Sunday, October 14, 2012

Sunday Salon- Back Home from Italy

 
Well, I don't know if you've noticed, but most of the reviews I published in the last two weeks have been of books from Italy, and that wasn't a coincidence. I didn't want to say anything until I was back home but I've been on vacation for the past two weeks with my husband and his parents, on a whirlwind trip through Florence, Rome and Sorrento. We had an incredible time; it was my first trip to Italy but they all have been several times already. They showed me around to all the sights, and we ate a lot of good food, walked a lot, and spent some great time together. I'll have a post later this week on my literary adventures, but here are some of the other highlights:

The Colosseum, Rome
Exploring ruins like the Colosseum and the Forum in Rome,

The crater of Vesuvius!
and Pompeii near the resort town of Sorrento. We climbed Mount Vesuvius, and

Perseus with Medusa in the Piazza Vecchia, Florence
saw beautiful works of art like the statue of Perseus with the head of Medusa, Michelangelo's David and his Sistine Chapel ceiling, and the Venus of Urbino and other fruits of the Renaissance in the Uffizi Museum of Florence.

Ponte Vecchio, Florence
We shopped, taking in the jewelry of the Ponte Vecchio, the leather shops and markets of Florence, the beautiful pottery of the Bay of Naples and everything Rome had to offer- and Rome has it all, including lots of fun bookstores.

Spaghetti with fresh truffles at Tartufi Nacci, San Miniato, Tuscany
We hunted for truffles in Tuscany and enjoyed a wonderful lunch with what the dog dug up, and ate a lot of fantastic Italian food throughout our visit.

Capri Island, Campagnia
We also got a day to visit Capri Island, which was so much fun and had the most incredible views. Jeff and I studied some Italian in the months leading up to our trip and had lots of occasions to try out our new skills. Italy is quite touristy and while there was seldom a need to speak Italian, it helped a lot to get our bearings and have some basic skills to fish out whether it was strictly needed or not. And sometimes it was! One of my favorite meals came from a highway rest-stop restaurant, not touristy at all and totally chaotic- and I don't think anybody spoke English there! So you never know.

Reading? I brought Don Quixote with me and got about 1/8 of the way through. I am enjoying it thoroughly but this was not a reading vacation. I didn't even read much on the plane since we had lots of options for movies and sometimes I have a hard time concentrating on plane flights. I did buy some books, but more on that later in the week.

Anyway it's good to be back, and I plan to spend today catching up on my reading, writing a blog post or two and buying some groceries. We have almost nothing to eat in the house!

What are you up to today? I hope you have a great Sunday. More Sunday Salon on Facebook.

10 comments:

JoAnn said...

Welcome home - What an amazing trip!! I've never been to Italy, but we hope to visit within the next few years.

bermudaonion said...

Oh wow, what a fabulous trip! It's so much fun to have a non-reading vacation!

Booksnyc said...

Welcome home! What an amazing trip - Italy tops my must visit destinations. Can't wait to hear more about your trip!

Sandy Nawrot said...

No I can imagine one would not be reading on this type of vacation! I've never been to Italy, and all the food and arts and food and architecture and food...it looks wonderful! So welcome back! Can't wait to hear more.

Jenners said...

Welcome home from what looks like an amazing trip! I hope to go to Italy one day … until then, I'll live vicariously through your post1

Alexia561 said...

Sounds like you had a wonderful time! Did you get your pictue taken with the cheesy guys outside the Colosseum? They would NOT take no for an answer! *L*

Anonymous said...

So cool! I would have loved that truffle dog adventure!

Aarti said...

Welcome home! That pasta looks YUMMY :-) Hope you had some excellent wine to accompany it!

Natalie~Coffee and a Book Chick said...

You went at one of the best times of the year! It's much cooler and more conducive to walking extensively, and there aren't the mass of tourists that Italy gets during the summer. It's also so unbelievably hot in Italy during the summer. I've been twice to Italy (the last for my honeymoon in 2009) and would move there in a heartbeat!

So glad you had a fabulous time! The food is just amazing...I now feel the urge to plan another trip soon!

Anonymous said...

I'm so glad that you loved it! Jason and I went to Venice, Florence and Rome in 2008 and I want to get back at some point, probably to explore the southern cities. The food is amazing and you walk so much the damage to the waistline is minimal!