Italy, February 2008

Just some highlights from this wonderful trip we took February 10-February 19, 2008.

Two nights in Milan; Venice for two nights (including Valentine's Day); Rome for four nights with a day-trip to Florence.

Milan - We were lucky enough to stay with an old friend and his family in their lovely home in the village of Origgio, just north of Milan.
Venice - La Calcina. Other than the off-smell that we eventually got used to (we used to live off Bourbon Street, afterall) this was a nice hotel. Reasonable, nice room, great staff/service. I'd stay here again. We liked the location on Dorsoduro, being a little further away from the St. Mark's madness. Breakfast was standard buffet. The dinner we had here one night was pretty good.
Rome - we rented this apartment right near the Campo dei Fiori. It was small, but it worked well for us. The person who left us the keys and showed us around spoke no English whatsoever, but we managed. The only thing we wish we had was a better table to eat on, but other than that, no complaints.

Castello Sforzesco
The Duomo
Galleria
We didn't see a performance there (way too many Euros) but we did get to see the inside of LaScala.

Peggy Guggenheim Collection. We loved this museum. We heard two lectures while we were here, one about the collection, one about Peggy herself.
What can you say about Harry's Bar? It wasn't quite what I expected (very bright!) but it just felt cool being there. I had a Prosecco and Tom had the classic Negroni. Neat place.
Yes, we did the gondola ride - and on Valentine's Day, no less! One thing I liked about it was no haggling. The price is what it is; in our case, 120 Euros for a 45-minute ride. It was worth every penny - very peaceful, very romantic.

Piazza Navona
Trevi Fountain - yes, I've been here, but I had forgotten what an awe-inspriring sight this is.
The Pantheon
Campo dei Fiori - I was able to fulfill one of my European fantasies on this trip: shopping at the market in the morning for provisions to cook for dinner.
Spanish Steps - with scaffolding right in front of the Trinita Church!
The Forum
The Coliseum. We did a tour here, which was very good: 38 Euros for both of us.
Santa Maria Maggiore - an amazing church we just sort of stumbled upon
Saint Peter's Basilica - walked right in, but would have had to wait for two hours for the Sistine Chapel. Maybe next time.
We did a self-guided bridge tour of bridges crossing the Tiber from the "Access Rome" travel guide.

Mostly wonderful home-cooked meals, but we did eat out one night here. Trattoria C'era Una Volta

La Piscina in La Calcina Hotel
Valentine's Dinner was at Vecio Fritolin. We had a wonderful dinner of tagliatelle, cream of crab soup, turbot with shaved artichokes in beet sauce, and fried seafood (their specialty): 8 or 9 different kinds of fish, perfectly cooked in a light tempura-like batter, semi-freddo for dessert. We also tried sgroppino here, a wonderful lemony, vodka drink. Nice & friendly service with a mix of locals and tourists. We met an American couple here, who were living in Venice for a year. They were loving it.
We didn't eat at La Caravella, but we had a drink after dinner one night. The bartender was very friendly, and offered us some wonderful house-made chocolates on Valentine's Eve.
This was a cool bar in a Best Western, no less: Tarnowska Bar

Taverna Divina Commedia - great pizza
JJ Cathedral's Pub. Hey, it was cold out there. They have a happy hour, during which you can pay in either USD or Euros. We chose dollars.

Our one splurge meal, this one at lunch. Agata e Romeo. It was an excellent meal, but as we both said, we've eaten as well - and have had the whole experience - for MUCH less.

The vaporetto was a great way to get around in Venice. We ended up walking more than anything, but found the vaporetti inexpensive, efficient and easy to navigate.
The trains between cities were much more expensive than I thought they were going to be, but they were clean, fast, and on time (not what I had heard about Italian trains!)
The train to Leonardo da Vinci was a great deal, and so easy; it pretty much lets you off right at the terminal - this coming from a taxi gal.
We liked renting an apartment, but decided it would be a better option for a place we know really well. We did miss a concierge. Otherwise, it's a great way to go. We ate dinner in all 4 nights, and went out afterwards for drinks - saved lots of money this way.
I heard about the reservations for museums before we left (it was new to me). We chose to wing it, given the time of year, but we were shut out of The Uffizi and the Sistine Chapel. Even the reservations line for the Uffizi was long! If you really have your heart set on one of the sights, make the reservation. We know we'll be back, though.