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| In October 2006, Joe and I went on our Honeymoon/Anniversary to Italy. Having waited a year after our wedding, I did not want a typical relaxing vacation to a beach on an island (Joe wanted a relaxing vacation to a beach on an island). |
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| This was an amazing trip that lasted only 11 days. We met fellow travelers that included a retired NYC detective and his wife, an Australian radio personality and her husband, two other Australian women who had been traveling through Europe for 9 weeks, a United States military man and his wife stationed near Naples, a content editor for NYC visitors on About.com, and a Canadian tour operator. We experienced things we would have never dreamed. Although knowing a little Italian would have helped in some situations, many of the Italians we met knew at least some English. Read my travel journal and our cookbook inspired by our meals in Italy.
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| Although I visited Rome and Venice in May 2002, I certainly did not see all that either city has to offer. On this trip, even though we visited some of the same places so Joe could be amazed, I tried not to take the same pictures. Or at least I tried to take the same picture from a different perspective. For example, I did not previously see the Colosseum at night so on this trip I made a special point of taking a night photo of the Colosseum. |
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| We flew into and out of Roma (Rome) in the Lazio region. In Italy, we used the Trenitalia train system to travel to Firenze (Florence) in the Toscana region, Venezia (Venice) in the Veneto region, and Napoli (Naples) in the Campania region. In Naples, we rented a car to visit Mt. Vesuvius, Pompeii, Sorrento, and the Amalfi Coast. We had read a lot of travel information before our trip that advised against driving in Naples and along the Amalfi Coast, but aside from a couple scares with buses/trucks and figuring out how to get out of Naples without hitting a scooter we really enjoyed having a car. We also took a ferry from Naples to the island of Capri. |
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In Florence we experienced a cooking class offered by Accidental Tourist. This was a full day trip to the Tuscan countryside that began with a tour of Fattoria di Grignano, or Grignano Farms, where wine and olive oil are produced. We were then taken a short distance to an charming, old Tuscan villa. At the villa we sampled the olive oil and wines. Following the tasting, we were then taken to a charming, old Tuscan farmhouse. At the farmhouse we were given a basic pasta lesson in making ravioli and fettucine. The day concluded with a fantastic late lunch prepared for our group by the farmhouse owner's wife, Christiana. |
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| On the island of Capri we used a combination of a funicular (from Marina Grande to Capri), a bus (from Capri to Anacapri), and a chair lift to reach the highest point of Capri, Monte Solaro. The short journey (to 1932 feet) brought us the most fantastic view of the Bay of Naples. Although not the clearest of days, Mt. Vesuvius is in the far background. Unfortunately there was a cloud on one side so we could not experience the view of Sorrento. |
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| As usual I probably took too many pictures. Along the way I found so many gorgeous photo opportunities only to become frustrated when the shear beauty of what I was seeing could not be captured by the camera. Of course, I have created some panoramic views but the true splendor of Italy just cannot be captured by a camera. It must be experienced. Nevertheless, I have sorted through over 1,100 pictures taken by Joe and myself to share our Italian Honeymoon/Anniversary with you. |
 Since returning home Joe has found so many video clips of the same things we experienced on our vacation. Links to YouTube.com video clips are next to this icon through these pages. Next time we are definitely taking a video camera. |
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