After eighteen months of researching Italy as a holiday destination, last September my daughter Stacey and I departed Australia for the wonderful Italian Escapade Tour. When I began my research, I found many tour companies offering various tours throughout Italy. For three months, I read and reread every tour company brochure I could get my hands on. Which company and which tour was the question I stewed over for three months. This drove my family nuts. Was I insane? Did others take this long to make a decision on their holiday? Finally, I choose Insight and Italian Escapade. Horary, my family would have some peace now. No such luck! I wanted to learn all I could about touring Italy and coach travel. I had never been on a coach tour before. Books on Italy and travel found their way into our home. Printed copies of things called tour tales were constantly by my side.

Lucky I had the advantage of this board and the one over at Trafalgar. Reading every tour tale of Italy I could get my hands on was critical in planning my Italian escape. If I had not been equipped with this knowledge, I believe I would have wasted valuable time in deciding what I wished to visit in each town or city.

I would like to express my thanks to you all. I learnt more about travel and Italy from these two sites than I learnt from reading my many books. Thankyou!

Now onto what you have been waiting for – the Italian Escapade tour tale. You will read about wondrous places, stunning art, a late night encounter with a handsome Italian police officer, two embarrassing ‘you’re not my mother’ incidents for Stacey, a charming pickup line from a cute waiter and a not so young shop owner and you will hear about delightful off the beaten tracks we stumbled upon.

I will post photos in this tour tale. We took over 3000 photos.

Tour Information (the important bits I must tell you.)

Our Italian born Tour Director was Debra DeAngelo:
I have noticed from time to time others have had Debra and left wonderful comments. It’s all true. Debra is magnificent. If Insight employs tour directors like Debra, I would never hesitate to use Insight again. Debra was witty, helpful, enlightening about the Italian culture and very educational about history and the art of her breathtaking country.

Our Coach Driver was Tommaso:
A skilled driver, calm and gentle Tommaso did not say much, but we knew we were in safe hands. His talent for steering our large Insight coach up narrow streets crammed with cars was mind-blowing. I had my eyes shut a number of times as he manoeuvred around tight corners, but somehow he would triumph and away we would go. I am usually a nervous passenger but I soon relaxed with the capable Tommaso. Thankyou Tommaso for keeping us all out of harms way as we travelled throughout your beautiful country. One night Tommaso even had some fun with a fellow tour mate. Will tell you about this later.

The Passengers:There were 39 passengers - 6 Canadians, 6 Aussies and 27 Americans. If you don’t mind me boasting, we were a terrific fun group.

The Insight Hotels:

 Rome: Radisson SAS Hotel: (3nights at beginning of tour and 1 night at end of tour) The Radisson is in the Esquiline quarter, one of the Seven Hills of Rome. This hotel received so many complaints from my fellow tour mates. However, I had researched the hotels before leaving Australia and was familiar with each one and the opinion of other travellers through this board and over at Trafalgar and through websites such as TripAdvisor. The Radisson is somewhat modern, designed in a minimalist style, with a lot of glass not something I would expect in such an old country as Italy. I found the Radisson excellent with friendly staff. It was clean, the beds were comfortable and the breakfasts were adequate and yummy. Allora, what more could you ask for. Since Stacey and I had arrived early, we found the location – adjacent to the Termini Central Railway Station ideal, even if it was in a bit of an iffy area. No problems mate. We never felt unsafe in this area.

Now for the truth - I wanted my first night in Italy to be in a hotel that oozed Italian charm – you know what I mean. The architecture had to be from ancient times and there had to be lots of enchanting small corridors and shutters that you could throw open to be greeted by a building or ruin completed in the 16th century. However, it was not to be. Oh well, the other hotels on the trip made up for my disappointment.

 Florence: Sheraton Firenze Hotel (2 nights) Five kilometres from the city-centre but it was quiet and pleasant. The breakfasts were also adequate and yummy. Rooms were spacious but again no Italian charm. It could be a hotel you could find anywhere in Australia.

 Italian Lakes: Grand Hotel Bristol (2 nights) I loved this first-class hotel for its glamour and location, right opposite the lake. From its elegant furnishings in all its public sitting rooms, its delightful frescos to our small balcony where I admired Isola Bella illuminated at night, this is one hotel I would come back to again. It oozed Italian charm. I must not forget to mention the gorgeous pool area that calls to you to sit and relax by its tranquil setting.


 Venice: Hotel Continental (2 nights) The 15th Century Continental looks out over the Grand Canal, near the train station and adjacent to Lista di Spagna. Our room was quiet at night as we faced a wide secluded courtyard that wandered down to the Grand Canal. The bed was comfortable and the room was spacious with a lounge area. It certainly had those poky corridors and shutters I was after but it needed brightening up. The interior of our room was so dull, you could say depressing– it needed a good paint or some colourful pictures on the wall. But then I was homesick while staying there so this might have influenced my thoughts on this hotel.

 Assisi: Hotel Subasio (1 night): The location of this hotel was its drawcard. In the old part of Assisi and with one of its walls forming part of the ancient square in front of the Basilica of St Francis, the Subasio was a quaint old hotel with excellent service. The views of the Umbrian countryside are spectacular from the hotel’s terraces. I wish I had time to sit and enjoy.

 Sorrento: Hotel Corallo Sorrento (2 nights): Another beautiful hotel in an adorable location – situated on a cliff-top, overlooking the Bay of Naples. Our room had two views - an old abandon house sitting on a cliff above the courtyard and the ocean. This is another hotel I will return to. Again, I wanted the time to sit on its large sunny terraces and enjoy the charming views. The Corallo was built in the 1920’s The Lobby decorated in a classic style was heavenly.

My thoughts on these hotels:

Every hotel was clean and staffed by friendly English-speaking staff. All beds were king-size and comfortable. Rooms were spacious, with some comprising separate lounge areas. We had fantastic locations with all but one of the hotels - the Sheraton Firenze. Bathrooms were spotless and in good working order. We had a bath in every room and never ran out of hot water or found our floor submerged in water. Breakfast buffets always included cereals, fruits, fruit juices, scrambled eggs, bacon, sliced meats, Italian sausages (yummy), breads, rolls, jams, honey, yogurts, cheese, croissants, cakes, tea, coffee and hot chocolate. Some hotels even had hotdogs, small pancakes, hot chips and baked beans. You could not complain about these yummy breakfasts - They were fantastic and plentiful, catering for all tastes. My favourite hotels: Grand Hotel Bristol and Hotel Corallo Sorrento, then, followed by a close second the Hotel Subasio.


Optional Sightseeing and Excursions:
As easy going as we Aussies are, I hate to admit but this is the one time, I was disappointed on the whole trip. I accept that we cannot be offered all the optional excursions, but at least in Rome we would have had time for Rome of the Ancient Christians or Tivoli Gardens, which we were never offered. We had a free afternoon in Rome. In Venice, we were not offered Venice of the Doges either.

Debra presented our group with 12 Optional Excursions.

In Rome
 Introduction to Rome Euro 31

 Roman Dinner Party Euro 57

In Florence
 San Gimignano Excursion Euro 31

 Dinner at a Tuscan Restaurant up in the hills. Euro 57

Italian lakes
 Borromean Islands of Lake Maggiore Euro 34

 Mountain Experience with Fondue Lunch Euro 49

In Venice
 Burano Excursion and Lunch Euro 65

 Magical Venice Euro 43

In Capri
 Isle of Capri, Gotto and Lunch Euro 61

In Sorrento
 Sorrento Evening Euro 56

 Mozzarella Farm Euro 37

 Amalfi Coast Drive and Positano Visit Euro 36

Stacey and I chose seven - Roman Dinner Party, San Gimignano Excursion, Florence Dinner, Magical Venice, Mozzarella Farm, Sorrento Evening and Amalfi Coast Drive and Positano Visit. Total cost Euro 634 for the two of us. You will find the explanation for each optional and our thoughts under the day we were offered them. We loved everyone we did.

And now our adventure begins:

Turning 50 was something I was going to celebrate with style. No party for me. It was going to be an adventure that I would never forget. And allora, it certainly was! Italy the country of stunning art, grand architecture, magnificent history, scrumptious food and charming landscapes was a place I wanted to visit since a child. The land of Viva Bene, Spesso L'Amore, Di Risata Molto (Live Well, Love Much, Laugh Often) was in my veins.

Leaving home 3 kids (the youngest being 13), assorted animals and a husband, I set off on this amazing adventure with my oldest child – my 23 year old daughter Stacey.

Oh by the way, I should enlighten you that this is my first trip overseas. Stacey has holidayed out of Australia, three times before (Bali). Lucky her, but her mother has taken this long to fulfil a childhood dream of having a passport filled with stamps of faraway, exciting countries.

Armed with all the valuable hints on travelling light (thankyou), we departed Australia on Saturday 13th September at 3.50pm. Singapore Airlines flight SQ 228 arrived in Singapore on time at 9.35pm. WOW is all I can say about Singapore Airlines. We were in Economy Class and the service was fantastic. Food was delicious and the drinks kept up continually.

On arrival, we transferred by coach to our hotel – Peninsular Excelsior (a very nice hotel). We allowed ourselves a 3-night stopover in Singapore. This was a wonderful idea. Allora, all Stacey’s idea too. Thankyou Stacey.

Singapore was hot and humid, in the low thirties. We spent our time checking out the shops, china town and Raffles Hotel. We had a river cruise on a bumboat and gazed at Merlion. An afternoon meander at Singapore Zoo followed by a exhilarating night safari and the creatures of the night show - Fantastic. Next day a visit to Sentosa Island A cable car ride transferred us to the island were we strolled through Underwater World, watched the Dolphins perform at Dolphin Lagoon and had a ride up the Merlion Tower and saw Singapore from a great height. Then at night, we enjoyed Songs of the Sea – a $31million light and water show held at the Island – magnificent!

Now it was time to commence the next part of our adventure - Italy. What time did we leave Singapore? Flight SQ 366 left Singapore at 1.15am on Tuesday 16th September. No, it’s not a typing error, it’s correct. We left at 1.15am in the morning. A twelve and a half hour flight saw us arriving in Rome Leonardo Airport at 7.45am Tuesday.

I must stop here and tell you that while planning this trip, I dreaded having to commence our adventure by plane. I don’t like being confined in small spaces. Although we were restricted to the aircraft and cramped at times, I had a ball. We each had our own individual screen and I watched many movies and an episode of Doctor Who that I had missed back in Australia. I am a big Doctor Who fan. (I thought you would be interested in that little bit of info.) We also walked around the rear of the plane, doing some stretching and chatting to other travellers. It was fun and time went quickly.

Day One: Tuesday 16th September – Roma

Because we arrived a day early, our travel agent booked our Insight transfer from the airport. An Insight Rep met us at the airport with a lovely Italian Buongiorno. I said “Buongiorno” back and I had to laugh at Stacey who said in a real heavy Australian accent – “G-day.” Very funny! The first transfer, by small van left at 9.30am. It took an hour to reach our hotel owing to heavy traffic and we dropped off three couples staying at other hotels. Each was doing another Insight or Trafalgar tour. We all had a lovely chat and wished each other a wonderful time in Italy. The first 40 minutes, I could have been travelling from Tullamarine airport to Melbourne – the surroundings looked similar. But wait a minute, the scenery started to alter. We drove past the old wall of Rome and next we could see ancient structures all around us. Then all of a sudden, the Colosseum came into view. WOW!

Excitement ripped through my body - I was in Italy, I was in Rome.
We checked into our hotel room at around 10.40am. I couldn’t believe it was ready. We both had a shower then hit the streets of Roma. Being so close to Termini station was convenient. I went into a Tabacchi at the station and finally got the chance to use my newly learnt Italian. ‘Buongiorno, due Biglietto Giornaliero per favore’ . ‘Hello, two day tickets please.’ Well I tried to say it with an Italian accent but it didn’t sound very Italian, but he knew what I wanted. It cost us 4 euros each, which allows unlimited metro, bus and train travel within Roma for the day.

It is very simple to use the metro. Each station has a board showing you the name of all stations the train will stop at. Once on the train, you’ll notice a diagram with the route you are travelling, stations are also named and in order of where you will stop. Before I left home, I had downloaded from the Internet a Metro guide with a list of train stations and what tourist attraction is at or near each station. There are only two lines – Linea A (red) and Linea B (blue). I also downloaded the bus numbers and where each stops. Very useful. I even gave one of these lists away to a fellow traveller at the end of the tour who was staying in Rome for an extra few days.

Anyway, we made our way down to the underground and there was our first train waiting. Stacey stopped and turned to stare at me. She looked worried –‘Is it safe to use this,’ she asked in disgust. I laughed. I was prepared for the Italian rail system. I knew graffiti covered the trains, but Stacey was horrified. After reassuring her no harm would happen to us, we jumped on Linea B to the Colosseo stop.

Our first undertaking in Rome was the ancient centre. The train brought you over the road from the first century AD Colosseum. The atmosphere - incredible. Thousands of tourists surrounded the amphitheatre and many stallholders selling their wares. Crossing the road, we sighed and turned our backs on the Colosseum. Today we would not explore this mighty structure – Insight would take us there in a couple of days. Today our mission was the Forum.

It cost around 12 euro each to get in. This also enabled you entry into the Colosseum and Palatine as well. The queue moved very fast and after 10 minutes, we had our two tickets.
We explored the Forum and its ancient landscape for two and half hours.
Next time I would use a guide. Even with a travel book, we still didn’t know what all the sites were.

After our enjoyable ramble through the Forum and Palatine, we decided to get some lunch. Earlier, we had noticed many outdoor cafes with great vistas of the Colosseum. This is where we wanted to have our first meal in Italy. Walking back to the Colosseum, we crossed the road where we began our remarkable journey just over two and half hours ago - the entrance to the metro. These quaint cafes were now overflowing with tourists, so we did what the Italians do. We brought our lunch inside at a bar. Our meal was much cheaper than if we had parked our butts on one of those chairs. We crossed the road and sat on a ledge beside the Colosseum, and ate what we had brought. Allora, what a view! I had a panino with tomato and mozzarella. A bread roll never tasted as delicious at that moment. Grazing up at the Colosseum, I moaned. I was having lunch 6 feet away from the Colosseum. How incredible is that? After satisfying our stomachs, we took a leisurely stroll around the Colosseum.

Next on our agenda was the Spanish steps and Trevi fountain. We used our feet this time. There were countless signs pointing to all the major tourist attractions. I can’t remember if these signs showed the distance but it was easy and by using our feet we saw a great deal more than if we were riding in a stuffy train.

On our way, we spotted some extraordinary sights, a few we even recognized. We walked passed busy Piazza Venezia, one of Rome’s major traffic junctions and admired the gigantic monument to Vittorio Emanuele 11 – ‘the wedding cake’ or ‘the typewriter’ as the Romans have nicknamed it. A striking monument, that can be glimpsed from nearly everywhere in the city of Rome.

While planning this trip to Italy, I often daydreamed about three locations in Rome that I wanted to visit. I would always picture myself enjoying a Gelato while people watching and soaking up the delightful atmosphere. These three locations are:
 Trevi fountain
 Pantheon
 Piazza Navona
My wish came true in one of these places today.

Trevi Fountain- Rome’s largest and most famous fountain is staggering. One minute you are strolling along a tiny alley and suddenly you can hear the sound of spilling water. Seconds later, you step into Piazza di Trevi. Allora, I wanted to pinch myself that I really was there. It is staggering. I actually believe that this sight was the first vision in Rome that had me catching my breathe – Once again I was ecstatic like a child on Christmas morning. Trevi was beautiful but crowded. I couldn’t believe how large the fountain is compared to the size of the square. Piazza di Trevi is actually a small but beautiful square that is overshadowed by Trevi fountain. We brought a gelato and just stood there enjoying our surroundings - so much going on around us.

With sadness, I said goodbye to Trevi and told her I would be back again very soon. Leaving Piazza di Trevi we made our way to Piazza di Spagna – the most famous square in Rome. I love how the word Piazza sounds. Piazza, Piazza, Piazza, would often roll off my tongue as we walked along. Could not help myself and got a few weird looks from Stacey. The Italian language certainly sounds lovely to the ear.

While admiring the Spanish Steps and Fontana della Baraccia at the foot of the Spanish Steps we looked up at the Trinita dei Monti church. It was on our list to visit. However, we had been travelling all night to get to Rome and both Stacey and I were exhausted. Did we need to climb these steps today? No, they could wait until we came back on our last day in Italy. This was a big mistake. When we returned to the Spanish Steps, it was raining. The clouds were black and heavy and thunder mixed with the familiar sounds of Rome. On that last day, we still had to throw our coins into Trevi fountain and have one last meal at Piazza Navona.

I knew while planning our trip to Italy that the few days in Rome we had would not allow us to visit everything. Therefore, we concentrated on a few sights such as the Forum. I will go back to Rome, spend at least a week there, and pay a visit to all the sites I haven’t seen and revisit my favourites from this trip. That is a promise I am going to keep.

One thing I noticed - It was impossible to get a good photo of these wonderful monuments without tourists loitering in my pictures. They would hog nearly every photo we took. (Yes, I know, I was one of those tourists). However, later, I do happen to acquire a few pics without the mass of tourists while travelling throughout Italy. But there is a secret to this that my fellow travellers never picked up and I will tell you about later.

Via dei Condotti is at the foot of the Spanish Steps and its name came from the conduits that carried water to the Baths of Agrippa near the Pantheon. This amazing street is lined with shops from Rome’s leading designers such as Gucci, Prada, Armani and Valentino but we did not buy. For one thing, we could not afford their prices and we did not come to Italy to shop for clothes. You can get most of these things back home. You cannot get the history, the architecture or the atmosphere of Rome back home. This is why I was in Rome.

Stacey and I fell in love with Via dei Condotti. The last day in Italy, we walked the whole length of Via dei Condotti arriving at the River Tiber. The wonderful mood of the street had won us over. It was full of activity and the old buildings – allora. My heart had skipped a beat, I wanted to remain here forever but we still had plenty to see and we were tired. We had a small discussion and we both agreed on returning to our hotel. Our first day in Italy was fantastic but we needed to reenergize our bodies. Tomorrow would be an action packed day for us both.

There was a metro stop near Piazza di Spagna. On arriving at the subway, a train was almost ready to leave. It was our train. I had to find my ticket. ‘Hurry up,’ Stacey yelled. Removing my security wallet that I had pinned inside my pants, I frantically searched for my ticket as Stacey was urging me to hurry. Finally, I found it and as we rushed for the train, I stuffed my wallet inside my small shoulder bag. This was a big slip-up on my part. Please never do this. We caught a Linea A train back to Termini.

We got off at Termini and walked to a small supermarket opposite the hotel. Bottled water in Rome was costing us 3euro that is around $5.50 Australian money. I had visions of filling up my water bottle at the fountains in Rome, but before we left our travel agent warned us not to. He didn’t want us to get any upset tummy’s while touring. This warning stuck in Stacey’s mind and she would not allow me to drink from the fountains, so water we must buy. The way I drink water, it would cost us a small fortune so our idea was to buy water at a supermarket. The price was 30cents – much more acceptable. We found bottles of coke were also cheap. Stacey and I brought water, some rolls, cheese, ham, grapes and bananas and decided to have a small picnic in our room before retiring for the night. It was now 5.30pm.

After our adequate meal, the next task was to transfer our 169 photos we took today onto our laptop. We had also brought quite a few USB sticks to download all the photos onto as well. Therefore, we had two forms of backup – our laptop and our USB sticks. Now as I emptied my bag, I noticed that my wallet was missing. Beside the security wallet that you connect to your belt pants, I also carried a wallet around my neck. This held my passport and extra money and should have held my spare debit card, but dim-witted me had stored both together that day in my wallet that I was going to use for day-to-day money and one debit card.

Anyway, I searched for my wallet. It had vanished. We now realized a pickpocket had my debit cards and around 200 Euros in cash. Silly me, I had read so much about pickpockets in Italy. I knew that travelling by public transport was one of the major places to loose your wallet. I had been careless. In planning my trip, I had not pictured our first evening in Italy, catching the bus to the police station. First, I rang the bank in Australia and cancelled my debit card. They could not replace my card in Italy, so I rang home and they transferred cash from my account into Stacey’s account. This took three days to come through. At least Stacey’s debit and credit cards were still in our possession. We also rang our travel agent who informed us to report the theft to the police so we could claim our money on our travel insurance.

So we went down to the front desk and asked where the nearest ‘il commissariato di polizia’ - police station was. A 30 minute bus ride took us to the police station were we found no one at the front counter who could understand English. No! this was not what I wanted to hear. I pulled out my trusty Italian phrase book and tried to say ‘Vorrei denunciare il furto di una carta di credito’ - I want to report a stolen credit card. The officer went and spoke to someone who came back and said ‘no English come.’ We followed him upstairs and he pointed to a wooden bench for us to sit on. A few minutes later a very handsome polizia in a grey suit appeared. He tried to speak English but didn’t do to well. I didn’t actually care I just enjoyed watching and listening to him. Gee, the Italian language sounds so sexy when spoken by a good-looking man. We managed to tell him we had cash and cards stolen and needed to sign a form for insurance purposes. He gave me a form and I filled it out and handed it back to him. 70 minutes later, we arrived back to the hotel and were ready for bed. It was now 10pm and we had been up for 34 hours. Allora, we needed sleep. Lights out at 10.15 and we collapsed into bed. I dropped off to sleep thinking of Trevi fountain.

Lesson Number One: Stacey finally put on her money belt and used it diligently while in Italy. Her number one priority was the safekeeping of our money. Before she left Australia, I had given her a money belt and she refused to use it before the theft of my wallet. After all this was her fourth trip overseas. - Ha…ha…ha.

Here are some pictures of our first day in Rome.

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Looking towards the Colosseum. Such raw beauty.

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The Forum

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I loved this statue at the base of Il Vittoriano. The guy on the right appears to be sneaking a quick look at you as you pass. I wonder what he thinks of me.

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A peaceful courtyard - Oh, I could live here.

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Street signs throughout Italy charmed me. Aren’t I easy to please.

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Looking back while walking along Via dei Condotti towards the Spanish steps. It may look busy but later Via dei Condotti will be crammed with many more tourists. Tourists seem to congregate around this beautiful and exciting street.


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Stacey (in pink top – right-hand side of pic) at the Forum. I often took pictures like this. I managed to get either Stacey’s head or the back of her in the pic. As you can see, I am not very good at taking pictures.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: maufr,

Oh Maureen,
I'm so caught up in your tale...brings me right back to Bella Italia. Can't wait for the next installment (but I will!)
Ciao
Sue

Sue the next installment is coming. But won't be as long as this one. I write too much don't I. But as you can see I adored it all and want to tell everyone about my wonderful trip.

Installment One wasn't too long...I enjoyed it all. I took Escapade in Sept.'06 as a retirement present to myself. It was my 6th trip to Italy and I returned in June '07 with my granddaughter. So you're bringing back all kinds of wonderful memories.
Keep it coming!

Maureen,

I am so glad you wrote this, it really adds to my excitement as I count down the days till we leave. On our first trip my husband came very close to having his wallet taken also. He did not want to use the money belt and thought I was being overly cautious about pickpockets. The very first day we arrived in 2006 two gypsies approached him near the Coloseum and one put her arm around him while the other held a newspaper in his face. But he quickly spun around and moved away. He said later it was my warning him that allowed him to react so quickly. After that he wore the money belt, and we already have them ready for our return to Italy next week. I still tease him about his gypsie "girlfriends".

I look forward to reading your next installment.

Kathie

Hi Maureen. I am enjoying your journal very much indeed! My daughter and I are departing for our Italian Escapade adventure in 3 short weeks. Like you, I have been researching obsessively for weeks now.

Your pickpocket mishap was a good warning for us - my daughter is feeling the omnipotence of her age and was refusing to consider a money belt. I will be bringing your tale to her attention.

I am looking forward to your next posts!

Cheers,
Shelley

Hi Maureen, enjoyed your first instalment .... more, more please! and we'll do the same on our return from Romantic European.

Sue How lucky are u to have gone to Italy 6 times. I hope that I get a chance to visit Italy as much as u.

KathieI think I remember reading your tour tale about your pickpocket esp. I am sure you will have a wonderful time in Italy. Wish I was going.

ShelleyPlease tell your daughter to wear her money belt. Stacey was the same as your daughter until mine was stolen. We were very lucky we had another means of getting my money. Will this be your first time in Italy? You will have a wonderful time. I adored my trip. I still think of it almost every day.

Aussie AnnieOh please do. I love to read other tour tales esp. the European ones. At the moment I am reading all I can get on Eqypt as we hope to go their next year.
I have added another two instalments. enjoy.