Wow, thank you all for the great information. I took the advice of many posters on this forum and bought Rick Steeves travel book, and am indeed looking to add in some countryside in by "big cities" trip. And as suggested by Tony, we are planning to purchase rail passes. I think that perhaps I was overestimating the amount of time we needed in Rome, Venice, or Florence...the Amalfi Coast sounds amazing and I will definitely look into it. Feel free to pass on any other advice you may have!! We definitely appreciate the help!! <BR>Nicki