Italy Suggestions???

[trigeek]

I'm excited, this is the first big vacation with just the two of us. We are going in early April for 8-14 days. We are probably taking backpacks to allow easier movement between cities. Rome is a must, but we have no other ideas. Somethings I would like to do: scooter rentals, see coast line, see history, and taste some wine and good food. What small cities should we visit to check off some of these adventures?

Thanks! Lauren

[Kristie]

We really loved the Lake Como area (northern Italy)...we trained to Varenna, took the ferry to Bellagio which was awesome! they have a great gelato shop there and it's really extremely pretty! Florence was really neat too, i'd say at least stay a day or two in the tuscany area (florence & surrounding) but outside of the city.. cuz you know, cities are cities no matter how historic.

We haven't been any further south than that or east...we heard Venezia (Venice) wasn't really worth it because all the people who live there are subsidized TO live there and they're not so friendly to tourists but that's just what we heard...it's also very expensive there and stinks to high heaven when it's high tide cuz the water there is also the sewer...

beware of guys feeding the pigeons (aka flying rats).. they will trick you into trying to feed the pigeons and/or getting the pigeons to land on you and will absolutely try their hardest to steal your wallet!! those pigeons can be fearce too if there's food anywhere nearby. watch your head but watch those guys the most!! we had lots of them come up to us.

Keep watch out for gypsy's - they will try to steal your crap and make sure you wash your hands a lot because italy is known to doug as "europes very own cuba".. watch your wallet 24/7...less western than the other EU countries. We even saw people taking a bathroom break outdoors in daylight... a little weird feeling knowing that they have restrooms around!

don't use rick steve's italian manual cuz it's nothing close to correct...learn the uses of the word prego.. they use them all the time and have different meanings... make sure you have limonchello as an after dinner drink (it's awesome!!)...

The food is extremely good... eat at Tratorria's, not Ristorante's cuz Ristorante's are more "formal & expensive" whereas Tratorria's are more casual and much cheaper!

I'd say if you stop liking italy and want a change of pace, head to switzerland - interlaken/alp area - absolutely beautiful, serene and peaceful! or head over to the french riviera - monaco, nice, monte carlo...beautiful and relaxing there too...

personally, i don't see myself ever going back to italy except maybe to go to Rome (we haven't been there yet)... i mean, paris can be pretty bad with people pissing in the streets and all the dog poo, but we thought italy was more 3rd world than anywhere we've been so far (probably because they are a pretty poor country)! then again, we were more in the cities (milan/florence) than in the country...the lake como area was a really nice change of pace and it was nothing like the cities and we liked that a ton better!!

oh and another beware - the trains are never on time and they tend to go on strike often (buses and airports too)...watch for the vespa's they WILL run you over! oh and between 12 & 3pm everything (!!) closes for siesta, you won't be able to do a dang thing but eat! dinner is typically *started* around 9pm and can easily last till midnight.

we did meet some very nice people over there, as long as you try speaking the language, they're very helpful!

there are no air conditioners, so it's a good thing your going in early spring.. it'll still be somewhat comfortable.
HTH

[Lurker]

Speaking as someone who has lived in Italy I won't get embroiled in commenting on Kristie's post suffice to say it appears unfortunate that her experience left her with such a negative impression.

I would simply suggest that you look at some of the tour brochures from companies like Cosmos/Globus and follow their suggested itineraries...the usual one (for 2 weeks) goes:

Venice
Florence
Rome
Bay of Naples (extended stay in Sorrento as a base to explore Pompeii/Ercolano/Capri/Positano & Amalfi)

If you want to add to it, you can venture further south and visit Sicily.

Italy is steeped in history, has beautiful architecture and a wonderful culture...yes, it is very different and very hard for outsiders to understand from simply observing and comparing. As with all travel - it is designed to broaden the mind...but of course it can only do that if you have an open mind in the first place. If you want/expect everything to be just like it is at home...stay at home.

Enjoy - Italy is a wonderful country.

[Kristie]

I wouldn't call it necessarily negative (sorry if it seemed that way)...it was different and eye opening but I wouldn't say I didn't enjoy my time over there...I think if I were to go again (we do still have to go to Rome!), i'd stay in the country and see some of the backwoods areas that most tourists probably don't go to! I think that would be way enjoyable and entertaining!

every country is different - that's what i like about traveling.. each experience is different and even if it's drastically different from home (which most places i've been to so far, are not), it teaches you something and opens your mind a bit more than it was the day before! Italy was really cool in that regard because I learned a lot more there than any of the other EU countries...france/germany/switzerland etc were more similar and comparable to "home" than italy is/was! either way, your still gonna have a good time and come back with memories galore!! no doubt about it!

[skibum515]

looks like i'm just going to be missing you lauren! I get to Rome on May1. A fun cool city to check out is Trieste in the north east corner of the country. it's a cool city, and a stone's throw away from slovenia. There's a lot of history there and it's right on the coast.