Italy 2006 – Highlights

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Here’s a taste of the Italy 2006 trip. The rest of it is all here on this site, waiting for you to explore. Note: At the bottom of each page, there’s a link called “Older Posts.” Just click on that to go to the next page, or you can use the page numbers under Italy 2006 in the sidebar.

Travels to Italy – 2006

Melinda and husband Gino

After years of dreaming, in 1996 I finally made my first trip to Europe.

I have had many incredible experiences on these amazing trips: exploring the Amalfi Coast on my 50th birthday, finding relatives in Italy that we knew had to be there somewhere, watching my dad embrace first cousins for the first time…and noticing they were dressed exactly alike! It’s been a wonderful dream.

Ten years and six trips later, another first — the digital camera! Now, thanks to technology, I can share my memories with you!

So put on your walking shoes (because we do a lot of that) and…ANDIAMO!

Melinda

The Band of Merry Travelers

 

Gino, Dad, and Mom waiting patiently for the flight to Rome at the San Francisco airport. We arrived at SFO at 9:00 a.m. for our 4:00 p.m. flight.

Geography Lesson

To make sense of the geographic divisions of Italy, consider this:

If we compared Italy to the United States as a country, I would liken the “regions” of Italy to the states in the U.S. Within these regions are provinces (sort of like counties) and within the provinces are the “comunes,” which are equal to English townships or municipalities. Knowing the “regions” of Italy will help you understand the country better, not only geographically, but culturally as well.

There are 20 regions in Italy. This trip we visited four regions: Lazio (Rome), Veneto (Venice, Murano, Burano), Toscana (Siena and other hilltowns), and Lombardia (the northern Lakes region where my family is from).

Below is a map of Italy showing where we went.

SEPTEMBER 2, 2006 – ARRIVAL IN ROME

We got out of the cab, hoisted our bags, paid and thanked the driver. It was only a few feet to the street number where our rented apartment awaited. The door was locked, of course, and we scrutinized the bank of resident names, none of which matched Casa Andree or anything familiar. I pushed a few buttons randomly, hoping to rouse someone, but to no avail. Finally I thought to actually read my carefully prepared notes, which, of course, told me we wanted apartment number 6. We pushed and Monica, the proprietor, responded. The door buzzed open, and up we went. Dad counted 63 steps as we wound our way upstairs.

Monica greeted us and showed us the workings of the apartment. Only one misunderstanding: we had requested double beds for each room, but in Mom and Dad’s room there were two single beds. Monica was very accommodating and offered to have someone come to rearrange them into a double bed. No one ever came, but never mind. Dad and Gino rearranged the end tables, pushed the two singles together, took the mattress of the sofa bed in the living room and put it on top of the impromptu bed. Mom remade the bed with double sheets, and all was well. This wasn’t the first time we had cannibalized a couch to make a bed!

We settled ourselves in, unpacking for our few days’ stay, and headed down into our favorite city. What a perfect location! Our little street was very, very quiet, both during the day and at night. It barely appeared on my very detailed map. Yet, at either end, it opened onto a larger alley which quickly led to piazzas and streets teeming with Roman life.

Pantheon – Temple to the Gods

Our apartment was just a few happy skips away from one of the most prominent and influential buildings in Rome, if not the world. Its place in architectural, structural, and spiritual history is staggering. Passing it every day, sometimes several times, never diminished the awe we felt in its presence. First built by M. Agrippa in 27 B.C.E. as a Roman temple to honor the Gods, the emporer Hadrian rebuilt it around 120 A.D., which is the building we see today, minus the bronze embellishments that were later spirited off to other parts of the city.

What a joy to have this most favorite building of mine virtually in my front yard! Eventually, walking past the Pantheon was a sign we were almost home.

Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi – Piazza Navona

Rome’s lively Piazza Navona features Bernini’s glorious Fountain of Four Rivers, depicting writhing river gods who symbolize each of the four then-known continents: Ganges (Asia), Danube (Europe), Nile (Africa), and Rio de la Plata (the Americas). A center obelisk rises from the midst of the splash.

Our apartment was also a hop-skip-and-jump from Piazza Navona, the City’s happy playground. I read that no hangings, killings, or bad things had historically happened in Piazza Navona with its breathtaking Bernini fountains, surrounded by pleasing architecture and abounding with chattering visitors.

We wandered through the center part of the square filled with artists and their easels, displaying their wares under portable lighting. We stopped to listen, and film, the most amazing guitarist electrifying the audience with his intricate Stevie Ray Vaughn and Santana licks. Eventually our stomachs clamored for attention and we started looking for a trattoria for dinner. Finding an inviting little place in one of the alleys branching off Piazza Navona, we seated ourselves at a table set securely on the cobbles.  Looking up at the night sky, we lifted glasses of deep crimson wine and toasted our first night in Italia.

Santa Maria Maddalena

This Roman church is dedicated to St. Mary Magdalene and is affectionately referred to simply as “Maddalena.” Construction began in the late 1500′s but was not complete for another one and a half centuries. Its Rococo style facade is sometimes called “icing sugar” for obvious reasons.

Parking Lot Guardians

We passed this row of fantastically sculpted columns marching behind vespas and vehicles on one of our many walks around the city. Such jaw-dropping sights are commonplace, if not absolutely astounding.

Under the Stony Gaze…

The Goddess Diana kicks back while a steady stream of Vespas keeps her entertained. This is one of the four fountains (Le Quattro Fontane) marking the four corners of a busy Roman intersection at the crest of Quirinale Hill, once an important site of ancient Rome.