are dirty, hot and covered in graffiti as is much of the city in Naples so it's always a relief to get to your destination.

Thousands of people visit every day, so it is big business. There's no end to the number of erupting Mount Vesuvius statues and Erotic Pompeii calendars available, none of which we purchased ( all of you expecting a gift should be very relieved!).

We went on a walking tour for two hours with a local Italian who spoke great English and was passionate abut Pompeii's history. Our experiences with autoguides here have been rather erratic, so we went for a real person this time, which proved to be an excellent idea.

Pompeii was bombarded with pumice stone and ash, and completely covered ,when Mt Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD. It was rediscovered and excavations began in the mid-18th century sponsored by wealthy families who wanted the art treasures hidden within. It covers about 44 hectares and was a large successful town with shops, enormous villas for the wealthy, slaves dwellings, wine bars, amphitheatres and take away restaurants, roads wide enough for chariots, and more brothels than bakeries! We've visited other Roman ruins in Turkey at Efesus and Hierapolis, and, as Erin will tell you, there were a lot of rocks, and not much else. But Pompeii has intact roads, and the walls and frescoes of many of the buildings remain. You get a real sense of what it would have been like to live in the city so many centuries ago. It was fascinating.

After we stopped at the 'Ye olde Roman ruins' restaurant in the middle of the site, Ewan provided great amusement for groups of elderly tourists from huge cruise liners by having a power nap sitting propped up against a wall. It was hot and humid so a snooze was in order after hours of walking around.

We caught the train home with no problems. Although we did wonder why we bothered to buy a ticket as we haven't needed any of the train tickets to get in and out of any of the train stations we have been in. Working as well as Myki I think!

So another trip to a pizzeria for a huge crisp pizza with delicious toppings and home for an early night.

Well, almost, as our preparation for this trip consisted of booking the flights to Rome and accommodation in Rome and Naples - and that was it. So with the aid of the trusty technology we planned another couple of days ( now I begin to see the point of the technology!) In the apartment the best wifi connection was accessed by sitting facing the bathroom door!?! Very peculiar indeed.

The old section of Naples where  we stayed was full of busy narrow alleyways flanked by enormous apartment buildings with motorbikes , the occasional car and pedestrians vying for space and people everywhere. Huge rubbish bins don't seem to reduce the amount of rubbish and graffiti seems to cover every available space. It was never dull and there was always something new to see: shops selling tiny motorised figurines or buffalo mozzarella or decorated masks or marshmallow wedding dresses or musical instruments. .......and so on. Very intriguing!

Wednesday 11th September

We packed up, stopped for the usual breakfast of cafe latte and a cornetto ( Italian croissant) and headed for the same train line, this time to farewell Naples and go to Herculaneum or Ercolano Scavi. 

It was a small fishing town not far from Pompeii right on the coast when it was buried by hot mud oozing from the ground caused by the eruption of Mt Vesuvius. The excavators had to dig through 12 metres of heavy solid dirt to get to the town buildings. The mud preserved the buildings better than at Pompeii and we saw some buildings with first floors, even the remains of a couple of beds and lots of carbonised wood doors that didn't survive at Pompeii. In one of the photos you can see some columns with a first floor of a building behind it: this is apparently a very significant historical building as no other buildings of the era remain in such good condition.

It was worthwhile going to both sites as they are different but I think we've covered the eruption of Mt Vesuvius, and now we are headed for more recent delights: the Amalfi Coast.

We caught the train to Sorrento and then a bus along the Amalfi Coast to a little place called Praiano. The trip in the bus was breathtaking in every sense of the word (although maybe doing it in a red Ferrari would be even better!). The sea was blue and vast , the cliffs almost vertical along the coast , the buildings seem about to slide down into the sea and the roads are so narrow that it is a miracle that so few accidents occur ( or maybe it's just that we don't hear about them?) The road was obviously built to accommodate smaller vehicles than those currently using it. It is a very precarious manoeuvre for two buses to pass each other and we witnessed a few altercations between buses trucks and cars all hoping to pass each other.

Fortunately the trip around the many hairpin bends is relatively slow, and the view is so marvellous that no one seems to care. In some places the road has been widened by the building of a ledge hanging out even more precariously from the side of the mountain. I can't even begin to imagine how the road was built - must have taken some great engineering!

We have arrived at our little hotel perched on the cliffs and we have a panoramic view of the water, the occasional white ferry and the township of Praiano clinging to the cliffs. Just perfect for a day of rest and relaxation tomorrow.

your contented traveller

Dianne

Moving southward

As Ewan has pointed out to me I was so busy carrying on about his love of technology I have neglected to describe the last day's sightseeing in Rome.

In a nutshell we:

- Visited Castel Sant Angelo, a papal fortress for the popes to escape to when the Vatican was under attack. Ewan was delighted to see this Castel or citadel as when we visited Turkey he insisted that we climb every one we could find! This one had a very interesting spiral ramp to get to the top with splendid views and a very pretty terrace restaurant. The decor in the Pope's apartments was a mixture as various work had been done over some centuries. Well worth a visit.

- Wandered across Hadrian's Bridge and along the green Tiber River doing our best to avoid the young African men selling everything from camera stands to Prada handbags on blankets spread on the ground. At the sight of police there is a mad flurry to gather the merchandise up in the blankets and leave as fast as possible.

- Consulted with the GPS/tablet and managed to negotiate the numerous bus stops to the catacombs of Saint Callisto next to the Via Appia Antica. There are more than 37 square kilometres of crypts and there were 500,000 bodies buried there. Fortunately we went underground (15 degrees celsius: lovely!) and discovered that the crypts are empty: not a bone to be seen anywhere. It was fascinating but I am glad we weren't there to see them in their heyday!

- Wandered along the ancient route into Rome, past the one mile post, trying to conjure up visions of thousands of soldiers marching home from triumphs on the battlefields. All I could think of was a few of those movies like Ben Hur with lots of Hollywood extras in togas. The Via Appia Antica runs along open grassland and yet is so close to Rome - there would probably be an outcry if development was suggested because of the thousands of crypts lying underground.

- Headed for home and a bit of respite from the heat and humidity. It's been about 30 degrees every day and quite humid with it. So the afternoon 'siesta' with a cold drink and some cheese, prosciutto and olives from the local deli has been much appreciated. A chance for me to put my feet up and Ewan's knees to revive is vital after walking for hours on end.

- Consulted with TripAdvisor and visited our local Trattoria - Candido - for mussels and pizza. The previous night we'd had a delicious Tuscan meal at a restaurant called Madelini Toscani: owned and run by a jazz musician, a journalist and a publisher, all of whom were born in Tuscany.

Today we packed up, farewelled Roma and headed for Termini Station to catch the intercity train to Naples. The choice of trains, costs and times is vast here. We managed to conquer the purchasing of tickets via an automatic machine and bought first class seats on a slower train: about 2 hours.  A great way to see the countryside and not have to worry about driving on the wrong side of the road. When we arrived we caught a taxi to the apartment i had booked on airbnb. Getting from the main train station to the old part of town took 10 minutes or so, but it was the most horrendous trip ever! Naples is famous for its traffic, narrow streets and the complete disregard shown for any sort of traffic rule. The shortcuts the taxi driver took were a complete mystery to us and seemed to be based on almost killing a large number of the locals - fortunately with no success.

The apartment is tiny but has an outside lift enclosed in a wire cage. It's in a typical Naples apartment block  in the centre of the old quarter so we spent some time wandering around taking numerous photos of washing on lines running across narrow lanes between buildings, and HUGE somewhat neglected churches that seem to be on every street.  We were on a mission to go to the Musee Archaeological Nationale because many of the Pompeii treasures are in there ( and plaster casts are what you actually see at Pompeii itself). It was a beautiful large palace belonging to the Farnesi family who sponsored much of the excavations at Pompeii in the 18th Century.

After overdosing on statues, frescoes and household items in the Musee we needed reviving and had a coffee granita which was very strong icy espresso coffee: (what a jolt it gave us!) and onwards we went with renewed vigor perusing the alleyways.

Eventually a rest was needed so back at the apartment we watched an exciting episode of Doctor Who dubbed into Italian. No idea what it was about. Some pasta and antipasto for dinner completed another busy day.

Addendum to previous blog: I do wish to point out that Ewan has set me up with a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse so I can do this blog with much less swearing than last time. Some technology is useful I have to admit.

However today we were walking back to the apartment in the rain and Ewan disappeared. I waited, I looked , I sauntered back down the hill and eventually had to ring him.  Guess where he was??? The TIM shop!!!!!!! He was having a lovely chat to his new best friend - the TIM salesman. I will make no more comment, but I tell you he's addicted to technology and just couldn't go past it.

your transient Napoli resident,

Dianne

Ewan's obsession with technology.....a help or a hindrance??!!

Dear reader ,

After nearly 30 years of marriage (to the same person!) one would expect to know all of his foibles. But often travelling with someone emphasises some side of their character that may be of concern.

I should have known that his delight in finding a Technology section in the duty free shop at Melbourne Airport was an indication of things to come.

The rot really set in when he opened his case in the apartment in Rome and produced a number of small bags filled with adapters, leads, a number of chargers and even a power board.

Between the two of us we have two tablets ( one big and one small) AND 3 phones, including my iphone. As an android addict Ewan was sure we needed two android phones to use local simcards.

That idea has some merit, or at least it did until we were admiring the Trevi Fountain in the midst of thousands of tourists and managed to lose each other. OK , I have to admit that I threw a coin in the fountain for good luck. Ewan lost sight of me and rang me on my newly-simcarded phone. An excellent use of technology I hear you say! Except that I had no idea about the ring tone and assumed it was someone else ( thinking to myself how annoying it is when people don't answer their phones!).

He takes great delight in keeping up with the news whilst we are soaking up the atmosphere at some famous historic sight: comments like "how the hell did Carlton beat Richmond ?!" in the midst of the colosseum seem a little odd.

And he does like to test the technology: 'does the tablet know where we are' is the latest game - can we see ourselves as a little blue dot moving on a map somewhere? Are we in the right part of town or have we fallen into the Tiber River according to our friend the tablet? And most importantly do the phone and the tablet agree about where we are?

However, today we set off for the catacombs which are out of town near the Via Appia Antica and quite a few bustops from anywhere we had been before. The little blue dot was constantly assessed so we knew exactly when to get off the bus: although the big sign saying CATACOMBS probably helped a bit too.

And then a sad thing happened - the battery started to run out of charge on his phone. Would we be lost forever like the 500,000 people buried in the crypts there?? Would we spend our lives wandering around the Via Appia Antica haunted by the ghosts of thousands of triumphant soldiers who had marched down that very road centuries ago?

But no! From within the black bumbag came a new gadget: a portable battery charger! Hooray we are saved!!

Ewan has even dressed himself so he has all of these essentials close at hand: the tablet is stored in a big pocket in his shorts - although he couldn't pedal the bike at the Villa Borghese without removing it first.

The only shopping he has shown the slightest interest in has been to buy a new bag to store the tecnological bits and pieces in when we are out sightseeing, and the purchasing of the TIM cards ( see previous blog!).My only hope for doing some shopping is to park him in the Italian equivalent of Dick Smiths and leave him there!

The other technological challenge for me has been that I have replaced my books with using Kindle on the tablet. Gone are the days of lugging some huge tome around for leisure time reading. Now I can just read anything I fancy! As long as I don't inadvertently press a button or icon just at the best bit of the book, so the whole screen goes black or reverts to online maps or something totally unrelated!!!!!!!! I am sure I'll get there yet but it's a struggle. I'm working on the theory that there will be more space for shoppping without the real books.

Time to go : the battery on this tablet is in need of a charge and I am off to bed to recharge my batteries for another day's sightseeing.

Did I forget to mention what we actually did today??
Oh well there's always tomorrow!

your luddite traveller

Dianne

The perfect tourists: yes and no........

Today we've made some progress, and also failed badly, in our conquest to be the best tourists around.

On the plus side we headed off bright and early arriving at St Peter's Basilica at 8am. Our early arrival was assisted by the fact that we are staying in an apartment which is only 5 short bus stops away from the Vatican - probably walking distance for someone younger and fitter. With Ewan's 'dicky ' knees and my sore foot, the bus was a quicker option.

We decided to climb to the top of St. Peter's dome and there was no queue at that time of the day. We did have to go through security only to discover that Ewan's pocketknife was not acceptable - I'm sure we looked like maniacs intent on destroying the art work! He threw it in the bin, expressing some concern about how he would open the Peroni beers he had chilling in the fridge without the bottle opener (never fear there was one in the apartment: phew!).

We purchased tickets for the lift in the hope that most of the ascent would be covered. Instead we climbed lots of spiral stairs ever decreasing in size until we could barely fit our feet on them, and the last few with a long rope hanging vertically instead of a bannister. Finally we emerged to a wonderful view across St Peter's Square and all of Rome. It was fabulous.

Fortunately the way down was easier and brought us into the Basilica itself where we wandered for ages marvelling at the artwork, the stone work and the number of tourists! Mass was being heard in one small section and reminded us that this is a functioning church revered by Catholics. Outside there was much activity, lots of police , cameras being set up, very well-dressed dignitaries arriving. As I sit here writing this we are currently watching TV describing some very important occasion for the Pope there today: no idea what the fuss was about as our basic Italian doesn't stretch too far!

Our next excitement was going on a tour of the Scavi site beneath the Basilica. Some months ago a friend told me about these tours and I booked the tickets in May!! It is a tour run by the Archaeological section of the Vatican consisting of small groups of visitors (up to 10 only) interested in the escavating that had taken place under the site of the current Basilica reportedly to locate the grave of Peter. Run by a very enthusiastic 'iconologist' and historian we spent two hours in the humid and stuffy air in tight corridors underground. It was fascinating as you could see the different walls and mausoleums built by the townspeople centuries before the current Basilica was built. The upshot was that there was a skeleton found in a tiny hole in the vicinity of the grave and she said it was 90% possible from a scientific perspective that it was Peter's skeleton, but it was 100% if you were Catholic!! There were also a number of beautifully decorated altars and pope's sarcophagi underground as well. All very fascinating.

At this point our best intentions to be the perfect tourists went astray - overcome by the relentless humidity and heat we went to the entrance of the Vatican museum but couldn't find the energy to queue and so that was as far as we got!

We headed for the nearest Enoteca for lunch and walked slowly back to the apartment fortifying ourselves with gelato on the way. Baci and strawberry for me and pistachio and fig for Ewan. We stopped at our local mini supermarket for beer, olives, cheese and prosciutto which we are currently enjoying. Thank heavens for the hours I have spent listening to the 'How to speak Italian CD' in the car! I managed to order the right items without too much embarrassment!

Now we are just debating which of the little trattorias nearby we will go to for dinner: so much choice and great food to eat.

your apprentice tourist,

Dianne

La bella Roma!

Ah, the wonders of a good night's sleep.

Rejuvenated by a sleep in a real bed we headed off to the local bar - Bar Alex - for breakfast. No, we hadn't turned into raving alcoholics, we were simply having breakfast the way many Italians do: a 'cornetto' and a coffee to start the day. The Italian version of a croissant and a milky coffee started us off on the right track for a very busy, hot and fascinating day.

First off we headed for the Colosseum, which seems in far better shape than when I last saw it in 1978 - yes I really am that old! We joined a tour group run by a young guy who really knew his stuff. Even though an average of 16-19,000 people visit every day now, the majesty of the architecture and the scale of the building is still awe inspiring. The fascination of the populace for centuries with the goriest most blood-soaked sports is remarkable. You can just imagine the locals heading off for a big day out to watch a dog and porcupine fight it out, followed by starving hyenas taking on a hippo, and then, the highlight of the program, 20 starving lions doing battle with trained gladiators who may or may not be armed! Certainly sounds like a great night out!

Then it was off to see the Palatine hill where the movers and shakers lived and played, and the Roman Forum where all of the big decisions were made about the expansion of the Roman Empire. This was one of those experiences where your imagination - and some pictures in the guide's reference books - helped bring the place to life. Three pillars becomes a magnificent building, and a patch of grass the emperors private sports ground! ( I can hear Erin groaning from here after her experiences in Turkey - not more rocks!?).

The buildings that remain were still impressive and some of them still in excellent condition despite their age. The most dull windowless building was the actual Senate house where all of the big decisions were made about the running of the Roman Empire. And where Julius Caesar was not stabbed to death! (They were using a temporary senate whilst this one was being built).

Then off we wandered to see yet more sights including:

- the Tomb of the unknown soldier built in tribute to Vittorio Emmanuelle. A HUGE totally 'over the top' white marble building with a huge staircase and the most officious guards we'd seen. Because of the 'sacredness of the place' there were strict rules, and the two officials on duty, resplendent in blue uniforms,  gold braid and piercing shiny whistles took great delight in upholding them. You think you're going to actually sit on the steps or take your shoes off or take a swig of water - well think again as these guys would whistle loudly, point at you, yell and generally look ferocious. It was almost entertaining watching them in action.
The Italians do love a uniform and preferably one that involves a gun.  Any uniforms seem to have lots of gold braid, shining buttons and colours. Except for the traffic cops who are dazzling in their white uniforms, gloves and pith helmets!

- Eating tiramisu gelati sitting on the front steps ( with no-one yelling and whistling!) of the Church of Saint Agnes and the Agony ( about what??) in Piazza Navona. It was full of artists selling their wares and surrounded by elegant apartment buildings which created the Piazza.

- the Trevi Fountain. Question: how many tourists can you fit around one enormous white marble fountain? the answer: far too many! Obviously everyone has seen the 1950's films that featured this fountain as it felt as if the entire tourist population of Rome had descended upon it at the same time. The heat and the noise and the crush of people rather detracted from the beauty of the fountain. Ewan had to ring me as he lost sight of me completely when I pushed through the crowd to throw a coin in the fountain and make a wish.

- The Pantheon. I mistakenly passed a smaller version of this building and started taking photos until Ewan pointed out that it wasn't it! Anyway the real multi-columned building has a magnificent domed ceiling, the centre of which was open to the elements and so required a drainage system toget rid of any rain that fell into the building.

- The surprise of wandering through  the cracked old door of a church - Saint Ignatius of Loyola - and seeing a truly magnificently painted and decorated interior. One of the many domes had been painted in black and dark grey in stark contrast to the rest of the colourful frescoes.

We certainly covered some kilometres along picturesque lanes and alleyways and wore our shoes, and ourselves ,out. We sustained ourselves with salad, sandwiches and the inevitable gelati!

At lunch we met a Melbourne guy who had the misfortune of having his wallet stolen by pickpockets: a very frequent occurrence here. Ewan has a bag strapped to his waist but then secretes all sorts of maps, his phone (and even a tablet) in the large pockets of his shorts. He looks like Mr Gadget producing all of the bits and pieces stored in his pockets when required.

We finally staggered home and collapsed for a long nap.

Rousing ourselves for dinner we headed for the same small local restaurant called Hosteria Edmondo where we had eaten the night before. We could have been more adventurous but due to our levels of exhaustion this was perfect. We arrived to find the local girls football team and their Dads having dinner. Our gnocchi and osso bucco were great so we followed them up with tiramisu and chocolate panacotta made with dark bitter chocolate : stunning!

So after another exhausting but fascinating day and with just a touch of sunburn, it's off to bed at last.

your weary traveller

Dianne

Are we there yet?

Well there are advantages and disadvantages to going to the airport early in the day so the 4.30am wake up time to get to a flight leaving at 7.40am was a challenge for all:  particularly for the very kind Erin who had graciously offered to take us to the airport in return for breakfast.

The good news about the flight was that we landed in Hong Kong at 3pm and spent the next few hours seeing the sights of Hong Kong: a new experience for Ewan. We managed to catch the train to Hong Kong Central, traverse the outdoor escalators , peruse the interesting shops, wander around the piers till we found the ferry to Kowloon, watch the light show on the skyscrapers, buy some sushi and return to the airport in time for a midnight flight to Rome!

The 14 hour flight was spent trying to sleep and we arrived in Rome at 7.15am just as the city was waking up.

Following the directions of our airbnb host Alessia we managed to get ourselves on to the Airport express train to Termini station then catch an underground train and finally a bus to the bus stop just near the apartment I had booked.  Waiting at the bus stop was Paulo , Alessia's brother to show us the way.

The apartment is great: very clean and with all of the amenities including the world's tiniest lift. Two people can only just fit in , but as the apartment is on the eighth floor it's very necessary. By the time we reached there we had been travelling for more than 30 hours on minimal sleep so we were pleased to have a shower and rest before setting off on our conquest to be the perfect tourists.

It was perfect weather to bring out the tourists: about 30 degrees. It was easy to identify them as they were the pale skinned people: the young locals are tanned and beautiful!  After reviving we set off for the Spanish steps with Ewan showing an unusual amount of interest in the shops! Surrounded by Versace, Gucci, Prada, Estrada and other 'cheap' retailers on the Via del Corso I suddenly realised that his enthusiasm was fuelled by the knowledge that we would also find a TIM shop!!! ( If you aren't too excited about that announcement well neither was I: who knew what that was ?!!). For those of you who know Ewan well,his love of all things electronic is well known, and we were in search of two simcards. TIM means Telecommunications Italy ......or something like that. Not the first priority of every tourist! Part of the urgency was to be able to speak to Trudy and wish her well on her 98th birthday.

For the rest of the afternoon we ticked off a few items on the Perfect Rome Tourist list fuelled by the occasional high voltage coffee and refreshing gelato. Our main focus was the Villa Borghese: a huge park filled with lots of trees,  fabulous buildings and sculpture. Very cool in the heat of the day. And, before I knew what happened,we were pedaling - yes I said pedaling!- a double tourist bike sort of arrangement  (photos to follow). It basically looked like a golf cart except that we pedaled and it had an engine too! So much for me avoiding bike riding! It was an efficient, and relatively painless, way of seeing most of this huge park. Ewan was in charge of steering and braking , and we had a few near misses with various wandering tourists. I was provided with a steering wheel which had no effect at all: very frustrating when I thought we were about to hit someone or something!

We thought some culture was in order and headed for the Museum of Modern Art which was fascinating, although the audio guide was organised by maniacs who couldn't count which made me rather cranky! One room was a series of statues of women from the early 1900's standing on a floor that was cracked mirrors. I stood there trying to work out whether it was OK to stand on it and suddenly a couple of workers walked nonchalantly across it so I followed suit. You never can be too careful with modern art!! It was quite a mix of artists , but my favourite was one of the Degas statues of a ballerina- just gorgeous.

With our energy levels fading fast and jet lag setting in we headed for home and I had a nanna nap before we headed for the closest restaurant, just two shops away from the apartment. Delicious carbonara was had by both of us. Did I mention that we had pizza for lunch? So we have conquered coffee, pizza, pasta and gelati all in one day: what great work!

Not a bad effort for our first day in Rome. Ewan is snoring loudly after all of the excitement and so will I be soon,

your tired but happy correspondent

Dianne

PS It's amazing to think we have been here a whole day and not seen the inside of a church ! DA