Day 9 - Capri

Due to wifi issues, I decided to wait until I got home before I updated the last entry of my tour. Thanks for your patience!

Our excited anticipation of visiting Capris was slightly dampened by a jaunting 1/2 hour boat ride to the island. At first, it was a lot of fun riding the large waves; we screamed and laughed as the sea tossed us up and down. Within 10 minutes, however, I could suddenly hear the muted silence of queasiness on the boat. I don't usually get motion sickness, but even I started to feel sick after about 20 minutes. Someone outside on the top deck puked over my tour guide and friend. Yuck.... So, on the ride to Naples after Capri, which was one hour, I took a Gravol -- highly recommended for anyone who gets motion sickness easily.

But, the view of Capris was spectacular and well-worth that tumultuous boat ride. Capris is the most expensive place to live in Italy and it is the origin of pizza.

This was the last day of our tour. Tomorrow is a travel day. (Turned out that on our third and last airplane ride, we had to turn around in mid-air to Pearson Airport in Toronto because of fuel problems on the plane; this after being on the flight for one hour already. Better safe than never, right? Our flight was delayed for another two hours and my students, who were starving for Canadian food, lined up at Tim Hortons and A&W Burgers. I'm so glad to be home.)

Day 5-8 of Spring Break Europe

 Finally got WiFi again! However, it's very spotty, so I'll post photos another time.

Day 5 - Paris

At the Louvre, I expected the Mona Lisa to be tiny with a gazillion people crowded around to try to see it. It was true. I did not expect to fall in love with Spartacus...and the other sculptures of the Cour Marly and Cour Puget collections. Paris was so hard to leave behind.

Day 6 - Rome

Today, we visited the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Basilica. I was stunned by how beautiful the ceiling and walls were of the Sistine Chapel; too bad we couldn't take photos of that particular room.

Day 7 - Rome

The Colosseum was the highlight of the day, but our tour guide, Gianmarco, took us on an unscheduled walking tour of Rome, which included the Roman Forum and Trevi Fountain. It is a city of exquisite beauty. I was awestruck by how buildings that are thousands of years old are still standing. If I thought saying goodbye to Paris was hard, then I am not looking forward to leaving Rome. I could see myself living here and wished myself at the Trevi Fountain to be surrounded by extraordinary beauty again.

Day 8 - Pompeii and Sorrento

Pompeii was a haunting classroom. It was eerie to walk around an ancient city that has been extinguished by lava and ash in 79 A.D. and re-discovered in 1748.

Sorrento, on the other hand, was a vibrant place despite the hail storm. The view from my hotel room was gorgeous.

Venice, Day 3

When I first heard of the Bridge of Sighs, I thought it was because people sigh when they see such a beautiful and romantic view. When I saw it for myself the first time, I sighed because of exasperation, thinking, "That's it?" But, from time to time, our sightseeing would take us past the bridge and each subsequent time I saw it, I grew quite fond of the bridge. Today, on our last day in Venice, I passed by the bridge again, and I sighed, this time because of content and sadness -- content because I have achieved my goal of coming to Venice and sadness because I have to leave this beloved city.

Because it was our last day here, we took it easy by going window shopping. We visited the fish market and hung out in San Marco Square. Our evening ended perfectly with a lovely dinner, entertained by the friendly, but goofy wait staff. I was even invited to dance with the chef, but I couldn't tell if they were joking; in any case, I shyly declined. I wanted to enjoy the last night with my sister and friend only. Plus, the perfect dinner made me miss my husband more and I realize that I have 9 days left of my vacation.

Grazie, Venezia, and arrivederci!

Venice, Day 2

As if Venice needed to convince me more of its beauty, it shows me the "island of colour" -- Burano. Burano is very picturesque with its vibrant colors and shops of lace. The place here is very relaxing compared to the high tourist traffic of Venice. It is hard to imagine at first that there are people who actually live on such a tiny touristy island, but as I strolled through its streets, I began to understand Burano's attraction. 30 minutes away from the main island of Venice, Burano is often overlooked by the island of Murano, which is only 10 minutes away from Venice.

After we had an amazing seafood lunch in Burano, we decided to stop by Murano. It is known for its glass factories, but after Burano, Murano could not compare. We stayed there for only about 10 minutes before we left.

We re-visited the Bridge of Sighs and witnessed a traffic jam, Venetian-style.