When in Rome...

It was hard to say good bye to NY and the kids. We had such a great time that I did not want it to end. But the cab showed up and whisked us off to JFK. Mike jokingly said he had kept us in a bubble so we did not see the less desirable neighborhoods. We now know this to be true as our cab ride took us thru the not so nice East side. It was a stark comparison to Central Park’s 5th ave that we had seen the night before.
Our trip to London was uneventful. The seats were great on BA…with individual TV’s and built in head rests…so much for our Rick Steve’s blow up pillows. We were served a full dinner and slept most of the way after that. London was rainy and cold and looked a lot like Seattle. A group of boys sat near us talking in their thick British accents…they had a great time in NY too, returning to London with Superman t-shirts on and telling their stories…I could listen to them for hours and was wishing we would actually be staying in London. ..maybe next trip.

So many great unexpected surprises with our arrival finally in Italy. Our hotel is fabulous. It was 92 when we landed, and we took an air-conditioned bus to the air-conditioned hotel…thank goodness. I keep thinking of Matt and Sandi in Italy in July with no ac. The room is great…comfy beds, large bath with shower and hair dryer...view of roof top decks and orange buildings and back alleys, scooters and smart cars everywhere…WE ARE IN ITALY…I am still pinching myself. We had been told breakfast would not be good. Ours was great…more then I could want…and free. We had a nice meal near the hotel and hit the bed…exhausted.
Our tour today started on an even NICER bus. There are 17 of us, only a few older then Jim and I and mostly younger or the same age. It is a nice group and we seem to hit it off with everyone. Our tour director is Lidia…she is from the UK and so far we think she is great. She changes the tour on a moment’s notice if she sees something she can work into the schedule. It was a full day today…Coliseum…OH my gosh…so huge. We hope to walk back tonight and see it in the dark all lite up. Then it was off to Vatican City…the museum, the Sistine chapel and St. Peters Basilica. I am so glad I saw the chapel before in my life…it is a true wonder and I am very fascinated to study more about it. There are no words to describe it…except to say I had no idea such a work of art existed. Then the most surprising thing to me was that I cried when I saw the Piata…I have NEVER had a statue move me to tears…it was so emotional. I remember learning about it in school…but this was unexpected. I can only say that you MUST see it in person, as is the same with all of these experiences. I am afraid our pictures will never do any of these sites justice. Many places do not allow pictures so my memory will have to be all I have, and that is not too dependable these days…so I guess I will have to reread my blog…ha!
Our bottle of wine for dinner last night was 20E…($30.00)…we bought one in the market for 3E. A bottle of coke was .85E in the market…it was 4E at the Colliseum….that is about $6.00 for a 20oz bottle of Coke…we about died, but it was too late to give it back. We are learning. You have to be forceful and polite. If you ask for a gelato…they will give you the biggest…most expensive one they have…of course. So now we have learned to confirm the price of something BEFORE we buy it….even then if you say you only want one…they will try to put five in your purse while taking the money out of your hand. I don’t like it but Jim is having fun with it. Tomorrow we are on our own. I love the whole tour thing. You may say it is best to do it on your own….but when I saw the 3 hour line we did NOT have to stand in after pulling up to the front in our air conditioned bus…I became a fan. It is 25.00 a day for the internet here so we may not write again for a few days. Arrivederci!!!!!