Rome - Sept. 6, 2013

Day two in Rome -- a guided tour of the main attractions.

Rome - Sept. 5, 2013

Our first day in Rome, wandering around the city looking at ruins.

McDonalds is everywhere.

Movie Tuesday

Today was a treat! Mom went with us to the movies for the first time since she fell at the beginning of July. She is just about 100% rehabilitated.

Today's movie was Family with Robert DeNiro, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Tommy Lee Jones. A very good cast but a mediocre movie. For some reason, the movie falls flat even though there are some funny spots. The gist of the movie is that a mobster (Robert DeNiro) squealed on the Mob and now the Mob is after him and his family. The family is in the Witness Protection Program, but the Mob finds out where they are and then the fun and violence ensues.

Italy Day 9 -- The Return

Today for breakfast we went down to the dining room at the hotel in Taormina (Giardini-Naxos) and ate their rolls with our cheese, ham and cracked olives that we bought last evening. It was very good. The coffee was good, too. That was one surprise in Italy--all the coffee I had was very good. I had thought it would be strong and undrinkable, but it was not. It was very flavorful and easy to drink.

After breakfast we loaded our bags in the car and began our drive back to Catania (the same drive we made yesterday, but not all the way to Seracusa). We had one blooper despite all our planning. Dennis downloaded the address of the car rental place from the internet. We made several passes, but couldn't find it. We came to the conclusion the address on the internet was for their offices, not the actually rental return place. So we drove on to the airport and found the car rental/return lot. That done, we walked with our bags to the airport and checked in for our flights to Rome and the connecting flight to New York. There were long lines and waits, but no mishaps. 

At the airport in Catania, I noticed people walking small dogs and holding dog carriers. I guess they allow dogs on the flights, but I didn't see or hear any on our flight. I took a few pictures of the dogs because they were so cute.

We made our connection in Rome somehow and settled in for the long flight to New York. I watched 3 movies and then rested for an hour or so until we landed. We finally got to our room around 9 p.m. New York time. Not bad considering we left the hotel 22-1/2 hours earlier. And it was raining.

Of course, we have another 8 hours of flying time today to get us in San Diego, which is a 60 minute drive from our house. Oh, yeah, traveling is a blast.

Italy Day 8 - Taormina Day 2 (Wed., 9/11/13)

It will come as no surprise that we started the day having a little breakfast in the hotel's dining room. As we've been here for a day, we realize that we are not actually in Taormina, which perches on the mountain top; our hotel is in Giradini-Naxos, on the beach below.

After breakfast we took a walk to the beach and around the bay. We shopped in the boutiques and shared a small cup of lemon ice. The lemon ice here is creamier than what I've had in the states (if I remember correctly) and is called lemon sorbet. It's very tasty and refreshing. It is very, very hot here and very, very humid--74% today. 

Out hotel room didn't have any air conditioning this morning, so Dennis asked at the front desk if they could do something about it. When we got back, it was too hot in the room so we got in the car and drove to Syracuse (pronounced Ser-a-cus-a). Dennis wanted to see how far it was to the airport in Catania (about an hour away) so we would be prepared to travel there tomorrow morning for our flight to Rome. Syracuse is below Catania, so we decided to keep on driving. Syracuse is a very, very old seaport city. The buildings are old and the streets are paved with foot-square bricks. Easier to walk on than the cobblestones of Rome, but kind of weird to drive on.

We stopped for lunch at an outdoor restaurant across from the bay. We had a Margarita pizza followed by another lemon ice. Interestingly, the pizza was served whole, not sliced. Apparently, these are considered personal pizzas, but are large enough to share. 

After lunch, we got in the car and drove back to the hotel. By the time we got back, the room's air conditioning was working again and it was ice cole--just the way I like it. We rested awhile then went out again for a little dessert. We found a great restaurant just down the block and ordered a traditional Sicilian cake, a chocolate mousse, and a lemon ice. We shared everything and felt very satisfied. While we were eating, a small band came in and played their music. We gave them some money and bought their CD. 

After dinner, we went in search of a book I had seen earlier about Sicily. We found it in a little souvenir shop a few doors down from the restaurant. We bought the book and some other souvenirs to bring home. Then we stopped in a very nice market and bought some provolone cheese, salame picante, and cracked olives. We'll have it for a snack tomorrow. We're leaving very early so we will have plenty of time at the airport. No doubt we will still have our free breakfast in the hotel like we have every other day.