Ira, Bob and everyone else,

Thank you for all this information, unfortunately, there seems to be someone on this board who cannot stand being the center of attention and IT has to criticize others to get all the attention. Life on this board was so cordial and informative, unfortunately, IT is back and will once again try to spew its venom out.

Let's all ignore IT, it is not worthy of the time of all the good and nice people who make up most of this board.

correction....

>>board who cannot stand being the center of attention and <<

Obviously I meant that it cannot stand NOT being the center of attention"

However, I have to add that already the editors of Fodors seem to have gotten wise to it.

Hi all,

Any more helpful information?

Ira-Do you speak Italian? You would be an excellent tour guide to take on a trip to Italy (smile). Thanks for all the information on Italy. This is going to help me alot in my planning..
Ciao!!

Hi Gail,

No capice Italiano.
Thank you for the kind words.

Back to the topic:
Q. How do I get to my hotel from the train station in Venice,Florence, Rome:

A. The best answer is to ask the Hotel.
They do it everyday. Or, check the map on the hotel web page.

TTT for the intended purpose

A useful link for the ES* trains.

Ooops,

I guess it might help if I posted the link.

http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...p;tid=34419647

Should I visit the Lagoon Islands (Torcello, Burano, Murano) on my visit to Venice. How about buying glass on Murano?

Torcello is considered dull by some because it is sparsely populated (fewer than 100 people) and deserted-looking. It is where the settlement of the Venetian lagoon first began; its importance declined after epidemics of malaria and plague decimated the population of the island. At one time 20,000 people lived there, today it has fewer than 100 inhabitants. It has three (I believe) cafes (one is quite fine and beautiful, with its own garden, and is run by the Cipriani hotel/restaurant family) and no shopping to speak of except for one antique store. However Torcello has a church and a cathedral, part of which dates from the 7th century, with exceptionally beautiful mosaics and for me, Torcello is an unforgettable experience. It is always one of the best things I do in Venice.
You can?t get lost on Torcello, there is really only one path, Fondamenta dei Borgognoni, that leads from the boat landing, along an overgrown and murky canal. It takes about 15 minutes to walk to the Cathedral. You will cross a stone bridge, passing the very nice Locanda Cipriani restaurant/inn mentioned above. tel 041 730150. Lovely terrace garden to eat on, or dine inside.. They will also send a launch to pick you up before your meal near the Danieli hotel in Venice, if you request this. www.locandacipriani.com Dinner is also served, and I think they also rent out some rooms. Closed in the winter. Past that restaurant, you will quickly come to first, the church of Santa Fosca, and then the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta. The latter is the church with the gorgeous mosaics.

On Murano you can go into a glass factory and watch them blow glass. Unless you are fascinated by the process or unless you intend to buy some "serious" glass items (as opposed to the small glass items that are all over Venice, Murano is not interesting or beautiful enough to be included on a short trip to Venice, in my opinion. Two churches there do have some important art works, San Pietro Martire and San Donato.

While I was in Venice for the first time I asked my concierge which boat I should take to Murano and Torcello. He told me that at 9am a free water taxi would take interested hotel guests to Murano, where the glass factories are. Thankfully, I had read about these arrangements. A particular glass factory arranges with a hotel to pick up interested guests by private boat. When the boat lands on Murano the passengers are offered a free tour of the sponsoring factory, after which they are encouraged to order some glass items. This is not necessarily a bad arrangement, but it means you don?t get to shop around at the other factories unless you strike out on your own, which I did.
When we arrived at the boat landing on Murano, I thanked the driver and went out to browse. Of course I had to make my own way back to Venice, but that was easy by vaporetto.
It turns out that much of the glass sold in Murano and Venice proper is mass-produced, and not all of it is even made on Murano, some of it comes from the Czech republic and elsewhere. Even on Murano, there are many glass shops that just sell souvenirs that may or may not be made there.

Burano is (literally) the most colorful of the lagoon islands, with its brightly-colored houses. It is a picture-taker's paradise. It is also known for lace-making. If you buy there, try to verify that the item was actually made there and not imported cheaply. There's also the San Martino church with a Tiepolo painting.

Thanks, Elaine

How do I get from Naples Airport to Sorrento?

rbrazill posted
There is a bus (Curreri Viaggi) which runs directly from outide the Naples Airport arrival terminal to Piazza Tasso in Sorrento. It runs frequently, takes about one hour and costs about 6 Euro. Here is a link:
http://www.curreriviaggi.it

Thanks Ira for starting this thread. Invaluable help, as always!

Now can somebody tell me a practical way to print all this out?

Deb

abqdeb, highlight what you want to print, right click your mouse, select "print," and choose "selection," then click "ok."

Or just click on any message on the right side of the screen and then click on the printer icon up in the toolbar. The whole thread will print.

Topping for Elaine.

ttt for the person seeking it.

;-) Statia

thank you

How do I get from the Funiculare to the Duomo in Orvieto?

There is a bus stop right outside the funiculare station. The ticket for the funiculare is also good for the bus.