ROMA!!!! After a long voyage, we made it to Rome on April 5th. We arrived by taxi to the Travestere neighborhood of Rome and settled into a charming AirBnb. And then, we walked outside and stopped at the first little cafe and ordered pasta and wine! Slept like logs and the next day, (at Chris’ suggestion!) we dealt with jet lag by getting “skip the line” tickets to the Sistine Chapel. Had a wonderful visit amongst the treasures of the Vatican.
Our first day in Rome. Here we are in front of St Peter’s Basilica.
We loved returning to the Vatican Museum and the Sistine Chapel after a 20 year absence! So much beauty.
Rome was getting ready for Easter! The windows were full of chocolate, wine and beautiful leather purses!
We left the Travestere and picked up our Renault roadster. Drives great. BIG by Italian standards where the roads are usually of medieval width! Thank goodness that Chris is a GOOD driver! 😀
(Post #1a) Herculaneum
Herculaneum – not as famous as Pompeii – but incredible remains from the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 BC. We’ll visit Pompeii on the way back up the coast.
(Post # 1b) Crossing to Messina – Sicily
Savoca (among other things – the city of The Godfather film!) Also one of the most beautiful medieval villages in Italy!
Savoca was a delightful surprise. We did not know that it was famous or infamous for having been the location for most of the Sicilian shots from Francis Ford Coppola’s original “Godfather” movie. Hard to believe that was 50 years ago! There are still a few vestiges from that summer, but more importantly were the beautiful homes and streets and churches of this ancient hilltop village. We awoke to the sounds of birds and bells. A great way to begin our trip to Sicily!
(Post 1c) Taormina
We left Savoca and headed down the coast to our next Airbnb in another hilltop town called Taormina. Like so many places on Sicily, it had a long a complicated history of invasions from the Moors and Greeks and Romans. The result – a fascinating morning mixture of architectural styles and artistic influence. And like so many towns, they built Taormina high above the sea to protect themselves from pirates and other places invaders!
One of the most famous sites is the Ancient Greek/Roman amphitheater originally used as a theater and later the site of gladiator fights. It’s one of the best preserved in the world. In this part of Sicily you can almost always see Mt Etna and since it’s still an active volcano, it’s often spewing smoke and ash!
Taormina is an old town with narrow streets and happily many are just for pedestrians. We loved just walking around and enjoying the local color!
Chris heard someone hitting tennis balls and found a lovely set of clay courts and he asked the pro for a lesson! When in Taormina…..
The Sicilian coastline
We knew that Sicily was an island, but we hadn’t imagined the coastline to be so beautiful. We have been stopping along the way for seafood lunches or beer, but sadly, the water is still too cold for a swim!
Most of our Airbnbs or hotels have been fine, but this one was special – a million dollar view out over the sea. Of course, the price to pay was a VERY steep walk with hundreds of steps! Worth it!
(Post 1d) Heading west for Santa Semana – Easter week
We left Taormina reluctantly but knew we had more sights to explore! Our reservation was for an inland town called Enna, but first, we had heard there were great seafood restaurants in City called Catania on the coast. It turned out to be a big industrial city, quite affected baby WWII but still harboring a charming historic area with a daily fish and produce market. And you know the Strempek’s! We always know where to find good food!
Chris and Ellen’s 2022 European Adventure 