Italy!! Now that we're back from Italy I really can't stomach another slice of pizza or pasta for a long time but I really like the philosophy of Italian food (always fresh, local and in season). It's rare to see chain stores in Italy. We saw signs for a McDonalds but they are mostly at the train stations. Everywhere else seem to have just mom and pop shops and restaurants. Anything ethnic that's not Italian is super expensive and we heard not very good/someone got food poisoning. Although Italian restaurants are also expensive. Just sitting down and getting water would probably be 2euro + 2euro cuperto so that's 4euro, like 6 bucks doing nothing! They also look at you weird if you don't order a drink. For breakfast if you order a pastry/coffee and sit down then it costs extra. Naples was the cheapest for eating.
Our trip was Rome - Florence - Naples - Sorrento - Rome
Rome - favourite was Borghese Gallery and the Vatican Museum (Sistine Chapel). The Vatican was so grand, I felt guilty just being there with so much gold covering everything. I was surprised to learn that Michaelangelo was not much of a painter (he was more of a sculptor - David) but the Pope convinced him to paint the Sistine Chapel and it is amazing. Some people are just so naturally talented.
Florence - our favourite city. People are extremely well dressed there. Waiting for the bus at the train station was like watching a runway show happening on the sidewalk. I remember this guy with checkered suit and suit pants. Rina was too shy to take pics. Gelateria dei Neri had amazing gelato. Climbing the Duomo and viewing Florence from the cupola was magical as we caught the sunset. Pino! David's butt! I enjoyed checking out the tiny shops in the narrow streets. There was this honest leather guy who taught us that lamb leather would not be used for bags since it's too weak, so you'll only find purses made of lamb. You can also try to see if the leather comes off on the inside to check if it's bonded leather. Did not like the truffle spread at that famous sandwich shop but it had great porchetta. There were no working washrooms at the train station (seriously??).
Naples - best pizza! We had this really shady moment while getting a shwarma near the train station. This dude came in and called some other dudes who came and just stood at the entrance eyeing us. The workers at the place kept warning us to make sure to keep an eye on our stuff. He mentioned there are some bad people outside. When I asked him is it those people that came in? He said yes. We were a bit spooked but just b-lined it to the train station.
Sorrento - beautiful coastal town. Expensive. Unfortunately rainy most of the time. We got the bus to Amalfi and it was so nauseating. We agreed that going to Positano would have been a better idea since it's about half way in between. We had good lemon cake there and a $20 spaghetti bolognese that we shall not speak of. The visit to Pompeii was really neat. It was good to visit the museum in Naples beforehand because that's where they store the originals of the artifacts found like the huge mosaic at the house of Faun. The city is amazingly preserved. You can still see the murals on the walls and pots in the restaurants. We liked the amphitheater and Rina liked it even more than the Colosseum since it was just us there. It just finished raining so the floor created nice reflection pics. Lots of stray dogs at Pompeii, including one that followed us to the station.
During the 2 weeks I would feel tiny flutters around the tummy area mostly in the morning. They were so small it wasn't really worth mentioning.
The first morning after we came back I felt a solid kick to the side. That was definitely baby! I got David to feel it and he felt it too. His response was "are you sure you're not tensing your muscles?" I wouldn't even know how to do that in a concentrated area like that. So cool! Too bad Rina missed it. I'll miss her tummy rubs. Her expressions were so priceless.
