Tuesday, June 8th, Monreale

Greetings!

Pat and I traveled to Capri while Ken got Di to Rome for her flight home on Monday morning. We took the ferry over on Sunday from Naples, and came back on Monday afternoon to meet Ken at the Sicily Ferry terminal.

To see the photos we took while in Capri, click first on: Sunday Capri and then on Monday Capri

We three took the overnight ferry, arrived at 7:30am, and drove to Monreale. We walked around the town square, visited the church (where a conference of Episcopal priests and four cardinals were discussing the nature of Mary), and a cloister next door.

Once we dropped of our luggage in the room, we drove to Segesta - a classic temple on the way west to our ultimate destination, Erice. We had picked both out of the Sicily guide book, as they seemed to fill perfectly th time we had remaining on MOnday after our arrival from Naples. Both were beautiful, and Ken's driving got us safely there and back. We're so glad we are staying in Monreale, and don't have to negotiate Palermo's streets. The streets of the small towns are crazy enough to drive, and we try to pick as many routes around the towns as possible. It's also much more scenic tht way.

To see the photos from today's travels, first click on Tuesday morning in Monreale and then click on Tuesday afternoon in Segesta and Erice

Gregory

Sunday, June 6th, Capri

Greetings!

This is being postted from the lobby of the Hotel Capri on th island of Capri. Ken is taking Di to Rome for her flight home, and we took a jet ferry from Napoli to Capri for the night. No luggage, just a backpack and no computer. Combined with an ovrnight ferry tomorrow night to Sicily, there will be no photos until Tuesday. But it's going to be worth it. More gorgeous scenery, and great traveling.

Gregory

Saturday, June 5th, Napoli to Ravello on the Amalfi Coast

Greetings!

Think of the Big Sur coastline with a Mediterranean climate. Only a slight wind, with water which is warmer and bluer than the Pacific. Now put towns along it, with houses on the hillsides, reached by curvy switchback roads. Lots of boats moored in small harbors, and being repaired high above in cliffside lots. Here and there a restaurant perched atop the a rock outcropping, providing the only avalable parking to four travelers looking desparately for a stop for lunch.

San Pietro de Positano jumped out at us, and didn't disappoint. Not as nice as view as Napenthe, but featuring many more amenities (pool, beach, 60 suites, 120 staff). Like the diners behind us, we're trying our best to figure out how we can steal enough money to enjoy a long stay there writing mystery novels ( a fantasy shared by those of our party who know how to write. Except for poetry, I don't count myself among that group).

So, a great big round of thanks to Helga Lemke, who suggested we see the Amalfi Coast. Now we know why she counted this as her favorite part of Italy. It surely is among the most stunning stretches of coastline anywhere in the world.

To see the photos taken today, go to: Amalfi Coast



Gregory

Friday, June 4th, Pompeii

Greetings!

I have to admit, before I got here, I really didn't give much thought to what Pompeii would look like. Understanding that ash had covered many of its residents, I think the I expected a lot of small, one-story structures, with grey frozen people in the streets. I think I also assumed that this was a village with few well-off residents, perched on the side of Mount Vesuvius.

First, it's quite a ways from the Volcano, on a relative flat area. Second, it's huge, with some streets that stretch for at least a mile. Third, there are houses with courtyards and multi-stories and many rooms. And then there are the commercial streets, public buildings, amphitheaters, gardens, extensive art on the walls of homes, and complex architecture used in the home designs.

The ash-encased residents, though dramatic, are by no means the value of the site. It's about how easy it is to imagine the lives Pompeiians led, and how well-off most of them were.

We did try to make our way by car to the top of Vesuvius, but found that we could only get part of the way up the mountain road. Only buses are allowed beyond a certain altitude. We did have an exciting period of driving while looking for the road up, and Ken's driving got us unstuck from a very narrow driveway.

To see all of the day's photos, go to: Pompeii

Gregory

ps. Thanks, Anne, I am trying to limit the photos of the butts ahead of me. But the chances of getting any of these guys to turn around and smile as I take the shot is low. I'm also not trying to make them the focus of the shot anyway.

Thursday, June 3rd, Napoli

Greetings!

Looking out our hotel window, across the street on the wall facing us, is a graffitied-art figure of an Isis-like woman in baggy pants, high-heeled shoes, and an armful of bombs. It's one of the best portraits in this city of graffiti, and begins the photos in this post.

We visited the National Archeological Museum today. Most of what we saw was from the period from the 5th Century BC to the 2nd Century AD. Filling several floors, the collections of the Farnese family, and from the materials discovered at Pompei were pretty stunning. Some of the large sculptures feature multiple figures in complex scenes. The collection also contains some works from Egyptian tombs, and a room dedicated an explanation of the restoration and interpretation of 1000 papyrus texts discovered in one of the Pompei palaces.

We spent more time in the afternoon walking through new sections of the downtown. Later, a subway carried us across town to the entrance to a large park, and a funicular near it brought us back to the hotel. As usual, just about the time we start to get to know a city, we run out of time to explore it.

Tomorrow, we’ll be heading out by car to Pompeii to see the site where Napoli’s most famous disaster took place. We're also going to try to travel up to Mount Vesuvius’s crater.

To see the photos we took today click on: Thursday in Napoli


Gregory

Wednesday, June 2nd, Napoli

Greetings!

The first part of this trip has taken us to familiar territory. Tuscany is hometown turf to the Crociani family. And as beautiful as the landscape, language, and food are, it lacks the lure of the unknown. The remainder of the trip spices it up a bit.

In Napoli, we encountered our first real big city driving this trip. Our Garmin GPS wasn’t much help, as it made a couple of key mistakes, and added to the tension. But we finally made it, and are endeavoring to keep the car in the hotel garage as much as we can over the next three days. By the way, that's not our car Pat's standing next to in the photos. Ours is about three times that long. We began our auto-free days by walking around the district twice today after we got settled into our rooms. Ken commented that the main pedestrian throughway felt a little like Mission Street in San Francisco. I noted that It made better photos, however, that the buildings were centuries older, and much taller.

To see the photos taken today, go to: Napoli and to view a photo video, go to: Streets of Napoli Video

Gregory

Tuesday, June 1st, Tivoli

Today, after breakfast in Lucca, we drove back over to Abbadia San Salvatore. We had left Dianne’s favorite carryon bag (containing her new sandals) there, and went after it. We learned upon arrival that the stovetop marble had been damaged during our stay. We can’t figure out how it happened, as we just made morning coffee. We also paid her for using some wood in the fireplace, and gas to operate the stove. Our host’s daughter, Eleanor, spoke with us by phone from New York, and we arranged to have her seek out an estimate to fix the marble, and we would reimburse her. Expensive morning coffee.

The bag in hand, we drove from there to Tivoli, stopping along the way in Nuova San Lorenzo to have lunch in a small square on a marble bench. We shared a typical on-the-road lunch, with bread, cheese, pastrami, fruit, trail nuts, and panforte, before continuing on.

Checking into the Hotel Tivoli, we found our way to Villa d’Este. I have never seen so many small cars in my life in one place. Tivoli is swarming with them, as well as drivers who park at all angles in a space. We felt very out of place with our Ford Mondeo, and had to search hard for a parking space in which it fit. Actually, we got lost even with our Garmin, and were thankful for Pat’ s driving patience and abilities. More cars and pedestrians than could be reasonably explained drove through the city center all the while we were there. We located the Villa d’Este., and were dazzled by the many and complex, designed waterfalls and garden ponds. Constructed by Cardinal Ippolito d’Este of Ferrara in the mid-16th century, it is best known for the spectacular fountained gardens (designed by Pirro Ligorio). The soothing mist-filled environment was a huge relief from the dry and hectic nature of the city.

Tomorrow, we’ll travel on to Naples, where we plan to spend at least three nights. Oh, and the first photo above, and some of them in the day's collection, are of the concert last night. To see the latest set of photos, go to: Tuesday in Tivoli

Gregory