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Driving to Salerno instead of Sorrento...frustrating, getting all of our debit cards "eaten" at the ATM's in Rome...irritating, watching our (almost) two year old play with the pigeons in San Marco Square...priceless! A mini trip repor

Driving to Salerno instead of Sorrento...frustrating, getting all of our debit cards "eaten" at the ATM's in Rome...irritating, watching our (almost) two year old play with the pigeons in San Marco Square...priceless! A mini trip repor

Old Jan 9th, 2007, 12:15 PM
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Driving to Salerno instead of Sorrento...frustrating, getting all of our debit cards "eaten" at the ATM's in Rome...irritating, watching our (almost) two year old play with the pigeons in San Marco Square...priceless! A mini trip repor

We are back, and first af all we owe all of you a HUGE Grazie!! I cannot begin to tell you how many times I said while on our trip "the Fodor's people say..." After so many suggestions of yours worked out so well, my DH started saying "who are these Fodor's people & how do they know so much?!" So anyway, thank you. I figured that an actual description of the exact events every day for 3 weeks might bore all of you silly, so I am just going to give you the basics & highs & lows so as to help anyone else.
Background: DH & I are in early 30's & we brought our 23 month old daughter with us to Italy for 3 weeks- the whole time wondering if we were crazy to do this (we weren't) & if it was the right thing to do (it was.)

Things we packed: We brought all of the usual of course for us & below is a list of the extra stuff we brought for our toddler besides clothing & basic needs:
- A portable high chair (metooproducts.com) At risk of sounding like quite the moron I will tell you that this thing is the BEST! It collapses flat & weighs less than a pound. We used it every day.
-A lightweight stroller (like an umbrella stroller but with a foot rest, cup/food tray, & it reclines.) I think we paid $30 or so & it worked fine. Some people say that the cobblestones are so bad, etc. It was fine- don't waste you money buying some fancy travel one, save it for the shopping in Italy (sigh.)
-Lots of snacks & comfort food from home
-Little gifts/books we wrapped to give her on the plane, in museums, etc. (playdough, crayons, little dolls, etc.) This worked great.
-Her own plastic dishes, silverware & sippy cups
-A good daybag that we used as a diaper bag too
-Comfort items from home (blanket, stuffed animals)
-Toys from home
-A portable DVD player

The flight: We flew from the Midwest on US Airways through Philly to Munich & then on Lufansa from Munich to Venice. We flew home from Rome on US Airways through Philly to home. We used frequent flier miles & did not buy a seat for the baby (after much debate.) It worked out great. We had bulkhead seats & she had plenty of room to move around. Both flights she did well- mostly slept & otherwise we had snacks & played quitely. On all flights we had people & flight attendants compliment us on what a good girl she was. Whew! So far so good!

Other random side notes:
This is not a trip report filled with excellent places to eat, of course most places WERE fantastic, but with the exception of a few places we made sure to try our version of finding a place to eat was more like-"okay, we're hungry & here's a place that looks good!" It worked out well for us.
Also, I know that a lot of people ask about cell phones & what to use in Italy. I have a Motorolla Razer through Cingular & all we did was get a "Cingular World" package added bfore we left. We didn't have to do anything to the phone. I think it's $5.95 p/month & you can get it off right away when you get home. The calls are .99 a minute though. It worked well for us. We used it a few times & will probably have a bill for $20 or so. We didn't have to worry about finding a phone card, pay phone etc. We brought about $350 in Euros with us (purchased at home) to start & palnned on getting the rest with our ATM cards- more on that later!

If you are thinking about taking a long trip with a toddler hopefully our report may help you. Yes, we had plenty of mishaps & even a fight (more on that later too, but I swear DH thought he was driving an Astin Martin- not our manual shift "family vehicle!") We had such an amazing time as a family & to be just together for 3 weeks was so nice. We have made so many memories with our little girl that we will always treasure. Traveling with a little one has made us better parents & mates. So, if you are thinking about going... stop thinking & get up & go!

To follow... Venice (and husband getting standed on Vapporetti while wife & baby are on land...)
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Old Jan 9th, 2007, 12:31 PM
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Oops-typed too fast. It's husband getting "stranded" on the boat!
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Old Jan 9th, 2007, 12:33 PM
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Googie: Sounds like it is going to be a great trip report. Keep it coming!
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Old Jan 9th, 2007, 12:38 PM
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Nice beginning. It sounds like you had a wonderful time. Waiting to hear about the AMT eating your bank card. What a nightmare!
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Old Jan 9th, 2007, 01:50 PM
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Well, the beginning already has me chuckling (the husband = race car driver part).
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Old Jan 9th, 2007, 01:54 PM
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Looking forward to a very interesting report . . .
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Old Jan 9th, 2007, 02:28 PM
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bookmarking...sounds interesting
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Old Jan 9th, 2007, 02:51 PM
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I'd love to see your 2 year old at play with the pigeons! Will be waiting for further news!
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Old Jan 9th, 2007, 02:54 PM
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googie - thanks for the report, cannot wait to read the rest. We go to Italy for almost 3 weeks in June with our DD who is just a little older than yours. We have been nervous about it! Thanks for the website with travel products, some of those things look great.
Also, what did you do for a car seat?
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Old Jan 11th, 2007, 11:26 AM
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Okay... so back to the Dh being stranded in Venice...
First, MIM04- we rented a car seat with the car rental (AutoEurope.) We were worried that it was going to be some gross nasty thing, but it all was fine. I think we paid $57 US, so we kept joking that we could have bought a really nice new one at home for that price! It was nice to not lug it around though, as we only needed it the one week out of 3.
Venice:
Hotel: Residence Corte Grimani- FANTASTIC, FANTASTIC! Previous people have posted about this hotel & it is 5 minutes from San Marco Square. All rooms are apartments with kitchens & living rooms, bedroom & washer & dryer. We paid $369 US for 3 nights. We reserved right through the website w/no problems. Please feel free to ask if you have more hotel questions- we lOVED this place. You cannot beat the price/location.

Day 1: We took a water taxi from the airport to the hotel. We walked to the dock where the boats are- it's not far. We spent $100 US. It was worth it for me to relax after flying a day w/ a toddler & really enjoy my first glimpse of Venice & be whisked away directly to our hotel (it has it's own dock) & not have to worry about lugging luggage through strange canals & streets. DH liked it because he could pretend he was James Bond. It was dark when we arrived, but Venice in the moonlight took my breath away. We unpacked a bit & went straight to San Marco Square. I am not sure if it was the time of year we were there (December) or what, but there were literally 4 people in that entire square besides us. There were white lights for the holidays & mist was floating around as a light rain fell & it was too magical to be real. We ate pizza somewhere off the square on a side street (sorry- I told you I wouldn't be good with the names.) It was great. A couple side things before I forget- I highly recommend traveling to Italy the time of year we did (December 16-Jan 3) we literally had NO crowds anywhere & had most museums & sights to ourselves. We kept saying that Italy would not be the same if we were there w/a ton of people- I think we got spoiled. Also, the Italians are so friendly and kind, especially to our toddler. Most places would happily prepare a half portion of anything for her & most of the time they wouldn't charge. They would bring out appetizers of all sorts of things for her- none of which we asked for, or they charged us for. It was so nice of them.

Day 2: We had breakfast at the apartment (a key thing I think for traveling w/a toddler- it was a routine & made our apartments feel more like a home.)
-Secret Itineraries tour (booked in advance) at Doges Palace. Highly enjoyable. We were a little worried about this because of um... having a two year old & what people would think. You cannot bring a stroller in for this tour although you can for the rest of the Doges Palace.) Everything was fine & she fell asleep about a half hour after the tour began. Parents breath a sigh of relief & thank the gods of jetlag! We had lunch & got grocery items & went back to the apartment to take a nap.
Dinner- Vino Vino (got the place here) & it was excellent. We walked around & had hot chocolate- to die for!! When I get myself organized I will try to get some pic's on here- I know we have one of DD w/a chocolate mustache! Of course we had to have some gelato too- the first of the many times. By the end of our trip DD would see a gelato place & say "Let's go in there," & then once inside faced with the beatiful dispaly of gelati say "hmmm.... which one?" We still laugh about that!

Day 3:
Walked to the Rialto Bridge (oh yeah- you do have to lift the stroller up & over lots of steps & bridges- we didn't find it to be a big deal- just watch how the locals do it!)
-Wandered around the fish/produce market
-Had some cafe (baby fell asleep in stroller)
-shopped
-shopped some more
We went back to San Marco & spent a while w/the pigeons (the bird seed selling lady gave DD free birdseed) DD still talks bout this & we have the sweetest video footage & pictures. At one point there were so many birds I was getting a little freaked out (shouldn't have seen the movie The Birds I guess), but DD has this pigeons on her little head, arms- everywhere & is LAUGHING hysterically!
We picked up food to take back to the apartment & ate lunch there. We took a gondola ride ( I was unsure I wanted to do this, as it seemed to touristy- but we are gald we did.) We paid $80 Euros for 45 minutes. Our hotel told us it was cheaper during the day & that was fine for us. DD loved it & we got some great pictures. DD was lulled to sleep & mom & dad had a romantic time. The driver was so proud that he put the baby to sleep he had to point it out to his co-workers when we returned. It was cute. DD stayed sleeping for the next 2 hours & we transfered her to her stroller. We toured St. Mark's & paid teh extra $3 to see the alter. Beautiful. We had espresso & wandered. DD woke up & we got a 24 hour vaparetto pass & boarded a boat for Murano. A nice Italian lady gave DD a breadstick from her grocery sack on the ride over. I took the sweetest picture of them together. We walked around the island & bought a Murano vase. The lady at the glass shop gave DD a little glass bell to hold. I nervously tried to give it back to her (not wanting to break it) & she expalined to me in broken English that she wanted DD to keep it. It has a special spot in her room now. We take a boat back to Venice & when we get off I turn around & no DH! The boat is speeding away & I see him on the deck w/an empty stroller. DD starts to scream "DaDa DaDa" as he floats away.... Of course he returnes 20 minutes later after finding his way back & I am glad DD & I just stayed put. He later explains that he got stuck behind a man & couldn't remember how to say "excuse me in Italian" & couldn't get off in time. I tell him that yelling "WAIT or Excuse me" in English would have sufficed! We now impliment the "What to do in case someone gets stuck somewhere plan." We have dinner to celebrate the reunion of our family & DD falls asleep. We walk through the Cannegrio (I don't think I spelled that right) & Jewish Ghetto & took the slow boat #1 down the grand canal to get back to our hotel. DD wakes up & we have gelato one last time at San Marco Sguare. Mom & dad kiss in the nearly empty piazza- so happy we are here.
Stay tuned for Florence & as DD says "the white man named David..."
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Old Jan 11th, 2007, 11:43 AM
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How sweet! You have to post the picture of your daughter with the chocolate moustache! And with the pigeons.

Trip reports like this are great because they help people with children get a feel for what it is like to travel with them. Different, yes. More challenging, probably. Impossible, not at all. Charming, absolutely!

Looking forward to more . . .
Linda
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Old Jan 11th, 2007, 12:11 PM
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Great report. Glad you loved the Corte Grimani!
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Old Jan 12th, 2007, 11:49 AM
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We left Venice via water bus (since we had bought the 24 hour pass) to get to the train station- we didn't find it a big deal to get ourselves & our stuff through the city to the Rialto stop. Plus a bonus: some nice Italian men helped roll my bags over these gas pipes that were running along the street to fill a boat! I smiled at DH & he rolled his eyes!
Train to Florence was good & no trouble. We did get our tickets at home before we left, but probably wouldn't have needed to. We took a cab to our apartment in Florence, but later we realized how close we were & felt dumb. Oh well.

Our apartment: San Lorenzo Apartments (Falleri was ours) We booked through sleepinginflorence.com. I almost hesitate telling all of you fine people about this place because it's wonderful & the word will be out! It's located on Borgo San Lorenzo in the heart of the city literally 2 minutes from the Duomo & the San Lorenzo market. You have views of the Duomo from the windows. It's a small one bedroom which is upstairs in a loft overlooking the living room, kitchen etc. We were a little nervous about doing the whole apartment thing because you are so on your own with not having any hotel staff around to ask for help. After this trip we will never do anything but apartments again. We took a gamble with all of the apartments we chose & they were all incredible. We paid $370 Euros for 3 nights. We kept saying how we truly felt like a part of the city, because the entrance to our apartment was literally just this big wood door w/a number 13 on it right on the street. We would see people watch us open it w/our key & you could tell they were wondering if we lived there or what. We walked everywhere in Florence & I know people say it's a great city for that, but it's totally true. You did have to climb (and I mean climb) 4 flights of stairs to this apartment. The view is worth it!

Florence day 1: We walked to the Duomo & went in & also spent some time by the Baptistry doors. DD still talks about the "big Duomo that goes ding, ding, ding." The funny thing is that we had spent some time showing her pictures of things we would see in Italy & talking about it, & she actually recognized the Duomo & told us what it was before we could say anything. We took a minute & prided ourselves on having a daughter that can recognize something out there in the world besides Dora the Explorer!
We got some pizza/wine (which they uncorked & we carried this open bottle through town & felt like we were doing something illegal- I never got used to that!) We ate back at the apartment. We walked to the Accademia & had made reservations, but we really did not need them. I seriously cannot believe this even now, but we were there at 5:30 pm & I don't know if it was the time of year, or time of day, but there were 10 people in the entire museum! At one point we had David & all his glory to ourselves. This was the start of DD asking every day if we would see "the white man named David" again. The museum is amazing. It seems like if you do a good job prepping your toddler for what they will see, museums are fantastic places for them to look & explore. Also, stickers & a note pad were quiet activities that kept her busy when she needed to keep it toned down. Who knew stickers could be so exciting? We stopped & got groceries ( a store across from the museum) & DD fell asleep & missed the gelato stop.

Florence day 2: Went to the San Lorenzo market (I know realize that I should have bought more stuff- the deals were the best we saw in Italy, but we still had so much trip left we thought maybe we would see stuff in Rome etc.) I LOVE THIS MARKET! We bought a bunch of cashmere scarfs for ourselves & as gifts, I got knee length black leather dress boots (65 Euros,) & a white coat. I was feeling Italian already! We bought cheese, pastas, olive oil & vinegar from the food market & they wrapped it for us to take home. We also got DD cute leather gloves lined with fur. The market was a great place to stock up on stuff to make at the apartment as well as to grab cafe or eat.
We walked to the Bargello museum (maybe my favorite...) It's a great place for kids. It's a nice balance between inside "quiet" things to look at as well as a huge outdoor courtyard for running & lots of steps (which DD insisted on climbing herself... so 10 hours later we finally made it upstairs
We walked to the Piazza della Signoia & bought lunch & ate on the Piazza as many were doing & admired the sculptures. DD found some more pigeons to chase & I found a Erbonisteria & got some wonderful lavendar perfume.
We walked across the Pont Veccio headed toward the Pitti Palace. We bought a combo ticket for the museums & Boboli gardens. DD loved the freedom of running & her obsession with picking up rocks beagn here. We took her official "two year old" pictures here by a fountain (I do side work as a photographer.) She technically wouldn't be two for another week, but I don't have the Boboli Gardens to work with as a backdrop back home! DD fell asleep & we were able to tour the inside apartments/museums at our leisure. We really like the Pitti Palce- it was a nice place to spend a half day.
We made our way back to the apartment walking on Via Tornabuoni & window shopped & wished I could do more than window shop! We stopped at the Piazza Republica & DD went on the carousel set up there. We were back there every night from that point on
Dinner: Osteria dell Angelo on Borgo San Lorenzo. DH had the Florentine steak & I had carbonara. This was a great palce for food & for kids. We then had a fun-filled evening of laundry & baths.

Florence day 3:
Had reservations at the Uffizzi (again didn't need them- no line, nearly empty museum) In fact, they didn't even charge us for the reservation, the guy just said "forget it." DH & I loved the "Birth of Venus" & DD loved walking on only the balck tiles on the black & white marbled floors. We spent 2.5 hours there.
Walked back to the market for lunch supplies & had cafe & went back to apartment to eat lunch.

We boarded a train to Pisa (DD slept for the ride) & had no problems getting to the Field of Miracles. A lot of people said not to bother w/Pisa, but we liked it. It was the one thing DD was really geared up to see from our discussions at home. She tells everyone that she saw the Leaning Tower Of Pisa & that it was "tipping" (as she demonstrates by leaning to the side.) We ate in Pisa & had gelato. DD fell asleep clutching the gelato cup in her hand. DH ate it. We were back in Florence by 7:00 pm & we went back to you guessed it- the carousel & more gelato since DH ate DD's that afternoon.
We got back to the apartment& accidentally fell asleep when we were putting DD to bed. We woke up at 3:00 am in our clothes & stayed up for the next 2 hours packing because we had to leave the next morning.
Next installment: DH & the rental car...
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Old Jan 12th, 2007, 12:25 PM
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I am just loving this report of your loving family trip. Thank you for sharing!
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Old Jan 12th, 2007, 12:29 PM
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What a wonderful trip report. I am glad you enjoyed yourselves. Your daughter must have a great vocabulary for her age!
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Old Jan 12th, 2007, 01:11 PM
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Wonderful report! Brings back many great memories of our trip to Rome and Tuscany with 22 month old DD. She's now 13 and will return to Italy without us this year to participate in a Choral Festival with her Youth Opera. How the time does fly!
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Old Jan 12th, 2007, 01:12 PM
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What a fantastic family trip report googie, I hope others that are considering taking their little ones to Italy will read it. And your daughter, a clever and fun little girl!
Of course you know you will have to start budgeting for an annual trip for her, lol! Thanks for sharing your wonderful days. I look forward to the next installment.
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Old Jan 12th, 2007, 01:53 PM
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I'm really enjoying your report. It sounds like you had a marvelous time (at least so far!) I'm looking forward to reading the rest.
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Old Jan 12th, 2007, 02:54 PM
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This is a charming report. I am going to Italy with my baby girl(age 14)in February. Can't wait!
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Old Jan 12th, 2007, 02:59 PM
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What a wonderful report, I am loving every moment Please do post pictures of your DD with those Venice pigeons!
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