Zurers in Italy: 2005

Journals

May 2005 Itinerary

Day 1: Orvieto
The plane trip is bearable...we are flying American through New York using frequent flyer miles.
Day 2: Orvieto
We do sleep through the night and we hope that jet lag will not pose any further problems. When we open the window, the sky is blue and the sun is shining--this makes me very happy.
Day 3: Orvieto
The sky is blue and the sun is shining this morning....when I speak to the desk clerk about the "bella giornata", she replies "Yes, at least for now.
Day 4: Orvieto-Rimini
More sun this morning....maybe the good weather has returned.
Day 5: Rimini
The weather continues warm and sunny and after breakfast, we begin our search for a laundromat....the hotel manager has told us that there is one in the next piazza down from the hotel (frequently directions that one gets in Italy are not specific and don't include addresses).
Day 6: Rimini-Ravenna
After breakfast, we take one more walk along the beach. It is a quiet Sunday morning and there are joggers, walkers and shell collectors out as well as staff from the beach establishments cleaning and setting up chairs and umbrellas for the weekend trade.
Day 7: Ravenna
Rain reappears this morning. After breakfasting with our friends who are off to Ferrara, we grab umbrellas and walk in a steady drizzle to the Basilica of San Vitale.
Day 8: Ravenna-Venice
Before we leave Ravenna, we make another swing through town, buying some cherries at the market and visiting the basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo, where the remains of the same Sant'Apollinare from Classe (where we visited yesterday), were moved in the 9th century. The church has another of the distinctive tall cylindrical bell towers that are the Ravenna style.
Day 9: Venice
Bright and sunny outside this morning....we know that very early, because the air-conditioning has not yet been turned on at the Locanda del Ghetto, so we are sleeping with our window and the balcony doors wide open.
Day 10: Venice
We are up early again, in spite of a second late night. I again sit out on the balcony and work on the computer, while watching the campo wake up.
Day 11: Venice
We are up early again....the sun is up before 6 am here in Venice.
Day 12: Venice
Another early morning watching the Campo wake up....this is one of the great pleasures of our location and the balcony.
Day 13: Venice-Trento
On our last morning in Venice, I have my last look at the Campo waking up. The breakfast room is full so the desk clerk suggests that we might want to eat on our balcony.
Day 14: Trento
We sleep well and somewhat late (until 8 am) in our air-conditioned room with the windows and shutters closed. In addition to the air-conditioning, our room at the Accademia is spacious and the bathroom is the best we have had yet, well lit and roomy, lots of water pressure and hot water.
Day 15: Trento
After breakfast in our lovely courtyard, we get on the autostrada and head north to Bolzano/Bozen, the principal city of the German speaking Alto Adige. Once off the autostrada, the route to the center snakes around the industrial suburbs but in a few minutes, we are parked in an underground parking garage under the city's main square, the Piazza Walther (or Waltherplatz).
Day 16: Trento
It is another hot and sunny day, but very pleasant having breakfast in the courtyard. Our first destination in Trento is the Castello Buonconsiglio, a massive castle on the other side of town.
Day 17: Trento
Bressanone/Brixen is our first destination today, a small resort town not far from the Brenner Pass and the Austrian border. The ride north on the autostrada is very scenic, changing from the rugged, rocky mountains between Trento and Bolzano to more forested slopes with villages on the hillsides that have a decidely Alpine look.
Day 18: Trento
The drive south from Trento on the autostrada is still quite dramatic, with high mountains on either side of the road. The approach to Lago di Garda is striking.
Day 19: Trento-Lerici
We say goodbye to Trento....we found it a very congenial town--pleasant to walk around and well located for day trips.
Day 20: Lerici
A lazy morning.....after a large Doria Park breakfast, we sit on the terrace and relax--reading, writing and watching the Gulf of La Spezia.
Day 21: Lerici
Another beautiful morning in Lerici....the water in the Gulf of La Spezia is motionless; the surface looks like a mirror as the sun rises over the hills.
Day 22: Lerici-Florence
NOTE: We are back home now....we arrived in Washington on Friday, June 17.
Day 23: Florence
We have breakfast in a nice bar just across the street from the Piazza Santa Croce...we are the only non-regulars there--amazing to us since there are so many tourists in Florence now.