Frank

Thought I had posted part 1 of this but I can't find it anywhere so if this is a duplication, I apologize. Just returned on April 26 from a two week Italian vacation. We are a family of four, with a sixteen year old son and eighteen year old daughter. A couple of months back folks were kind enough to give us some suggestions so I thought I would write about our experience to hopefully benefit others, especially families.<BR>We flew in and out of Milan, spent two nights in Florence, four in Rome and six in Sorrento, with the last night spent in Gallarate near the Malpensa airport outside of Milan.<BR>In a nutshell, it was a wonderful trip, and I highly recommend it to any family. Rather than a chronological diary I thought I would try and address the questions I had before I left and things I learned that might be helpful to those about to leave. We had hoped to mix a cultural vacation with a beach vacation (some may recall my pre trip post about where to get some sun so my daughter could get a tan before her prom) and for the most part we succeeded although as some predicted, the weather is too unsettled and the water too cold in April to have a real beach vacation.<BR>So to address some of the common concerns first:<BR>1)Language barrier<BR>Pretty much of a non issue on the beaten tourist paths. In restaurants and shops you need very little Italian to get by but a few words go a long way. In hotels they all seem to speak English. The only place it was occasionally an issue was making reservations in the train stations where you may encounter the disgruntled burnt out railway ticket guy who is tired of dealing with tourists. Two ways around it are 1) to use the computer ticket machines, very easy or 2)Write down what you need--4 people, Firenze to Roma, first class, non fumare, partenze 1130, Eurostar, solo andata and hand it to him. Check the ticket when you get it, to make sure it's what you asked for.<BR>2)What to wear<BR>Not much of an issue here either. I don't think you're going to fool anybody into thinking you're Italian, there are scads of tourists everywhere wearing everything, the Italians now wear jeans and athletic shoes (the young ones at least)so don't worry. Wear a good travel outfit that's lightweight and you can dress up a bit, comfortable shoes. I never did see males in shorts but other than that wear what you want. We did find the leather coats we bought in Florence nice to wear out to dinner. Bring a sweater for cool evenings at least if you're going in the next couple of weeks.<BR>3)Anti-American sentiment<BR>Another non-issue. Italians are pretty savvy about figuring out where you're from, usually guessing we were Americans or Canadians, but the overwhelming reacton was happy to see you and your business. You will see the occasional anti-American graffiti in Florence and Rome, a fair amount of pro-Palestinian placards, but I never felt any hostility at all. I had a nice talk with the guy who drove us on the Amalfi coast about Italy's stance on the middle East and he stated they need to stay "exactly in the middle" because of their proximity to so many Muslim countries and dependence on US for security. Honestly, though politics would never have come up had I not brought it up. My sense is they're more interested in la dolce vita than politics, and tourism is such a huge part of their economy they don't want to scare anybody away. So go!<BR>I think I'll post this chunk now to make sure I can do it.

Frank

Part2<BR>4)Transportation issues<BR>For the common tourist route, Milan, Venice, Florence, Rome, Naples, ride the trains and buy point to point in Italy as you go. I was sure I could save money because they had a 1/3 reduction on the 3 country Eurail saverpass this spring and I was lucky if I broke even. The trains are fun, tickets and reservations are easy to buy, you can either do it on the machines, at the train station or with a travel agent who are all over. Four first class tickets from Rome to Naples first class on a Eurostar would have cost 130 euros. Our train pass cost us 40 euros per person per day and we still had to pay 40 euros to make a reservation so I paid 200 euros for a trip I could have paid 130 for if I had purchase in Italy. I think seeing how quick and convenient trains are is part of the fun of Europe, and educational for the kids so we always take them.<BR>The most important itinerary decision you make before you leave is to really think about the "schlepping factor" Some days that seem reasonable on this side of the Atlantic turn out to be quite grueling on the other. For example, on the trip over we went Seattle to DC to Milan by air, shuttle bus from airport to main train station(50 minutes, be sure and stow your luggage under the bus, no room inside), train to Florence (three hours), haul luggage in a rainstorm to hotel. We were exhausted. Consider flying to your first city, even if it means taking a short hop plane flight, and end your trip in your airport departure city (ie open jaw) That's one place where a board like this can be very helpful, people will tell you if your travel days are practical. In general, I'm becoming more of a mind with Rex "travel less and see more of where you are". We felt like maybe we had one too many days in Rome when we were there but had a great day walking through the forum and over to Trastevere. Same for Sorrento but on our last day we ferried to Ischia which I would probably use as a base the next time I went back. (best beaches in the Amalfi/Sorrento area, I liked Porto Ischia)<BR>5)Money issues<BR>If you can use ATM's in the US, you can use them in Italy. They are everywhere. I was only declined once when the machine I was at temporarily wasn't giving money. Traveller's checks are not necessary, unless you like a backup to your backup.(I do) My credit card was denied when I first got there, and I had to call the 1-800 number and give my mother's maiden name etc to clear it up. You might want to call before you leave and let them know you'll be going to Italy to avoid this.<BR>6)Hotel rooms<BR>We stayed in quad rooms the whole time and had no problem. The kids' beds seemed substantially better than the US hotel rollaways with the mandatory bar across the small of the back. You do have to honestly assess the snoring volume of various family members though. We spent 145 to 250 euros per night with breakfast, reserved by email before we left, and had the previous hotel call and confirm the room the day before we were to arrive. As far as specific hotels, we stayed at Pendini in Florence, (nice staff, good room, good breakfast, bit of a smell problem in the halls, some noise from Piazza Republica at night), Italia in Rome (very nice staff, good room, unusually quiet, bit of a smell problem in room 36 which opened onto an interior courtyard with a grease machine) and Minerva in Sorrento (incredible view, very nice and helpful staff, no smell problem, but the morning staff couldn't seem to make a decent cappucino)We like to walk and never felt like location was a problem--people seem to worry about this most in Rome but we could walk to the Trevi fountain in ten minutes.<BR>

Frank

Bit long winded, sorry<BR>7)Sights the kids liked<BR>Florence--Accademia, David, Prisoners, and Pieta<BR>Uffizi<BR>Climbing the bell tower<BR>Rome--Musee Borghese, Pauline Bonaparte, Apollo and Daphne, Rape of Proserpine<BR>Trevi Fountain<BR>Victor Emmanuel Monument(just from the outside when you stumble onto it)<BR>St. Peter's and the Vatican<BR>Sorrento<BR>Amalfi coast drive. We rented a taxi and driver for 200 euros for the day and loved it.<BR>Ischia<BR>Walk to Regina Giovanna (ruins on the tip of the cape)<BR>Pompeii<BR>Capri<BR>Hydrofoils everywhere<BR>Rick Steve's Neapolitan slice of life walk<BR>Everywhere--great motorbikes, passagiamento, especially the teen mob in Sorrento.<BR>8)Reservations<BR>For museums, reserve the Uffizi and Accademia by phone from the US, number in any guidebook, English speaking operator. Musee Borghese reserve at www.ticketeria.it<BR>For restaurants, you can get in just about anywhere if you show up before 7:30 but they may ask you to finish by 9. <BR>9)Food<BR>The food is great anywhere, and very kid friendly. Rather than focus on the expensive and interesting restaurants one tends to find recommended on this website by the foodie crowd (which I will go to more often when my wife and I travel)eat at the more humble "typical" Italian eateries to get a flavor of them and use the pizza rustica places and eat pizza and pannini for lunch. You can explore and find these places everywhere which is fun. Some places we liked<BR>Florence--Hosteria Caminetto just south of the Duomo on via della studio I think<BR>Rome--Abruzzi on via vaccaro<BR>Osteria dell'Ingegno on piazza di pietro (most trendy place, best food but not particularly great service)<BR>Sorrento<BR>Viela Blanca at Marina Piccolo (fun guitarist)<BR>Zi'ntonio's (touristy, kind of expensive but fun)<BR>Naples--Da Michelle pizzeria, the original pizzeria, 16 euros for three pizzas and drinks, love it.<BR>Gallarate--if you wind up staying there, Pizzeria Grotto Azurra is great.<BR>Capri--watch out for serious bill padding at La Cisterna next to recommended Da Gemma which isn't open as long for lunch. Large friendly waiter is friendly for a reason. Meals were reasonable I thought, many meals were in the mid 70 euro range, the big variable is wine but in retrospect I would usually spring for a local wine recommended by the waiter in the 18 to 20 dollar range rather than the house wine. Some of them were fabulous, and steals by American standards. Ischia doc something Tassirelli in Sorrento comes to mind.

Frank

Almost there<BR>A word about strikes. We almost changed all our plans to avoid the "big" strike of April 16 and we're glad we didn't. They're well planned in advance, everybody knows when they start and stop, just don't plan on travelling that day. We took the subway to the Vatican that day and never saw any evidence of it. Some folks we met at the train station had to walk through a demonstration because their hotel was at Piazza del Popolo and thought it was more like a parade.<BR>Some things you should be ready for<BR>1)Crazy traffic and hairy pedestrian crossings in Rome and Naples. Find a nun or a police officer the first couple of times or a pack of locals.<BR>2)If you have a daughter in her late teens, leering Italian men. This got really old by the end for my daughter. They would cross the street so she had to pass one foot in front of them, stand and look her up and down, with me right behind her. These guys were 20's to 40's. You can have 'em.<BR>3)Frosty Italian women clothing store sellers.<BR>My daughter enjoys fashion and wanted to shop in Rome and Sorrento but almost literally could not get someone to help her, even in shops where she wanted to spend money. Just the icy stare. Not sure what the deal was, but it happened over and over. The only helpful person was a transvestite in Rome when she wandered into the wrong store.<BR>4)Being scammed<BR>I was pickpocketted in Rome (luckily only gelati money in a 5 dollar wallet),had the restaurant bill padded in Capri,(La Cisterna) and had one grandfatherly type try and pull the taxi scam in Naples (when you get off the Circumvesuviana they tell you that you need to take a taxi to a different train station, you don't) If somebody in Naples finds you and asks to help, assume they're after something.<BR>As far as our itinerary, we liked Sorrento--touristy, you bet for about the last 2000 years but terrific transportation connections. I think non-touristy Amalfi coast towns are an oxymoron. I have my own index to gauge this--you walk down the main drag, count the number of shops with dead fish, and the number with women's dresses, if F is greater than D you're in a good spot. By this standard Amalfi was the best and Positano the worst town.<BR>As far as timing of the trip, you folks heading out in the next four to six weeks should be perfect for the beach scene on the Amalfi coast. We were too early for warm weather and the Mediterranean was too cold to swim. I don't know when the crowds get unbearable. Those roads are ridiculous with any traffic.<BR>That's about it, I'll try and watch this thread for a few days to answer questions then I'll be off this board till next time. Thanks again for those who answered my questions.

susie

Thanks for a report with plenty of specifics. It will be very helpful for the family trip I am planning to Italy this summer. Susie