EUROPE – where the Heck is mom

PM The Gothic Quarter

'26 Barcelona, Spain / April 13, 2026

Above, you know I like this stuff on the walls but we have been seeing such gorgeous walls, I get it why it doesn’t appeal to everyone.

We walked in a bit of a daze from the bus station where the Monserrat tour dropped us, in search of the Gothic Quarter. We headed out in the direction our guide from the tour pointed – go that way to find the Gothic Quarter. We tried.

We tried to go in the correct direction but first we came upon the totally engaging Parc de la Ciutadella and wandered through losing our orientation but wow, right, quite the thing to stumble upon with their Arc de Triumph at one of the many exits. This isn’t the Arc btw, I got a picture from the HoHo on day two.

I was trying to guide us to the Catedral de Barcelona without much success although we did eventually spot it in the distance and were able to zigzag our way to the Placa de Sant Iu. Below you can see there was still some light on the walls, fast disappearing. The streets in the Gothic Quarter mostly look like this, without a clear turn anywhere.

The balconies and the floor to ceiling windows are so appealing.

Remember the churros and chocolate from before – it’s everywhere.

Still in search of the Catedral.

Here she is.

And then I tried to lead us to a particular restaurant. The gps kept changing her mind, go this way, no, turn around, no turn left not right, etc etc. I gave up so Lill and Marita both tried as we wandered back and forth through the Quarter until we all gave up. If you look at the map above you can see how the gps was always trying to find a ‘better’ route.

Let me buy us a TAXI! So we found a real street and hopped in. Through this whole trip, once finding a street with cars, we never had to wait even one minute for a taxi. The taxi dropped us off at another pedestrian area but at least there was only a couple ways to get to the restaurant from there.

You can see the restaurant on the map – L’Antic Bocoi del Gótic. It specialized in Catalan cuisine and we enjoyed having something different and delicious. Here are a couple of the choices we shared and there were a couple more. It was delightful.

Lill took this picture as we were leaving.

Back on the street, we walked home and I went in the apartment to put up my feet (having topped 15,000 steps already…) while Lill and Marita went in search of another bottle of wine like the one we drank at the restaurant. In the course of the week we all became fans of the local Rioja.

This is how we drink wine at the apartment. We each have a favorite style of glass different from the others eliminating confusion.

This was our Bon Voyage evening as Lill and Marita would be heading back to Sweden in the next day, and that next day I would do absolutely nothing, then move on to Madrid.

AM The Abbey At Santa Maria de Montserrat

'26 Barcelona, Spain / April 13, 2026

Above is the Basilica, and below is an internet aerial of the Abbey complex.

We took a tour by bus from Barcelona. Part of the tour is a cog train ride up the mountain to the Abbey complex which includes “the Basilica (home to the Black Madonna), the 11th-century Santa Maria monastery, the Escolania boys’ choir school, and the Art Museum of Montserrat. Other key structures include apartments, a hotel, a library, and other visitor facilities such as restaurants, a tourist office, and two cable cars.”

Montserrat means jagged or serrated mountain, derived from the Latin mons serratus.

Facing the Basilica.

A close-up of the Basilica entry.

The Black Madonna. You can see her prime position in the Basilica above the altar in the first picture.

We all were taken by these historic lamps.

The plaza where you disembark the train.

Notice that red square in the upper right. You can’t see it but there’s a cross out there. Lill and Marita did the hike while I did not do the hike but went to the easily accessed Montserrat Art Museum instead.

At the museum there was a wrap-around greeting mural that featured, as well as many others, the two pictures I picked out as two of the three I was most glad to see.

She’s by Ramon Casas (1866-1932) Madeleine 1892 and he’s by Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (1571-1610) Penitent Saint Jerome 1605.

And this is by Pablo Ruiz Picasso (1881-1973) The old fisherman 1895. He was fourteen when he painted this picture. Fourteen. He was 56 when he painted Guernica.

“The Black Madonna (La Moreneta) is housed in the Chapel of the Virgin (or Cambril de la Mare de Déu), located behind the main altar. This elevated, ornately decorated room is accessed from within the basilica, allowing pilgrims to visit her throne. The original 12th-century statue rests in a specialized silver altar.”

St George, the patron saint of Catalonia.

And here she is. You can touch her hand and the orb she holds. There’s an attendant at hand to keep the line moving.

I don’t remember why or where this was…

…or this either.

Leaving the Chapel of the Virgin you come to this place and of course we lit a candle and made a wish.

A view from the top, look at all those bridges.

We haven’t seen so much evidence of Spring but this guy was yelling for a picture.

PM Harbor Cruise And Park Güell

'26 Barcelona, Spain / April 12, 2026

The harbor cruise wasn’t much to speak of, 30 minutes out and 30 minutes back in very choppy waves, but what was interesting was the flotilla of sailboats heading out to run all the way to Gaza. It’s called the Global Sumud Flotilla. I read that they were delayed by the bad weather we were experiencing that day but that they did leave the next day and are still enroute.

This picture is mine. We thought they were going to block the entrance to the harbor before we got ashore and looked it up.

And this one is from the internet.

I can’t resist any view that includes La Sagrada Familia.

We enjoyed another tapas meal. You get much smaller servings when you’re having tapas in a bar but these restaurant servings are most generous, enough for us all to share.

Park Güell.

This is my last visit to a Gaudí masterpiece and I want to note that in all these place with the 10s of 1000s of tiles, not a single one was broken. I am so impressed by the tender care Barcelona is showing for these places of drama and beauty.

This lizard greets visitors…

…and everyone wants their picture with him.. even us!

It started to seriously rain just as we were leaving and by the time we got all kitted up with these ponchos Lill bought, it had pretty much stopped. We were so cute, walking the several blocks downhill to get a taxi, that little kids pointed us out to their parents.

The view out our balcony.

AM Casa Batlló By Gaudí

'26 Barcelona, Spain / April 12, 2026

We had early morning tickets for admission and it was fantastic.

This is one of the UNESCO buildings and there is so much to say about it, if you’re interested I’m going to suggest you can read the Wikipedia article and google around for more information. If you’re ever in Barcelona you won’t want to miss it.

I wonder if this room is part of Gaudí’s original design.

Exit through the gift shop.

Paella, La Pedrera, Flamenco, And Shopping

'26 Barcelona, Spain / April 11, 2026

Lill and Marita went shopping this morning while I don’t remember what I did, probably just messed with my pictures.

Every morning either Lill or Marita go to the corner and bring back fresh bread and rolls and croissant for breakfast to complement this delicious spread we’ve kept in the fridge. Who’s going to bring me fresh bread when I go home?!

The view out my bedroom window, the best view in the apartment. Notice the bench by the tree with a sleeping man, that is actually a sculpture. We have plenty of windows and the light is fine but the view is mostly of the building across the alley.

Here are some pictures from our walk to lunch. I’m writing this after our last day here in Barcelona and you Would Not Believe how much walking I have managed, and double that for the other two. Our location was perfect for walking. In every direction we could find fantastic sights.

We chose this specialty paella place and everything we ordered was delicious.

We had extra time before the Flamenco show so we walked a couple blocks to La Pedrera (I wrote about it yesterday too) where a tout out in front lured us in with offers of a discount and we might have done it anyway.

Isn’t it cool how the painting on the ceiling flows into the trees at the window. The picture at the top is from here too.

Up on the roof.

OLÉ.

It got windy on the way home, and it was threatening rain.

HoHo And Sant Pau

'26 Barcelona, Spain / April 10, 2026

A ride around town on the view deck of a HoHo bus is a nice get-acquainted opportunity.

Another HoHo making its way around the routes. There were many busses available and we have no complaints. We Hopped Off several times and the Hop On part went easily without much waiting.

I would often scan the horizon for La Sagrada Familia that appeared regularly, soaring above all else.

I asked her to please stand by the sign and look really sad. So she did this.

We Hopped Off to visit Park Güell which took a long slog up up up from the bus stop. Of course we should have known better than go up to this top-rated attraction without tickets. So right then we bought tickets for another day and decided to go back one stop to visit Sant Pau, a place that was not even on our radar.

“Sant Pau Recinte Modernista is the largest Art Nouveau complex in the world and one of Barcelona’s most stunning architectural hidden gems. Designed by architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner, it served as a fully functioning hospital for nearly a century (1930–2009) before being restored as a museum and knowledge campus.

“Unlike sterile modern hospitals, Sant Pau was designed as a “city within a city” with 12 (of an original 27) pavilions set in lush gardens. The architect believed that beauty and nature were essential for healing patients.”

A model of the original campus.

“He’s the renowned Catalan architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner, a key figure in the Modernisme movement and best known for designing masterpieces such as the Palau de la Música Catalana and the Hospital de Sant Pau in Barcelona.”

This was one of the spots where we could transfer from the Green line to the Orange so we got off and decided to take a break.

“Casa Milá, popularly known as La Pedrera (“The Quarry”), is a renouwned UNESCO World Heritage site designed by Antoni Gaudí between 1906 and 1912. It is famous for its undulating stone façade, seaweed-like iron balconies, and a fantastical rooftop with sculptural chimneys. It was Gaudí’s last civil work.”

We enjoyed lunch in the restaurant of this building..

..Marita and Lill having their first chocolate con churros.

We rode the entire route of both the Green and the Orange HoHo lines. It was good fun!

Just outside our apartment.

Lill’s pharmacy. Hummm, what would be good for tonight?

MORE La Sagrada Familia

'26 Barcelona, Spain / April 9, 2026

Lill and I flew all night arriving in Copehagen around 2:30p on the 8th. We took the train for about an hour to Eslov where Marita pick us up. We had a lovely dinner with Per, a good sleep, and in the morning took the one hour train back to Copenhagen where the three of us then flew to Barcelona. The plane was due to land around 2:00p and we were due to get a taxi, stop off at our apartment, and then hustle over to be at La Sagrada Familia at 4. This was cutting it close especially because we got distracted by the need to eat tapas.

So we were a little late for our ticket time but it was not a problem, everything went very smoothly and we spent the next few hours gaping at the views.

I think they did a good job with the tours. Everyone had a headset and the guides spoke quietly so the place wasn’t 1/2 as noisy as it could have been under different circumstances.

I took a pass on visiting the tower. There was a lift up but you had to walk 500 steps down, not so great for me. Lill and Marita enjoyed it.

We got back to unpack and Lill went off in search of food for breakfast. Everything worked out. I hoovered a bag of potato chips and slept for several hours before waking up to stare at the ceiling until morning.

La Sagrada Familia In Barcelona Spain

'26 Barcelona, Spain / April 9, 2026

I still don’t have time and/or energy to finish anything more but all is well! Much More soon😊

Duomo Di Amalfi And Views

'23 Oct: Amalfi / October 3, 2023

Our destination, built in the 1200s, was the cemetery with the panoramic views. We only got this far since the cemetery was closed, but the view was still quite grand.

The fleet of tour boats returning.

It’s hard to picture since the harbor looks small and shallow but from Britannica: “Although it was known in the 4th century, Amalfi was of little importance until the mid-6th century under the Byzantines. As one of the first Italian maritime republics in the 9th century, it rivaled Pisa, Genoa, Venice, and Gaeta as a naval power in trade with the East.”

There is a magnificent medieval cathedral that dominates the skyline and included among it’s claims to fame are relics of St Andrew. This picture doesn’t show the bell tower but you can see it in the city-scapes above.

Our street in the early hours. This was our last day and we went home early to get clean and pack up for the long long journey home.

Eating Out Twice In Amalfi Town

'23 Oct: Amalfi / October 2, 2023

For an early lunch we walked out of town and chose this quiet place with a dog being King of the Patio. The food was delightful as were the owner and the service staff and particularly the dog,

We were heading out of town and up the hill to have a tour of the Museo della Carta, the Paper Museum in Amalfi, the number 2 attraction after the Cathedral. We loved it!

Our group, the leftmost guy being the tour guide who was fun and informative. We started out just four of us and the rest joined later.

And of course, Exit Through the Gift Shop where they had a ton of cool hand-made paper, and products to use with the really lovely paper designs, shapes, purposes.

We wanted to see about the Lemon Experience but once there we found they were closed, so we headed back and along the way… and you can see how these look like the opening scenes of sailing into Sorrento, Positano, and Amalfi.

We went home for a rest and then out for dinner at the fancy place just across the walk-street and up the alley from where we were staying.

Look up!

I (quietly!) asked the waiter to put a candle in our dessert, which they did, and it was a festive and delicious Last Birthday Event of the trip.

Arrivederci Naples e Caio Amalfi Town

'23 Oct: Amalfi / October 1, 2023

Our last chance in Naples to say “we should look that up”.

Heading down from town our landlord sent a taxi to take us and our luggage to the ferry, but no, Naples was running a Marathon and we had to get out and walk the last bit, but no problem, we had plenty of time and it was fun to zig-zag along the route.

We visited Sorrento previously on a day trip, first stop on the ferry up the Amalfi Coast.

We had so many ideas for our time here and then we decided, heck, we’re tired and this place here in Amalfi Town is great. So no, we didn’t go to any of your favorite places. “Oh no you didn’t go here” “Oh no you didn’t go there.” No, we did not, and we’re entirely happy, so in the words of our Sir Paul McCartney, let it be!

Here come several pictures on our way to Positano. In Positano 4/5ths of the passengers got off which was amazing, we could stretch and breathe.

Catch the view of the church dome and then you can follow as the ferry gets closer and then moves away.

Check out the path leading from the large white building to the beach, and you can see the road too.

We didn’t get this view from the ferry – entering the port of Amalfi Town (the internet: Geographical Cure).

First day’s lunch. Mine was very good (anchovies with fennel and orange and house red), Windy’s less so (cheese ravioli).

More to come! I’m home now and to-dos are piling up!

Signore Italiane Di Barbie

'23 Sep: Naples / September 30, 2023

A walking tour highlight, Barbies! May I have a picture? Certo!

This morning I went for the postponed Street Art walking tour. I will say that I was surprised by the paucity of street art featured and also surprised by how interesting the tour was anyway, and how wonderfully comfortable with only me and a lovely couple from Liverpool. The guide, in the center of the picture below, was as cute as he looks.

Are you tired of the Naples football victory yet? I can assure you unequivocally that the Napolitanos are not.

This was one of the art pieces about guess who, you guessed right, Diego Maradona. The paintings have a political statement but the figure of Diego shows him ‘with legs apart’, the name of a beverage he created by adding baking soda to lemonade you can make it fizz so hard you have to step back with your legs apart so as not to get soaked. The cart just opposite the mural is selling that exact drink.

So we wonder, of course the picture favors the cart operator, and the cart operator adds a bit of local color for the tour groups that swarm over this street. One of us said sure let me give it a try, and indeed, she ended up ‘with legs apart’!

I needed to pee so I ducked into a bar that looked promising and asked for for the toilet. There were three guys in there and we started making jokes, I don’t remember the topic, but they let me use the toilet and then I ordered a grappa and took a picture. These interludes are just the best.

I forget this guy’s story but for sure he is 100% on the Napoli side.

A couple more pictures from the tour. I liked this street with the fruit stand at the turn. As I learned from the guide, the street I’m standing on is for sure not in the Spanish Quarter because the street is too wide and the buildings too new. On the right is another family shrine and memorial. They all have a story.

I met up with the tour in the Spanish Quarter by taking the Metro over from our part of town, the Porto neighborhood. All the Metro stations have been fine, ordinary subways, until I got off at Toledo station. It was cool.

After the tour Windy and I identified a few places we’d like to check out as this is our last day, and we’re off. First, remarkably, we hadn’t seen the Cathedral yet and when we got there, oh my, there was quite the hoopla. Come to learn that there was a celebrity wedding (“Jan Fabre a Belgian multidisciplinary artist, playwright, stage director, choreographer and designer, age 64”) was marrying his Italian girlfriend, age 40. Jan Fabre was also recently convicted of sexual harassment and indecent assault – you can read about it here in Art News. He was given an 18 month suspended sentence and it seems it’s about now that the 18 months would be over.

I can’t remember the brides name, or find it on the internet…I got all this from one of the attendees who seemed in the mood to chat while everyone waited endlessly for the bride to appear. It was so much fun. And btw they did the service in English, that being their common language, so that was fun too. We stayed long enough to get a taste for it and then quietly slipped out the back.

The place was swarming with paparazzi but I have yet to find a single photo online so we’ll have to use mine. You can’t really see the bride and groom because of the photographer standing right behind them.

A couple pictures from the Cathedral. Notice all the densely layered decorations and designs and images. It’s a Lot.

The photos are of people who have recently died.

Yes, Football. The new season has begun and TVs are setup in courtyards and on the walls of bars and even out on the street.

Another “what is this? we should look it up.”

Another church.

We’re off to Amalfi tomorrow. And to bid farewell and grazie to Naples, how cute is this.

Sorrento

'23 Sep: Naples / September 29, 2023

And we’re off! The ferries run often to Capri, Sorrento, Positano, and Amalfi and the port area is busy. Fortunately at least the ferries are separate from the cruise terminal. You can see a huge white block in the middle of this picture below that is the Royal Caribbean’s Symphony of the Seas, not the one with the black hull, or the other white ship you can halfway see.

The Symphony of the Seas can carry over 6,000 passengers and takes 2,200 crew. I don’t know about the other ships but you can just imagine what it’s like in the winding lanes of a small city’s ancient old town with so very many extra people. Venice and Florence = same.

The whole top deck is clamoring for a shot of..

..Vesuvius.

Arriving in Sorrento, the town is built into the hills, and unlike the even more steep Positano, Sorrento has an elevator to take you from sea level up to the top of the cliff.

A view from the edge of the town’s cliff. Even with the inset you can’t see very well. These jetty-breakwater constructions hold rows of deck chairs full of people basking in the sun and having a dip in the sea.

Right at the exit/entrance of the elevator.

Friends, look at the scene below. It’s official for me. September is no longer a viable travel month to visit popular places. It’s hot and too TOO crowded. Even though kids are back in school it’s just too much with the crowds. For example omg cruise ships. They disgorge thousands and thousands who roam the streets in battalions. Now I don’t want to go anywhere if cruise ships are going to be there too.

And the buses, yikes, not here but in Pisa for example, you’d think it was a Disneyland parking lot full of buses. I’m not sorry we went but just a reminder to manage expectations.

We came across a door that led to a room offering to take us on a ‘tour through the history of Sorrento’ so, ok, let’s do that. It was a series of videos, displayed on the wall as you walked down a hall. This was fun, Sofia Loren, and that scene is a recognizable long-ago Sorrento.

The Cathedral Bell Tower. Unfortunately it was closed while we were there.

It was hot, as it has been and will be, and I wanted a break so we decided to find a place to sit in the shade. We thought, why not find a rooftop bar and indeed there was one in easy reach. Windy tried the most well-know beverage around these parts, the Lemoncello Spritz. Her report: now I know. I don’t think she’ll be ordering a Lemoncello Spritz again. The spot was great though, it totally did the trick and we left feeling comfortable and refreshed.

The bar was on top of a hotel. The pool in the first picture belongs to the hotel and is ‘around the corner’ from the bar.

And look who came to join us at the Sky Bar!

On the way back to the pier we passed the bridge to the jetty for the bathers in the sun and sea, who will be enjoying their spot until dark.

Now we’re off to catch the ferry back to Naples and then a nice walk home.

I meant to write something about the Lemons and Inlaid Wood products made here, they are specialties and stores that carry lemon this and that, decorated clothing, lemoncello, fragrances, etc etc etc, and boxes and trays and tables and etc etc etc of elaborate inlaid wood fill the streets. I regret not getting to this elemental feature of Sorrento with some pictures!

What Happens When They Cancel

'23 Sep: Naples / September 28, 2023

In the morning we went out to find the Cloisters in the Santa Chiara church. What wiki says: “The cloister of the Clarisses is known for the unique addition of majolica tiles, added in 1742 by Domenico Antonio Vaccaro in Rococo style. The brash color and floral decoration makes this cloister, with octagonal columns in pergola-like structure, likely unique and would seem to clash with the introspective world of cloistered nuns. The cloister arcades are also decorated by frescoes, now much degraded.”

It was definitely Rococo and brash, and the frescoes degraded but still interesting. They didn’t have the artistry and joy of Fra Angelico’s but then not many do.

The street side of the wall surrounding the church and the cloister was a magnet for the street artists.

We were thinking a break would be nice, a coffee and something to dunk in it. So we ordered café lattes. I winked at the waiter and told him we were bad Italians (you do not drink coffee with milk after breakfast..heathen!). He smiled, so cute, and brought us a gift, one of the biscuits you see here. Oh my goodness fabulously delicious, I had to buy a bag of them. BUT, he said, do not eat them with coffee. You must eat them with beer, in the afternoon, with friends!

I’m really surprised, we didn’t go in. Windy does enjoy a nice charity shop!

It’s been pretty constant, a catch phrase, because everywhere you turn there’s something to look at and one of us will say ‘we’ll have to look that up’ and then neither of us will look it up because by the time we’ve come to the fifth thing we’re going to look up we’ve forgotten the first four.

I had a Street Art Tour booked for this afternoon but the operators contacted me in the morning to say the tour was canceled. Windy was going to get a facial at the massage place. So I rebooked the tour for Saturday morning and Windy went ahead with her facial. Then in the afternoon I finally did the pictures for Pompeii and Herculaneum which made me very happy:)

Tomorrow we’re taking the ferry to Sorrento which should be an adventure!

It Was Supposed To Be (updated)

'23 Sep: Naples / September 27, 2023

It was supposed to be a nothing day, tired as we were. But we decided since we were so tired we might as well get a massage. And if we were walking to the massage place we might as well eat too.

And I finally learned what’s with all the Diego Maradona and the streets draped in flags of the Naples football team. In the 2022-2023 season they, the Napoli team, won the Italian League championship for the first time in 33 years, since way back when Maradona led the team to victory in 1989-1990. Talk about over the moon! This city is Devoted to its football team.

The last time I showed the inset from the picture below I remarked how I thought it was Maradona, God of Naples, but it was actually San Gennaro, Patron Saint of Naples. But from that first angle it didn’t show Maradona was there too, under the umbrella looking an awful lot like San Gennaro after all.

Lunch was good!

Massage was good!

A scene from the street.

Clipped from google maps, the inset shows the square of the Duomo Metro stop. You can tell the four big buildings that surround the square – we are staying in the one closest to the top. Some photos of the buildings follow. We didn’t make as much use of the Metro as we could have but were we to stay longer we would surely feel the benefit.

Speaking of the Metro, the traffic in Naples is overwhelming and they don’t have uber or lyft or any online service that works well, and anyway if you take a taxi you still have to brave the traffic – determined cars and the phalanx of motorbikes that careen around every corner three abreast or race down the narrow old town streets in a line. I think the pedestrians are remarkably tolerant under the circumstances. So we’ve been mostly walking and getting everywhere we want to go watching out for motorbikes and walking carefully on all the uneven stone streets.

The entire square is blocked up with construction to expand the Metro. Our flat is on the 4th floor and magically well insulated. It’s crazy, crack a window on the balcony and the noise is deafening, close the window and it’s silent. Too bad the pictures aren’t better…

Just walking down the street singing ooo-wa diddy diddy dum diddy-do.

(self-portrait)

Pompeii Herculaneum And A Hornet

'23 Sep: Naples / September 26, 2023

Above From Herculaneum

A thing to know that the guide at the museum said 7 times and today’s guide said 12 times – the difference between the excavations at Pompeii and Herculaneum is that Herculaneum was engulfed in lava whereas Pompeii was buried under ash, pumice, and small stones. The lava protected Herculaneum but Pompeii was ravaged by treasure hunters. Of course it’s much more complicated than that!

We took the train from Naples to Pompeii and met the guide at the entrance to the site. The inset shows how Vesuvius looked before the eruption. There is so much conflicting information on the internet and even our two guides had different information.

I’ve been trying to find a good source and as usual wikipedia is pretty reliably updated with the latest research. For example for several hundred years the month of the eruption was believed to be August and now ‘everyone’ is certain it was October. Wiki has 8 long paragraphs telling the whole story yet if you google the date of the Vesuvius eruption you’ll see August all over the place.

So I’m going to let Wikipedia do what it does best and not just copy abstracts of the information you can get better directly, and updated, since I’m sure I won’t be updating this site with all the latest!

It’s a very large site and the guide said 40% of Pompeii is yet to be excavated.

The guide photo-bombed my picture! He was pretty cute though, and entertaining.

Interesting story, they had these at the museum too, how they made these molds of people who had died in the eruption.

Here’s someone else’s picture of the streets in Pompeii. The raised stones are so people can cross the street because the street was basically also the sewer. Those grooves are from the carriages.

An internet picture of the Pompeii archeological site, for some perspective. We were there for two hours and didn’t get through even a half of the streets.

We had a break in Pompeii for lunch and then the guide led us on the train, then the transfer, then the walk to the Herculaneum site which fronts the Bay of Naples. Here’s our first view, much smaller than Pompeii. Everything is in considerably better condition due to the protective lava (how that works? I do not know!). Even wood survived..

..and the fresco work is colorful and the detail visible…

..and the mosaics are AWEsome.

And it was here, at our last stop, that I learned that NO, I was NOT going to get to see the Villa dei Papiri! Oh man, I really wanted to see the Villa dei Papiri. The guide said it wasn’t open for visitors and even he has never seen it. Frommer’s says you can see it, some websites say maybe yes maybe no. Well, for me, it’s NO Not For YOU. Big Fat Bummer!

Remember how I said you could ask anyone in Naples “so, what is it with Diego Maradona?” and get an entertaining response? We went to OUR restaurant for dinner (perfectly FAB) after the long day of touring, and we asked this guy, probably one of the chefs, and he said nothing but thrust out his arm. Diego Maradona was no longer playing in Naples before this guy was even born. And I think the tattoo might be of Che Guevera because Diego has one that looks just like this one, and it’s Che!

Then we finally went home only to discover that Windy’s legs were a festering field of rash brought on by what she is sure was the bite of an Oriental Hornet she saw in Pompeii. I’ll not go on but add that the landlady of the flat where we are staying offered to call us a taxi and accompany us to the hospital. It turned out not to be necessary but how comforting to know she would.

Drum Rollllll Please The 1 1/2 inch Oriental Hornet!

National Archaeological Museum Of Naples

'23 Sep: Naples / September 25, 2023

The Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli, home to most of the treasures available from Pompeii and Herculaneum, Herculaneum being home to the Villa dei Papiri, model for the much enjoyed Getty Villa. I was really looking forward to seeing some originals and there they were, and here are just a couple because, well, they look just like the ones at the Getty.

And here are some floors.

Windy took this one of her favorite, the Farnese Hercules. He’s not at the Getty Villa, we have a different Hercules, but this guy is a very big deal…

We walked there and back – we’ve been walking so much this trip, I can’t imagine keeping it up at home since it’s full-time all-day-long!

If you’re a clean = good, right, godly even kind of person you might well skip a visit to Naples. It feels a little like making the decision to visit India. If you Want to go you’ll have an amazing time but if you’re iffy or on the fence, maybe skip it.

Colorful rent-a-bikes like the city itself.

Welcome To Naples

'23 Sep: Naples / September 24, 2023

We arrived in Naples by train from Florence, settled into our very fancy digs, and then went out for a walk and to look around and to find some food.

In this first picture you can see flags, the largest being of the God of Napoli, Argentine born footballer Diego Maradona. His picture is Everywhere we walked. It was astonishing especially since he hasn’t played for Napoli since 1991, More Than 30 Years Ago. And still, he is everywhere. You can read up on his history if you’re interested. It’s fun to ask people “so, what is it with Diego Maradona?”. We have got such entertaining replies as you will see in coming days.

Here’s another Maradona.

At first I thought this was Maradona too, but no, it’s San Gennaro, patron saint of Naples. You can see the confusion – Patron Saint vs God.

I’m quite over the moon for the street art here, and the intensity of street life is palpable. And this is Day 1. These three-dimensional shrines are on every block too. My eyes are spinning.

We returned to our neighborhood and found what will surely be OUR restaurant. It’s around the corner from the flat. This picture is from the internet because currently the building is covered by scaffolding. Trattoria Fedele. Home Sweet Home.

Everything made fresh. There’s another kitchen too for the pizza and pastry. We knew from the first bite that we would be back.

How excited am I about the street art? How will I choose! There’s even a whole tour of Maradona. Here is just one company offering street art tours and there are many other companies offering tours too:

Look Who’s Here

'23 Sep: Florence / September 23, 2023

Bob and Desda are on a 6 week European work/vacation journey and today was our one overlapping opportunity to hang out together and we made the most of it!

We met here, at the plaza of Santa Maria Novella. We arrived a little early giving Windy the chance for some Shopping.

Once together we all decided to visit the church first.

Doesn’t look like it from the outside but following are a few pictures of the inside. Wikipedia has pages of history.

It seems I was stuck on the apse.

Somewhere else in the church.

The church is famous for their Dominican monks and the 800 year history of the Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella. The shoppers among us were anxious to visit this beloved perfumery. It was crowded, not so much though, shoppers could still shop! The inset is from the internet, one of the several spaces in the store. Nice!

Me and Bob not shopping…

Desda shopping, Bob attending, finding HER fragrance, which sadly could not be said for Windy who did not find The One.

I was gifted with some potions rubbed into my face to make me look Young, young enough for our outing to the BAR!

Then we ate a fun and delicious late lunch on the plaza followed by a stroll to the Duomo area, then on to our place, and then we went to the rooftop BAR, like people much younger. Here are a couple of views.

Giotto’s Bell Tower

Palazzo Vecchio

This is Bob pointing out the best tonic water Of All, and Desda showing us pictures and telling us stories of all the head honchos who were at her wonderfully over-the-top successful seminar in France the previous week.

(self-portrait)

And then it was arrivederci, buon viaggio! We went home to sleep, and the next morning we packed up and were off to the train station for our journey to Naples.

The Other Side

'23 Sep: Florence / September 22, 2023

We wanted to have a walk today on the other side of the river where it’s supposed to be more calm, more locally residential, more authentic. That’s what people who favor The Other Side say anyway. The forecast was 90% for thunderstorms in the afternoon so we wanted to get out there and then back by 2, which we did. And did it rain? Not one drop.

On the way, we passed by the Duomo and I couldn’t contain myself. I see the degree of sharpness is wanting but as an excuse, these are all full-on zoom from a block away. I was enamored of all the layers.

Windy, shopping in the plaza of the Basilica di Santo Spirito.

This is the church, pretty modest by Florentine standards.

Not modest!

Representative corners. Is it quieter here? Yes it is, but still not quiet. Since there are fewer people mostly because the huge tour groups don’t find their way over, cars and motorbikes are more present, and they can, and do, zoom-zoooom along these very narrow streets.

BUT for some reason we missed the area of the Pitti Palace and that’s surely another experience altogether.

Fra Angelico Has His Own Museum

'23 Sep: Florence / September 21, 2023

It’s the Museo del Convento di San Marco and it’s awesome. There are Fra Angelico frescos on every surface including on the walls of the cells of what was once a convent of the Dominican order. Fra Angelico and some assistants made the frescos between 1429-1444. Also there is a chapel on the site where some of the most renowned of Fra Angelico’s paintings are on display. There’s a church in the complex too but you go for the convent and the chapel.

The paintings in the chapel are mighty impressive, including The Last Judgement and a spectacular altar piece.

We took this late afternoon to swing by the San Lorenzo Mercato Centrale for some tasty treats. There’s a big food court on the second floor and mostly groceries and and a few prepared food stands on the first floor. It’s one of those ‘everyone goes here’ places. It’s late on the 24th and I don’t remember now what else we did… maybe nothing because of the big day yesterday?

Dipping A Toe In Tuscany

'23 Sep: Florence / September 20, 2023

We decided ok yes we will do it, we will get on a big blue bus and ride around for 12 or 13 hours, see some countryside and smell a few towns we wouldn’t get to otherwise. The bus was comfortable, the views were good from the top floor, our nearby neighbors were fun, the tour leader was entertaining and informative. We are totally not sorry to have done it and totally are not recommending it for you as there are of course plenty of downsides to traveling around on a BIG Blue Bus.

Our first stop, Siena. We had a local guide who told us the most entertaining stories about the annual horse race that takes place right here, around that plaza above. Six months in the making, the race is over in three laps. It was a total highlight, standing right there in the center of the plaza and hearing this story. You can click on the youtube link below for a nice short documentary on the Palio, a 100s of years old historic tradition.

Copied from britannica.com: “The Palio was first held in 1482 as a civic celebration. The current course was formally established in 1659 and has been held semiannually on July 2 and on August 16 since 1701, except during wartimes. Lasting about a minute, the race consists of three turns around the Piazza del Campo, the main city square.”

Here’s a 9 minute video from the BBC if you’re interested in more of the story of the Palio.

Here are some lingering flags from the last Palio winners still on the main roads.

After the whole horse race experience we went on to the Cathedral. The guide stayed with us for a while and then left us with free time.

The entrance and a close-up of the window that is a big white circle on the left.

I hope I generate the energy to make some pictures from the spectacular floors in that cathedral. Oh my goodness they are most amazing but I was having a problem with the glare.

LUNCH! Surprisingly Fun!!

This was the Ring Master who ran the show like a full on circus. And we all laughed and had an excellent time.

And I do want to mention his catch phrase “more wine for YOU”.

Then on to the hilltop town of San Gimignano.

An internet picture so you can get an overview.

A view from the bottom of the town of San Gimignano before we start the slog up up up.

For our last stop, Pisa, as in The Leaning Tower of… I like the look with other buildings for scale.

There’s a Jewish cemetery here too.

A view from the bus and then home sweet home.

Sooo Much ART

'23 Sep: Florence / September 19, 2023

We spent 5+ hours today looking at some of the most magnificent art of the Italian Renaissance, and More. We toured through the Gallerie dell’Accademia di Firenze and the Gallerie degli Uffizi. It was so much, so very much. Our guide was wonderful, it was a special pleasure to hear her tell of the times, of art history, the whole ball of wax.

I’m going to write very little because if you’re going to come to Florence you’re going to have to look it all up anyway.

So, the Accademia = Michelangelo’s David. There were also rooms of gorgeous golden iconography from the 1200s forward.

The Uffizi is something else again, so huge and so full of pictures you’ve seen all your life. Seeing in person these objects you’ve know for so long, the size, the colors, the intent, it’s a powerful experience. For example our guide led us to the exact spot where you could look straight ahead and see Botticelli’s Spring and turn to the right, BAM, his Birth of Venus. There’s da Vinci, Caravaggio, and more and more.

Here are just a few random pictures.

Our guide talked about all the sculpture here and then led us to the front where we had all the time up-close that anyone wanted.

That’s Ponte Vecchio in the foreground, the covered bridge, from a dirty window at the Uffizi.

The Duomo complex, the Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore. I made this from internet pictures because for me it was impossible to get a sense of scale from the ground.

A street scene.

At the end of this long day of walking, shuffling through the galleries, standing in front of pictures, we hopped a pedicab for the half mile drive home.

We’re In Florence Now

'23 Sep: Florence / September 18, 2023

Above is one of the landmarks of Florence, the Ponte Vecchio Bridge.

The trip from Venice to Florence went easily. We packed and left our flat around 10, walked to the vaporetto stop at Piazza San Marco and rode to the train station.

It was a great ride, all the way up the Grand Canal. We took the ‘local’ instead of the ‘express’ so it would last longer. The train station was easy to navigate, had tasty snacks, and then we had a comfortable 2+ hour ride to Florence. Our accommodation is quite close to the train station so we walked on in to town. Central Florence is pretty small since it seems like everywhere we’ve wanted to go so far is 12 minutes walk away.

Our location is at Piazza di Madonna degli Aldobrandini, and if you ask for Madonna Square you can get here. This is one of the buildings in the square.

And this is the view out my bedroom window, a view to one of the sides of the Basilica di San Lorenzo.

I was a little punk this first day not feeling quite in-the-groove which I hope will improve tomorrow. Oh wait, I know, it came to me while typing this! Our flat has Problems and I was corresponding with the manager off and on all yesterday and today. I have done my best and I’m now going to call upon Stoicism and make the most of what is.

On our first morning we did one of those free walking tours based on giving the guide what you feel is right. The guide was fabulous, the itinerary was tops.

This is what it feels like when a group pulls off into a square. There are probably three groups in here. Fortunately most of the guides use headsets now as ours did, unfortunately some of them still carry around loudspeakers and blast out to world.

Our guide did his tour focusing on the family Medici. It was really good, totally worth the hassle. I think the story he told as we went from place to place will actually stay with me for a while and that’s saying something.

Below is a google map and a cut ‘n paste from the tour’s website to remind me. You’ll probably want to roll on by!

The Basilica di San Lorenzo (Basilica of St Lawrence) is one of the largest churches of Florence, Italy, situated at the centre of the city’s main market district, and the burial place of all the principal members of the Medici family from Cosimo il Vecchio to Cosimo III.
The Palazzo Medici Riccardi was designed for Cosimo de’ Medici, head of the Medici banking family, and was built between 1444 and 1484.
Battistero di San Giovanni The Florence Baptistery, also known as the Baptistery of Saint John stands in both the Piazza del Duomo and the Piazza San Giovanni, across from Florence Cathedral and the Campanile di Giotto. The Baptistery is one of the oldest buildings in the city, constructed between 1059 and 1128 in the Florentine Romanesque style.
Duomo Florence Cathedral, formally the Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore is the cathedral of Florence (Italian: Duomo di Firenze). It was begun in 1296 in the Gothic style to a design of Arnolfo di Cambio. The cathedral complex, in Piazza del Duomo, includes the Baptistery and Giotto’s Campanile. These three buildings are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site covering the historic centre of Florence and are a major tourist attraction of Tuscany.
Campanile di Giotto Giotto’s Campanile is adjacent to the Basilica of Santa Maria del Fiore and the Baptistry of St. John. This tower is one of the showpieces of Florentine Gothic architecture with its design by Giotto, its rich sculptural decorations and its polychrome marble encrustations.
Cupola del Brunelleschi This dome is one of the biggest mystery in art and architecture of every time. It was the largest in the world. It remains the largest brick dome ever constructed.
Museo Casa di Dante Dante Alighieri wrote the Divine Comedy. This book is widely considered the most important poem of the Middle Ages and the greatest literary work in the Italian language.
Piazza della Signoria is an L-shaped square in front of the Palazzo Vecchio. It is the meeting place of Florentines as well as the numerous tourists, located near Palazzo Vecchio and Piazza del Duomo and gateway to Uffizi Gallery.
The Palazzo Vecchio (“Old Palace”) is the town hall of the city. This massive fortress-palace is among the most impressive town halls of Tuscany. Overlooking the square with its copy of Michelangelo’s David statue as well the gallery of statues in the adjacent Loggia dei Lanzi, it is one of the most significant public places in Italy, and it hosts cultural points and museums.
The Uffizi Gallery is an art museum located adjacent to the Piazza della Signoria and it is one of the most important Italian museums and the most visited, it is also one of the largest and best known in the world and holds a collection of priceless works, particularly from the period of the Italian Renaissance. The building of Uffizi complex was begun by Giorgio Vasari in 1560 for Cosimo I de’ Medici so as to accommodate the offices of the Florentine magistrates, hence the name uffizi, “offices”.

After the tour we went for lunch at a place recommended by one of Windy’s friends as her absolute favorite place in Florence. It was perfect in style, atmosphere, and food. It was so perfect we declared it Windy’s Birthday Lunch!

Shared Menu: fresh linguini and local in season porcini so delicious Windy pronounced it the best thing she had ever put in her mouth, a shrimp curry dish which the waiter told us was the sauce for which they were most famous, and a half-carafe of house red. The shrimp curry was ok but it came with a very large crock of chutney so delicious I ate half of it myself.

Cammillo Trattoria

Here’s one little piece of street art outside the restaurant. I’m hopeful for more!

And here’s the full view of the Ponte Vecchio Bridge from up the (crossword puzzle) Arno river.

Last Chance In Venice

'23 Sep: Venice / September 16, 2023

Yesterday, the 15th, I did nothing, not one thing. And it was beautiful.

Today we had a couple of places in mind that seemed easy to get to and easy to enjoy so that’s what we did, which included two meals out. Which reminds me that although we had heard complaints, our experience with the food in Venice has been very good indeed.

The first picture is our view from the café at Ca’ Pesaro where we ate in sweet peace and quiet on a beautiful and spacious patio in big low comfortable padded chairs with views to the Grand Canal. Here’s another picture. We had a seat like that. What a joy!

Street food – fresh coconut and 5 kinds of grapes and more fabulously interesting cicchetti.

This was our first stop to look at 19th and 20th century art at Ca’Pasaro, a Baroque marble palace. This is along the side as the ‘front door’ requires you arrive via the canal.

Here’s wiki’s picture from the front.

Some things I liked:

Awwww spss spss. That’s how they call a cat here.

Then we made our way to Museo di Palazzo Mocenigo. They were supposed to have a perfume thing happening that Windy was interested in but that part was not available. They did have a young Japanese artist who made modern and rather esoteric pieces in cloth and beads that were scattered all around this handsome Palazzo. ‘In 1985, the palazzo was designated as the Museum and Study Centre of the History of Fabrics and Costumes.’

It was Venice Glass Week and there were many specific demonstrations and exhibitions. We didn’t go to any of them but did run across this. The glass art pieces were from Hungary I think and we liked it.

A door was open and a guy was arranging rocks. Art? I asked. Yes! he replied.

To remind me of a coupl’a vaporetto ridin’ fools.

A dead-end flooded walkway. We had our first meal in a restaurant after dark. I know. Either so grown up or so youthful… In any case it was entirely delicious and worth getting home past my bedtime.

Yup, more.

This is a good place to end. That arched walkway under the clock tower will take you to our flat in about 37 flat steps and the 37 steps up the stairs. We constantly heard the clock chime the hour and it was nice. Those two characters on the top actually hit the bell to make the unique sound. And you can also see here the winged lion, symbol of Venice. Once you start to notice, you see them everywhere.

So this is it, we’re off to sleep and then it’ll be arrivederci Venice, caio Florence!

Three Big Deals

'23 Sep: Venice / September 15, 2023

The top picture is from the Peggy Guggenheim Museum and Angelenos will recognize the sculpture from the Getty Center, both cast from the same mold. Windy had to play gate keeper and the woman agreed to cooperate so I could have this photo. I might mention the crowds a few dozen more times…

A visit to the Guggenheim was worth the trip to Venice, that’s how cool it is.

This was a museum worker standing by the window and when I asked could I please, and of course no pressure At All, but could I please have a picture of you with this picture… Sure!

Who doesn’t like a Picasso they’ve never seen before hung behind a Calder they’ve never seen before?

Glass sculpture in a glass town.

A retrospective of Edmondo Bacci’s work ‘primarily on the 1950s, the most lyrical and creative period of the artist’s career.’

I didn’t take any pictures in the exhibit except the one below. You can look him up here in the Guggenheim website.

From the garden.

Polished stone produced this upside down image.

It was a Big Deal Day, two out of the three being absolute highlights.

I’ll tell about the least of them next, the Accademia (Gallerie dell’Accademia). We called it the Museum of Suffering Humanity. The art is mostly pre-1800s religious paintings by all the big names – Titian, Bellini, Tintoretto, even a couple Bosch who is always happy to stick a few forks in your eye.

Getting around and having some food before we hit the big one, The Basilica of San Marco/St Mark’s Cathedral for a guided tour.

Sights along the Grand Canal.

Flags of the EU, Italy, and Venice.

Gondolas are only for the tourists. Our guide said, ‘only for You’. Even the taxis (the power boats you see on the canal) are for tourists. Local people ride the vaporetto or walk.

What tourists do when they’ve escaped the raging river of tourists.

FOOD. This is where we stopped for a morning break, coffee and a yummy omelet we shared and a sample cicchetti.

Now for the Basilica! Not my picture of the inside and not my picture of the outside either. Here you can actually see the scene without the wall of people and major construction projects to block the view.

Now come my pictures. Even in the pictures it’s pretty eye-popping so you can just imagine IRL.

Our Guide.

And to end our day on the long awaited panna cotta that was indeed heavenly.

A View And Murano

'23 Sep: Venice / September 14, 2023

We made our way over to an upscale shopping block called T Fondaco dei Tedeschi where, if you made a reservation weeks in advance, you could spend 15 minutes on their roof. We did, and it was great and more than worth its cost of nothing!

Above is the magnificent Basilica of San Marco/St Mark’s Cathedral and below their promotional photo and Windy’s picture.

This was the day I ate PIZZA and played hide and seek with a little kid who wanted to get under the table and Windy visited with a couple from Texas who were sitting next to us.

On our way to the views… snaps from the vaporetto.

Weird coloring between these two pictures. Both of them off.

From there, very near the Rialto Bridge, we wandered our way to the vaporetto stop that would take us to Murano, the great glass making center of Venice.

What used to be all glass warehouses and factories.

It was crushingly hot and I decided to call it, and enjoyed a liter of water and a side of veg, not really hungry because of the PIZZA. I shared the patio/restaurant with the pigeons. Windy went on to the museum which she reported was very interesting.

Everyone was hot, some of us got a fan!

We happened to luck into a great demonstration.

One of the rare times we got a seat outside.

Usually all the seats are taken and we stand outside in the open middle because the breeze is so nice.

(self-portrait)

So Much Walking

'23 Sep: Venice / September 12, 2023

Venice is made for walking but after hour after hour, I reached my walking limit. Hey, let’s do what everyone else does and ride the vaporetto. We are now vaporetto-ridin’ fools!

Below are maps of 2 of the many lines. It’s not particularly fast and it’s not particularly comfortable but they surely save you some steps!

You can see one here.

Our first destination was the Rialto Bridge and on the way we ran into the morning commercial tasks such as restocking and sanitation.

And gathering up the tourists.

Ah, yes, just like the pictures…

..and offers the classic Venice view of and from the Rialto Bridge.

Some sites on the way to the Basilica di Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari.

We weren’t much taken with the Basilica except they did have a couple of Titian’s works. We didn’t stay long but rather moved along to LUNCH.

We asked the woman who picked us up at the airport what was her favorite restaurant. And we went there! It was pretty good, a nice homey place specializing in fish. I got sardines and onions. YUM.

This picture reminded me of lunch…

We came back to Piazza San Marco for our visit to The Doge’s Palace and the Bridge of Sighs. I thought the displays were very well done and I came out of it with a feeling for the era of the Doge. Now is a good time I think to read the wikipedia article.

This is inside the palace walls.

Gobsmacked.

Room..

..after room of this.

You have to go through the whole HUGE palace and then you can walk across The Bride of Sighs and into the jails. This is the Bridge of Sighs from outside.

In the square, I forget right now where it leads.

We staggered our way home and made a tasty and well-balanced meal out of scraps in the refrigerator.

Piazza San Marco And Surrounds

'23 Sep: Venice / September 12, 2023

Plusses and Minuses. We live right off Piazza San Marco, it’s down a small street that is always packed, and then it’s a quick turn into a dark narrow alley between buildings large enough for one person to walk, and we’ve never seen another person there, which enters into a small courtyard where we find the hidden door to our flat. We rarely hear street noise but walk for 10 seconds and BAM you are in the river of people with no choice but to sidle yourself into that river.

We enjoyed the Correr Museum today and with the entrance you also have access to the Archeological Museum and the Marciana National Library. These three museums face St. Mark Square and are connected to each other. We spent a couple hours in the morning, had some lunch at the Museum Café so we could go back in and finish looking around. With the inexpensive Museum Pass you can go to all the civic museums anytime you want, skip the line, but only once.

It’s not one of the most popular museums, for 5 seconds we even had the whole ballroom to ourselves, but it is very well regarded.

The rest of these pictures are not in a particular order from the three museums, they’re just things I happen to like, like globes! These things were amazing, and featured in several of the rooms showing what the world was like in that particular era, this being two of them.

The one on the left was a huge painting with about 15 major characters and all of a sudden that little guy on the upper right poked my eye with a stick. The cards are a very old tarot deck, tarot having first been known in Italy in the 1400s.

The old and the new.

You can see these figures from the back and from the front reflected in the mirror. I forget their story but they are quite lovely.

Following are some pictures from a walk to the market, and the end of our first day in Venice.

We Made It

'23 Sep: Venice / September 11, 2023

After a long loong time, and one does lose track of time when traveling long distances, we made it, Venice, Italy. Just like the movies.

Our flight wasn’t until 5pm on the 9th, which means being up all day fussing around, feeling very civilized. From getting dropped off at the airport (thanks Lucas) to sitting at the gate in LAX = 7 (SEVEN) minutes. We had boarding passes, TSA-Pre, and no luggage to check. We never stopped walking! And the BA flight LAX-Heathrow was surprisingly Just Fine. The connection in Heathrow was less delightful, we were a little tired for lines, and by then we’d been awake for so long, all through our ‘night’, then we had to look forward to a 5 hour layover, a 3 hour flight, and a water taxi transfer into town.

In the Venice International Airport (called Marco Polo, I always say it twice), the below is a picture of the floor outside the ladies room.

We pre-booked the transfer from the airport to town. We got a water taxi, known in Venice as a taxi, and the ride was our first highlight of the trip. The woman picked us at the gate and escorted us to the docks where our boat and driver were waiting. They were charming, helpful, and informative.

Here come some more pictures of the ride.

By now it’s 11pm and the band in Piazza San Marco plays on!

We hauled our bags up those many steep and narrow stairs (that’s Windy at the tippy-top)… It feels like mountain climbing… Who put those bricks in my backpack?

The view from one of our bedroom windows. Today, the 10th was Windy’s birthday although we didn’t do much of a celebratory nature since we spent the whole time getting from one place to another. We will have to declare some other day her birthday!

Good Day Sunshine

'22 Sep: Interlaken and Zermatt, Switzerland / October 2, 2022

Yup, it’s 7am and the day breaks bright, and fresh, and clear, and DRY.

From my room, the Matterhorn is behind me.

There are a few ways to get to Matterhorn view points and the highest was closed due to wind. I took the route recommend at the ticket counter as an alternative and it was plenty high for me.

The clouds come and go so quickly I’m just as glad not to be in a gondola hurling side to side over 1,000s of feet deep chasms.

Having a stroll. There are plenty of other views from other sides but I am Happy happy Joy joy.

Looking around. All these lifts are for skiers in the winter even up to the 12,000 foot mark.

Everything was closed until the skiers are back.

Wow, lucky dog me. I’m all packed up to get to Geneva in time for dinner with Heidi, then a quick sleep, up at 5am for a very long day getting home. Home Sweet Home.

ps – I had an empty middle seat on the 11 hour leg home. Oh YEAH!

SO Much Rain

'22 Sep: Interlaken and Zermatt, Switzerland / October 1, 2022

At one point the rain seemed to quiet down a little and I rushed out to the known viewing spots to try to catch a glimpse of the Matterhorn, in case tomorrow was even worse. So here are several glimpses and you can see how quickly the cloud cover comes and goes.

And here are a few more pictures from around town. I clearly didn’t do anything but have an occasional wander.

And now I’m going to go to sleep and dream of a sunny day, bright blue skies, vista views, for a nice ride up to The Matterhorn! I’ve got a 50-50 chance and I’m getting up early to increase those chances. I have to leave by 2 to get to Geneva in time to meet Heidi for dinner. Wouldn’t it be just WONDERFUL if my last day was bright, and fresh, and clear, and DRY?!

From Interlaken On To Zermatt

'22 Sep: Interlaken and Zermatt, Switzerland / September 30, 2022

A view from the train station in Interlaken, notice these Interlaken buildings that tell a good story about the difference between Interlaken and Zermatt. They are both ski resorts about the same size but Interlaken is more citified and Zermatt is more alpine country. I loved them both.

On to Zermatt, more clouds and rain with the occasional and most welcome beams of light to color the scene. These pictures are out the train window. You’re probably used to the window-glare by now. I stopped trying to get rid of it because I just made a bigger mess than letting it be.

Zermatt, a very alpine looking totally car-free town. You can arrive only by train and once here you can walk anywhere or get around with the small local buses or use the electric taxis that look like large golf carts. I liked it!

Zermatt, like Interlaken, is primarily a ski resort with shops of active wear, restaurants for groups of outdoor adventurers, souvenirs, and chocolate. LOTS of chocolate.

I never did find out what this is. And I don’t remember what I did for dinner this night. Sigh. Oh wait! I do remember! I got a sausage off the street and it was delish.

If The Train Is Late Your Watch Is Wrong

'22 Sep: Interlaken and Zermatt, Switzerland / September 29, 2022

I have so much I want to remember about my 9-10 hours on the trains – make maps, show the different kinds of trains and tell their stories, what happened at the various stops, passing through Italy, my great variety of seat mates, and more! I wonder if I’ll get to it? Right now here are a few pictures and the names of the places I changed trains.

Interlaken-Spiez-Brig-Domodossola-Locarno-Bellinzona-Lucerne-Interlaken.

What To Do Today

'22 Sep: Interlaken and Zermatt, Switzerland / September 28, 2022

It was raining, but it wasn’t pouring, so I decided to have a little walk. The hotel has umbrellas to borrow which made it more comfortable than my little telescoping travel umbrella. And since I need a destination I picked a brewery a little out of town. They brew beer, whisky, and gin. I thought they were a tourist attraction with windows onto the brewing process (why did I think that?) but no, all you could visit was their very extensive store.

I ran across this playground and it was a real treat. You can’t see how totally cool it is – an obstacle course of challenge and delight. This is just one outer edge, the course goes deep into the forest.

..some cows. The bells make a lovely sound.

In all this time and all this rain this is my first view of a rainbow, if this even is a rainbow.

At some point I got to thinking about what I would do tomorrow and I thought Trains, let me see where I could go to get out of this rain. So I went to my beloved SBB Visitor Information Center and asked my helper what she thought about a plan I had to leave around 11 and be back by 3. She said my plan was fine but instead, she said, what about leaving at 7:38 and getting back around 5:42? She then mapped out an itinerary that took me in a giant circle riding 6 different trains, up some mountains and into Italian speaking Switzerland for lunch. Ok Ok! Tomorrow!

But today I have more time and earlier I had made an appointment for a massage. It was a Thai place and the massage was absolutely as perfect as a massage needs to be. She did this release with the big joints, shoulder and hip mostly, and I will now be in constant search of someone at home who can do this.

Interlaken And Harder Kulm

'22 Sep: Interlaken and Zermatt, Switzerland / September 27, 2022

This is a picture from the webcam at Jungfrau, “The Top of Europe”. There’s not going to be any Jungfrau for me, or any of the other high mountains for that matter. The forecast is for this cloud cover to continue throughout my stay. BUT on arrival the hotel told me to hurry hurry and I might be able to get some town views by taking the funicular up to Harder Kulm.

But first the train ride from Lucerne to Interlaken.

I was walking from the hotel to the funicular and passed by this. ALL the tourists were gaping and gasping and making selfies in front of this view. Look Look Look everyone cried out. Of course, this was their first view of Jungfrau in days, and on my walk back it was gone again.

The clouds move fast and the pictures are misaligned but start from the town. This plaque was in front of the view with all the mountains (that you can’t see) named.

Back in town, there’s plenty of shopping here. All the outdoor chains are represented. My hotel has a decent restaurant and an excellent breakfast buffet.

Cruising Around Lake Lucerne

'22 Sep: Lucerne, Switzerland / September 26, 2022

Feels good!

A cruise around Lake Lucerne is Included in my Swiss Travel Pass, so I decided sure why not and anyway all the mountain activities are socked in clouds and rain.

It’s a paddle wheeler with the wheels enclosed on the sides

You’ll see the colors change as we get an occasional hole in the clouds.

We would hug the shore when a stop was coming up, and there were many stops.

Check out that tunnel/bridge. I think people were walking on the top.

The turn-around. Oh the blue. We only get it where there’s light.

I think this might be a close up of the village above?

It was a lovely day, probably a little of what river cruising is like. The round trip took 5.5 hours and I was never bored although I did nod off a time or two. There was a busy restaurant on board and I had quite a satisfying lunch of meat loaf, mashed potatoes, steamed carrots, and a very tasty sauce over the whole thing. I can’t remember what I did after the cruise because I’m writing this 3 days later and I don’t have any more pictures!

City Walls And City Scenes

'22 Sep: Lucerne, Switzerland / September 25, 2022

Good Morning!

Oh! the gold one finds in the Church of St. Leodegar (St. Leodegar im Hof or *Hofkirche* St. Leodegar)..

..and the view from the front steps of the church. I see those flags, I think Red Cross. Here’s something I copied from the internet:
“The design of the Red Cross originated from the First Geneva Convention in 1864. The symbol represents **an inverted Swiss flag** as a tribute to Henry Dunant, the Swiss founder of the International Committee of the Red Cross.”

Musegg Wall and its nine towers. I did the climb! It was a cool, sunless day and the challenge not so great, not like those citadels in Corsica!

A view from the walk up to the city walls.

Pictured below is a top-ranked attraction in Lucerne, the Bourbaki Panorama set up in the building on the right, a circular painting depicting a military scene from the Franco-Prussian war. It’s a horrors-and-heroics-of-war story that you can read about at length. I spent more time than I expected shuffling along around the work and was totally absorbed.

Another equally beloved site is the Lion Memorial (Löwendenkmal). It’s a war memorial too.

The picture above, entrance to the Lion Memorial, is symbolic for me. The bike represents getting around without cars. The WC is a public toilet, clean and free. The trash can, yes, in the tourist areas you’ll find one every block and the streets and sidewalks are as tidy as you’d expect. The trees are nice too. I’ve got this long story about the dad and the raisin box..too long to tell but I hope I remember it.

The lion is huge and best loved for his anguished expression.

See that loaf of bread, SO delicious. I tear off chunks and dip it in morning coffee. Ahhh. Those savory pastries are good too. The best source of quick, tasty, and (relatively speaking) not killer expensive food is the big SBB train stations. Yes. There are sandwiches I like, a nice selection of salads, pizza by the slice, all sorts of baked goods, even branded grocery stores for fresh fruit and veg (and plain yogurt!) all available at the train station and ready to go.

My review: I opened the box, had a small hassle getting them on, but once on, they were Perfect, and within a few days they had loosened up so that I could get them on easily enough. It’s a few weeks now with many miles on these shoes, and I couldn’t be happier. I should get another pair!

I’ve been traveling, through hot days (no problem keeping cool), wet days (dried amazingly fast and No Slipping!), cold days (I wore thin wool socks). Wonderful!

I usually wear a 7 in full sizes so I got the 7.5. The heel/ankle strap stays on, the toe box is nice and wide, and the shoe feels snug and safe. Thumbs up KEEN Whisper.

World Band Festival

'22 Sep: Lucerne, Switzerland / September 24, 2022

I saw these banners on the first day and thought I should check it out. But I didn’t. And then as I was heading out for the day I ran across this – A Band Festival. Outside there were concert bands and brass bands and ensemble bands. There was also a competition inside for which paid tickets were required. Lucerne btw flies the blue and white flags.

From inside the festival meet-and-greet looking out on one of the stages.

Me in a tympani. It hasn’t been cold but it has been wet and my raincoat and an umbrella has been working well.

There were three stages and they all took turns playing and it was AWEsome. These three would play for an hour or so and then another three bands would take their place.

It was awesome, it was also raining. The crowd did its best to snuggle up under the canopy.

These two were playing soprano trumpets in the brass band. They were so good, the conductor was adorable, and they chose excellent pieces for the venue. Three cheers from me!

The gate from the original train station, the train station that has now been built three times.

It was fun to run across these pillars of flowers around town.

And the lovely folks at the excellent Visitors’ Information Center.

Another interesting museum full of a ton of some of my favorite things. “Experience some unforgettable encounters with wonderful works of art. Enjoy works by Pablo Picasso, Paul Klee and another 23 artists from the age of Impressionism and Classic Modernism.”

Arrival Lucerne And Mt. Pilatus

'22 Sep: Lucerne, Switzerland / September 23, 2022

Heading home from the train station this is the Chapel Bridge (Kapellbrücke) and the Jesuit Church (Jesuitenkirche) on the right.

I got off from Basel early enough, dropped my bag at the hotel, scurried back to Tourist Information at the train station to arrange my quick-like-a-bunny journey up to Mt. Pilatus. And good thing too considering the weather forecast which was for endless thick clouds and rain.

It’s fun, and you can go in either direction. I went city tram, small gondola, large gondola, the world’s steepest cogwheel railway, and then the city train back to Lucerne. You can also ride a boat for the last leg as pictured above.

On the way up, I could see below me that there were dozens of hiking trails most populated by a hearty few. The trails varied in levels of grooming, some super-steep and some more switchbacks. There were a few resting spots along the way such as this place.

At the top (but not the tippy-top), from the restaurant window.

Lake Lucerne

This is one ascent, and there was one even longer and steeper to get even higher.

That’s the cogwheel train, the steepest cogwheel in the world with a maximum gradient of 48%, average 35%, and starts at 6,800 feet.

Here we are where the cogwheel train, the SBB train, and the boats all meet.

One of the many such stands around the Railway Station and the Old Town.

See those iron-railed balconies above the green awning? One of those is mine. My room is the size and shape of a hallway but I’ve got an awesome balcony overlooking the river Reuss that half a block away feeds directly into Lake Lucerne!

This is one of the views when I step out on my balcony.

Gotta get a fountain in on the first day.

City Tour In Basel

'22 Sep: Bern and Basel, Switzerland / September 22, 2022

King Frog guarding the gates.

On this tour we walked to many of the places I had visited yesterday so I skipped the repeats. I had failed to get a ticket ‘before’ and by last night they were sold out. I decided to go to the meeting place in case someone didn’t show up. And sure enough, TIM didn’t show up so I bought his ticket from his father-in-law. Too bad I didn’t take our picture, it would have been cute.

Except the Cathedral. I had to take another picture here.

The Tinguely Fountain where everything moves. “In 1977 Jean Tinguel created sculptural machines in a shallow fountain where the stage of the old city theatre company once stood, and in the process gifted Basel a famous new landmark.”

Basel is particularly known as the art center of Switzerland including the yearly Art Basel fair and more museums than you can shake a stick at, some represented by all those red dots.

I guess these sculpture fountains will be in all the towns.

Notice the symbol on the base of the sculpture. I’ve been seeing this everywhere, much like Bern’s bears. Copied: “The Basel emblem, symbolizing a bishop’s crozier, dates back to 999 when Basel began being ruled by prince-bishops. The emblem also represents a support or guide (the shepherd’s crook that saves straying sheep) and an emblem of authority and administration.”

My dining treat in Basel was to find a highly regarded Rosti place and go for the classic. The place was on this street. I looked up what makes a Rosti classic – different from hash browns or latkes. There seems to be a consensus. Use Yukon Golds, par-boil the potatoes, chill them, then peel and grate, then fry those babies up with salt and pepper in plenty of butter.

Another view of the Tinguely Fountain and in the background, the 1800s Church of St. Elizabeth.

On the map you can see how Basel borders both France and Germany. I visited with a young man from Ventura CA who had married a woman from Germany and they were both now living in Switzerland. He told me the local saying is for economy: Live in France, Shop in Germany, Work in Switzerland.

I looked up the weather in my next destination – rain! Tomorrow should be just cloudy and then three days of rain, so if I want to do any mountain assents I should get up early tomorrow to make the journey to Lucerne to arrive in enough time to give Pilatus a go.

Basel Landmarks

'22 Sep: Bern and Basel, Switzerland / September 21, 2022

First, The Cathedral, Basler Münster, “built between the years 1019 and 1500 in the Romantic and Gothic styles.” That’s a lot of time to be building a church. Everybody read The Pillars of the Earth? I never looked at a cathedral in the same way again.

BTW, they say BAzel, like BAz Luhrmann.

Cool windows in the gorgeous arcade (or colonnade or loggia or…).

These plaques are commemorating the people buried under the floor.

The front plaza is so graciously sized I could actually get far enough back to take a picture! The website basel.com has good pictures of all the sites. Let’s see if I end up using some.

This is from the large back patio of the cathedral where musicians were playing music, kids were playing ball, and everyone was enjoying the lovely day. Basel is definitely bigger than Bern. You can feel it in the views and on the busy streets. And anyway, wikipedia told me so.

Many of the streets were torn up – there’s probably a big public works job happening (yes, I heard the tram tracks are being refreshed as is the sewer system).
To My Shopping Friends! You do want to visit Basel. There are plenty of chain stores, Plenty, but on smaller side streets and alleys, so many independent shops of highly curated goods.

This was a high profile exhibit at the Kunstmuseum Basel. The museum itself is housed in three very distinct buildings but it seems none of the buildings called my name since I don’t have a picture. The exhibit was very cool..

Pictures copied from their website, the pictures were arranged side by side for comparison, the audio guide came with the ticket, and the commentary was excellent.

The picture that blew me away at the Frick Madison last year was here now, Saint Jerome. At the Frick it had a wall all to itself and wowzer. Goes to show how much context in a museum plays into one’s experience. I just now looked it up – the Frick website tells us that “El Greco and his workshop produced this popular composition at least four times.” So maybe it’s a different version?.

Another landmark building, the 500 year old Basel Town Hall.

A think it’s a school. The entire fence was draped too.

In one of the small alleys, looking up..

To get an idea because this is about 1/4 of the composition, down the middle, halfway.

..reflected in the windows of the shop across the alley, it’s all an effective effort to make you look.

Morning in Bern Afternoon in Basel

'22 Sep: Bern and Basel, Switzerland / September 20, 2022

Before leaving Bern I decided to take a quick buzz up the hill (by tram thank you) to have a look at the Paul Klee Center (Zentrum Paul Klee) a Renzo Piano building. I’m very glad I decided to go.

They have bee hives and a sunflower forest. The inset is an internet aerial.

The only photo I took on the train ride from Bern to Basel because most of the time we were racing through long tunnels which was messing with my ears big time. The folks at the Paul Klee museum invited me to an opening event on Friday of their Noguchi show and I was considering doing the quick ride back, but now I’m thinking not.

My new street. My new accommodation has a small kitchen so I went to the market and bought so many vegetables and then I stir-fried them and ate a big big pile.

MORE Walking Around Bern

'22 Sep: Bern and Basel, Switzerland / September 19, 2022

She and her husband run the hotel with such charm and goodwill. KUDOS guys! And so efficiently, like a Swiss clock, not to forget that!

BärenPark

Absolutely every soul I talked to in Bern, at a museum, in a cafe, on the tram, every soul wanted to know if I’d been to the Bear Park yet. It’s right across the street from my tram stop (which is up the hill from my hotel). Oh my it’s a popular place.

The Bernese are very attached to their bears. It’s on their flag, license plates, souvenirs, etc. Three bears live inside that oval. For so many years (wiki says the first reference is the 1440s) they kept the bears in pits making them easy to see but not so great for the bears.

Now it’s not so easy to see them but very exciting when one lumbers into view.

Love those walking tours. The topic of this tour was the UNESCO Historic Center. We learned mostly about the expansion of the city built as it was in a bend of the river Aare.

This is a pretty good example of the character of the historic old town. We’ve got a clock and a water fountain, the trams, the arcaded sidewalk and shops, the car-free street, the mid-rise buildings.

SB Nancy saw these chairs in one of my pictures from Corsica and sent me a picture of her exact same chairs. So now I see these chairs everywhere and I think I might need me some. These are located in 1) the plaza of the Cathedral, 2) the train station, and 3) the art museum. Stylish and sturdy, the Fermob Luxembourg line. Of course they’re expensive!

This place is called Zytglogge, “an elaborate medieval astronomical clock tower with moving puppets.” It’s a real crowd-pleaser.

Remember yesterday’s story about the “mountain”.

Halfway up the hill from my hotel we find the highly regarded *Klösterli* Weincafe. I had dinner here, my one big meal splurge.

I don’t have pictures of this splurge because sadly all my pictures of food do not look appetizing. There was an amuse bouche of tomato soup with pepperoni. Pizza soup? I don’t know what they did with the pepperoni since it was just the flavor of pepperoni and pretty dang tasty. Next I had made-in-house sausage with mashed potatoes and ratatouille. Yummm. And I got one of the fancy cheese mousse-honey appetizers for last course. Nice! And a good Swiss red as recommended by the mother of the two girls from yesterday.

One reason I haven’t eaten out so much is because of the very delicious breakfast at my hotel. We get plain yogurt just the way I like it, a very good granola and other cereals I didn’t try, fresh fruit, all kinds of bread, rolls, and super-good croissant, yummy home-made jams, and Delicious cheese. Oh yes, juice, milk, and very good espresso etc. and my favorite, flat white.

This isn’t my picture. I can’t get this view because the trees are leafed out. My hotel, Landhaus, is the smaller blue-ish building behind the white-ish building in the middle of the photo.

They do the breakfast in the morning and then have lunch and early dinner here too.

I called this place a Labor of Love. The details are a constant surprise. For example you are welcome to borrow these readers and sit around all you like.

A last view, tomorrow I leave for Basel.

Walking Around Bern

'22 Sep: Bern and Basel, Switzerland / September 18, 2022

It’s my first day in Bern. I had plans. But then..

..I ran across this, and who can resist this?

Resist this? Certainly not me. So I asked if I could take their picture and follow them to the performance. Sure!

It’s Sunday here, nothing is open in the Old Town and the streets are quiet. They are headed to The Cathedral of Bern (Berner Münster) but they had to turn off into a hotel for a snack and a final tidy-up because they had come from a distance on the train..

..so they sent me off with this fine woman and we communicated for the next 30 minutes using google translate. I think she had never seen such a thing before based on her astonished expression. We had fun! She went in to the church early to get a good seat and I walked a little out of the Old Town for something to eat. I did find a place where I got to enjoy a $22 not-very-good small bowl of soup.

The Cathedral built in Gothic style, begun in 1421 and not completed until 1893 when the bell tower went up with the largest bell in Switzerland. In 1528 during the early days of the Protestant Reformation the council in Bern ordered “all masses should be stopped and all icons should be cast out.” Boo on this whole set of pictures, they should be cast out. Maybe I was rushing to get in? Excuses!

“Over the main portal is one of the most complete Late Gothic sculpture collections in Europe.”

“This collection represents the Christian belief in a Last Judgment where the wicked will be separated from the righteous. This sculpture shows the wicked naked on the right, while the righteous stand clothed in white on the left. In the center is Justice, with Saints and the wise and foolish virgins around her. In the center stands Michael the Archangel with a raised sword.”

The stained glass is quite spectacular and very precious to the city but I couldn’t get any closer because of the service. (I entered late and stayed in the back so I didn’t have to be there for two hours.) Someone told me that during the Reformation the Protestants decided no one was really praying at these windows as one would to icons so it was ok to keep them.

I was heading to this museum, the Kunst Museum Bern, before I got distracted by the singers. This was one of the more splendid museum visits ever for me. I loved the people working there. I wanted to take them home. The museum has done a major historical project detecting the provenance of a huge bequest called “The Gurlitt Collection” that you can read about on their website. All the museum tags are in German and if there is a second language it is French and the provenance is there too which is very interesting. You can often find this information on a museum’s website but I’ve never seen it posted before.

Circled is the Old Town where you will find 99% of the tourists and for good reason.

Behind this canopy is the train station and in front is the big tram-central to take you anywhere in the city. T

At the station the sign says “best before date” and those are refrigerators and grocery lists.

Wandering around the Old Town you will be treated to Clocks and Water Fountains. There’s so much to say about Clocks and Water Fountains in Bern. One thing I heard off the wall was that these fountains began to appear after the Reformation because all the artists of religious iconography had no more work so they turned their talents to these fountains that distribute potable water throughout the Old Town.

I took the tram to the place where you can catch the funicular to go to Gurten, the “mountain” of Bern. Everyone puts “mountain” in air-quotes because it’s basically a hill in a country of real mountains.

While looking for the tram I ran into this sweet family also looking for the tram and we went up together. Then they went to ride the toboggan. They were visiting from French speaking Switzerland and the mom told me when they visit the German speaking parts of Switzerland they speak English because there are so many Swiss-German dialects they just default to English, which they speak perfectly btw.

Last story: the toilet at the train station. You have to pay 2 franks or 2 euros which is about 2 dollars to use the toilet and when I came out I said “wow, nice, but a lot of money”. There’s a cleaner stationed there who goes into every toilet as someone leaves to clean up and then turns on the Available light. Men and women use the same room of stalls, no difference, just help yourself. But if you want to use only a urinal you can, for 1 frank/eruo/dollar. I’m conflicted that it should cost so much, but then again, it was nice.

Leaving Corsica Arriving In Bern

'22 Sep: Bern and Basel, Switzerland / September 17, 2022

Part of my crazy room in the eclectic and delightful Hotel Landhaus.

I had spent many days in Geneva earlier in the trip and heard mostly French. When I got on the train in Geneva to ride to Bern, French. I changed trains and bam, like that, all entirely German with, according to my sources…so many dialects.

Corte Home Of Independent Corsica

'22 Sep: Corsica, France / September 16, 2022

From the car, we have often passed through villages such as this one.

A view point for the Corte Citadel where prisoners from WWII were housed.
me, Marita, Rick, Jim, Lill

We have arrived in Corte and taken a bit of a wrong turn in our efforts to find the path to get up to the citadel. The others are studying the map for clues. While they are busy trying to get higher…

…I notice that a little that way is a wine bar and a sandwich shop. It’s hot and it’s sunny. I’m going to go down there and sit in the shade!

See the photo above.
Rick sent this from one of his books, I forgot to ask which.

The story of the symbol of Corsican independence copied from Wikipedia: “According to the legend, it originates from the 13th century when a young Corsican woman named Diana was captured by Moorish slavers who planned to sell her to the slave market of Granada. Her fiancé Pablo managed to free her and a battle ensued between Corsicans and Moors, during which the Moorish leader Mansour Ben Ismaïl was beheaded. His severed head then became the symbol of Corsica in remembrance of the event.”

Corte is in the mountains, a different landscape from where we’ve been.

Our glorious farewell sunset, might as well get the whole thing.

Let’s Go Snorkeling

'22 Sep: Corsica, France / September 15, 2022

Yes, Let’s!

Lill wasn’t feeling up for it but the rest of us went to a very near-by place where a good company ran snorkeling tours. We had a boat full of scuba divers too and because of all the diving gear the operators strongly warned anything on the boat would get soaked, so we didn’t bring cameras. This is our only picture of the day!

We geared up with fins, masks, and snorkel tubes and happily we all got shorty wet suits which I love. We were the only snorkelers so we got a private guide which made it especially fun. He’d dive for interesting specimens and point out good spots to hang around. Good job Tim.

This is where we eat, hang around, play games, it is our living room-dining room-den…

…and this is the view on the right when looking forward.

Filitosa and Bonifacio

'22 Sep: Corsica, France / September 14, 2022

Jim, Lill, Marita, Jim, and GRANNY say Happy THIRTEENTH Birthday to Lil!

First stop, Filitosa, where archeologists date the “earliest habitation to 3300 BC. Around 1500 BC, 2-3 metre menhirs were erected. They have been carved with representations of human faces, armor and weapons.”

This is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site although it doesn’t always show up, I don’t know why, but its age alone and the excellent repair of the artifacts makes it special. There’s also a small museum on site.

Jim and Rick amid a grouping of the menhir of ancient Corsica.

Awwwwwww. I asked a woman who was also taking cat pictures how do you say ‘here kitty kitty’ in French and she thought about it for some time and then replied with a ‘psss psss psss’ sound.
We laughed in agreement, that cat didn’t speak English or French.

Stopping for a car break and a quick snap or 50.

There’s this running joke about Lill and her mountain lion sighting so when I saw this I had to take a picture. I looked up the story and didn’t get far but it does seem this is an actual lion and not our fabled mountain lion.

Rick’s pictures from the walk everyone else took up to the Bonifacio Citadel. I took the tram. No more hikes in the beating sun for me.

This picture is from Wikipedia, a view not available to us but you can see how enchanting it is from afar.

According to someone that is the coast of Sardinia just there across the Bay of Bonifacio. There are also a couple very small islands between Corsica and Sardinia so maybe that’s what we’re seeing?

This was a longer and twistier day than our outing to Calanques mostly due to the detour for Filitosa that I was hot to do. Sorry guys! On the last day I’ll do a map of all our very cool destinations.

A Quiet Day And a Swim In The Sea

'22 Sep: Corsica, France / September 13, 2022

What a quiet day. Everyone was pretty beat by the long journey to and at Calanques on Monday. I’m writing now on Thursday and I don’t remember what we did on Tuesday until the late afternoon when we went to the beach.

…especially Lill (who btw was stepping out on her own dog.)

That’s my chair the guys generously thought to bring along.

I announced I was not messing with that dog and immediately after making this pronouncement
the dog came right up to me and peed on my chair leading to great peals of hysterical laughter from one and all.

RICK’S PICTURES above, that’s me under the umbrella and Lill under the towel, Marita face down, and Jim in the distance, and since Rick’s always taking pictures of other people, here he is below. What a cutie:

Calanques de Piana

'22 Sep: Corsica, France / September 12, 2022

We took the Long and Winding Road to Calanques de Piana today, 2+ hours in the car for a 1 1/2 hour Zodiac ride to see the UNESCO World Heritage Site. That’s our Zodiac in the middle of the picture. The site was quite splendid and the boat ride was an E-Ticket itself. The driver entertained himself surfing on the wake of passing power boats and enjoyed a slalom course through the rocks. He spoke entirely in French but we got some hints of what was going on from kind fellow travelers.

The entire Gulf of Porto area is protected including other sites we didn’t visit such as the Gulf of Girolata and the Scandola Reserve.

Some pictures from the ride:

Not My Picture, but an aerial to give you an idea of the overall landscape.

These were in the far distance taken from the speeding zodiac.

Maybe look up and you can get an idea of how tall the cliffs are.

In and out of caves…

Views from the village of Porto where we began our trip:

Notice the tower on the high right, easy to miss. This is one of the Coastline Watch Towers. There are 67 of them built around the periphery of the whole island by the Genoese of the Republic of Genoa between 1530 and 1620. They were intended to spot pirates and afford refuge for the villagers in case of attack. We’ve spotted a few others, like a scavenger hunt.

On the road again:

So many gorgeous coves, beaches, and marinas.

You can see the curvy road snaking through the formations.

These guys are a threat to their own lives and to ours as they zoom through traffic on one lane roads and blind curves.

Not to mention the bike riders! At least you have to be amazed at their stamina climbing these hills in the stifling heat. This is an open turn in comparison to the hairpin turns the bikers have to navigate on one lane roads and the drivers have to do their best not to run them over.

A welcome break in Piana:

One of us spots laundry and everyone takes a shot.

Notice the building material. All the buildings, old and new seem to be made with the same stones. If you see a smooth wall you can find a chip in the plaster and lo, there it is, stones.

We had been inundated by wasps at our dining table outside and had come to just live with it until Marita got stung. Then we contacted the landlord for some recommendation on a remedy. Burn coffee grounds she said, and brought us a container, coffee, and a fire-starter. 100% when the coffee was putting out smoke the wasps stayed away. Wow. It doesn’t work for flies or mosquitoes but those wasps were g.o.n.e. gone.

SO before we got the coffee solution from the landlord we were here at this restaurant in Piana for lunch (YUM BTW) and I spotted all these dead wasps on the ground by the ham. How did this happen? I asked the man behind the bar and he demonstrated… you flick them. None of us ever got up the nerve to flick them and fortunately by the next day we could smoke them out.

We Drove Into Ajaccio

'22 Sep: Corsica, France / September 11, 2022

This is a monument to Napoleon in the central Place De Gaulle. It’s all Napoleon all the time here in Ajaccio, Napoleon’s birthplace. You can even see the couch upon which he was born.

Ah, the Mediterranean Sea. Ingalill, Marita, Jim, Rick.

Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption of Ajaccio, finished in 1593 replacing the former Cathedral of Saint-Croix destroyed in 1553.

Ajaccio is a lively tourist town with all its Napoleon-ia as evidenced by all the cars and our parking safari and…

…the PORT below.

We had a wander through the Citadelle d’Ajaccio

…and Laundry.

Rick’s picture. We were going to check out this museum but it smelled bad, of cigarette smoke and mold, so even I, the most enthusiastic to give it a try, gladly moved on to lunch.

You don’t even have to look it up. It’s Napoleon.

We ended the day with a visit to the vegetable market, a delightful swim in the pool, and then bbq burgers and salad for dinner. Ahhhh. Lill and Marita are both still working and they both agreed, vacations are awesome, and retirement doesn’t look so bad either.

Welcome To Corsica

'22 Sep: Corsica, France / September 10, 2022

I met up with Ingalill and Marita at the airport in Ajaccio around noon, they from a couple days in Paris and I from Geneva. Rick and Jim were due to meet us there too but first their flight was cancelled and then the new flight was delayed. They didn’t show up until 11:30pm. Ingalill and Marita picked them up. I was asleep.

We got a car at the airport and then took the ‘scenic’ route to our wonderful home for the next week, unloaded the car, and then did a little grocery shopping. That’s Ingalill and Marita enjoying a rest beside the salt water pool, and it’s really Really nice.

Happy Hour delights. I’m pretty sure every hour is going to be happy hour around here.

Geneva-Montreux-Chillon Castle

'22 Sep: Geneva, Switzerland / September 9, 2022

Chillon Castle (Château de Chillon), according to wikipedia, the first written record of the castle was in 1005.

A scenic train ride to Chillon Castle. You can see how that little finger of Switzerland pokes into France.

We (Heidi and I) had a lovely day-trip taking the train to the end of Lake Geneva to visit Chillon Castle. I’ll talk about the various Swiss Travel Passes later, and the glory that is Swiss train travel.

Arriving in Montreux we took a bus on to the castle.

An example of the buildings in Montreux.

Not My Pictures!

I didn’t get this view but I wanted to share one aspect of this gorgeous area.

We climbed to the top of the tallest tower. Those mountains from the internet pictures should have been visible, but no.

These lower, closer mountains were visible though, and beautiful.

Surf’s up on Lake Geneva.

I ended my day with a truly delicious treat – a Swiss Potato Rosti. The next morning I was off early to catch the train to catch the plane to meet up with The Gang in Corsica.

A Stroll Around Geneva

'22 Sep: Geneva, Switzerland / September 8, 2022

That’s my hotel, Hotel Cristal Design, and the statue is called “L’Immigré”, The Emigrant, and reflects the ever evolving nature of this neighborhood. Within one block of here I have noticed a United Nations of restaurants. And Starbucks.

I spent the day with Heidi. We tromped around plenty and then took a little drive to enjoy a bit of the lake.

First stop for me is (almost) always the cathedral. In Geneva the largest and most important church is St. Pierre Cathedral, originally built as a Roman Catholic cathedral but during the Reformation it transformed itself into a Protestant church.

We climbed to the top of one of the towers!

Here’s one of the views from the tower including the The Jet d’Eau fountain out in the lake, installed in 1886, moved slightly in 1891 and adored through the city. There’s a walkway out there and the slightest change in the wind can drench all the spectators.

A view while crossing one of the many bridges.

Then we decided to stroll through the Art Museum, which was in a gorgeous building…

..and clocks of course. Three rooms of Swiss clocks.

Another view out one of the many beautiful windows. That’s a Henry Moore sculpture out there.

And a view of the golden domes of the Russian Orthodox Church from the entry to the Art Museum.

Then Heidi got her car and we drove to the French border and enjoyed yet another snack time at the lake.

Heidi Met Me At The Plane

'22 Sep: Geneva, Switzerland / September 7, 2022

Heidi is Robert’s sister (Robert of Robert and Joanna). Heidi lives in Geneva and Robert set it up for us to meet. Thank you Heidi, Thank you Robert!

This and the above are details from Heidi’s apartment.

I got settled in my hotel and then we enjoyed a lovely wine and snack at a bistro across the street from the hotel.

Across from us at the bistro, I asked them of course if I could take a picture of their beer delivery system. Never have I ever seen a thing like this! The lovely women were from Thailand, working here at the embassy.

After a couple hours of rest, me in my hotel and Heidi at her house, we had dinner in one of Heidi’s favorite places (that’s her in the middle and the women who run the café on either side)…

Here it is, a lovely café on the corner between my hotel and Heidi’s house.

After dinner I went home, tried to look at pictures but fell asleep inmediatamente and woke up 11 hours later.

And I’m Off

'22 Sep: Geneva, Switzerland / September 6, 2022

What I’m going to write about when a get a chance tonight, I hope – The giant new terminal at LAX, my fabulous upgrade, the best seat mate of all time, a one hour delay that was no bother to me.

Waiting waiting in full…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 7, 2015

Waiting waiting in full tourista mode.

Kelly’s.

Kelly’s….

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 7, 2015

Kelly’s.

After a short break…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 7, 2015

After a short break we took the Metro for our trip out to Montmartre. Awww, kitty kitty.

Kelly’s.

The flags flying outside…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 7, 2015

The flags flying outside the museum.

Kelly’s.

MM&K went shopping and…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 6, 2015

October 1

MM&K went shopping and picked a little bag at Louis Vuitton for one of Marsha’s colleagues. They give you champagne while you shop, and enjoyed a day of eating and drinking and making merry along the Champs Elysees.

…and Giverny….

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 6, 2015

…and Giverny.

Mindy’s.

Marsha, Mindy, and Kelly…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 6, 2015

September 30

Marsha, Mindy, and Kelly took a bus tour today out to Versailles…

Mindy’s.

Mindy’s….

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 6, 2015

Mindy’s.

The other ladies went…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 6, 2015

The other ladies went off to see the Eiffel Tower, and here they are at the top…

Mindy’s.

In the meridian where…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 6, 2015

In the meridian where everyone takes pictures of the Moulin Rouge, I gave them some money so I got to clap.

Mindy’s.

Sisters Mindy and Marsha…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 5, 2015

Sisters Mindy and Marsha leaning out our balcony window in PARIS…no, no, not that kind of window…

Kelly took this with Mindy’s camera.

I did some work…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 4, 2015

I did some work in the morning and we all met in the late afternoon here, where we find an entrance piece to the Musee d’Orsay by Alfred Jacquemart created in 1878.

As well as the…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 4, 2015

As well as the amazing collection of paintings there are exhibits of French furniture, sculpture, and photography from the same period.

A railway station beauty……

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 4, 2015

A railway station beauty…

…from every angle….

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 4, 2015

…from every angle.

The collection of Impressionist…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 4, 2015

The collection of Impressionist paintings covers the entire fifth floor and gives you googly eyes and a constant recitation of ‘look at that’ ‘look at that’ ‘look at that’.

LP: “…home of France’s…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 4, 2015

LP: “…home of France’s national collection from the impressionist, postimpressionist and art nouveau movements spanning the 1840s and 1914 is the glorious former Gare d’Orsay railway station – itself an art nouveau showpiece – where a roll-call of masters and their world-famous works are on display.

“Top of every visitor’s must-see list is the museum’s painting collections, centered on the world’s largest collection of impressionist and post-impressionist art.”

This evening MM&K are…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 4, 2015

This evening MM&K are packing up for an early departure tomorrow so Kelly and I went out for a last buzz around the neighborhood and to swing by the Cream Puff Palace.

What a hoot, this private party was happening right there in the courtyard!

I didn’t go with…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 2, 2015

I didn’t go with them as I’d been to those places already.

Instead I got to meet Tony for lunch and a little walk-about.

This is the restaurant, Bouillon Chartier, an historic and tres ooo-la-la place.

The place is constantly…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 2, 2015

The place is constantly packed and they fill all the seats even when there are empty tables. I think this is not entirely uncommon. Meet our lovely tablemates from Hong Kong.

Wiki: “Bouillon Chartier, or simply Chartier, is a “bouillon” restaurant in Paris founded in 1896, located in the 9th arrondissement and classified as a monument historique since 1989. The restaurant has had only four owners since opening.

“The long Belle Époque dining room has a high ceiling supported by large columns which allows for a mezzanine, where service is also provided….with a menu offering traditional French cuisine.

“The table service is provided by waiting staff dressed in the traditional rondin, a tight-fitting black waistcoat with multiple pockets and a long white apron.”

Expect crowds and you might be pleasantly surprised by hitting a quite time but you’ll still sit with strangers.

Some views around town….

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 2, 2015

Some views around town.

Oh my, love the…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 2, 2015

Oh my, love the wings and the necklace. A tiara would be nice. Too much?

The buildings. Oh…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 2, 2015

The buildings. Oh man.

And you can glance…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 2, 2015

And you can glance up to enjoy a golden family of snails.

Or glance to your…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 2, 2015

Or glance to your side and find this. Paris.

That’s the Louvre over…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 2, 2015

That’s the Louvre over there. I went to meet MM&K there after their tour. It’s Wednesday night, the best time to visit the Louvre as they are open late and amazingly there are no lines.

No lines, but you…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 2, 2015

No lines, but you can’t throw a stone without hitting a bride. So many brides.

“The Arc de Triomphe…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 2, 2015

“The Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel is a triumphal arch…built between 1806 and 1808 to commemorate Napoleon’s military victories of the previous year.

The more famous Arc de Triomphe de l’Étoile, across from the Champs Élysées, was designed in the same year; it is about twice the size and was not completed until 1836. It is also an example of Corinthian style architecture.”

Hi everyone!…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 2, 2015

Hi everyone!

Marsha, Kelly, Mindy

The water pools were…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 2, 2015

The water pools were empty but you could still get some reflection off the marble.

Another view of the…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 2, 2015

Another view of the The Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel, between the Louvre and the Jardin des Tuleries.

Here’s an orientation map….

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 1, 2015

Here’s an orientation map.

And then I put…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 1, 2015

And then I put a card on the wishing tree.

The actual area covered…

'15 Sep: Paris! week 4 w/Marsha, Kelly, Mindy / October 1, 2015

The actual area covered by the D-Day Invasion was huge, the beaches were miles long and beach-heads were so far apart tactical coordination was a real feat.

There a ton of material written and filmed about this one day. I’m going to watch Ken Burns’ version again soon.