Just a heads up: I'm in Croatia!

On Wednesday the 21st we hopped on a Eurostar train from Rome heading to Bari. We decided to forego Naples and stay an extra three nights in Rome because we were having too much fun there. Plus, I almost feel bad for Naples. I think it's like the Los Angeles of Italy: no one has anything nice to say about it. Everyone we talked to mentioned the crime problem the city has, that there really isn't a lot to see other than Pompeii, and the only memorable thing about the city is its pizza. I did have "Neopolitan" pizza in Rome, mind you, and it was indeed pretty legit. 

We got to Bari at 6:15pm, had a quick bite to eat and then went straight to the ferry terminal. We took an overnight ferry that left Bari at 10pm and arrives in Dubrovnik, Croatia at 7am. I had a tremendously difficult time trying to fall asleep, as the ferry was rocking and teetering so much that I thought I was going to get sick. I just laid in bed nauseous as all hell. Here's the cabin on the ferry:

Probably no more than a 8x6 compartment, but it worked. 

I'll be going back in to Old Town Dubrovnik later today and will take some more photos. I'll post them later. Long story short, Dubrovnik is every bit as gorgeous as I heard it was and then some.

Second post on Italy: Ovindoli, Avezzano

After a few days in Rome, we headed out to see some more of my family in the small towns of Avezzano and Ovindoli.

Ovindoli!

Ovindoli is a beautiful small town of about 2,000 people that becomes popular in winter for its skiing and even more popular in the summer when it has great weather and lovely country scenery. Both of my grandparents (on my mom's side) are from Ovindoli, so I wanted to pay a visit. 

This is the outside of where my grandpa lived:

And here's me in front!

I came to Ovindoli with some relatives, as well. Here is the three of us in front of the house:

Emilio on the left, Tommaso on the right.

It was a pretty cold day in Ovindoli, and a small snow flurry actually started at one point. But I thought the snow made the town that much more picturesque and gave it even more of a small-town feeling. I took a bunch of pictures of the town itself, so here are just a few:

At the top of one mountain facing the town, there is a monument of a soldier dedicated to all the men who fought and died in World Wars I and II and were from Ovindoli:

After we had gone around to a bunch of spots in Ovindoli, we went and ate at a restaurant called "Il Pozzo." The owner and Emilio have been friends since their childhood, and they worked together at the same factory in Rome some years back. Il Pozzo, on the interior, has to be the most well-designed and aesthetically pleasing restaurant I've ever been/seen. It is literally built into the mountain rock of Ovindoli:

David, the owner of the restaurant, is on the left.

We spent the day in Ovindoli and a couple of nights in Avezzano. My grandma's sisters both live in Avezzano, and it was great being able to spend some time with them. We were fortunate to have Tommaso, who speaks English, as I ashamedly do not speak a word of Italian. I took just a handful of pictures of downtown Avezzano while I went on a walk with Tommaso. This is the cathedral and piazza. I remember that this is the piazza where my brother and I played some soccer back when we visited in 1996:

After our time in Avezzano, we went back to Rome for several more days, doing all the touring stuff and what not (see the first update on Rome below). 

By the way, P Sir, this is the table wine at Il Pozzo:

Colle Cavalieri (Cavalier Hill), Montepulciano D'Abruzzo. This house red (included with the price of bread, so, 3 Euros) has an enjoyable tannin feel to its aftertaste, which is complemented well with its alluvial bite on the front of the tongue, although yielding to a smoother, more refined cedar-like nose. 

It also tastes good.

And should you read this, Purtill, I hate to admit when you're right, but The Pillars of the Earth is really hard to put down.

On another note, I will probably try and post some more Rome pictures later when I have the chance. There's just so many of them and I haven't really had the opportunity to sort through them all.

First post on Italy: Rome

First things first, sorry for the delay in the first update.  This is the first time I’ve had wireless access, so this first post will be pretty long. I’ll try to do more frequent, less text-heavy updates in the future.

We left for Rome on Monday, January 12 from SFO on a United flight to Frankfurt. We landed in Frankfurt on time, at 9:55am, and our connecting flight to Rome departed at 10:55am. What I wasn’t aware of, however, is that apparently Frankfurt is the biggest airport in Europe (as I was told), and we literally had to sprint from gate to gate and through customs to get to our plane; we got on at 10:45 and I was covered in sweat. But, by the time we arrived in Rome I was too excited to care.

While in Rome, we stayed with some of my family in an apartment complex near Tiburtina station. On the family tree, they are the cousins of my grandfather, but they treated us as if we were their own children. We ate like a kings for a week, and my cousin Luana (I consider her more of an aunt) even took us around Rome on our own personal tour, and we got to see just about the whole city. Some photo highlights:

At the Coliseum.

Domus Augustus, Foro Romano

In front of the Pantheon (crowded because there are 700 masses there a day, I swear)

In front of the Piazza di Spagna

At the top of the Spanish steps.

From the top of that Castle across the Tevere. I forget what it's called.

AMDG. I had to. St. Ignatius of Loyola at the Vatican Museum.

In the courtyard at the Vatican Museum. Yes, Dad, I've been going to museums.

I didn't know that my brother flew to Rome, became a Vatican Guard, and was working on the same day I was visiting St. Peter's Basilica! He wouldn't talk to me, though. Screw you, P Sir.

At the track-type-thing in Villa Borghese. Villa Borghese has to be one of the (if not the) most picturesque, peaceful, and well-preserved park I've ever visited.

Welcome and itinerary

Welcome and thanks for checking out my blog.

As you may or may not have known, I will be traveling throughout Europe (and part of Africa) for the 2009 spring semester--that is, from January 12 until May 12.

I'll be posting updates and pictures of my travels as often as possible whenever I have internet access. For the time being, I thought I'd share with you my itinerary the way it is penciled in at the present moment; it very well may change as the journey is underway. If you've visited any of the countries/cities that I've listed, please do not hesitate to share any recommendations/tips/pointers/stories(/connections) you may have, as I welcome any and all advice. Thanks in advance.

Italy:
Arrive in Rome
Naples
Bari

Croatia:
Ferry from Bari to Dubrovnik
Split

Italy:
Ferry from Split to Ancona
Florence
Pisa
Venice
Milan

Switzerland:
Geneva
Bern
Interlaken
Lucerne
Zurich

Germany:
Munich
Frankfurt

Netherlands:
Amsterdam

Germany:
Hamburg
Berlin

Czech Republic:
Prague

Austria:
Vienna

Hungary:
Budapest

Romania:
Bucharest

Turkey:
Istanbul
Ephesus

Egypt:
Flight from Istanbul to Cairo
Giza
Luxor

Spain:
Flight from Cairo to Madrid
Salamanca
Seville
Granada
Malaga
Algeciras

Morocco:
Ferry from Algeciras to Tangier
Rabat
Casablanca
Marrakesh

Spain:
Flight from Marrakesh to Barcelona

France:
Nice
Lyon
Paris

That's the framework of it so far; I'll fly from Paris to Los Angeles to arrive just in time for my graduation commencement from USC.

I got my Eurail passes in the mail the other day and needless to say, I'm pretty excited.

If you see a city you'd like a post card from, email me your address and consider it done. Keep checking in for some updates.

-Tullio