Tiny Countries That Pack a Big Punch

Although I haven't visited all of these places... actually, I have only visited one - Monaco... many are on my list (especially Malta, Grenada, and the Maldives).  Check out the list from Lonely Planet:

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/france/monaco/travel-tips-and-articles/76547?affil=lpemail

World's Most Expensive Cities

This list is fascinating to me.  I have never visited Japan, Norway, or Sweden, where many of the most expensive global cities are located.  Doesn't deter me one bit... just interesting to see:

http://images.businessweek.com/slideshows/20110608/world-s-most-expensive-cities-2011/

The Most Colorful Places on Earth (according to Bing Travel)

Now this is what I call a fun article!

 http://www.bing.com/travel/content/search?q=The+Most+Colorful+Places+on+Earth%3a+Manarola%2c+Italy&cid=msn1185062&form=HPTRAV&gt1=41000

World's Prettiest Places... (according to Yahoo Travel)

I can think of a lot of places to add to this list!  It's so neat to learn about new places, though... Plitvice Lakes National Park looks GORGEOUS!  I have always wanted to go to Croatia!  Enjoy:

http://travel.yahoo.com/p-interests-39456339

World's Best Ruins

Just saw one of these last week (the Colosseum)!!!

http://travel.yahoo.com/p-interests-40006586

Baby leopards, bear found in bags at Thai airport

How big were this guy's suitcases???

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110513/ap_on_re_as/as_thailand_leopards_in_luggage

Kid-Friendly Resorts in and around the U.S.

Until now, my blog has focused mainly on travel for adults.  But, as many of our best friends are finding out, it's not as easy to pick up and globe-trot when you've got a tot! 
I found this slideshow on Bing Travel this morning and many of these resorts sound really cool... some are even affordable!
http://www.bing.com/travel/content/search?q=12+Resorts+Where+Kids+Rule%3a+Hotel+del+Coronado%2c+San+Diego&FORM=TRSSPG

Wrapping up the Holiday in Rome

After a few heavenly sun-soaked days on the Amalfi Coast, on Sunday we took a ferry from Positano to Salerno, then a train from Salerno to Rome.  The two-hour train ride got us there early in the afternoon, with plenty of time to walk around and enjoy the city.
The weather this year was much warmer than it was around this time last year, when we were in Rome for our honeymoon.  Our hotel was very well-situated, being a few blocks from Termini and within a 10-minute walk of the Trevi Fountain.  We dropped our bags off at the hotel, then strolled over to the Trevi Fountain, the Roman Forum, and the Colosseum.  This city never ceases to amaze me with its energy and its mix of ancient history and the modern world.  Where else can you walk down one street that is lined with glass storefronts and whizzing cars, then walk two blocks over and come face-to-face with a crumbling 2000-year-old wall?  Incredible.
After a delicious dinner at La Matriciana, across from the opera house (Roberto enjoyed pasta carbonara again, I had white lasagna with artichokes), we headed in pretty early.  To catch our 11:00am flight we had to leave for the airport at 8:00am. 
Now we're home.  Although another dream vacation has come to an end, it is always nice to come home... vacations rejuvenate you and make you ready to head back to the real world.  And... plan your next vacation.

The Amalfi Coast

We arrived in Positano yesterday morning after a ferry ride that we almost did not think was going to depart!  It is interesting how, when looking over the sea from our balcony at the Hotel Bristol in Sorrento, we had no idea how choppy the water was (much like it was a couple of days ago when the Blue Grotto was closed at Capri because of choppy water).  By the time we got down to the port in Sorrento, the wind was whipping and the waves were rolling.  Luckily, we were able to depart on time!
Positano is, in my opinion, one of the most enchanting little towns on the Amalfi Coast... although I found my very favorite today (more about that in a moment).  It is bustling enough that you do not get bored, but peaceful enough, especially at night after the day trippers leave, that you can enjoy a quiet dinner overlooking the lapping sea and hear the sea perfectly.  However, you have options!  Yesterday we spent the day exploring the town... our hotel, the Marincanto, is extremely well located at the top of a hill overlooking the town but still within a quick walk of the center.  After taking a couple hours to relax in our cliffside pool and sunbathe, we headed back down to the town center, by the harbor, to enjoy a late dinner at Chez Black.  This is not a quiet place to eat, being right on the main promenade next to the harbor, but the food was delicious, the service was great, there was excellent people watching (and lots of people to watch), and all of the diners were serenaded by a traditional Italian quartet.  Sounds cheesy, I know, but it was a lot of fun.
Today we slept in a bit, grabbed breakfast at the hotel, and caught the SITA bus to Amalfi.  Driving the Amalfi Coast is an experience in itself, but not as scary (to me at least) as lots of people make it out to be.  Of course, I have never driven it myself, and I give a lot of credit to those who do, but I am content to ride the bus and let someone else drive! 
Once we arrived in Amalfi, we immediately boarded an open air bus to Ravello, a place I cannot BELIEVE I have never visited before.  It is exactly the kind of place I love... achingly beautiful with the most gorgeous vistas I have ever seen in my life, an orange and lemon tree shaded main square anchored by a centuries old church bordered by outdoor eateries, and countless winding stone walkways along the hilly terrain.  I especially enjoyed the fact that there were hardly any vehicles driving through the town.  My favorite parts of Ravello were the gardens of Villa Rufulo and Villa Cimbrone... absolutely breathtaking... I have never seen vistas like those in my life.  Next time we visit, Roberto and I will make sure to spend at least one night here.
We spent a short time in Amalfi before hopping back on the SITA bus to Positano.  Years ago, I visited Amalfi and did a quick tour of the town, but I did not take the time to tour the magnificent duomo and cathedral here.  Absolutely amazing!  We definitely took the time out to see it this time, and it was well worth the visit.
As soon as we arrived back in Positano, we headed out to walk around town on the western side of the harbor, which we did not get to see much of yesterday.  What a treat!  This area, around Spiaggia Fornillo, is much more residential and quieter.  After a hike down 370 cliffside steps we found a wonderful little restaurant that was highly recommended by Fodors... Lo Guarracino.  Built into the cliff, this romantic little place was quiet and offered a fantastic view of the Mediterranean Sea and a medieval looking watchtower.  Roberto finally got his carbonara pasta he has been craving, and I enjoyed some pasta in lemon cream sauce, very typical to this area.
After dinner we walked down to Spiaggia Grande, the main harbor... if we had only known how much easier it would be to get to Lo Guarracino from here, we may not have taken our original route, but oh well... it is all part of the adventure!  We wound up at La Zacara, a little sweet shoppe, for cappuccino and pastries, and now we are back at the hotel to relax.  Tomorrow we plan to do more relaxing by the pool!

Sorrento, Capri, and Pompeii

As always, southern Italy is gorgeous and never ceases to amaze me.  We got here about midday on Monday after landing in Rome, and the transfer (train from the Rome airport to the Termini train station to Napoli, then a car transfer from Napoli to Sorrento) was quick and easy.
As soon as we got to Sorrento, we decided to take a walk around town to wake ourselves up.  Sorrento is much larger than I remember it, but of course the last time I was here was nearly 10 years ago!  Pretty crazy that right after I visited in 2001, the World Trade Center was attacked, then we learned about the death of Bin Ladin while we were at the harbor in Sorrento on Monday.  As we were exploring our ferry options for a trip to Capri, we started talking to an English gentleman who told us about it.  Our waiter at Ristorante Caruso Monday night also talked about it to us for a while.  It is big news, even in this dreamy little seaside town that feels light years away from New York City.
Monday night we slept fitfully, partially because of our sleep schedule but there was also a rough thunderstorm that blew through the area.  That was fine, because by mid morning on Tuesday we had beautiful weather... sunny but breezy, perfect for a ferry trip over to Capri!  I was looking forward to showing Roberto the Blue Grotto and Capri town.  However, the Blue Grotto was closed because of high tide, so we took a boat ride around the island.  This was something I did not get to do on my last trip, and although the water was really choppy on the Anacapri side it was a GREAT trip!  Such a fantastic place, and we enjoyed a delicious lunch at one of the restaurants at the top of the island in Capri.  Then back to Sorrento, and pizza for dinner... one of the best wood fired pizzas I have had in a long time.
Today I spent the day in Pompeii, my very first time there.  Roberto preferred to stay here in Sorrento, so I took the Circumsuviana train the half hour ride to Pompeii around 11 this morning and returned around 2:30.  I was mesmerized by the advanced culture the Pompeiians enjoyed nearly 2000 years ago... running water, a class system, beautiful homes with gardens, and the oldest amphitheater in Italy (yes, built even before the Colisseum in Rome!).  Pompeii is huge; you can easily spend all day here, but I took a 2 hour tour and saw most of the highlights in that time.  Simply amazing.  There was even a preserved dog that was straining against its chain, trying to break loose when the ash descended upon the town and killed everyone.  It was a tragic place, but I am very glad to have had the opportunity to see it.  It blows my mind that so many people still live around the base of Mount Vesuvius when it is still active and so dangerous, but I guess it is no different from people making their home in San Francisco or Miami.  Home is home.
Tonight is our last night in Sorrento!  In the morning we are off to Positano on the 10:30 AM ferry.

If These Walls Could Talk

In my eyes, there is nothing that lends an air of rich history to a city like an ancient wall enveloping it and protecting it from the rest of the world.  Roberto and I have wonderful memories of strolling the hills above Florence during our honeymoon last May, walking for hours along the winding gray cobblestoned streets, shielded by the matching medieval stone walls that rose around us.  The sights we saw along the way told a wonderful story of old and new, from 10th century churches crumbling along the roadside to the bursts of flaming red Tuscan poppies waving in the breeze.  I remember trailing my fingers along the ancient stones in the wall, worn smooth by time, and wondering if these walls could talk, what kinds of amazing stories would they tell?

I was so excited to see the story and pictorial below on Bing this afternoon: "Beautiful Walled Cities".  I was thrilled to see a couple that I have already had the pleasure of visiting, and added a bunch more to my "must-see" list (which gets longer and longer every day)!  I hope you enjoy this as much as I did:

http://www.bing.com/travel/content/search?q=Beautiful+Walled+Cities%3a+Naarden%2c+The+Netherlands&FORM=TRSSPG

Looks like we're not alone!

According to TripAdvisor, 51% of U.S. travelers are planning to visit Europe in 2011!  We're about a month out now... can't wait!!  Roberto just booked our hotel in Rome yesterday! 

Read more: http://www.tripadvisor.com/PressCenter-i4639-c1-Press_Releases.html

Travel Etiquette for People of All Nationalities

I always really enjoy articles on travel etiquette, and the one I came across this morning in USA Today is no different.  It amazes me to read through the actions that are considered rude in other countries and marvel at the near-misses I may have already avoided.  Of course, the flip side is that I cringe at the offenses I have already committed.  Don't wave to friends with an open palm in Greece?!  I probably ticked off countless people when I was there in 2001!
Read more at:
http://travel.usatoday.com/news/story/2011/03/Foreign-etiquette-for-Americans-A-guide-to-dos-and-donts-abroad-/45453144/1

Italy-Bound, Once Again!

We are so excited!  Last night we booked flights to Rome for a spring getaway in May.  We got a GREAT deal... just over $700 per ticket.  Can't beat that. 
We were just in Italy last May, so we went back and forth a little on whether we should go again, but Roberto has never been to the southern part of the country and it really is completely different from the northern or central areas.  So that is the plan... hop off the plane in Rome and head south, to the Amalfi Coast.  I haven't been to the Amalfi Coast in 10 years, and I'm REALLY excited!  More updates to come...