Moving on…Pompei…neat/cool to see the ruins of this place, but lots of tourists and crowds…bad food for lunch…we are there for 2 hours…moving on to Sorrento. The hotel was on the beach in Sorrento, but it was sketchy...lots of trash on the beach. Nevertheless, taking the advice of the blue-eyed bartender in Rome, I made the most of it and put on my bikini and went to the beach. There I saw many interesting things…first, a chubby Frenchman in speedos, a young couple in their late teens making out as if they were posing for the cover of a romance novel and 3 teens boys who thought it was funny to swim in the sea and then take their swim shorts off in the water. Oh…there was a very good-looking Italian lounging a few feet away from me. I really paid no attention to him…after much staring, he walked over and asked if I would watch his bag while he went to get something to drink. “Certo” (sure) I said. When he returned he brought me a Coca Cola and a straw and said “for you madam.” That was nice. After my refreshing Coke on the beach, I headed back to the hotel.
Then the group headed to dinner…it was so-so. We had two very cute and funny waiters who made it more interesting (I have video). I sat at a table and got to know the newlyweds from Singapore and the newlyweds from Maryland. Both couples were in their mid twenties. After two glasses of wine and also listening to the “high school sweetheart” love stories, I proceeded to tell them that I married my high school sweetheart and then got divorced by the time I was 25…oops….
Moving on…next day we are headed to the island of Capri…this means a short boat ride. Capri is a cool island, but lots of tourists. During this trip, I got to know Chrisse from Phoenix…very cool lady who is a pilot, and Mark from Hollywood. I coincidentally also had lunch with two others, one who happened to be an MD (just finished med school), an acupuncturist (just started her internship) and Mark the pharmaceutical salesman…we had an interesting conversation.
In Capri, we met a famous shoemaker also…that was neat and I have a great photo and video of him conversing with a pissed off nun. On the boat ride back to Sorrento, everyone is exhausted and I take photos of all of the couples sleeping on each other’s shoulders…ahhhhhh.
venerdì 11 maggio 2007
Contiki: Firenze: Meatloaf under the Tuscan Sun
The group is moving on now from Sorrento to Florence (4 hours) and I am truly amazed by our bus driver’s bad-ass driving (that truly is the only way to describe it!) How he gets around the hairpin curves in a gigantic bus and squeezes through the streets…God only knows.
Along the way, I get to know George (I call him “George with a G” and in return he calls me “Melissa with an M”). So anyway…quite an interesting character…he milks cows for a living in Australia and hadn’t had a vacation in 12 years. He’s relieved to be around people and not cows at this point.
We arrive in Florence and my last memory of Florence was the gypsy hamburglar at the train station. Well, the group saw everything one is supposed to see in Florence, the one major monument being “the David”. It/he is beautiful, magnificent…unfortunately photos just don’t show the awe. Florence is by far (besides Siena) my favorite city in Italy. One night in Florence we have a disastrous dinner; they actually served us a dry little chicken breast (I think that’s what it was) sprinkled with cold French fries. I took a picture of it and then set it aside.
While in Florence we also drove to the Chianti region to have a (terrible) Tuscan dinner…but this dinner came with the most hilarious entertainment. So…there was a musician in the restaurant…he looked like the singer Meatloaf, but his name was Michelangelo (I swear I’m not making this shit up). Anyway, Marco our tour guide told us that Michelangelo played different songs depending on his moods. Well, let me just say, he was the most odd being I have ever heard/seen. Folks…I have video; it includes, singing, drinking, sweating, head tossing…all at a piano and all by Meatloaf…I mean Michelangelo. Okay…ya…so that was a nice “Tuscan” dinner…
Along the way, I get to know George (I call him “George with a G” and in return he calls me “Melissa with an M”). So anyway…quite an interesting character…he milks cows for a living in Australia and hadn’t had a vacation in 12 years. He’s relieved to be around people and not cows at this point.
We arrive in Florence and my last memory of Florence was the gypsy hamburglar at the train station. Well, the group saw everything one is supposed to see in Florence, the one major monument being “the David”. It/he is beautiful, magnificent…unfortunately photos just don’t show the awe. Florence is by far (besides Siena) my favorite city in Italy. One night in Florence we have a disastrous dinner; they actually served us a dry little chicken breast (I think that’s what it was) sprinkled with cold French fries. I took a picture of it and then set it aside.
While in Florence we also drove to the Chianti region to have a (terrible) Tuscan dinner…but this dinner came with the most hilarious entertainment. So…there was a musician in the restaurant…he looked like the singer Meatloaf, but his name was Michelangelo (I swear I’m not making this shit up). Anyway, Marco our tour guide told us that Michelangelo played different songs depending on his moods. Well, let me just say, he was the most odd being I have ever heard/seen. Folks…I have video; it includes, singing, drinking, sweating, head tossing…all at a piano and all by Meatloaf…I mean Michelangelo. Okay…ya…so that was a nice “Tuscan” dinner…
Contiki: Leaning Tower of Pisa: I wish the damn thing would just fall
Okay…so there’s a tower and it’s leaning a little bit…kinda cool, but I can’t believe how many people go to Pisa mainly to take “the photo” of one “holding” the building. Umm…ya…not going to do that, but I do notice that the policeman in Pisa are extremely good looking…in fact, all of us girls notice this. We decide it must be a requirement to be “extremely hot” to be a policeman in Pisa. So, instead of taking a photo of me holding up the damn leaning tower of Pisa, I take a photo with the policeman and the other gals in the group. And I took the funniest photos of random people who are posing for their own “leaning tower” photo…the photos of them trying to situate themselves just in the right position are hilarious. I don’t think you’ll find that on a post card.
Contiki: Verona: Juliet’s Breasts
Why does it seem that “boobs” keep coming up in my blogging…well, anyway…our next stop was the city of Verona, home of the famous love story of Romeo and Juliet. So we saw the famous balcony where Juliet called to Romeo (apparently). Well, it gave me a nice visual anyway. Tangent time: Where the hell is my Romeo anyway…I’ve called and called for him and to my utter dismay (pretty dramatic, huh?) he has not come for me. Okay…back to real life…anyway…like the leaning tower of Pisa photo, there is also a tradition to touch the boobs of Juliet’s statue just below the balcony and this is supposed to bring good love fortune. Um….ya…no…not going to do that either (although I could certainly use some help in this department), but if I touch Juliet’s boob, wouldn’t that make me a lesbian?…okay, no more mind chatter on Juliet’s boob…but I don’t think Romeo would like everyone touching Juliet’s boobs. Oh darn…I meant to get a photo of every boob touching fool…no photos of this – sorry!
Contiki: Milano: I did not shop!
Milan is cool and I was actually pretty happy that we showed up on a Sunday when everything was closed otherwise, it’s a shopping mad house. The highlights in Milan included seeing the amazing architecture of the Gothic church…wow…Cossette and I climbed to the top and took some amazing photos. We also caught the tail end of mass and that was pretty chilling and moving. We went to a museum where we saw the “Il Bacio” painting (the kiss)…it was wonderful and we also saw my other favorite “Morto Cristo”. I really liked hanging out with Cossette; she’s a good travel partner; between her Spanish and Italian language mix and my Italian, we did well in Milan. We also couldn’t resist stopping in the Ferrari store…wowsers…the body guards in there were extremely dark black men, wearing black suits, who were about 7 feet tall…no kidding. Luckily for my pocket book…I left Milano with no shopping bags….oh except I did by a Ferrari, which will be delivered to Santa Barbara upon my arrival back home next week.
Contiki: Venezia: Pigeon Poop & Gondolas
Venice is almost the end of our tour and all of us have become quite comfortable with one another. I had been to Venice with Julia and Nicole, but was looking forward to returning. The day in Venice would be a long one, and honestly what I was looking forward to most was watching one of the women in our group (Crystal from Canada) freak out in St. Mark’s Square. See…she has a phobia of pigeons…and St. Marks Square in Venice is the LAST place one should go if they are scared of birds because they are everywhere (visualize the movie “The Birds”). Ya…I know…this is not so nice of me, but I couldn’t help visualize how this scenario could play out. Of course I made it worse by saying, “Oh, you’re afraid of pigeons? Oh gosh…wait until you see St. Mark’s Square!” In this situation, I can hear my mom saying, “Melissa June…you are such a stinker!” When we arrived at St. Mark’s, I had my camera out and ready to roll some hilarious video, but…Crystal just clinched onto Marco’s (our tour guide) arm and walked through the Square covering her head (which we all were for fear of getting pooped on). Damn…I was hoping for some screaming, swatting of birds or even fainting, but nothing happened…and nobody got pooped on either…
Away from the pigeons, we took a gondola ride…I loved it and wished I could have lounged all day in the gondola by myself…it’s very relaxing drifting along the streets of Venice and listening to the sounds of busy bodies on the nearby bridges. Our gondolier refused to sing (mutha f@#cka…), but I did get video of another gondolier singing…I had singing gondola envy. Venice is also know for it’s Venetian lace and glass blowing, so the group visited a lace shop and glass blowing shop and both were fascinating. The process of creating the lace is amazing and so tedious; the presenter told us that the women who made the lace had to have a “love of concentration” and that many went blind after years of making things…can you imagine going blind from years of lacing table clothes or pillow cases? I bought some lace napkins for my mom that I think she will really love. The glass blowing demonstration was crazy awesome, but the glass, like the lace, is very expensive to purchase. Other highlights included meeting the most adorable, cutest guy in a wine shop…Cossette and I dreamed about him all day…he was married though…lucky wife. Then, there was a group of Italian soldiers, who were on duty, but felt it necessary to flirt with Cossette and I a bit…I got a little bit of it on video...it was funny and we didn’t know whether we should solute, waive or wink…we opted for a simple, sweet “Ciao.” One of my favorite things of the day was listening to a street musician just outside a church…he actually reminded me of a “Jimmy Buffet” type before Jimmy got famous. I have this on video too and also could have sat in the Venice sun, outside the church and listened to this beach-bum looking fellow sing old American songs with an Italian accent for a good while.
Away from the pigeons, we took a gondola ride…I loved it and wished I could have lounged all day in the gondola by myself…it’s very relaxing drifting along the streets of Venice and listening to the sounds of busy bodies on the nearby bridges. Our gondolier refused to sing (mutha f@#cka…), but I did get video of another gondolier singing…I had singing gondola envy. Venice is also know for it’s Venetian lace and glass blowing, so the group visited a lace shop and glass blowing shop and both were fascinating. The process of creating the lace is amazing and so tedious; the presenter told us that the women who made the lace had to have a “love of concentration” and that many went blind after years of making things…can you imagine going blind from years of lacing table clothes or pillow cases? I bought some lace napkins for my mom that I think she will really love. The glass blowing demonstration was crazy awesome, but the glass, like the lace, is very expensive to purchase. Other highlights included meeting the most adorable, cutest guy in a wine shop…Cossette and I dreamed about him all day…he was married though…lucky wife. Then, there was a group of Italian soldiers, who were on duty, but felt it necessary to flirt with Cossette and I a bit…I got a little bit of it on video...it was funny and we didn’t know whether we should solute, waive or wink…we opted for a simple, sweet “Ciao.” One of my favorite things of the day was listening to a street musician just outside a church…he actually reminded me of a “Jimmy Buffet” type before Jimmy got famous. I have this on video too and also could have sat in the Venice sun, outside the church and listened to this beach-bum looking fellow sing old American songs with an Italian accent for a good while.
Contiki: Romantic Roma: Leave Your Umbrella at Home
Our trip was ending and we were just about to come full circle and drive back from Venice to Rome where we originally started. This bus ride was about 7 hours…it actually went by fast though because we watched “The Italian Job” (loved it!) and “Gladiator” on the bus. How touristy is that?…well I loved it because I hadn’t seen an American movie in English in three months…the only thing missing was a Diet Coke (not coca cola light!), popcorn, and hot tamales.
We arrived in Rome early evening and went to see the Pantheon, Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps. What made seeing the popular monuments better was the fact that it was getting dark and the lighting was so beautiful and then it started raining, which made it perfect for me. The fountain was my favorite…it is known as the most beautiful fountain in the world and it is indeed gorgeous and the sound of water is very soothing to my Cancer/water sign soul. So if you can imagine…it’s evening, but there is nice soft light from the moon and the dim streetlights…it’s raining, but not cold. I have no umbrella, but actually don’t care because in my three months in Italy I have been caught in the rain many times and never once had an umbrella. So I am getting soaked, but am just indulging in the view of the magnificent fountain…sounds a bit cheesy, but no joke…it was down right dreamy…then it was as if a movie director said “Cue the handsome Italian” because at that moment, there I stand drenched, but with a very mesmerized look on my face from being in la-la land and looking at the fountain, a handsome Italian walking by sees me and stops and offers me his umbrella. Dreamy…definitely…but I thought…okay, seriously, where are the hidden cameras and where is Diane Lane…oh and let me guess…this guy’s name is Marcello?” Nevertheless, it was a very nice moment…only to be interrupted by the call that I came to know well, “Contiki! Contiki! Andiamo (let’s go)!” Are you kidding me?! Marcello offers me an umbrella at the Trevi Fountain and you’re telling me it’s time to go? Even funnier…a few moments later as the group hustled down the street, still in the rain, I was annoyed by street vendors who were trying to SELL me an umbrella…I wanted to say, “Seriously…look at me…I am soaking, freaking wet and NOW you want to sell me an umbrella? Unless your name is Marcello, take the umbrella and shove it…” I seriously considered buying an umbrella just so I could hit them over the head with it. Instead I answered with a simple “No Grazie.”
We arrived in Rome early evening and went to see the Pantheon, Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps. What made seeing the popular monuments better was the fact that it was getting dark and the lighting was so beautiful and then it started raining, which made it perfect for me. The fountain was my favorite…it is known as the most beautiful fountain in the world and it is indeed gorgeous and the sound of water is very soothing to my Cancer/water sign soul. So if you can imagine…it’s evening, but there is nice soft light from the moon and the dim streetlights…it’s raining, but not cold. I have no umbrella, but actually don’t care because in my three months in Italy I have been caught in the rain many times and never once had an umbrella. So I am getting soaked, but am just indulging in the view of the magnificent fountain…sounds a bit cheesy, but no joke…it was down right dreamy…then it was as if a movie director said “Cue the handsome Italian” because at that moment, there I stand drenched, but with a very mesmerized look on my face from being in la-la land and looking at the fountain, a handsome Italian walking by sees me and stops and offers me his umbrella. Dreamy…definitely…but I thought…okay, seriously, where are the hidden cameras and where is Diane Lane…oh and let me guess…this guy’s name is Marcello?” Nevertheless, it was a very nice moment…only to be interrupted by the call that I came to know well, “Contiki! Contiki! Andiamo (let’s go)!” Are you kidding me?! Marcello offers me an umbrella at the Trevi Fountain and you’re telling me it’s time to go? Even funnier…a few moments later as the group hustled down the street, still in the rain, I was annoyed by street vendors who were trying to SELL me an umbrella…I wanted to say, “Seriously…look at me…I am soaking, freaking wet and NOW you want to sell me an umbrella? Unless your name is Marcello, take the umbrella and shove it…” I seriously considered buying an umbrella just so I could hit them over the head with it. Instead I answered with a simple “No Grazie.”
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