Leonard Family Around the World Adventure

Monday February 24 th . I did not sleep last night – a terrible case of insomnia – I ended up watching a movie on my iphone – Next – which I enjoyed and reading a good portion of War and Peace. I cannot stop thinking about the impending end of our trip; all of the chores that we will need to accomplish when we arrive home and the upcoming re-immersion into work. Today we get up and hit the road by 9:30 am. Not too bad – I am not unhappy to be leaving our room. Although it was cheap it was very bare and people came in and out throughout the night – the walls are thin and the floors above us shook with their footsteps. We decide to stay on the toll ways and we make it to Paris a little after 3 – after paying about 55 Euro in tolls. Our only stop was for fuel and a quick lunch at a roadside cafeteria. We are hopelessly lost as we arrive at Paris but somehow stumble across the Garde de Nord as if we had driven there 100 times. We park the car underneath and head the less than helpful to

Day 81 Bordeaux

Sunday February 24 th . Up this morning I work on blogs a little and read some. We decide to stay another night which is nice so we do not have to pack our bags, we have been moving at a pretty fast pace and would like a full day here. Pam makes the arrangements for the room. We are heading out to look at sights, hopefully to find a wine tour and things open even though it is Sunday. I think tomorrow morning we will try to leave early - not sure if we are heading to Paris or to Mont St Michelle. I cannot believe that this Saturday we head back to the States. We ended up hitting the Modern Art Museum – the building was fabulous – what great space for a museum. As far as the exhibits– well Aria is the only one that really seemed to enjoy it. After the Museum, we walked around the city, had lunch at the L'Entrecote – a famous local food place. Very nice – no decisions to be made other than drinks and how you want the meat prepared. They serve a salad, thin delicious steaks – get t

Day 80 Biarritz to Bordeaux

Saturday February 23 rd . We get up and ask the girls if they want to surf or go to the aquarium. Allysha wants to surf- Aria does not. They go check out the waves as last night they were absolutely huge – too big for them to surf. They come back with discrepancies- Allysha said it is fine Aria disagrees. We pack up the car – I look at the conditions – it does not look to good – waves are ill formed and mushy – there is no real pattern to where they are breaking except for those breaking in the middle of a bunch of rocks. It is low tide and many of the ships in the harbor are resting on the bottom. The views and weather are spectacular. We walk a little and decide to head up the coast. Allysha is disappointed at not getting to surf. I think we are headed to Bordeaux but we decide to hit another coastal town - Arcachon We stop by the biggest Sand Dune in Europe and climb it. There are a lot of visitors. The climb for me is very painful and Pam is much winded when we reach the top.

Day 79 Pau

Friday February 22 nd . Woke up this morning in extreme pain – having a attack in my left knee and right wrist. I take my meds and start some prednisone. I am so sad -there is so much I want to see but I cannot even walk. I wonder what triggers the attacks – too much cheese perhaps? So I start catching up on blogging while I lay in bed and the girls are getting ready. I actually take a vicodine – not sure what we are going to do. There is a chateau and a scenic walk we wanted to do here. I add up the days of the trip and realize to whole duration is only 96 days - up till now I have been thinking it was 110. So as of today we only have 15 more days. The duration of the trip from a perception of time passing has been neither long nor short – it is amazing when we think about all of the places we have been and how much we have learned and how our perspectives have broadened. I am not sure if the original goals have been met but it is an experience I would not trade for anything. I

Day 78 Nimes to Pau

Thursday February 21 st . After getting up we packed the car and walked and rove to the parking garage near the Nimes Coliseum. It is one of the best preserved roman amphitheatres in the world – although a little smaller than the one in Rome it is in much better condition – as a matter of fact it is still in use – for bull fighting. The audio tour is one of the best – not too be missed. It described the games and uncovered many Hollywood misrepresentations of the games and gladiators, described the types of gladiators – the fighting styles - a very informative tour. Included in admission to the coliseum was a 3D movie that was show a few blacks away in another roman building. A third admission was included to a tower but it was a long walk and we decided to grab a quick lunch which we ate on Rue Victor Hugo. My only complaint so far about France is how hard it has been to order food - menus age very hard for us to decipher. A brief fuel stop filling the tank for 55 Euros – yikes

Day 77 St. Tropez to Nimes

Wednesday February 20 th Again we woke to glorious weather. On the way out of town we stop for a road map of France. Our next stop is Avignon, a walled city built in the mid 13 th century. I guess the bridge at Avignon is part of a famous nursery rhyme – which none of us had ever heard. We walked around the town and our plan was to eat lunch here and move on. The first place we sat down at was very expensive and was not serving the formulae or set menu since it was already a little after 2pm. We decided to move on and next door we found a set menu. Following lunch we visited the Musee Angladon – a donated private collection from Jaques Doucet (1853-1929). There was a Van Gogh – Railway Cars, works by Picasso, Vegas, Manet. A nice collection – I imagine what it would be lie to be surrounded by such works at my own house. The Picasso piece was my favorite a small painting of a guitar on a chair but I could look at it for ours. The Van Gogh used the natural color of the canvas

Day 76 Nice to St. Tropez

Tuesday February 19 th . We picked up the car at noon – drove back to the hotel got the luggage and the girls and hit the road. We had a beautiful coastal drive to Cannes where we ate lunch at a restaurant in the Sofitel. This whole region is so beautiful – the coastal towns – the roads what a wonderful adventure just driving along. The weather remains perfect sunny and 19 degrees. The roads are in great condition. We drive on to St Tropez where we find an apartment for 50 euro. What a great price. We walk along the beach to the town. There are many hotels that are closed for the season – the sun sets during the walk and the moon is out providing light. It is beautiful. We walk through the town and there are about 20-25 multi-million dollar yachts backed up to the dock. I think back to the boat we used to own and I look at the people dining in these floating mansions ad imagine how much money it must cost just to maintain them – and I wish I had enough money to enjoy such a priv

Day 75 Nice

Monday February 18 th . I am writing this on Saturday the 22 nd – I have not blogged since last Sunday. It has been very busy and I am in love with France. The only reason I am blogging now is I have had a terrible attack of arthritis – my knee is swollen and my right wrist – I am laying in the hotel room in pain and wondering what I am going to do. Anyways, last Monday we spent time in Nice. What a wonderful city! In the morning we looked into a rental car – the plan that is emerging is to drive across the south of France seeing the sights e wish to – all the way to the Atlantic the city of Biarritz – supposed to be the best surfing in France. The Weather is spectacular. I really enjoy this place – I can imagine how busy it must be on the French Riviera during the summer. Although the beaches are small pebbles it is 6km long and bordered by a huge promenade. We got on a Tour bus that does a 1.5 hour circle with commentary. What a great way to see the city and the commentary add

Day 74 Travel Day

Sunday February 17 th . We arrived in Trieste this morning at 6:30am. We had a few passport checks during the early morning hours – I think it was Slovenia and Italy but not sure. We start to explore our options and through a complicated process decide to catch a train to Milano via Meste. We have time for a Cappuccino before we head out. On the train I start to read the France and Milan Lonely Planet entries. I am very concerned about heading to Milan. It sounds preys and we might not get to see the Last Supper – at least Pam assures me it is not fashion week which means the place is even more expensive and impossible to find lodging. When we get to Meste we grab McDonalds – I feel guilty eating it but it also brings a little comfort to my day. Pam decides to talk to the information lady. When she returns she has found out that it is Italian Fashion week – our worst nightmare. Am has got some information regarding trains to Nice and Monaco. On the trip we decide to try and catch

Day 73 Leaving Dubrovnik

Saturday February 16 th . We get up this morning and pack. There is a cab meeting us at noon to transport us to the ferry terminal. Even so it is a challenge to move our luggage up the flights of stairs to the designated meeting point. How does our luggage keep growing? The cab shows up on time – we talk about the war on the way to the terminal -I give him a generous tip. I am so disturbed –although I have witnessed and participated in a war it was never in my home town – I cannot imagine the suffering and fear and associated feelings being forced to defend your hometown. He tells us that more civilian's were killed than militia. He sounds bitter that no country came to their aid for a very long time – I feel embarrassed. We head into the ticket office – I am relieved – we have plenty of time only -the lady selling ticket says there is no Ferry to Bari – the information we had been given by the information center was wrong – the next ferry is Tuesday. Obviously this is not acc

Day 72 Dubrovnik

Friday February 15 th . The plan today was to rent a car for 24 hours – drive t some of the surrounding towns and islands and to use the car to head to the terminal to meet the ferry tomorrow. We walked to the Hertz store where Pam had inquired about the car the day before – we have a very heavy day pack as we are planning on having a car. Well, we did not make a reservation so there was no car – not sure how that was overlooked yesterday –I am frustrated but we continue into town. We end up taking a bus t the newer part of town – Lapad and surrounding area. There is a beautiful promenade that runs aside the ocean. It is funny seeing the beaches that are carved out of boulders – metal ladders sunk directly into rocks making the sea look like a beautifully maintained swimming pool. We see many people swimming across the bay sans wetsuit. We wander around and find a Mexican food place – we eat and make our way back to the room.

Day 71 Dubrovnik

Thursday February 14 th . Another day of glorious weather – we visit the city and another gallery. We walk through a number of churches and visit memorial war exhibit. So many civilians were killed. The Girls go shopping while I have a couple cold drinks at a terrace outside the city walls facing the ocean. The views are spectacular – the ocean so blue and sparkling, the islands and towns on the distance. I am making good progress through my novel. This evening we go to see Beowulf. The girls did not like it but I enjoyed it. I cannot remembered how true it was to the story – it has been years since I read it. We grab dinner and then we see Sweeny Todd. WOW – what an absolutely graphic movie – unexpectedly so. Many people walk out during the movie – perhaps not the Valentine's day flick they expected. Not sure why we are seeing so many movies – but has been a relaxing couple of days. We head back to the room and I enjoy a few glorious chapters of Tolstoy.

Day 70 Dubrovnik

Wednesday February 13 th . Today we get up – there are some minor skirmishes – disproves my hypothesis that a nice place to stay helps us get along. The weather is glorious. We leave Aria in the room – she wants some time to herself. Allysha Pam and I explore the city and walk the top of the city walls. The views are spectacular – I have a couple instances of vertigo. There are people living in apartments that can only be reached via the city walls some of them even sell souvenirs right out of their windows. Allysha purchases a handmade bracelet – nothing too special except for the fact that she buys it on top of the wall. We have lunch at Arsenal – our waiter was here during the war and he describes the conditions – I can see the impact it has had on him. We go back to pick up Aria. We hit the modern art museum. There are some temporary displays of photographer - one of them is a series of photos of featuring Pablo Picasso as the subject. There are also some interesting pain

Day 69 Dubrovnik

Tuesday February 12 th . I get up at 8:30am – everyone else is still asleep. I check email and do some blogging. I also start my new novel – War and Peace by Count Leo Tolstoy. Not sure how I have never read this novel – I guess there are many classics that I have missed. Regardless – the forward by Pat Conrad makes we salivate at the thought of reading this work. It takes a few minutes before the novel grabs me and I am struggling as usual remembering the names of the characters – it is especially complex with the Russian Patronymics, formal and informal names of the characters but I am hooked. I have a hard time putting the book away and it is an instant addition to my day pack or jacket pocket and each time I heft t I am happy at its bulk. I have the feeling that I do not want this book to ever end – and right now given the 3.5 inches of processed thin trees behind my bookmark it seems like it never will. It is a beautiful day and I am excited with our new plan and the relief of

Day 68 Dubrovnik

Monday February 11 th . Allysha ended up sleeping with me in the single upstairs – it was so cold downstairs. Pam basically froze and when she hoped into the shower this morning the hot water only lasts a few minutes. We are all in a foul mood and I think a lot of it has to do with us being uncomfortable. At first glance this place seemed adequate but there is some underlying subtleties that make it almost uninhabitable – only 2 towels, no hot water, no heater downstairs, the stairs to the second level are very steep and narrow – beds are the size of sleeping bags, the furniture is particle board – no decorations etc. We are all crabby and barking and nagging seems the main form of communication – I blame it on the accommodations. Pam heads to the information booth (she is fed up) and returns shortly telling us to pack up we are changing locations. I think we are all relieved – and pack in record time even in the cramped location. We leave the money and the key on the counter and h

Day 67 Dubrovnik

Sunday February 10 th . Everyone except for Aria was cold, who had the heater blowing directly on her, last night – and I had to move to a cot because the sheets on the main bed did not smell very good. We got up early (6:30) this morning and hopped a bus to Dubrovnik. We grabbed some fruit to eat on the way. Our packing job was a very quick. Our luggage continues to grow somehow and the walk to the bus station was a little difficult. We purchased our tickets and went to load our bags only to find it was 7 kuna per checked bag – oh well – 49 kuna later we are on the bus and still have 2 back packs with us. Fortunately the bus is only about 1/3 rd full and we each get our own pair of seats. On the ride we all rested, read and gawked at the beautiful countryside. It feels totally foreign – not the familiarity of Italy to California at all - but oh, such beautiful natural beauty. The mountainous peaks remind me of the Sierra Nevada's – the large granite features that look so powe

Day 66 Split

Saturday February 9, 2008. We arrived at 7am – not completely refreshed but much better than if we had been in a second class coach. We quickly found an apartment through the tourist place – a Sobe – 500 Kuna per night (400 if we stay more than 1 night). The proprietor walked to the station to help us find the place. It was small but inexpensive and should be fine – although there is a scent from a stand-up freezer in the room that is not very pleasant. We lie down and sleep until 12. We then struck out by foot. We grabbed a couple sandwiches – most of the museums were clasping but we did see a Gallery of the most famous Croatian artist – I really enjoyed his work. The town is charming – basically built in 200 AD and people are still living in it. We wander around exploring using the foot tour from our Lonely Planet guide book. We also grab a cappuccino on the huge seaside promenade. We look into bus tickets to Dubrovnik – our waitress from last night said it was not to be misse

Day 65 Zagreb

Friday February 8 th . [Again I went to save this posting and lost a lot of work – so frustrating – it is hard enough to make time to create the entries but being forced to do it twice is disheartening – I fear the second version is never as good as the first.] We get up barely in time for the free breakfast – I am about to pass on it but Pam checks it out and it is a very nice spread – eggs, bacon, sausage, fruits, breads etc. She reports back and we all go down for the meal. We meet a very nice lady – Sash from Bosnia – I think she is about 31. She talks about the wars WWII and in 1992. She talks about the male population being diminished because of the 1992 wars. This area has seen much ethnic cleansing over its history – as early as 1992. Most of the ethnic cleansing has nothing to do with race – simply religion –in some cases just the difference between Orthodox vs. Roman Catholicism. I do not know many of the details – just what the guide book has stated but I am going to ma

Day 64 Zagreb, Croatia

We hang out at the train station getting our bearings and then Pam walks to look at a couple hotels. The first one (Hotel Central) changes the price as we are checking in so we got to the second one – The Astoria Best Western. We get a nice room but it seems a little pricey – 1000 Kuna. We are tired and need a place and they let us check in at 5am- we sleep till noon. I was able to get internet access which is good as I had some work to do and a conference call to join later. I am a little stressed over work and out plans for the next week. Pam wants to make it to Dubrovnik but it is a long ways away. I have some work to review, emails to send and a conference call to attend. We also need to get in touch with the house appraiser somehow. I stay in the room and work while Pam goes to try to figure out travel plans. The girls stay with me and work on school work. I am so far behind on my blogs – nearly a full week I try to catch up but the details of each day are lost to me. I need

Day 63 Venice to Zagreb

Wednesday February 6 th . Tonight we are leaving for Zagreb so we pack our bags and leave them in the lobby of the Hotel. The day is absolutely stunning – Bright, Clear and warm – we can only wonder at it the sudden improvement n the weather and I feel sorry for the people we saw packing their bags to the train station yesterday that they should miss seeing the city under these conditions. If it is possible I fall in love with the city even more seeing in the new light. We stroke out and simply start walking – no real destination in mind. We walk to the stadium and parks west of San Marco – we see the naval academy along a beautiful promenade along the ocean. I believe I am joined in sadness at leaving having to leave this city. It has been amazing– but I am a little relieved to think that Croatia will be a little less expensive. I trade in some of my paperbacks at the Hotel and get a Book written by a Professor in Venice. It is a murder mystery that set in Venezia and the surround

Day 62 Fat Tuesday - Venice

Tuesday February 5 th . We had to stay. This is the last day of Carnivale and we actually get the room for a great price.. We slept in – I woke up feeling a little better. We visit to the Basilica, finally. It is a beautiful Church. Actually Venice is just brimming with beautiful churches. We walk to the Rialto and Pam goes to get information at the train station. The girls and I walk around the fish market and visit a few piazza's on the west side of the Rialto. We meet Pam an hour later at the Rialto Bridge and eat lunch on the Grand Canal. It is very interesting seeing people walking the streets young and old, masked and costumed.

Day 61 Murono/Burano

Monday February 4 th . I am ill and do not feel good all night and eventually am sick in the morning. I decide to stay in and the girls go to Murono and Burono – I am disappointed I was looking forward to the glass blowing. They seem to have fun – they meet other people from the states and are back in the room by late afternoon. I am still in bed. I basically slept between trips to the bathroom and interruptions from the maids and the telephone repairman. I think I have a bug – we all ate exactly the same thing yesterday. We decided to stay for Fat Tuesday if at all possible. Pam arranged it and got a good deal on the room. The girls also went to the Disco and had desert at the Rialto Bridge. I guess Aria has been the object of many young men's attention – everyone seems to think she is much older and when she is wearing her mask it is even harder to tell. Pam and Aria were approached by a group and they asked how old Aria was – when she replied 14 they turned to Pam and asked

Day 60 Venice

Sunday February 3 rd . Aria purchased a mask today. We hit the 4 museums that surround Piazza San Marco – The museum de correre, the Doge's Palace and the Bibliotheca (1 room), and the Museo Archeological. They were interesting museums – my favorite was the Doges Palace and the bridge of sighs which was used to transfer prisoners to the dungeons. We had another great lunch. We went back to the apartment and Aria and stayed behind to work while Pam and Allysha went Piazza San Paolo and San Roco where the kids activities for Carnivale were going on. Allysha painted and bungee jumped on a trampoline. This evening we had reservations for dinner and a show. "Carnivale" a history of Venice. It was quite expensive but I was very much looking forward to it. The dinner was a buffet which in Italy means you walk around and grab food and eat standing up – it was not very comfortable nor was the food that great. I was far from satiated and was anxious for the show to start. The

Day 59 Venice

Saturday February 2 nd . Woke up this morning and it was raining. We head out and realize for the first time how spoiled we are by travelling offseason – for the first time we encounter lines – just to get into the Academia Museum we had to wait nearly 20 minutes? In the guide book I read that a typical wait is more like 3 hours. The Museum was spectacular - http://www.tickitaly.com/galleries/venice-academy.php We went to the Peggy Guggenheim collection but decided to get lunch first - we were hungry. http://www.guggenheim-venice.it/ (Sadly we never made it back here) Lunch a great lunch but expensive – I am getting used to things and as long as I do not do the Euro conversion to dollars it is almost possible to ignore the high prices. After lunch I read there is going to be a Gondola Parade and we try to find it – we see hundreds of people lined up near the Rialto Bridge but never see anything resembling a parade. On the walk back to the hotel we see many churches and go into as

Day 58 Travel Day Firenze to Venice

Friday February 1 st . It is raining this morning – we pack up and get a cab to the stazione. Well worth it. We try to make accommodation reservations but we hope there will be more options when we actually arrive in Venice so we take a chance and decide to wait till we arrive – hope it is not a mistake. We seem to have accumulated much baggage and I am worried about boarding water taxis etc. I get the tickets for Venice – we opt for the train that is 2 hours away as the one that departs in only an hour only has first class tickets remaining first class is 176 vs. 118 for second class. We can wait for an hour to save 100 US dollars. We opt not to use the left baggage as it is 3.8 Euro per bag for the first 5 hours – we drag all of our stuff into a food court – the girls are working on homework and I am blogging. Train trip to Venice was easy – I had a chance to get a lot of work done. After we arrive Pam finds us a room for 3 nights through the information booth at the train statio

Day 57 Pisa

Thursday January 31st Up this morning and it is raining – glad we have the umbrellas. We strike out for the train station which is a good hike from our hotel. We catch the train – I even figure out how to use the automated machines. It is 18.6 Euro for all of us one-way - 3 adults and 1 child. A little over an hour later we disembark. A long walk north to the Piazza but we find it without getting lost. At first sight it is more dramatic than I could imagine. The Piazza is huge and there is a lot of grass. The Cathedral with the leaning tower (bell tower) the Baptistery and the cemetery. We first visit the cathedral we think it is free and nobody stops us as we enter. It is very large and beautiful. Many of the paintings are much darker than any we have seen before – a byproduct of not having been restored. After the Cathedral we buy the pass that gets us into all attractions – we also pay extra to climb the leaning tower. We are a little uncertain about this as it is quite expe

Day 56 Firenze

Wednesday January, 30 th . Museo de Academia – the home of Michelangelo's David. I spent a very long time just viewing the sculpture – it was quite impressive as you round the corner and see it displayed in a room especially built for it. I can see why it is considered such a masterpiece. Last night I downloaded a free audio-guide about David which we all listen to. Aria sketches the statue. I am stuck by so many details Scale is hard to comprehend – it is nearly 4 meters 4 meters tall. Some pieces of the work are not in scale – the feet the hands, the head – yet somehow it works. I am able to study the details of the sling still not sure if there is a rock in one of his hands. I did not realize the sling spanned from his hand across his shoulder. Certainly understandable why this was immediately heralded as a masterpiece. There are many other religious paintings and a hall full of plaster copies of many statues. I think paintings and sculpture are my 2 favorite forms of

Day 55 Firenze

Tuesday January 29 th As far as I can tell this is about the half-way point. For some reason it does not feel like it. It feels like we are much closer to the end of our adventure – perhaps because we only have a couple countries left. I am writing this Friday Morning and we are sitting in the train station waiting for the train to Venice. I am hoping I can remember everything we did over the last few days. We have had internet access at the Hotel Dante so I was able to get caught up on bills and work. It was nice being able to communicate with people and I feel less disassociated with my company and the world in general. We finalized arrangements for our house sitter to move out – that is a relief. So Tuesday – what did we do… let me think. We first hit the Museum de Bargello – it is spectacular - very enjoyable. Then we hit the Ufisizi Gallery. Normally very hard to get into we had no trouble – just walked right in off the street. Each of these places had so many pieces – not h

Day 54 Firenze

January 28, 2008

Monday January 28 th . The is the second time I am writing this – I hit save just a minute ago and lost a full 30 minutes of work. I am really starting to hate word 2007 and Vista – I have never lost this much work t to software lockups. I got up at 7 and woke of the Girls at 8am. We grabbed a quick bite – included with room and then headed to the car for the stressful drive across town to return it. We only got lost a couple of times and eventually got the car returned in one piece – no problems. We struck out on foot – firs to the Piazza Santa Maria Novella – it was under renovation so we did not stay long. From there we headed to the Basilica de San Lorenza and paid to go inside. It was beautiful. From there we headed to the Cathedral – it was amazing – it seemed nearly as large as St. Peters in Rome. We paid to make the climb up the duomo. The views from the top were spectacular but I had a small attack of vertigo. There were only about 15 to 20 other tourists – I can only

Day 53 Sienna and Florence

January 28, 2008

Sunday January 27 th . We got up this morning, had a quick breakfast packed up, checked out, put the luggage on the left baggage area and then the long walk to our car. Drove back to the hotel and packed up and then headed for Firenze. Traffic was light and we only got lost a few times. I highly recommend arriving by car on Sundays. The traffic is much lighter, the traffic restrictions are fewer and parking is free. We came in through the Ichelangel overlook where which overlooks the Arno and you can see most of the city. We found the information area – they could not recommend hotels but we walked to the Hotel Dante and they had free parking and a mini-apartment with kitchenette for 100 euro. We decided to take it and then walked around exploring for a while – we checked on one other hotel but it was closed for the season. The hotel is just off the Piazza S. Croce. There was a street fair/market in the Piazza where they were selling chocolate. The girls indulged. We got lunch

Day 51 Sienna

Friday January 25 th , 2008. Up this morning at 7am. I work on my blog and do not wake the girls until after 8am. It is a beautiful day – it looks like an early spring morning in CA where it is crisp but you expect t to warm up during the day. I sing Aria happy birthday I cannot believe she is 14. We grab our breakfast which is included and decide to take a day trip to San Gimignano (still cannot even begin to fathom how to pronouce it). The hardest part of the drive is getting away from Sienna – the rest is very smooth. Again it feels like driving in the foothills or Napa region in CA but with fortresses always in the distance. The town is a medieval town with many towers. We enter the main Piazza and walk around. We visit the rocca or remains of the fortress walls. Spectacular views. I can imagine this place being less fun in the peak season with the small roads it could be very crowded. About 50% of the stores are closed and we seem to be sharing the town with a few tourist

Day 50 Frescati

Thursday January 24 th . Did not sleep well again. Woke up at 4am to work on blogs. I think I am a little home sick – trying to ignore it and not long for home but I am a little anxious to get back to work. I really would like to find a place to settle down with internet access for a few days to catch up on things. Maybe we can find a long weekly rate somewhere. I can hear Aria sighing – my typing must be bothering her. She will be 14 tomorrow. Not sure what we are going to do today – perhaps continue on to Sienna or Firenze. I wish I spoke Italian. I read the guide book for a while and given the number of things to do in Tuscany we decided to head to Sienna. We have the car for a few more days and we can use it to take days trips out of Sienna. We grab our pastry and cappuccino breakfast, load up and head out of town. The drive is actually quite smooth – we head towards Napoli so we can catch the highway to Firenze without hitting the ring road around Rome. One stop for drinks, b

Day 49 Pompeii

Wednesday January 23 rd . We decide to check out and drive to Pompeii and then head towards a suburb of Rome – Frescati. The smell of smoke really is the deciding factor – I cannot stand it anymore plus off-season in Sorrento does not offer many things to see. Skipping the Amalfi coast drive – too nervous about the drive and encountering traffic on a very arrow cliff lined road. It is nor raining although it stormed hard the all night. It is crisp, clear and chilly. We make the drive to Pompeii – and magically do not get lost. Pull right into a parking area a few hundred yards from the entrance. Parking all day is 10 euro – they sell us a guide book 7 euro and there is even a restaurant for when we are done. Pompeii is awesome – I am glad we did not skip it. It is very large – deceptively – we start slowly and realize this could take a couple of days. The wind is blowing pretty hard and we are not dressed very well. Allysha is not feeling very well but hangs in there. The theat

Day 48 Sorrento

Tuesday January 22, 2008 Did not sleep well – I am thinking about home and work. Lack of internet access and time to work is bothering me. Some sort of parade/political display this morning – garbage is not being picked up so the merchants in the piazza cannot work. I know there is also a problem in Napoli – one of the reasons we did not stop there. We met a military couple on the Nile cruise that warned us. I wonder if it has something to do with the Mafia. We have our free breakfast – pastry and coffee and decide to walk around and see the sights. We find a museum of local Art – the lady seems surprised to have any visitors. It is pretty neat – a ton of old photographs of the town and examples of the incredibly beautiful wood techniques – inlays, painting, carving, and mosaics. Absolutely stunning. We take the 2pm Ferry to Capri. Catch the bus from the port to Capri town – another resort town shut down for the winter. We walk around many things inducing most of the hotels a

Day 47 Leaving Rome