What we are learning in Rome

One of the best dinners we had. There is something about the details....the beautiful wine glasses, the caraffe of house wine, the gorgeous and tasty bruschetta with prosciutto and mozeralla and the freshly grated parmesan....which we ate almost all of.

So this dinner was a Rick Steves rec. We first tried another of his recs and were not at all impressed with the atomosphere or menu so we ventured to this one called "MIscellanea". It is at the back of the Pantheon on a cute little street. The server was so nice and we would go back again!

Our fantastic bruschetta, fresh parm and bread with olive oil and balsamic on the side. A lot of places won't bring you the parm or olive oil etc.. .or even bread. It was nice that this was an automatic here.

A little Supermarcato fun! Yes, this was my idea but was glad he played along.

First, Rome in summer is a wonderful place to watch people! Last time we were here it was November and everyone really was wearing black. Now it is a colorful place!! People are wearing beautiful clothes and the WRONG shoes:) But they do it! I like watching the ladies in heels have their ankles wrenched as they walk. They don't seem to mind!

Next, Rick Steves' books are lifesavers. Here's the deal, even if you go to one of his recommended restaurants and you are standing there thinking, "Why did he recommend this?"  you are still most likely in a fun area having had a great walk through the winding streets of Rome. So pick another place that suits you better! That is exactly what we discussed with the couple that we met at dinner the other night.

Update: Our Cinque Terre Trek guide thinks Rick Steves is awful! He says that he has spoiled so many quiet areas such as the Cinque Terre. He is getting the entire world to travel to the same places and these places aren't prepared for so many people.

Supermarcato are great places to pick up food for a picnic or any of the little sandwich shops around...oh and they also sell wine that they will uncork for you:)

ALWAYS, I repeat, ALWAYS reserve tickets ahead of time for museums and attractions. If you don't reserve ahead of time, at least be prepared to buy a Roma Pass or Firenze Card. We are opting for the card it Florence since Cam wants to see so many things. We will hopefully avoid long lines like we did here.

Space bags for packing are the best! Shove it all in, roll it up and bam! You're stuff is compacted and ready to roll.  *Update: bring an extra space bag or two if changing locations. They do tend to get worn.

Set aside time in the afternoon to just chill. We have this routine where we get up (late b/c I'm traveling with a teenager) and walk and tour all day. Head back to the hotel about 5:00 or 6:00, shower, nap and go to dinner about 8:00 or 9:00.

Washing clothes in the sink is a great idea.  *Update...but washing underwear in the sink is not something I care to do again.

Check on your phone service if you want to use your data plan. We are really enjoying plugging in a destination and following the phone to it. For one, we don't look quite as much of a tourist but two , it's just easier. For $30 we got enough data to do this for the entire trip.  We have also used our data to research a few things while in the middle of the street. One day my phone was dead so we had to use the old fashioned map which was also completely fine! So, date is just a nice luxury.

Be open to those fun new experiences, the guy I met in the caffe, the couple we met at dinner, the worker who uncorked my bottle of wine and taught me how to say Grazie! These are those things that we don't plan.

And more to come I'm sure! Especially after we get to Termini Station, which by my research should be a pickpocket haven.....so I'm wearing my money belt that I have not yet felt the need to wear. I'll update you on that trip later. For now we are off to Florence!

*Update on Termini Station: I did see what people were talking about with the people coming up and asking to help, but beyond that the station seemed fine. I taught Cam the importance of knowing where the platforms are since you don't know until just before boarding what platform you will be assigned to. And then he taught me that I could look at our train # and figure out which stop we were. I realized that on an Italian train we really were helpless because there is no English. We noticed that some of the train stations weren't labeled. Cam said out of the blue that we were the second stop which was certainly good to know!

Weary Travelers

It's Wednesday and we've survived travel delays, jetlag and basic lack of sleep. We were running on adrenaline. I noticed Cam was mellow yesterday, and today I woke up with a wrenched lower back. I popped a couple of Aleve and sucked it up big time walking and observing for 6 hours at the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica. Come on, you gotta suck it up for that right? After that day I went into problem-solving mode. I emailed my chiropractor and he emailed me some exercises to do. I got on my tiny little hotel floor and went to work. Much better the next day!

I continue to find Cam in a daze either staring in to space or just considering/pondering what he is seeing. A few more things I've learned about him: He thinks the coolest souvenirs are things like mosaics, busts or anything marble/artsy. There will be no t-shirts or keychains for him. And, he would like a bust in his room some day. Yes, a bust of someone, not sure who. Today he must have looked at 5 busts and of course they were all over 100 euros. The kid is random.

So we managed our way after several stops to rest, back to the hotel for our daily shower and rest before dinner. It's quite routine now. Our room is always nice and cool and with the windows open you can hear dishes clanging, people talking, and music being played at the Pantheon.

Are you noticing this blog is shorter...yup, that's weary traveler for ya!

Michelangelo's Pieta, my very favorite piece of art in the world.  This is at the front of St. Peter's Basillica. Just stunning. Too bad some crazy guy tried to hammer at it a few years back and not they have to have it behind bullet proof glass

Cam in front of Castel Sant'Angelo/Romehttp://www.aviewoncities.com/rome/castelsantangelo.htm

Tiber River

Mom=2 Lines=0
It's pretty cool to walk past hundreds of people having to wait in line for hours. Pre- purchasing tickets is KEY!

This is looking down in to St. Peters tomb. It's one of those interesting pieces of history. It was sweet to see him standing by a nun

Cam mailing a letter from the Vatican to his girlfriend.

A mellow Tuesday in Rome

I slept until 10;00 and Cam slept until noon , and yet he has been mellow, quiet all day. I caught him many times just sitting and staring at the Colesseum whether it was when we first walked up or while we were inside.

So once he woke up but was still in zombie mode, I went down to Cafe Tazza D'oro which is just below our hotel. It is a traditional Italian coffee shop in that you order at the register and then take your receipt the the bar where they whip up your drink . I ordered a cappuccino because my new best friend, Rick Steves, says it's the closest to a latte. It was fantastic especially after I added a packet of sugar. An older gentlemen standing next to me started to talk to me in Italian so I told him I couldn't speak it but wish I could. Then, I threw out my only phrase, "Il vino rossa de la casa por favour" and he loved it! He said that basically that phrase and cappucino was all I needed to know:) What a fun experience!

My fab cappuccinoMy fab cappucino! Check this link to find out the difference between a cappuccino and a latte..http://www.diffen.com/difference/Cappuccino_vs_Latte

We started with lunch because duh, we skipped breakfast. We walked past the Colesseum to a Rick rec of PIzzaria Luzzi. It was fantastic, especially with the 5 older Italian men sitting by us just yapping! Quite entertaining!

Off to the Colosseo as they call it...

Tip of the day: Buy your Colessium reservation ahead of time. I'm sure the line we bypassed had to have been 2-3 hours long. We waited less than 5 minutes to collect our tickets. We wandered and read for about 2 hours. There is so much to see and learn inside. Check out http://www.unrv.com/culture/colosseum.php   for more information! 

Hanging out on a corinthian pillar.

Our famous "compromise selfie"!!!

The leftover marble from the Colesseo

We went through the Roman Forum  (http://www.italyguides.it/us/roma/rome/ancient_roman_empire/roman_forum.htm) were getting weary so we stopped and got a water and sat by a man playing acoustic guitar. He was so good. Cam laid back and rested for a few. We gave the man a few euro and were on our way. I honestly think Cam would like to find him again and buy his CD he was selling. I think he was legit so maybe we will.

Roman Forum

Had to have another gelato and then back to the hotel for a rest and shower.

We followed a Rick rec and went to a place called Cul De Sac close to Piazza Nirvana. I had seen this place mentioned in other websites as well. I loved the atmosphere but was very disappointed to walk in an see them microwaving the food...the surprised me that Rick would recommend this without at least mentioning that you might see that.

So we left.

It didn't take long to find a nice wine bar restaurant down the street with even better atmosphere. We sat by a young American couple. It took a while, but eventually we struck up conversation and ended up sitting and talking for an hour! Turns out that the young , newly married girl, is a middle school ancient history teacher! They are from Seattle. So we exchanged info thinking we might try to start some kind of correspondence with our students.

True, I'd rather find someone in another country but this may work too. I'd love for my students to collaborate with other kids from somewhere other than Missouri.

This was there last day in Rome and they had been to Florence. So they shared some tips and gave us a paper that had their favorite restaurants on it. That is golden!

View at dinner towards the inside

Yum

Where we decided to eat!

The USA/Belgium game was on TV's in many of the restaurants as we walked back to the hotel and although I would have loved to stop and have a glass of wine and watch the game outside with people, Cam wanted to come back and have some gelato.....so our compromise was that I got to go to a market and get some wine.

A new adventure... couldn't find much open but this one little place that Rick recommends just across from our hotel. I was looking and looking at wines and this worker comes up and I try to communicate with him and the next thing you know he's taking me to the back room with LOTS of wine!!

He helped me find something I wanted and was able to uncork it for me at the register and give me to cups. (See picture below) This place is GREAT for gathering picnic supplies for a long day out which Cam and I intend to do tomorrow before leave for the Vatican.

Our fave gelato place

Gelato!

Two gelatos a day!

This guy helped me find a wine from the back room and uncorked it for me so I could have some while watching the USA/Belgium soccer game. He taught me how to say a few words correctly in Italian....

Sunday in Tynemouth and Monday in Rome

The best way to start a morning is to have a great English breakfast and go to church with some of the nicest, most genuine people on earth. This morning we went to North Shields Evangelical Church where we were able to catch up with some of our friends from 2003. 

We got to see Aaron and Lynne again (I think we saw them more this trip than we did in the entire year of 2003! Which is great!) We saw Ronnie and Miss Margaret who was the kids’ Sunday school teacher and several others that we care so much about. The service was fantastic and the teacwas from the Bible and very heartfelt.

We took a taxi to church and realized we needed a ride back to Tynemouth so Charlie gave us a ride thankfully. I coined him our taxi driver since he was also kind enough to take us to Aaron’s Gypsy Eyes gig in Boldon that night.

We visited the market again so see if we had missed anything the day before. Cam made me have Marshalls fish and chips again which was fine. It truly is the best fish in chips in the world!

We visited the Priory and Castle,which I know was a highlight for him. This is where his love of history was shining. He bought a program and read everything about all of the parts of the priory that used to just be a big playground for him when he was 8. This time is was different.

Collingwood Monument. We could walk to this from our flat and the kids loved to play around it.

Cam stopped to thoroughly read every board. He also stopped to sit and read the guide book he bought. He loves this history stuff!

We took a break at the learning center at the Priory. I used the restroom (or "toilets" as they call them here) and walked out to Cam standing in this! He thought he was pretty funny but he scared the dickens out of me!

Taking a break to get out of the wind and rain and read the guidbook.

The Priory

       

We were getting weary to we opted to skip dinner and rest a while and pack before visiting the Johnsons house to see Suzanne and her husband Marc and son, Micah. Suzanne was Cam and Hailey’s only babysitter while we lived in Tynemouth in 2003. We got her name from the people we were renting our flat from. In turn, she told us about the church where her dad was pastor and that’s how we ended up at NSEC. We had a wonderful time chatting with them and also seeing Michelle! Michelle Suzanne’s younger sister and she is always fun to talk with. The only Johnson family member missing was Daniel and his family that are living in Nottingham now. Sure hope we can meet up with them some day!

Charlie (Jay’s friend from NSEC) picked us up at the hotel and we went for our big unknown adventure…Sleepers pub in Bolden near Sunderland for a Gypsy Eyes gig with Aaron as bass player. Charlie is a sportsman so he opted for a small detour past Sunderland Stadium of LightJ We were not sure what we would encounter when we got to Sleepers but it turned out to be fantastic and had we not had to get up at 3am the next day, I’m sure we would have stayed until they finished playing for the night. The band was out of this world! I have to admit it was really fun to watch “the rev” jam out to some pretty great classic rock and roll tunes

3:15 am came too soon but I hadn’t slept well so it really was more like staying up all night. Took the taxi to Newcastle airport, flight to Heathrow, very very crowded and long (10 minutes at least) bus ride to the plane and we were finally in Rome! For the record, I’ve always loved British Airways and I still do. We had tons of leg room so I could lean on my tray table no problem and we got food on both legs.

Arriving in Rome we waited for about 45 minutes for our luggage and then found our arranged taxi driver with our name displayed on his ipad. I’ve always wanted to do that! He was quiet unfortunately but we had a nice ride to the Hotel and here we are. I think I’m up to date on blogs now.

We opted to go eat at a place we researched that was really a nice small mom and pop type restaurant called Enoteca Corsi, with a lovely small menu. We both had wine and pasta and bread and then went for gelato! We napped for almost 3 hours and then went on a “heart of Rome” tour from our Rick Steves book.

He gets tired of me taking pictures all of the time. The smail came when the ravioli showed up. It got bigger when we stopped for melon gelato afterwards.

Noticing that all of the workers here know English and I don’t even get to try my Italian…except the GRAZIE!!! ….which I learned how to say much better.

Cam chose to have dinner at a touristy place in front of the Pantheon. I try to steer clear of these places where the servers stand outside and try to get you to come in, where the menu is in English and Italian etc.. but he was right, the view was to die for and it wasn't any pricier than anywhere else. This was where we got to try our first "Il Vino Rossa de la Casa" the official only phrase I know in Italian. It came in a little jug and was great!

View from restaurant in front of Pantheon. Food was okay, view was stunning and inspiring.

Pantheon oculus. My students always find this so fascinating to learn how this was built so very long ago. Check out this link: http://www.rome.info/pantheon/

Tynemouth on the fast track!

Saturday, June 28th

So as I have posted on facebook, our converter for the computers was broken which is also when I realized that quick updates on Facebook are actually the way to go when I am wanting to keep family and friends updated on our trip. Pictures go straight from my phone and it’s all right there.

However, nobody wants to read paragraphs and details about each day on Facebook which is why I am blogging.

Our first day in Tynemouth started with a full English breakfast at the Grand Hotel dining room with Aaron and Lynne Johnson. Aaron is the pastor at North Shields Evangelical church which is where we attended (when we weren’t traveling all around Europe and the UK) while we lived in Tynemouth for a year back in 2003. We had a great time catching up and Lynne shared a bit more about the volunteer work she is doing in a new archeological dig just down the road from the hotel. Of course we wanted to check that out but we had a few other things to do first.

We went to the Tynemouth market that is open on Saturdays and Sundays at the Metro Station. This was a fun place for us to go as a family in 2003. The kids could find fun toys and trinkets for a small price. We were looking for fun and interesting things to bring back with us. Cam found a beautiful on brass microscope that truly was fabulous, but it was 175 pounds so it had to stay there. We spent quite a bit of time looking at old records. I found some tiles that we will use in our new backsplash for the kitchen…..which may have to wait another year considering that these trips always cost more that you think they will.

 It was great fun to walk on the Front Street in Tynemouth and notice how it’s changed. There were fancier cars and fancier people than we remembered. The new restaurants, pubs and coffee shops were all very nice and the Co-op (small grocery store) had only changed just a little. Cam also got to walk around his old school, Kings School, Tynemouth.

As I’m writing this I can hardly believe how much we have done but there is more! We got to go see the archeological dig that Lynne is a volunteer with! A real life dig of a medieval leprosy hospital that was found only 6 inches under the ground after all of this time. She told us so much that I can barely remember. We were allowed to take pictures of everything except “Lanky Larry” the very tall (over 6 feet) skeleton of a soldier. Hearing how they determine that someone is a soldier or had leprosy etc.. is fascinating! They have made this area open to the public and are doing demonstrations of pottery and wooden spoon making as well as spinning wool. We spent about an hour there and I could have stayed longer!

There are more pictures but they are taking a long time to download. More will come later!

Wool spinning demonstration. They also made some fantastic bread and wooden spoons!

Lynne, my favorite "archeologist"!

We met my friend, Lisa, in the Grand Hotel lounge where she showered us with gifts, many for Cam since he is turning 18 which is similar to turning 21 in America. She bought his a Budweiser beer in a bottleJ and a bottle opener keychain. It was pretty fun! She booked a table at Davanti’s restaurant at Tynemouth station and it was fantastic!!! Cam had a glass of red wine and seemed to like it. Too bad he won’t be able to drink any for 3 more years when he gets back. Lisa is a great friend and although we don’t talk much, we always have a great catch up when we can. Her kids were at Kings when mine were there and her daughter and Hailey were friends as well as her son and Cam. She was really the only one to really reach out and befriend me while I was there.

With Lisa at Davanits and Tynemouth Station

After dinner we had a coffee in the lounge back at the hotel and soon after I went to sleep. Sleep has been rough as I haven’t been sleeping well, but I know that in Rome and Florence we will be on an “anything goes” schedule which will be helpful.

I apologize for any typos and for the boring reading, but I know that my mom and a few others will enjoy reading the goings on with our trip. I am certain I will go back and edit and some point, but for now I publish!

Cheers!

Day 1 and 2 it's all a blurrr!

Day 1 and 2….it’s all a blurrhhhh……

I’m sitting on the train to Newcastle, finally. I should be so tired that I’m sleepwalking but for some reason I’m not. 

We reserved the quiet car knowing we’d be tired, but had no idea just how tired. We got into our little table/booth that we love on the trains here and lo and behold, a guy comes to sit by Cam so we don’t have it all to ourselves. And he talks on the phone and he’s getting all of his crap out. This is just the way the trip has gone thus far.

We got to Chicago just find, boarded the plane and had to deplane due to mechanical issues. We were told the flight would not leave until 4:30. That actually turned out to be 6:00. We were each given $24 in food vouchers and spend the day at O’Hare. We watched the World Cup game, found some comfy chairs, had lunch, walked around and just hung out. 

Neither of us could sleep on the plane at all. So we woke up at 4 am that morning and hadn’t slept by the time we arrived in London at 2:00 am our time. I stopped figuring lost sleep at that point. It’s 4:00 pm here and I’m just going with it until I can sleep about 9:00 tonight.

We took the tube for an hour ride, standing, to Kings Cross so we could just our bags at “left luggage”. We took the tube to Westminster Abbey where Cam finally perked up. He loves that place. He is just completely in awe of it. However, he hit a wall while we were touring. We had to start taking a lot of short breaks after that. We found our way to Parliament Street, which turns in to Whitehall and walked by #10 Downing and Horse Guards Parade.

I knew that St. James park was through the arches there so we found ourselves a spot in the park and Cam napped for over an hour! I relaxed but not enough to fall asleep. We walk to Trafalgar square and then up to Piccadilly Circus. At that point Cam was finally hungry so we found the first place we could and he had fish and chips. We walked to Leicester Square and took the tube back to Kings Cross and we are finally on the train to Newcastle where our pastor, from North Shields Evangelical Church, will pick us up and take us to our hotel. I won’t be much for conversation I’m afraid!

Time to nap!

Going Places...eventually! Adventures in Expecting the Unexpected on our 2014 England/Italy trip.

Off off and away we go! I’m always nervous until the plane is taking off. As soon as those engines hit full force and thrust me back in my chair, I calm down and relax. It took a little longer to get to that point on this trip.

First snafu….had to check our bags all the way to Heathrow. That was NOT the plan and I was not prepared. First they said the bins were full, but I asked the guy taking our boarding pass if we could please try to get them on because we really don’t want to check them. He said okay, however they simply would not fit in the bin of this stupid regional jet. American doesn’t valet check them so that we can pick them up when we arrive in Chicago so the suitcases are off to London and will hopefully make it. Thankfully there was nothing in there I desperately need like medication, computer, chargers or my beloved Itinerary.

Lesson learned: Be prepared to have one bag taken from you, ripped away like it’s your right arm. And if you think you are carrying everything on, be prepared with your smaller bag just in case. Keep a change of underwear, all medication and toothbrush and toothpaste., all medication and toothbrush and toothpaste. Jay swears this has NEVER happened to him so I guess there's a first (and hopefully last) time for everything.

Second snafu…okay it’s more than a snafu. American Airlines strikes again. Mechanical delay would put us at Heathrow after the 11:00 pm curfew so we have to wait until 4:30 pm today to leave. 8 hour delay!

Bad news: read above

Good news:

*We get to watch the World Cup game!

*We aren’t missing anything in London except SLEEP.

*We got $48 in food vouchers and we were able to cancel the London hotel…within 15 minutes of not being able to cancel! Phew. Additionally we won’t have to pay for a taxi to the hotel.

*Cam isn’t upset and he is learning the importance of flexibility and PROBLEM-SOLVING mode.
*Lesson: Don't panic, don't freak...PROBLEM SOLVE.

So it’s currently 12:07 and we have settled in to our little hotspot by the windows in comfy big seats with multiple outlets……..

Update….after many long hours (too many to bother to count) we are up in the air. It’s about 6:00 pm and we just took off. Cam and I were both troopers moving from place to place in the airport to try to take in all it had to offer, which was not much.

We got to watch the World Cup match, we had a few hours in a nice spot looking outside, we relocated to the food court and had another small meal there. I guess the name of the game really is flexibility.

One thing I know for sure is that attitude is everything, and it can be contagious. There was a man behind us as we were waiting (again) to board the plane who I truly thought was going to have a heart attack as he sat there complaining and complaining. And while his points were mostly valid, that fact is, there was not a darn thing he could do about it. Then there was the nice, fun, mother and son duo sitting across from us. We talked for a while, had a great time and tried to make the most of the situation. All of us are on the plane, but some of us are happier than others, relaxed and thankful to be able to go on this trip.

Cam bought a book, Game of Thrones. I haven’t seen him read this much in years. He’s downloaded the movie 300 and I have downloaded The Kings Speech since this crappy plane doesn’t have in seat entertainment. 

**Lesson learned: Come prepared with an old fashioned paper book and your own entertainment. There is no guarantee they will have it for you. 

Although we won’t be getting the sleep we want, we will still get to see most of the sights, if not all, that we planned. And Cam is learning that he needs to keep an eye on me because I’ve already smurfed up a few times! We’ve had several laughs. My only concern is that with lack of sleep comes some crankiness. I’m going to really focus on NOT being cranky! It’s not worth it. I will never regret sucking it up for the good of the trip!

Problelm solving mode: Call your doctor friend when your son ends up with this on his leg. Prescription: benadryl...easy to find at any pharmacy or market! On we go!

When you get no sleep on a late plane you just plop yourself down in St. James park with the birds and people walking around with your backpack under your head!

SO happy to arrive in Newcastle finally!

Our wonderful friends, and pastor, the Johnsons picked us up and were so understanding at how exhausted we were!

Had to eat before our sleep so never too tired for MARSHALLS Fish and Chips!

Fish and Chips by the North Sea..I can stay awake for that!