in

Florence has been great. I like this city a lot for a few reasons:

  1. It's easy to navigate.
  2. Tuscany is beautiful.
  3. A lot of people speak English here because this is a popular study abroad destination (Read: Gonzaga brats). English seems to be the universal language.
  4. The city is very clean. There are far fewer cigarette butts littering the streets compared to other cities like Roma and Napoli.
  5. There are a lot of good looking girls here from the States (Read: Gonzaga brats).

Yesterday I went on a full day wine tour through Tuscany. This was one of my "Must-do" activities.

Did I knock over and shatter my wine glass at our first stop, stirring a roaring applause to which I stood, took a bow and blew kisses to my nearly 50 drinking colleagues? Maybe...

On our way back from dinner, did an Aussie and I lead a crowd of mostly retirees into singing the Bloodhound Gang lyrics "You and me baby ain't nothin' but mammals, so let's do it like they do on the Discovery Channel" over the bus intercom system? Maybe...

Am I off to Venice today? Yep.

in

Alas, pictures! Here I am yesterday in Capri...

Here's me in Pisa...

And Roma...

Napoli has been amazing, but I need to keep up my travel pace. I am going to have a little breakfast and then I'm off to Firenze. Ciao!

in

Buongiorno a tutti,

I am in Napoli at a nice little hostel called "Six Small Rooms." I highly recommend it -- lively common room, the "small rooms" are quite large, nice staff and free Internet! Woo hoo! I am a little tired from traveling all day, so I think I'll turn to watch "Little Miss Sunshine" and grab a bite to eat before finding a spot to drink and watch Italy vs. France in a EURO 2008 qualifier match. Forza Italia!!!

in

If I could drink cappuccinos and eat sfogliatelle every day for the rest of my life, I would certainly die a happy man...

I spent most of my day today at the Vatican. I took a lot of pictures. What a beautiful place. I definitely had a spiritual moment at the tomb of Pope John Paul II. You cannot help but be wrapped in emotion when surrounded by people on their knees sobbing and praying with such intensity.

Tonight I feast. Tomorrow I travel to Napoli.

in

Ciao from Roma! I know it's been a couple days, but I've been on the move!

I was sad to have to say goodbye to Cinque Terra. So relaxing there. Everyone I met seemed to be going to Roma or Firenze (Florence), but I detoured yesterday to Pisa. Great little town, but the Leaning Tower wasn't as big as I thought it would be (Insert "That's what she said" line here). I did climb to the top and took some great pictures. After spending half the day there, I really contemplated going to Siena in Tuscany. I opted instead to jump straight to Roma (and will catch some wine tours later, on my way back up to Firenze.) The only problem with this plan is that Roma is significantly further away. My train didn't arrive here until 11 p.m. and I thought I was screwed for sleeping, but I found a single room through one of the hostels for only $40E. Score. Plus I got my own bathroom!!! (A first for this trip.)

Today I exhausted myself walking all around the ruins, Colosseo, Pantheon, multiple fountains, piazzas and churches. I think I will close the day today hanging out around the Spanish Steps to read some Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (now reading the series backwards).

Tomorrow: The Vatican. And probably another blog post. Stay tuned.

- Paolo