Thank you Traveller69 for the tips
 

T69, thanks for all the Rome tips. We did not use RomeCab and we ended up just cabbinng everywhere as we didn't find the requried numbers to make it works. Cabbing wasn't all that bad or expensive. We cabbed, we walked and tour, cabbed to the next stop, walked and tour, it was pretty quick and we managed to make a lot of stops in 2 days. We ended up having better flexiblity with just the 2 of us and not slowed down by others if we were in a group. (more on that later)

As you have sugegsted, we looked for a private guide for the Vatican tour. Although it was very last minute, we did mange to find and book a private guide for the vatican, through a company called DarkRome. She was awesome. There were only 6 of us in the group and we were in before the crowd (front of the line?) at 8 am. She stayed with us till 12:30 pm and we were free to explore St. Peter's on our own, to the tomb and the dome etc. She also pointed out best place to buy souvenir before she left. Per person cost is high though at $120, but I think it was worth it. She took us to some small rooms where they were not open to the public very often, and we even managed to peek through a door and look at the "private" areas. Other than the usual places like the map room etc, we spent some time at what I thought was unusal where the modern arts were displayed. I have no idea they have that much modern stuff, and those areas were not crowded at all.

The other 4 people that were with us at the Vatican tour were interested in Patheon and other stops that we planned to make that afternoon. But then they wanted to stop and have lunch by Vatican City and spend more time for souvenirs shopping. With limited day time hours, taking time to admire souvenirs didn't quite work for us. So we left on our own.

We had lunch at the restaurants' patio on the open square facing the Pantheon. Food is good and inexpensive. We walked to Plazza Navano after, which is only a couple blocks. To be honest, we were going at a relatively fast pace. We ended the day at Basilica S. Maria degli Angeli by the Plaaza della Repubblica, which is only 2 blocks form the hotel.

Although we didn't use RomeCab, but the information you provided proved most valuable. We really appreciated it. When I have a chance and organized the pictures, I will post them and let you know where they are. We owe you a cold one ... Thanks! :D

Eschew you are very welcome. Thats what so great about this forum. I will look forward to the pictures. We will be doing some traveling starting tomorrow but just the usual trek for the winter months from Victoria BC to Green Valley AZ so no cruises in the works - next September perhaps. What have you got on your agenda for your next expedition?

Thanks for the report and I'll be watching for the photos.

Hi

This is Traveller70........ so I hope Traveller69 shares that cold one with me !!! :)

Glad you enjoyed Rome , did you see the Sistine Chapel and the Trevi Fountain ?

Hi Traveller69, heading to your sunny retreat in Green Valley.! Have a nice "winter" there.

Percy, it will be a mistake on my part if I didn't offer you my thank you for the little tidbits that you have offered through the years.

Yes, we were in the Sistine Chapel for about half an hour, and that's all the time alloted. The guide gave us a pre-entrance chat at the very beginning and we knew what we were suppose to be looking for. That Michaelangelo guy sure has a great sense of humor, if you know what I mean. Walk in the door, look up right away, and ouch! Snake bite! That hurts.

The Trevi Fountain? We were there twice. Once during the day and once at night. Both times jam packed with people. The fountain was only 5 blocks from the hotel so it wasn't far at all, maybe a 15 minutes walk, tops. Both DW and I tossed our customary coin, just one each. Maybe I should toss more than one when she is not looking? Jsut kidding ... love, just kiddin'.

We did not encounter any pick pockets (knock on wood). There is nothing for them to pick as we were not carrying anything valuable anyway (no cash, no credit card). I had a stack of paper towel (for wiping my sweaty body parts) in my back pocket hoping someone will swipe them so I don't have to find a garbage can :D

T69, are you RVing down there? I thought Victoria is warm enough year round that you can stay there. How long are you gone for?

We have not make any plans yet. Sis asked us to join them for a January Southern Caribbean but DW wanted to stay home for now. Any suggestions?

We are looking at May 2011 for either a costal or Hawaii, ending in Vancouver and then maybe up to Alaska again, nothing really too exciting.

My "work" is going to make me tarvel more next year so I maybe screwed on vacation travelling due to timing of meetings. Looks like the yearly big trip would be mid-November, too late for Canada/New England or Baltic/Russia.

Aussie and New Zealand are interesting but cruising may not be the way to go. Wonder if there is anything for South America. I thought March is the best time so I will have to do some homework for spending time there in November.

If and when we get together, I'll buy the first round and we will get Larry to buy the rest :) We should meet at his place (Chicago) or maybe just some palce warmer ... Looks like he is having a very good time in India as he is totally MIA here.

Eschew

Thank you for the kind words, but I did not mean that
I should be thanked but rather just to sip that cold one with Traveller69 ! :)

Yes , always crowded at the Trevi Fountain, people just sit on the edge and it is difficult at times to even get a picture.

I did throw a coin over my left shoulder for luck!

Yes.. Victoria is nice during the winter but Green Valley is much better !
Nothing like being south of Tucson and enjoying the sun.

You can cruise Australia and New Zealands because most of the major places are on the coast line , except for the Outback and Ayers Rock.

Also you can cruise South American , there are even cruise down the Amazon River.
( I was a month in South America, but not on a cruise.)

Take care

Hi Traveller69 .

Hi Percy! Yes, we should be basking in the sun in a week or two. We are going to take our time getting there to let some of the heat dissipate (sounds crazy I know but its still a little on the warm side) We love to go down the California coast and enjoy the redwoods. I guess Edmonton is getting "chilly" Time for you to get out of there too.

Eschew - There are several great cruises in South America - either starting in Rio and ending in Valparaiso or vice versa. We also did Antarctica and a cruise up the Amazon. Lots of good winter destinations.
I don't know where you live but Victoria is very much like Seattle weather in winter very seldom any snow but more rain and wind etc. We have a place in Arizona. We don't RV as we saw too many near divorces in gas stations with the wife giving directions to the pumps and the RV not quite fitting - no thanks!!!!

Thats it for me until we are settled in our "southern home"

All the best Eschew and Percy!

Eschew and Traveller69 --- Please forgive me for intruding on your posts, but I am trying the find the Rome tips you are discussing. I am interested in the RomeCab information and how to avoid those pickpockets! Thanks...

PERCY AND ESCHEW....we also cabbed around Rome while there. Rome was on steroids on the 17th when they had the Cannonization. Last time in Rome wasn't a Sunday and Trevi wasn't as crowded, but we did get to the Plaza Navarone...just wonderful..and the Spanish Stairs. Sadly guys from the long flight back home I developed blood clots which forunately didn't hit me until I got home.and have just come out of intensive care... Will be writing review and posting a soon as I can get away from MDs

Hi Everyone:

Hi ParrotMom, sorry to hear about your health condition upon arriving home.

I assume they had you on a Heparin drip of some kind while you were in Intensive Care.

Hope all is much better now.

Traveller69:

Good Luck on your trip. (you lucky person ,heading for the sunshine)
I am going to have more hand surgery next month..lucky me !

Eschew:

Thanks again for your posting and the information you provided.

Take care everyone

LauraMc, this is a public forum, you are not intruding at all, you are just joining in our discussion, and you are more than welcome! :)

Here is the information you asked for:
Rome Cab, internet link : http://www.romecabs.com/
You can book as alte as only a week in advance. They are very prompt with their email reply, usuallty the enxt day. They use Mercedes sedans for 4 people or less. The cost of for a day (9 to 4) was 340 euros for 2 and 400 erueos for 4. They will pick you up and return you back to the hotel.

The price includes the English speaking driver and the car. Not included are admission to the attractions, lunch, private giude to Vatican and tip for the driver. They have a sample itenary that will cover 8 to 10 places within the 9 to 4 time frame. Having been to all the places they listed, I would say it is a very agreesive schedule and you will barely see anything.

According to their schedule, you have 2 hours for the Vatican museum. I don't think there is enough time. They will have a private guide availabe for Vatican for 60 Euros for the group and Vatican admission is extra (19 eruros each if you want the no wait tickets)

In my opinion, Rome Cab is great if you are going to see many places from the outside. You stop, get off, take pictures and get back into the car within 10 to 15 minutes,(example: Trevi Founatin, Plazza Navano etc.) You can knock off 10 to 12 places in a day.

Rome Cab also offers shuttle from airport ro cruise port to Rome or vice versa, including a quick city tours.

We definetly had a great experience with Dark Rome Tour, especially their private guide for Vatican. Their web link is: http://www.darkrome.com/default.aspx

We booked Dark Rome for the Vatican tour while we were at the crusie via internet. We met the guide at 7:45 am and the tour started at 8. The tour lasted 4 hours and we were left to explore more on our own at St. Peter's afterward.

Here are my suggestion: make a list of places that you wanted to see in Rome. We bought a Fodors Rome Guide book and it was most helpful. You set priorities, and then you allot time to each place.

In our case, we alloted 6 hours for Vatican Museum, and the left over 2 to 3 hours of day lights for the Pantheon, Plaza Navano, and a few "stop off" places, ending the evening at Basilica S. Maria degli Angeli (closes at 6) & the Plaaza della Repubblica (beautiful at night when all the lights are on, from the front door of S. Maria degli Angeli.

We alloted 6 hour for the Coliseum, Forum, Constantine's Arch, Palatine Hill etc (they are all in the same general area adn is one stop). Basicilia San Clemente is near by and is a worthwhile stop.

I highly recommend Basilica S. Maria degli Angeli and San Clemente. You should google their web pages. They are listed as major destination but in my mind, they are very unique, for cultural and science.

Feel free to ask more questions while my memory is still fresh. I didn't write a lengthly trip report on Rome as it would make the trip report even longer than what it is. The hotel we stayed at, the Quinernale Hotel Rome, is also highly recommended.

Percy, are you from Edmonton? Your Oilers just beat Larry's Hawks twice. You should gloat while you can. Great shopping there at the big mall. I try to go through the Canadian Rockies at least once every four or five years. Love Waterton!Hope your hand is getting better soon ...

T69, we have been looking at South America and New Zealand at this point, choices are limited for November 2011. We are still undecided. Have a great time down south, I guess you are a snow bird? Is that the right term?

We have parked our trailer by a lake (rental lot) for the past 10 years. I don't even know if we can move it now as we have sold our tow vechile. We spent most of our summer weekends there if we can.

We still try to make 2 trips a year, while we are physically able. To be honest, I don't know if we could have survided this trip that we just finsihed 5 to 10 years from now. It's too physical.

ParrotMom, get well soon. Looking forward to read your trip report. We were at Rome right after you left. The chairs were still setup at the square while we were there.

LauraMc, forget to mention the pick pockets on my reply to you. barcelona is number 1, Paris is number 2 and Rome is number 3 in terms of pick pockets.

I have my back pack (it is actually a sports bag) wore in front of me. I have nothing in my pockets except a few Euros (less than 20). I have a money belt that is worn tight to my body, beneath my underwear, so I will need a bathroom stop to get money out.

My wife carries a purse with thick strap (harder to cut) and wore across shoulder and chest, in front, with zipper face front. Nothing in any pockets.

We don't carry credit cards and we carry a photocopy of passports for ID.

Do not get distracted. The distraction could be in the form of kids running pass you or around you, an old person falling down in front of you. It sounded heartless but don't stop and help. That's when you are most vulnerable as you are distracted. Avoid going into a crowd and simply pay attention to everything around you. Good Luck!

Eschew ........ Yes so far our Oilers have beat Larry's ( jacketwatch)'Hawks ,but they ( Hawks) are the Stanley Cup Champs.

Oh well we had out glory years with Wayne Gretzky. :)

The Canadian Rockies are a place everyone wants to see. Lots of American tourist here every year.

I stay away during tourist season.

Yes, our Gigantic Mall, it is buzzing now and up until Christmas .

Thanks about the hand, not looking forward to the surgery but then who ever looks forward to surgery :)

Good Night all

Hi...yes, I am on everything..lol.....In Rome with all the warnings and crowds and in Barcelona it's easy to get paranoid. We were able to cab from place to place in Rome...very wortwhile.. We have used Romeinlimo for touring past years.. Parrot Pop has a camera with a steel cable going through it as well as his camera bag which he didn't use. All my $$ are safety pinned in to the inside of my handbag. Even made Parrot Pop bring one of those money holders that attaches to his pants... We were in Rome on October 17th...a gorgeous sunny day filled with tourists wall to wall.. The report when I finish it is interesting mainly pre and post cruise which I could write a book about..Equinox the perfect cruise ship, ports wonderful...lots to talk about in the review...

True story ... my sister had her purse snatched in Paris and her husband had his pocket picked. That's before they got out of the airport taxi stand.

In Barcelona, at a tourst mall, a man dropped his cell phone in the middle of a moving up escalator and trying in vain to pick up his phone. That action forced everyone on the up escalator to step back (down), and then around the "klutz". You can imagine the chaos on a moving up escalator.

Well, everyone who step around this klutz had their pockets picked. They caught the guy and hold him but no stolen property was found. They were long gone and handed off.

In Manila, groups of chidlren had swarmed toursits (obviosuly, they were at the wrong place at the wrong time) and the "kids" were armed with razor blades to cut clothing, purse straps etc.

It is not being paranoided, it is fact of life and just be aware. Especailly for us living in North America and we really have no idea.