Archive for October, 2007

October 2007

Author: Dar

31 Oct

1 October

We ended up staying in Elba today to get some things done and that way we’ll have a full day to get down the coast. We would have otherwise been ‘pushing’ it to get where we wanted while it was still light out. It’s 7:15 pm here & the lights in the town are already on. I don’t like fall/winter for the short daylight hours . . .

It looks like we may fly into Denver as opposed to Spokane & then drive up. Rick is thinking about letting us use his spare car for a couple months . . . I am hoping to have it all figured out by this coming weekend.

We met some people from San Francisco that showed up here in Elba on their 50′ catamaran. They may come by later tonight for a drink and to talk. He stopped by earlier today to see what we could tell him about the island. He also borrowed our gas adapter for filling propane tanks, which cost me over $110 so I need to get it back! Anyway, always good to get a chance to speak English with a few other people!

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3 October

Will get to Ostia by late afternoon if all goes well. We headed out at 4 am. I’d been awake since 2 am, so finally just decided to head out. Guess I’m getting excited about Rome! We may be able to ask at the Ostia Marina about room today. If that doesn’t work out, we’ll head into the Fiumicino River tomorrow & check there about leaving the boat. If that doesn’t work, then we’ll make the reservation back on Elba. And by doing one of those, we’ll be able to get our plane tickets!

Viva Italia!

4 October

We found a good place to keep the boat when we got to the Fiumicino River yesterday afternoon. (That’s the good news.) The bad news is that we found out we couldn’t get the boat to the spot, as there are bridges you have to go under & we’re 5 feet too tall! So this morning we rode our bikes over to Ostia & asked around. We found a boat yard that will let us keep the boat there & we can get to it!! We can leave it in the water this month, then he’ll pull it out & dry dock it while we’re gone. And it’s no more expensive than in Tunisia! So we are very,very happy.

We will head over there this afternoon. We found a nice guy that let us tie up on the outside part of the Fiumicino River last night for free, so spent the night dockside for a change.

6 October

We visited the ancient town of Ostia Antica yesterday. It originated in the 4th century BC & was once Rome’s principal port. Several centuries later, the Tiber River flooded & changed its course & the town was eventually abandoned. It was only in the last century that they started excavating it. It is unbelievable & very big. We spent the entire day exploring it. It was once a magnificent city, with marble and mosaic tiles on all the floors. A number of the floors have been uncovered & are great. We couldn’t believe how far the place stretched with so many buildings. Some compare it to Pompeii, saying if Pompeii is a 10, Ostia Antica is an 8 or 9. Well, I now need to go see Pompeii!

We went by the train station and got a monthly pass for 30 euros each. So we have unlimited use of the bus, metro & train here & to/in Rome. Will make it really nice & very convenient, besides saving $.

9 October

We’ve spent the last two days exploring Rome. Wow! What a city! It has been added at one of the top spots of my favorite places list. The churches are amazing. So many of them are just so beautiful, be it their architectural aspects, the frescoes painted on the ceilings, the sculptures, or the paintings. I told Robert each one is like touring a museum. We saw several Bernini masterpieces, including three fountains, a couple piazzas (no, not pizzas — what we consider to be a town square), and an entire church of his design. Yesterday we saw the Trevi fountain, which of course is a must see. I found it prettier than any photo I’d ever seen. One of our favorite churches was the Santa Maria Sopra Minerva. Back in 1280, Christian leaders ordained that the foundation of an ancient temple dedicated to Minerva (goddess of wisdom) be reused as the base for Rome’s only Gothic church. They’ve done a fabulous job of having signs everywhere (in English, hurrah!) telling you about each chapel & the artwork, statues & paintings. There had a Michelangelo & two Berninis (or 3?, I forget), all of which were fabulous.

We wandered until after dark, then walked along the edges of the Roman forum and Imperial forum ruins on our way to the metro. It was fun seeing them lighted up at night.

I snatched a couple nights of a hotel online awhile back (SkyAuction, gotta love it), so we’re going to stay in town later this week. Thought we’d take a short boat break and splurge a little. We’re both looking forward to that, although I know Shadow will be a little miffed at being alone. We’re going to stay at the Grand Hotel Parco dei Principi, then another time at the Bernini Bristol. They both look fabulous & we’d never pay the ‘big bucks’ these things cost normally. We’re both excited about the ‘break’ . . .

We’re hoping to get our airline tickets today, so then will know when we’re coming home and for how long. Tentatively we’ll be there for about three months.

10 October

Didn’t manage to get the tickets yesterday. We’re going to an internet place today (have been looking for one for a few days) & try to get this thing done. I will get the ticket ready & then use Skype to call American Airlines & see if the flights will have room for Shadow. It’s not easy getting to the airport from here (well, easy but not cheap), so didn’t go out there. It’s only about 5 miles away, but we’re told they want anywhere from $35-65 for the ride — each way! Heck, I can fly all the way from Rome to Madrid for that! We’d take a bus, but everyone says there’s no easy way to do that. Egads. Anyway, I hope I’ll have better things to report tomorrow.

Speaking of tomorrow, we are heading to town for our first hotel stay. We’ll be there two nights, in town for 3 nights. We will come back to the boat Saturday evening, spend the night, then head back for another two days (one night) at a different hotel. That way I get to check on Shadow in between & provide him a little company. He’s going to be major upset with me for leaving him for days on end, but I know he’ll get over it. The good thing is that it’s not terribly hot during the day & all he does is sleep. He’ll just miss being outside at night; he hangs out in the cockpit & mostly sleeps every night.

14 October

Couldn’t ever get internet while we were staying at the hotel in Rome — well, I could have gotten it there. But they wanted the US equivalent of almost $40 for a day! So I just waited until we got back to the boat to check emails. Anyway, thanks for checking about the cat for us. We aren’t exchanging anything as to the ticket. I had to use one of their phone people to do the reservation as the website messed up. Anyway, when checking my sailmail I see United sent us a confirmation of our ticket. So it’s apparently taken care of now.

I’ll have to take Shadow to the vet (again) to get another health certificate. So stupid. But that’s the way it goes. Will see if I can find one close by here in Ostia. Will wait and do it the last week, just in case they want one within ten days!

We had a great time at the hotel. It was very beautiful, extremely upscale, 500 year old paintings on the walls. The breakfast buffet was included both mornings, so we enjoyed that. The first night, when we got back to the room, there was a bottle of Spumanti wine and a plate of about a dozen different cookies waiting for us. What a neat treat, eh?! Anyway, it was a fun break. Yesterday morning I met a lady & her mom staying there from Steamboat Springs. She had lived in Boulder for 18 years.

We head back tomorrow (Monday) for a night at the Bernini Bristol. Then it’ll be the boat until we get to your place!

Yesterday was one of our best days. We first did the Borghese museum. They have several Bernini statues. The man that owned & built the palace several hundred years ago was the nephew of Pope Pius V (I think — one of the popes, at least). He had several palaces & built this one to put a lot of his art collection. So all of the paintings & statues were the ones he collected. It was absolutely fabulous, not just the collection but the palace as well. They have restored it & it’s practically perfect. Just amazing. They wouldn’t let you take cameras in — had to check them — so I won’t be able to show you photos. But it was so very, very beautiful. We saw a few basicilas/churches in the afternoon, two of which took your breath away. The one they say is second only to St. Peter’s in beauty, and it was great. But another one we both liked just as much if not even more, and it was huge as well. Anyway, it was a perfect day.

Shadow did fine, but was very glad to see us back. He bugged me off and on all night to come and snuggle.

We may head to Rome to do the world’s oldest flea market for awhile this morning. They’ve been having it since the 1600s!

16 October

We’re still in Rome and enjoying the heck out of it. Got back tonight from spending a few nights in town at hotels. We absolutely loved the Parco dei Principi & highly recommend it. But buy it at auction & save on the approx. $700/night USD it’d otherwise cost you! The first night we got back to the room, they had a bottle of sparkling wine & a plate of about a dozen different cookies waiting for us. What a treat! The room also came with breakfast each day, and they had a lavish spread each morning from which to choose. Most recently we stayed at the Bernini Bristol. It was a great location in the Piazza Barberini, with two of Bernini’s fountains to gaze at from our window. But all we got at night was a turn down with a piece of (albeit yummy) chocolate. Anyway, it was fun staying in town awhile & not having to do the ‘commute’ thing each day from the boat.

The weather continues to be fabulous — mid 70s day with mid-50s (I’m guessing) nights. Just about perfect. We did the colosseum, Roman & Imperial forums & Palatine areas yesterday, along with some churches thrown in for fun! Met a group from New Jersey (we did a guided tour on the colosseum) that was fun. We got an archaeological card for 20 euros each that includes 9 sites over 7 days. Today we did the Terme di Diocleziane (not sure of the spelling) and the Palazzo Altemps. Both museums with lots of history and great things to see.

We’re counting down the next two weeks & two days ’til we head back to the good ol’ US of A. Our dollar is at an all time low versus the Euro (and just about everything else, I think), so it will be nice getting home where a dollar is truly a dollar. If the dollar were equal to the euro, where it started when the euro first came out, we’d be fine. But at an exchange nowadays of about $1.50 USD to 1 euro, it really SUCKS!!!! Thanks to our lovely government for making things so good for those of us traveling (hey, it’s my email, so I’m allowed editorial comments!!). Speaking of which, we got caught up with an anti-government rally this past weekend here. Rather interesting & you wouldn’t believe how many people were involved. They had elections on Sunday, so on Saturday staged a huge rally . . .

We saw there is a big Halloween party here in two weeks. That will be our ‘anniversary’ of 19 years, so will do it in style in Rome. I’d say ‘viva la France’ except I’m in Rome. So what do I say . . . Arrividerci & ciao!!

20 October

It’s starting to get cooler here at night; we ran the heater for a little while yesterday & again this morning. Guess it’s getting us ready for coming home!

Will do a palace that’s now a museum, along with one or two archaeological sites, today. They are all part of a card we bought for 9 sites. Will also throw in a couple churches for the sheer ‘awe’ factor. You just can’t believe the detail in church after church after church. Amazing.

22 October

The boatyard informed us yesterday they are pulling our boat out this Wednesday — a week ahead of our request. This means we can’t run the generator (needs water) to heat water for showers & run our heater. Not sure what we’re going to do. The guy said he thinks we should be able to somehow hook up a hose to run it, but RH isn’t so sure. We’ll have to figure something out, as I’m not going without a shower for the next ten days!

25 October

The guy at the boatyard had a big crane coming yesterday to pull out some other big boats, so wanted to pull us at the same time. They did us last, so got us out around 4 pm. We spent a couple hours working on the bottom after that. It had a lot of grass & slime on it which needed to be scrubbed off. It’s always easier when it’s damp & doesn’t get dried on. I fortunately found a cafe (finally) near here with free internet if you buy a drink. So I was able to look online & came across craigslist in Rome with a bunch of ads for rooms. Found a young couple with a big house that rent rooms & worked a deal with them for a week & we can keep Shadow there also. It’s a big room with a small balcony, private bath, & has DSL access. Also has heat & they’ll let us use their kitchen. So it should work out well! It’s gotten cold here & with no bathroom/shower it’s time to leave!!

We will go to the place tomorrow & be there ’til we fly to Denver next Friday. We’ll probably take the train back out here a copule times to do some last bit of work to the boat & get together clothes for the trip, then head in ‘for good’ on the 31st as that’s the day our bus/train/metro pass expires. They are having a Heineken Halloween night in Rome that night, so that might work out! We don’t know anything about it, but have seen signs/billboards literally all over Rome for it.

26 October

We’re going today to the Vatican Museum, which is where the Sistine Chapel is located. It’s open from 10 am to 4:45 pm & we plan to spend the entire day there. Are going early in case there’s a line. I hear the Borgia apartment & Nicholas V chapel, as well as the Raphael rooms, are all awesome as well. No doubt it’ll be an awe inspiring day!

Afterwards we head to our ‘home’ for the next week — with a young couple. Will come back tomorrow for Shadow.

28 October

We are heading back to the US/Canada this coming Friday, so this will be our final report for awhile. We are still in Rome & still enjoying it. The weather has begun to cool & we had a rainy day for most of the day Friday. We thought we’d be ’smart’ & see the Vatican museums since it was rainy. Got up early & headed over, getting there an hour before opening. Well, there was already a line stretching & winding down & around. Guess our idea was one that many people had. Anyway, we decided to skip it for then & instead went & saw some churches & did a walking tour of the Trastavere area. This is where we are now staying — at a condo owned by a young couple that rents out rooms. We went back to the boat yesterday & got Shadow & brought him in. He seems to have developed a urinary tract infection, so I will see about getting him in to a vet on Monday.

We will not have internet access from mid-day Wednesday until Saturday. We are leaving our computer on the boat. Wednesday will be our final day to get the boat ready for the winter & our final packing. We’ll then return to Rome, hopefully spending a casual day on Thursday & then flying out on Friday morning to Denver.

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Archive for October, 2007

October 2007