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Happy Travels: Il Passetto de Borgo
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Wednesday, July 6, 2011. Il Passetto de Borgo. So those Dan Brown fans out there will be familiar with Il Passetto de Borgo. The 800 meter long secret passage that links the Vatican to the old Papal fort of Castel Sant' Angelo. I really wanted to go down this passage, so arranged our visit to correspond with the special opening times for this tour, as listed on the Rome tourist bureau web site. It's only open 2 months a year, during the peak summer tourist season. Still thinking about it. Last Day in Rome.
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Happy Travels: When in Rome...
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Sunday, July 3, 2011. We are staying in an apartment behind the Piazza Navona for 6 nights, located on a narrow pedestrian-only street called Via del Governo Vecchio. Here's the link. To the apartment. I must stay it photographs much more spacious than it is in real life, although there is really nothing specific I can complain about! Bernini's Four Rivers Fountain at Piazza Navona. Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom). Menlo Park, United States. View my complete profile. My Favorite Travelling Companions.
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Happy Travels: Lake Garda and Sirmione
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Thursday, July 14, 2011. Lake Garda and Sirmione. Last Sunday, we drove up to Lake Garda, the easternmost of the northern Italian lakes (Lake Como is the westernmost and probably the most famous of the lakes - where George Clooney has a house ;). It was a beautiful, albeit very hot day. We had lunch at a small restaurant lakeside with a dock and boat mooring - where Narisa stuck her feet into the water (it was not as cold as we thought it would be). Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom). Last Day in Rome.
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Happy Travels: Vatican City and the Sistine Chapel
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Wednesday, July 6, 2011. Vatican City and the Sistine Chapel. We awoke to a very cloudy day that soon turned into a heavy thunderstorm. So we used that excuse for a late start and lounged around for a few hours in the morning! There are now about a billion resources that will tell you to prebook your tickets or come right at opening time - they will give you step-by-step instructions on how to avoid the long lines. And yet, all these people were prepared to wait well over an hour - I just don't get it.
neeracha.blogspot.com
Happy Travels: Ancient Rome in a Day
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Monday, July 4, 2011. Ancient Rome in a Day. We had a late morning breakfast procured at Forno Campo Dei Fiori. Which one guide termed "the best bakery in Rome", amidst all the market stalls in that square. I especially liked the squash blossoms that everyone was selling. Squash Blossoms at Campo dei Fiori market. Then we set out for a long day of touring. The subterranean tour was pretty cool - I like tours that take me behind locked gates and cordoned off areas! After a quick stop at a sub-standard gel...
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Happy Travels: Agriturismo
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Monday, July 18, 2011. I guess this is a big thing while holidaying in Italy - agriturismo. Are farms who are allowed to function either as B&Bs or to open up to serve food to the public Thurs-Sundays. They are very popular with families since the associated activities usually include a farm tour and lots of outside play areas for the kiddies. Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom). Menlo Park, United States. I like to eat. And to travel. And to eat when I travel. And now to blog about it too!
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Happy Travels: Last Day in Rome
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Monday, July 11, 2011. Last Day in Rome. I think we might have had our favorite meal in Rome for lunch on our last day. We started off the day by going to the Capuchin Church off Piazza Barberini, also known as the Church of Bones. The kids found this a little creepy but the thousands of bones were used in a very decorative manner in their crypt (see above photo). I highly recommend this and it's a really quick stop! Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom). Menlo Park, United States. View my complete profile.
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Happy Travels: Dario Cecchini, the Tuscan Butcher
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Sunday, July 10, 2011. Dario Cecchini, the Tuscan Butcher. We left Rome in the late morning and headed up north on the A1 autostrada, to Panzano in Chianti - to Dario Cecchini's famous butcher shop. In case you missed it, Dario is the opera-singing, Dante-quoting butcher immortalized in Bill Buford's book Heat. And also in a great little episode. Of "No Reservations" with Anthony Bourdain. It took a little over 3 hours to get there from Rome, and we entered the Dario restaurant for lunch. The menu. The P...
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Happy Travels: 4 Coins in a Fountain
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Wednesday, July 6, 2011. 4 Coins in a Fountain. We went to a spaghetteria for dinner last night, Spaghetti dell' Archetto. What is a spaghetteria, you might ask? Well it's a restaurant that specializes in spaghetti, offering 137 different sauces (Narisa counted! Which was almost paralyzing in terms of choice. After some nice appetizers of bruschetta and pizza bianco, our very large portions of spaghetti came. Almost American-sized portions! Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom). Menlo Park, United States.
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Happy Travels: Bravissima Aida!
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Monday, July 18, 2011. Dave Morris, in his infinite wisdom, bought us Aida tickets many, many months ago. Which is why we packed the adults up into two cars and headed into Verona, sans children, one evening. We did not recognize any of the famous Italians in the photo :(. We started off with a nice dinner at Trattoria al Pompiere, a Chowhound. Prosciutto, Lardo, Mortadella, Sopressatta. Seeing Aida there was simply magnificent, under the almost full moon. The cast of hundreds displayed phenomenal po...
