The hills are alive with....chocolate!

We left the wonders of Rome behind and oo'd and ahh'd our way into the Umbrian countryside.  Todi was a breath of fresh air, complete with a town gathering celebrating the national holiday.   The tour of the Perugina chocolate factory was fun and delicious -  Free samples?!   I'm surprised there was anything left after our group mowed through the gift shop.  The town of Perugia has charmed us all.  This afternoon there was a vintage Mercedes car show, lots of shopping and spectacular views.  Our hotel is really first class and our supper was served in that old fashioned proper style with waiters plating our delicious food for us.  We celebrated Gabbi Warren's birthday with a touch of class...and a rousing rendition of Tanti Auguri.  It is sprinkling a bit right now but I am holding out hope that it will be clear by tomorrow morning.
KA

Rome day 2

I guess I shouldn't feel guilty for having 2 gelati today considering the amount of walking we have done.  We took the Metro to the near the Vatican and met our guide, Daniele, who gave us a wonderful tour of the Vatican Museum, the Sistine Chapel, St. Peter's Basilica and Square...  Then we walked to Piazza Navona, followed by the Pantheon, the famous Giolitti's Gelateria, the Spanish Steps and the Trevi Fountain and back to the hotel.  We have elevated walking to an Olympic level. In the morning we say ciao to Rome and take a beautiful coach ride into the Umbrian hill towns - Perugia, Assisi, Spello and Todi.

Rome

Ciao tutti
The bus ride from Sorrento to Rome was rainy and quiet.  The only sound in the bus was the rain drops and snoring.  By the time we arrived in Rome the rain had stopped and our rooms were ready.  Two things I was very happy about.  We took a memorable ride to the Colloseum immediately upon arrival and met our talented guide, Valentina.  The tour of the Colloseum and Forum and many other sites was very interesting.  Back to the hotel and out for a lovely meal and a nice birthday celebration for Peter Sandberg.  A group of us took an evening stroll to the Trevi Fountain topping the day off with a spectacular gelato.
KA

Naples and Sorrento

Ciao tutti!  The train ride from Florence to Naples was lovely.  We celebrated Alex Hamer's birthday on board with a fine rendition of Tanti Auguri a Te.  The tour on the coach through Naples was wonderful and left me wanting to go back and visit again.  The Archeological Museum in Naples has a truly amazing collection of artifacts.  The ride from Naples was breathtakingly beautiful.  The hotel is rather posh and supper was delicious, and featured another rousing rendition of Tanti Auguri.  A short stroll into Sorrento and it is time to rest up for Pompeii tomorrow.

Buona Pasqua!

Happy Easter...Buona Pasqua...from Florence, Italy!  The weather has cleared and it is going to be a beautiful Easter.  Everyone is coming to breakfast dressed in their Easter clothes.  Some of us are going to the Scoppio del Carro and some are going to Easter Mass in the Duomo.  We will have stories to share when we gather up for our tour of the Uffizi Gallery this afternoon.

Firenze 1

The ride on the freccia argento ( silver arrow) was relaxing.  It was beautiful to see the countryside as we entered Tuscany.  Our hotel is very comfortable, well located and has very good internet connectivity.  Our guided tour brought us through the Accademia with the amazing David and I Prigioni, then to the Duomo, which is preparing for Pasqua tomorrow, and Santa Croce with its who's who of memorials, tombs and a Giotto on top of it.  We finished at an artisan leather shop.  We are all putting on dry shoes and socks and getting ready for dinner near the hotel.

Ciao Venezia

We had a wonderful day yesterday.  The weather has been perfect and Venice has enchanted all of us. We started the day with a walk to San Marco.  We had an extraordinary tour of the Doge's Palace and San Marco.  The tour ended with an amazing glassblowing demonstration.  We had  dinner near St. marks and took an evening vaporetto ride back to the hotel.  Off to Florence this morning.

First day Venice

We have had quite a day.  Really 2 days rolled into one.  Everyone is exhausted but thrilled to be here.  We viewed the Grand Canal from a vaporetto, shopped along the narrow streets, got a first look at St. Mark's, ate risotto and gelato... All in all a great first day.

A little rest will restore everyone and tomorrow will be another magical day in this magical place.

KA

Ahhh Venezia!

We have safely arrived in Venice!  The weather is perfect and our hotel is very cute.  We will be going for lunch soon followed by a vaporetto ride and a visit to Saint Mark's.  We are all a bit bleary but happy and feeling well.

First leg of the trip

We are on our way!  No problem getting through security at Bradley.  We are happily sitting at our gate waiting for the flight to Philadelphia.

Soooo close

We are soooo close to the big day.  Much to my surprise, this week went by rather quickly. I was prepared for it to creep along at a snail's pace.  Just 2 and 1/2 school days before we are loading our luggage onto a Strong coach for the first leg of our great Italian adventure.

Mrs. A

8 days on April 8th

Do you think it is good luck that on April 8th we will have 8 days before we leave for Italy?  I'm chosing to think of it as a good sign.  

Time to start making piles of clothes to consider for packing; line up all those little bottles of shampoo and dream of our departure in just over a week.

It is hard to believe that 2 years of planning is about to come to fruition.

Happy packing...
KA

13 days...

Less than 2 weeks to go before we are heading to the airport and flying to Italy.  So many details to keep in mind. Our meeting during Advisory yesterday was great and really got us all thinking about the trip.  We will have another trip meeting next Wednesday and will continue to answer questions and give advice as we can.  Any medical updates should be submitted, in writing, at that meeting.

 I am just learning how to blog so this is my maiden attempt.  I plan to post regularly while on the trip so parents, family and friends can follow our progress.

KA
April 3, 2014

Growing excitement

March 11, 2014

The excitement is growing in direct proportion to the proximity to our departure for Italy in 36 days!  I picked up my Euro today from the AAA office and saw they had the packing vacuum bags, packing cubes and credit card protectors that JoAnn showed us at the most recent meeting.  The next month is going to fly by!

Mrs. A