Musings after being Home. July 20th

So I am home. The first months mail has been sorted, gas and water heater turned back on, and first newspaper read.  Not much has changed. So what did I get out of 6+ weeks in Italy.  Not real sure. I know I like the small towns more than the big ones. Probably never have to go back to Rome again.Might go for Italy too, never say never. The Italians were as I expected. Fun loving, friendly and love to eat. All laws and rules have a flexibility about them.I loved the people meeting in the piazzas on Sundays with the family in tow.

The Food. Such variety for a country the size of California. And all of it good. The abundance of seafood everywhere. And oh yes some of my favorite times were spend in the cheese and meat shops just smelling and sampling all they had to offer.  If I could have I would have brought back a couple of suitcases of various cheeses and hams.  And then some restaurant introduced me to Octopus Carpaccio, or pressed Octopus as I call it. Will I ever be able to recreate it here. You know several octopus will die with me trying.
And I learnt that you can never truly go home again. When we went back to our favorite Cinque Terra restaurant, it was one of the least appetizing meals of the trip.
And Halstatt, Austria had changed to. Maybe because we were younger, or our eyes weren't as open, but it had changed. More likely we had.  We blamed it on too many tourists and rude waitresses and just as I am ready to write Halstatt off, they stage a grand party just outside my hotel window with fireworks to say goodbye.

Prague. Grand old city that we only saw part of. But my favorite place was Pilzen and the Pilsner Urquell Brewery tour.

Munich. Much as I expected. Good German food and beer. Lots of Dirndls and lederhosen. Trip to the Eagle's Nest was right up my alley.

Salzberg. Again, not as grand as I remembered, or as quaint.  But a very good meal and the trip in the countryside was grand. Guess I need to stick to the country more.

Venice. Much more fun than I had expected. But then with Jack and Carolyn, a trip to Mt Vernon, Ohio would be fun.

The Austrians probably aren't as abrupt as I thought. Hopefully.
The Family. How great was it to see these places with family. Undescribable. `Best part of the trip.
So now I am home and this blog must come to an end. I hope you have enjoyed reading it as much as I did remembering each day. It wasn't always easy to do but somehow I managed to keep up with it and for that I am happy.

Ciao

Chickens in disbelief that the blog has ended.

Last Flight, But Not Home Yet. July 14th

One more flight, but not directly home. We flew out of Atlanta so that is where we are headed to at 4:00 o'clock in the morning.  Get there early I always say.
Straight to the Delta counter where we are told all people with boarding passes can just check their bags. we wait our turn in this line and when we get to the counter are told that the boarding passes issued to us in Italy by Alitalia are no good. get out of line and print the same thing with Deltas name on it.
Back to the rear of the line and when it is our turn, we are told that the bags that we have with us, were checked through to Atlanta. "But I have the bag here madam" "Look at the luggage tag"
Nope into another line. Special Services. Get to watch a couple repack their bag because they have to many. I think they ended up paying $189.00 to have their underwear travel with them.
But because we are early we make the flight, which flies around one storm and then another. Quite a smooth flight. Basically down to Memphis and hang a left. Saw the morning sun reflect off of the Gateway Arch in St Louis.
Patty picks us up and we are off doing chores and having lunch. we get to her place in time to start dinner. Always a treat to eat at Patty's.  fresh vegetables right out of the garden and always fresh eggs.  We spend three nights there, eating and drinking. And of course, picking vegetables and selling vegetables and even celebrate a friends birthday.
On Friday Morning, We fire up the old Genesis and start the 7 hour trip back to Hampstead. By this time Mary Ann has developed a sore throat, so it is a quiet ride home. we get home around 5:00 PM and it has survived our two month absence.  Weeds in the garden and one of my Chang Seng statues has fallen over. I can fix that next week. Good to be home, but I would not trade the last two months adventures for anything.

 Vegetables have to be picked in the Early Morning. 

 And They Have to be Washed. 

 Mary Ann helps with the Selling. 

 Time to Pack up. 

 James has a New Toy. 

 My Fallen Chang Seng. 

A Garden of Weeds. 

A Long Flight Home. July 13th

What can one say about a 10 hour flight back to the USA, Chicago to be specific. 

1. Alitalia has the worst entertainment in flight. If I hadnt already seen the movie two years ago it was a children's movie. The music was limited to one hour of Classical. I watched one movie. The Godfather Part I. 

2. I had no book so there wasn't much to do. Makes for a long flight. 

3. Lunch/Dinner was chicken something which wasnt too bad. 

4. Before landing snack was what they called a calzone but was really a dough ball with chopped tomatoes inside. 

5. We landed around 2:00 pm Chicago time. Midnight Italy time. 

6. We ate cheeseburgers and french fires in a sports bar where the female bardender knew nothing about sports. 

7. Female bartender was a Polish  immigrant with a law degree who can't practice in the USA. 

8. Went to bed at 9:00 pm Chicago time. Have a 7:00 am flight to Atlanta tomorrow. 

9. Couldn't see my brother since

he was vacationing out west with his family. 

One Last Drive. July 12th

We awake and forgo a walk up and down the steep hills of Montepulciano. Been there done that. Plus it would be too tempting to buy more wine. Instead we will take a leisurely drive towards Fiumicino and its airport which we leave from on Monday. We are really Romed out and will not revisit that city. Its takes some time to get going  in the right direction even with a GPS and map of Italy. But we do and we find ourselves retracing some of the roads we rode with our friend Linda so many weeks ago. Have we come full circle?
We drive through the Val D'orcia that we had crossed weeks ago. But now all the grains have been harvested and they are getting ready for a second crop. We have been gone a long time.

We drive towards the West coast over mountains via 2 lane roads at a leisurely  pace. And in the distance I see a familiar sight. A large stone tower rests on top of one of the mountains, and it is the same one we drove by with Linda when we were forced to take a detour off the Autostrada again many weeks and advetures ago. But this time we stop to see the little town at its base and just take a break. It is a little past noon on a Sunday so everyone is out enjoying the lovely summer day. I have a beer, Mary Ann a coffee and then we walk the town. I have to add to our weight of things taking home and buy some Olive Oil from one of the little shops. We explore the Gothic church, light candles and return to the car for the ride to our hotel near the airport.

The Tower on the Mountain. 

 The Towns Main Street.

 Looking down the Main Street.

 Inside the Gothic Church.

 The Porcelain Altar.

A Look Out Over the Valley.

Click to See and Hear Gothic Church Bell.

We arrive at our hotel and it isnt really a hotel in the real sense. More like a large house surround by walls and a gate in a residential neighborhood of Fiumicino. Fiumicino is a city of suburban sprawl next to Rome and on the coast. Inside the hotel it is clean and bright and the room is fine.
Next item of business is to try and buy a cheap suitcase that will hold most of the stuff we have gathered on this trip. We will use the one bought in Rome as a carry on containing all the breakable and fragile items we are taking back. The hotel host is a young Italian male, so when we ask him about places open on Sunday in Italy, he immediately knows of two large shopping malls nearby. Some things are universal. With the help of the GPS we find a huge area filled with all kinds of stores just like large malls all over the USA. And we find a reasonably priced suitcase. We are ready to fly back to the USA after packing.
Our hotel is also near the Lido close to Rome so we will eat there on our last night in Italy. And everyone else has the same idea. So traffic like the Jersey Shore and scant parking. But we find a place to park and eat. Lovely summer night. After very large antipastos, we are full so we go back to our room to sleep. Must get to the airport by 6:00 am tomorrow.

 Rome's Lido. 

One last decision about an Italian Meal. 

If its Montepulciano it must be....July 11th

So we have breakfast and say our goodbyes to Venice and Jack and Carolyn. Plan is to head South and stop somewhere along the way between Venice and Rome airport. My hope is to make Montepulciano which is the home of the lovely wine we had last night with Jack and Carolyn. We make good time but still stop to see the last hill towns and arrive in Montepulciano around 3:30 4:00. Its not easy finding a place to stay without good internet. So we find the local tourist bureau and that gentleman finds us an agrotourist place just outside of town for the right price. Just before we leave for our lodgings, I ask about the Montepulciano winery we have come to visit. He tells me it is over 200 kilometers away on the other side of Italy. Oh yes, Italy has two Montepulciano's. One the town famous for wine and the other the region famous for wine. And never the twain shall meet.
The place we are staying makes me forget all that. Lovely grounds plus a large swimming pool. Let the pictures tell the rest.

 The Valley Below

 Me at The Door to our Room

 Start of the Evenings Dinner

 Mary Ann reading at the pool. 

 Montepulciano above us. 

Walking home at Night. 

We have a lovely meal outside that the owner prepares along with his own wine. Unfortunately I find out he does not ship overseas. We fall asleep wondering what our last full day in Italy will bring. 

Naval Engagement July 10th.

Today we are going to the Venice Naval Museum. Just one vaporetto stop away, but a different world. Here the private yachts moor and the crowds are gone. We tour the museum full of old gondolas, topedo boats, and royal barges. Very nice. And of course a nice restaurant just across the bridge.

 Alleyway in Venice. 

The Naval Armory. 

  Bridge to Restaurant. 

Church outside our Hotel Window. 

The Church from Our Window. 

Gondolere

Click here to see Venice Traffic

A nice nap and time for our gondola ride. Jack and Carolyn  are treating  me and Mary Ann because of my birthday last Tuesday. And what a fine ride it was. Complete with the last bottle of Prosecco we had bought when Linda was with us so many adventures ago. It is amazing how steady and seaworthy those little boats are. 

 In a Small Canal

 A different Gondolere

 In The Grand Canal. 

Venice. 

We went back to the restaurant we had eaten at on Wednesday and had another wonderful meal. A fitting end to our stay in Venice. Tomorrow Mary Ann and I start our journey hom . We will drive most of the way to the airport,  but we dont yet know where. 

 Jack and Carolyn at dinner. 

Don Amechee Jr. sat next to our table. 

A Night at the Opera (Not the Marx Brothers) July 9th

Travel day sort of. We go to the small island called Murano famous for its glass. We were there back in 2001 right after Jack and Carolyns wedding. We picked up an expensive carraff, but that is another story by itself. The local hotels provide free water taxi service one way. To get back you either hire a water taxi to take you back, catch a local vaporetto, or buy some Murano glass and if you spend enough, they will supply thr watet taxi. Since only earrings were purchased we took the vaporetto. But I am getting ahead of myself. We walk to central Murano to find cheaper glass dodads and a bite to eat. Beautiful day, sit by a canal, eat and drink as long as you want.

On Water Taxi to Murano

A Gondola from the Water

Central Murano

Our cafe on the right. 

Jack and Carolyn. 

Coming back to Venice. 

Click to see our Water Taxi

Click for Venice at night on the Water

After we get back to Venice it is rest time till we go to the Opera. We are going to see La Traviata but not a full production. Before we get to the pslace, we have a light dinner in a wonderful piazza al fresco. The heat has abated for the momment. This opera is being staged in different rooms of one of Venices palaces of which there are many. Just three singers but was very nicely done. We were in three different rooms which were the sets for the opera. And a limited number of tickets were sold. Very intimate. But no pictures allowed. We go home late and tomorrow go for the gondola ride.

First set for the opening act. We were up front on the right. 

Second room for Act II

Setting the atmosphere. 

Venice at night. 

Canal Street East. July 8th.

Breakfast downstairs with Jack and Carolyn. Late start which is fine. Today we will take a vaporetto (water bus) to the local fish and vegatable market. We get the right vsporetto and ride it one stop past the market. That way we end up on the other side of the Grand Canal across from the market. By doing this, we can ride on one of the gondolas that go back and forth across the canal. A gondola ride for two Euros each. It is short but still a ride in a gondola. 35 minute rides run 80 Euros and up.  We will still do that later tonight. The market is nice and full of fresh fish and vegatables. Not nearly as big as Florences, but still nice.  After strolling through the market, we sit in the shade next to the Grand Canal, have drinks and snacks, then walk back to the hotel for afternoon naps. I do have some coffee gelato on the way home. Addicted to that stuff. Got our new room and we now have a little more space. Had to defrost the mini fridge though. No big deal.

  Tower from yesterday from the ground.

 Morning washing of the gondolas.

Morning preparations.

On the Grand Canal. 

Jack in a gondola

Checking out the fish.

 The Rialto Fish Market. 8

 Jack and Carolyn.

Click to see EMS Venice Style

The Walk Home.

Click for view from Tower

Click for Gondolas in the Water

So this is a little strange. We get into our double room and out of no where, a storm comes in. Too much like the one in Tarzo where the window blew in. Hail snd everything. Jilly are you wishing us arivadercci.
We go out to eat and the place wd want to eat at only has reservations for 9:30. It is a little past six. We stop at one restaurant for appitizers and then send me back to get the 9:30 reservations. One more bar stop and it is 9:30. Boy are we glad we waited. The food is abovd any we have had and we will come back on Frida . Despite the fes ants on the floor we loved i . Tomorrow is Opera night.

 Jack's Duck. 

 My Goose. 

Stuffed Zuchini Flowers. 

 Carolyn by Candlelight. 

 Jack. 

 Together with their friend. 

Just one more drink. 

 Gondolas in the rain. 

 More rain.