Poppin’ In To See The Pope

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Doin my lil’ praya’ wit da Pope

…At a very sllllloooooooowwwwwww pace.

I didn’t think I was going to be able to see the pope while going to Vatican City, but was fortunate to experience the first assembly of 2002. Hardly moving at all, as if he was asleep, he was rolled down the center of the auditorium. Then, when on stage he talked as if he was asleep. And then, almost I fell asleep. But, because the assembly was more of a nationalist rally having groups of pilgrims from all over the world chanting and cheering for their country when announced, the vibrant environment kept everyone alive. It was interesting to see the pope in real person, and hear him speak many different languages. The city itself kept me busy and to find the opportunity to see Pope John Paul, I was overwhelmed.

I liked Vatican City more than Rome because of the views from St. Peter’s Basilica, The Pieta, Sistine Chapel, and the other places of interest. It was nice to come here to start the new year.

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Roaming Around Rome

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Roaming Around Rome

The eternal city with colossal landmarks.

By this last leg of the trip, I was absolutely tired of seeing the touristy & traditional sites of museums, art galleries, churches, etc. I wasn’t the only, as many other travelers just wanted to feel the city than run around with maps and books not really taking anything in. I managed to make my own guided walking tour to the more important destinations of Rome, but really seeing it once was good enough for me. I enjoyed Rome’s nightlife, shopping, and landmarks and must make another visit in the summer.

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New Year’s In Naples, It Was A Riot!

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A Neapolitan New Year’s!

A crazy fun time!

I didn’t think Naples had any celebration worth staying for until I saw it for myself. In Piazza Plebiscito they had a concert celebration with an Italian hip hop artist and great performances. When we arrived into the square I was uncertain what the night would turn out like. At 11:30 the square was a quarter full and it seemed as if there was going to be nobody in the square at countdown. But, within the time of 20 minutes the large square was completely packed just in time. Following the countdown there were performances with people gravitating inside sphere balls, fire dancing on floats, dancers dressed up in elevated stilts, and performers/singers flying on drawcords connect between the buildings. Additionally, there were surprising little celebrations within the crowds of people with champagne flying all over and random fireworks exploding sometimes at right behind your leg.

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Vesuvius, the Volcano

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Vesuvius… Yes, as in the actual Volcano

A hike up to the top to see a crater that once ravaged a civilization.

If I heard “I hear it was going to blow today” or “…or it’ll blow” once last time from any more creative tourists walking on the rim of the crater, I think I might just have to give out flyers to the best discount taxi service from Ercolano.

In Ercolano, the taxi guys tried to convince us that there was snow and ice at the top and the bus was not going to allow us to get to the top parking lot. Well, I know how these Italians are down south, they always insist and basically know the best sales talk possible. But, we didn’t listen and of coarse they were right and we were completely wrong. Our bus stopped at the ice (shown in the link), we had to walk all the way up to the top parking lot and then 30 minutes more on the side of the crater. Walking uphill while stripping layers, we watch ourselves and the accompanying ‘5-Star’d fur coated highhealed tourists’ (who obviously didn’t expect such an adventure) slipping all over the ice coated pavement. Then of coarse, Mario and Luigi, the taxi drivers who spent forever trying to get our business, passed us by while smiling and rubbing it in with a wave.

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Christmas Sunset on Capri

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Christmas on Capri

Just another day spent enjoying the best of Italy!

Capri is a remote island destination where movie stars go for a breath of vacation air. On Christmas it was nothing too special, but absolutely the most uplifting experience I’ve had in awhile. From just walking around the island witnessing beautiful landscapes and blue water grottos, I was happy to be there. Fortunately, when the weather warms up the island is flooded with tourists but my visit was enjoyed in peace. I walked around in the sun and managed to get some amazing pictures. During my holiday away from home, it was hard to compare Christmas at home versus being on an island experiencing something new with beautiful weather.

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Pompei Is Still Ruined

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The Ruins in Pompei

An educational daytrip in one of Italy’s well known ruins.

Pompei contains the preserved building that survived the volcanic eruption of Vesuvius hundreds of years ago. Because ash preserves structures, the city still dwells for many people to visit. Ancient Greek civilization and an empire that ruled in its day belonged to Pompei. When the volcano erupted many people were buried in lava that surrounds and some people covered in lava are on display. This is the most visited site in the south of Italy and even in the winter many people were there visiting. It was a historical and educating experience although I wish I knew more about the history of Pompei before I visited.

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Naples, The Heart & Soul of Italy

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Naples, the Unexpected City!

Real Italians, Real Italy, a Really great time!.

Naples is by far the heart of Italy, and definitely my favorite portion of the trip. If you continue ignorance and avoid visiting this street smart place you are flat out stupid. People are friendly. Once you know one person they say you know them all. I went out to a bar one night and introduced myself to an Italian girl who turned around and introduced me to the entire building.

The attitude in Naples is very unique… No schedules and nothing planned, its all a surprise. The trains follow the same schedule. I went shopping on via Toledo and asked the workers of a store what time they were going to close and they replied “we don’t know… we really don’t know..” and that’s basically how everything runs.. no rules!

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Florence Will Always Be A Favorite

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Florence, Always A Favorite!

Duomo, Ponte Vecchio, Museo Archeologico, Accademia, and Uffizi.

Florence is always a great place to visit with a large amount of historical sites to see and many things to do. There were hardly many tourist but I can imagine how flooded the city can get during the summer, it must be hell. I experienced most of the typical tourist attractions and really enjoyed the time spent in the city. During this portion of the trip me and Sarah decided to spend time to ourselves and at the end of Florence both understood that we needed to venture on our own. Florence offers beauty, great food, art, and its definitely a place everyone should see.

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Selva Val Gardena Is Dolo Mite!

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Val Gardena…It’s Dolo Mite!

World Class Skiing in the North of Italy.

When arriving into Selva Val Gardena/Groden you’ll wonder if its still Italy. Dialects and accents sound completely German and everything else follows. Val Gardena is part of the ‘Dolomiti Superski’ which under one entity has to be one of the World’s Top 10 Ski Resorts. It isn’t the ‘Alps’ every American only knows about, its the ‘Dolomites’.

According to Euro’s who’ve been to both worlds, Dolomiti Superski and inclusive Val Gardena is much larger and arguably better than the Swiss, French, or Austrian Alps. At most, 20% of the ski area is equivalent to that of Vail, Squaw Valley, Mammoth, or Beaver Creek. This monstrously massive ski area can be unbelievable. With its Sellaronda Carrousel, you can access 12 huge ski basins, each comparable to Brekenridge, CO, into one infinite and endless ski world.

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Exploring The Canals of Venice

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The Canals of Venice

The Grand Canal, San Marco Basilica, Rialto Bridge, and much more.

In Venice you will find one of the most beautiful places in all of Italy and Europe. It reflects its pictures and what you imagined. To see it in real life will make you happy you visited. The entire experience of Venice was excellent. The first night we walk around forever trying to find a hotel worth paying for. Luckily, great social skills came into play when the receptionist finally offered me a great price for a hotel perfectly located in the middle of San Marco. Venice is quite expensive as it attracts many tourists each year so bargaining helped us to survive. During our time, we bargained a good price for a gondola ride through the canals, experienced a Sunday service in the Basilica of San Marco, visited the Musei San Marco, took boat rides along the Grand Canal, and viewed many other sites. During the summer its overcrowded, higher priced, and apparently smells like fish, so we were able to avoid all of this and make our time in Venice a relaxing and spacious one.

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