Dan and Nancy's Travels: March = Italy

March was our month for traveling to Italy. Italy was on Dan's 'to do' list, with the Tuscany region high on his priorities. Of course, we had to visit Florence and Rome and adding the Cinque Terre to the mix was a new thing for us. We had never heard of the Cinque Terre before arriving in Germany where we met so many people who recommended this rugged coastline. So, there goes 3+ weeks of travel. We had hoped that our good friend, Robert, would be able to join us during his Spring Break from teaching, but that part of our plan didn't happen.

March 15

After two weeks of easy living in Freihung, we are packed up and waiting at the train station once again. Train to Munich where we'll stay overnight before our early flight to Pisa, Italy on the 16th.

We are traveling light this trip

(thanks to the array of packs and suitcases that the Nelson's have!)

We will spend a week in the Cinque Terre area, on the Italian coast.. The five towns are connected by a link of trails, and the plan is to hike from one town to the next. Hence the single packs for each of us. Back up plan: use the trains that also connect these 5 towns!

Pisa .... we were only here for one night so we walked the town until the sun set. I could have used more time. But we did see the tower ....

Depending on your angle, now it's straight ...

Now it's leaning ....

Cinque Terre - March 17-22

The Cinque Terre is made up of five seaside villages at the foot of terraced hills that fall steeply toward the sea. Vineyards and olive groves and treacherous landscape separate the villages, and it's easy to see how each of the 5 towns grew into it's own little destination.

We visited all 5 towns: Vernazza was our first stop by train, and we stayed there for two nights. From there, we hiked to Corniglia and then took the train to Monterosso al Mare. Next, we went to Corniglia for one night and hiked over to Manarola. We spent our final 2 nights in Riomaggiore, where we were disappointed to learn that the ferries did not run until after Easter and the seaside trails were closed due to landslides.

Vernazza ... literally built out of the rock.

always love an apt rental with a balcony, especially this one in Corniglia

And to answer the obvious question: No, we did not back pack from town to town! The easy (aka flat) trails were closed, and the other trails were challenging enough w/o a pack on my back! It was steep climbing ... the entire area was constant climbing ... you were either going up or down, no matter where you were walking. Even through town, the trail was clearly marked and always seemed to find an up/down path that was incredibly maintained.

Steps seemed to go up forever, until we cleared into some amazing views of mountains and ocean. And from most vantage points, you could see the neighboring town perched on it's bit of land and rock and shore. On average, it took about 2.5 -4 hrs to reach the neighboring towns, again reinforcing how easy isolation would be to maintain without this amazing network of marked, established trails. Even now, it was the difficulty of the trail that ended up dictating where we would hike ... and where we would visit by train.

the mark of the trail

All of the easy trails along the coastline (the one's featured on a Rick Steves' video) were closed due to land slides and erosion. So that left only difficult and very hard trail choices. Every time we set out of town, we would agree to give the trail an hour and then decide whether to continue on or go back to the last bar that we passed. To our credit, each time we set out, we did reach all the way to next time. There was something incredibly reinforcing watching the neighboring town get progressively closer along the coastline. But the trails were intense enough for me, and I was definitely glad not to be wearing a backpack at the time.

So, damn, I didn't need to cram everything into the backpack for 3+ weeks after all ... I could have brought the rolling suitcase and done just fine!

hitting a stretch of flat trail ahead was a blessing that kept us going!

and at every clearing, you could see the next town getting closer...

Corniglia... built on a hill ... with 350+ steps down to the train station!

Not bad going down .. but tomorrow, we are moving here via train with our back packs!

Riomaggiore - our final stop in the Cinque Terre. was not accessible by way of the seashore trail. The trail has been closed since a 2010 flood that closed many trails along the steep mountain-sides. We opted to do our sight-seeing in town.

and occasionally sit down and just enjoy the moment

Florence - March 22-29
Ahh, I love Florence. Everything you want to visit all wrapped up in an historic city that's not too big to navigate by foot. Beautiful Renaissance buildings, museums, statues, art everywhere you look.

For the most part, the weather did not cooperate. But when the rains came, there was always an incredible museum to make being indoors quite pleasurable! The Uffizi, the Academy (to see Michelangelo's David (1504-1507), the Bargello (to see Donatello`s "first" David (1425-1430) ... so many churches... so much art. And, oh, did I mention food?

Ok. no photos allowed.

(damn, we paid 30euro to see this guy....just saying...)

However, the Bargello was our favorite museum in Florence.

Donatello's David (1440's)

The first free-standing male nude statue since antiquity. We're talking like a thousand years here...

On two days, we had a nice break in the weather which we took advantage of. When the sun is shining, you have to take pictures .. right???

On one day of clearing weather, we hiked to the fort on the hilltop overlooking Florence. A little bit of rain, but then the skies cleared and the sun came out!

Ponte Vecchio Bridge

On our last day in Florence, the beautiful weather finally arrived, and we enjoyed every minute. Because the views warranted the wait in line, we order two gelatos and stood en masse to climb the stairs to the top of the Duomo (Brunelleschi-1436 ).

Wow ...the views were worth the wait ... and the climb!

Michelangelo's 'Florentine Pieta'

The Deposition (c.1547-1553).

And then we turned around and climbed Campanile (Giotto's Tower-begun in 1334 and finished by Pisano and Talenti in 1359). Heck, why not, the sun is shining .. the view has to be great .... but, alas. the climb was a bitch! No doubt, one of the hardest climbs of all because of the unending steep steps you faced... no landings, no flat surface, just stairs...up and up and up.

but the views did not disappoint.

Back at our apt rental ... a nice place to end the day and cook a few meals (really!)

Orvieto ...March 29-31

To complete Dan's tour of Central Italy, he chose Orvieto, in Umbria, to spend two nights before we check in at our apt rental in Rome. Umbria is the rustic side of the region (e.g. less showered with the Medici wealth of Tuscany).

This was a wonderful bit of history to get to sleep in, shop in and eat in.

And the fun started when we got off the train and entered the Funicolare that took us to the top of the mountain, where the old city of Orvieto lies.

Such a relaxing feel ... nicely placed between Florence and Rome.

Once at the city top, you are greeted with a maze of small streets.

Waiting for our first, good pizza in Italy.

It's in the sauce ... and the wine helps!

And, of course, Orvieto has a beautiful duomo.

INCREDIBLE frescoes and mosaics but COLD inside.

Orivieto is also known for this massive cave structure the lays under the entire city.

Under each home is a separate cave used for work, e.g.,olive press, and food storage.

Quite elaborate caves ... over a thousand years old.

Pigeon homes back in the day

Walking the defensive wall of the city

Etruscan burial grounds.

Our last night in Orvieto ... dinner in a cave!

Rome: March 31 - April 7

It was a bit a culture shock to leave Umbria and arrive at hustling, bustling, crowded Rome. Good thing this city holds so much history!

View from our small balcony, Santa Maria Maggiore.

Tour #2 ... Shelling out big bills for a tour of the Colosseum. In addition to easy admission, the tour also included two parts of the Colosseum not opened to the general public. We got to go into the bottom level and see where the animals were kept, and we got to climb to the top levels where the views were fantastic.

We always wondered about the apparent "damage" to the Colosseum, where one side is definitely shy several layers of stone. Come to find out that the Colosseum was used as a kinda Home Depot during the middle ages, blocks and marble and statues were removed and reused for other buildings. The Colosseum was akin to an ancient Roman quarry. The residents had lost knowledge of the Romans and building methods. They stripped the marble facade and burned it to make limestone for cement. What a tragedy!

Under the Colosseum floor were quarters for the animals.

Views from the top ...

From the Colosseum, the tour included the Roman Forum.

All of this was buried before excavation.

Wisteria ... love it!

Rome is a very walkable city, and our central location made it easy to walk our feet off on a daily basis. We think Rome needs to add a "7 Hills Pub Crawl" that includes a free tee shirt when you are done!

Squares with statues and fountains are everywhere...

The Trevi ... the main one

jammed packed with people...

The Panthenon

The Spanish Steps on a Saturday.

It's hard to see the steps through the people!

Our other big expense was Tour #2 of the Sistine Chapel and St.Peter's Basilica. Again, the "beat the crowded lines' feature makes a tour worthwhile, and with this tour, we were able to enter the Sistine Chapel one hour before opening time. So it was very cool to get to spend time admiring the restored ceilings of the chapel before it was filled shoulder-to-shoulder with people. Unfortunately, the Vatican has decided that no pictures can be taken in the Chapel (unless on a $2000 private tour!) as a way to boost revenue by forcing people to use the gift shops.

However, St Peter's Basilica is a photo-opportunity dream. It's so big and massive and gold.