We are finally to the place that was the whole inspiration for our trip – where Frank’s parents grew up. We will be here for two and a half months, exploring this beautiful island and connecting with family.

Agrigento Beach House

Our first stop is Agrigento, which is on the southern side of Sicily and only a few miles from where Frank’s parents grew up. It is also the home to the Valley of the Temples, what some say are the best preserved Greek temples outside of Greece. You can see them from the highway, but we will tour them later this week.

We rented a beach house on VRBO. The owners sent us directions, which we followed along the autostrada – and then – there was a quick right and all of a sudden, we were in another world. A very narrow dirt road, where two horses galloped by, those amazing Greek temples in the distance, and no signs. We gamely inched forward and made the next left, as instructed, only to encounter an overpass that looked like it would take us to an even more remote world.

The overpass ended at a gate, and we didn’t know what to do. We called the owner, who said we were in the right place, and all of a sudden, the gate opened. We drove forward to another gate. It opened automatically, too. And we found ourselves in an incredible compound right on the water. Movie stars could stay here, it is so private.

The family was super nice – the mom, grandmom, and two kids were there. They had stocked the ‘fridge with local cheese, canolli, and limoncello. They even drove us around to show us the local markets. Wow – Sicily is very friendly.

And Of Course Adventure

We pictured driving into the nearest little town and having a leisurely, fancy dinner to celebrate our first night here. But there always must be a little adventure. Ours came when we tried to lock the rental car, and all the windows rolled down. After a few more attempts, we realized this was a pattern. Every time we hit “lock” on the remote key, we would hear a click and all seemed well. But then a few minutes later, all the windows would roll down. Oh no! We have heard a few scary stories about Sicily and how bold thieves will actually steal purses right out of moving cars. What do you think they would do to a car sitting around with all its windows down? Not good. We pulled out the manual – of course, it is in Italian. We called Hertz, who seemed as puzzled as we were – although there may have been a little detail lost in translation. (After some Googling, apparently this is a common problem on this model of Volvo.)

Our Car – notice windows all down.

In the meantime, we were starving in our compound by the sea. So Frank and I made a bold plan to go to the market. One of us would dash in, while the other would be the look-out to for our unlocked car (so the windows would stay up). We took turns grabbing groceries and then running back to check out the car. I’m sure we looked like crazy people. With the marketing finished, we decided to just order a pizza to go. We turned down a beachfront avenue that we knew had restaurants, but learned that it apparently closes to cars on Saturday nights so people can take a stroll. There was no way out, so we had to keep going for six long blocks – apologizing to bikers, babies in strollers, and elderly couples walking arm in arm in our path. Finally, we picked up our pizza and headed home.

Back on the autostrada, back under the little overpass, back down the dirt road and through the gate. We collapsed on the terrace overlooking the water, opened a bottle of wine, and ate our (now cold) pizza. It tasted delicious.

Update: After trying to explain this quirky problem on the phone, we are heading back to Palermo Hertz. Good news is that Frank has already connected with his cousin, Enza, who lives nearby. We will be going there for lunch this week. Things are looking up.

For our last day in Rome, we decided to just take it easy and go on a boat ride (our favorite thing to do). We had seen a brochure for a “Hop-On Hop-Off” boat along the Tiber River. Perfect – we could ride down, hop off for lunch, and ride back home.

If you haven’t been to Rome, the Tiber River is not that big. It is muddy with a swift current and has a series of rapids part-way through the town. So the range a boat can go is somewhat limited. But we still would see a different side to the city.

We excitedly made our way to the riverbank, where there was a huge rowing regatta going on, bought our ticket and waited. About 15 minutes later, this little barge with plastic lawn chairs on top chugged up to the dock, listing a little when the passengers turned this way or that. Just our type of adventure!

We boarded and had a marvelous time taking in the river sights. We saw a number of rowing clubs with beautiful boathouses, along with restaurants and even houseboats. My favorite scene in “Roman Holiday” was when Audrey Hepburn went to the dance on the barge along the Tiber River, so I loved this.

Eventually, we ended up at Tiber Island, the only island in the river. We got off and wandered around awhile before going to the mainland on the other side to the Jewish Ghetto. Rome’s Jewish population first came here 2,000 years ago. Then, in about 1500 AD, the city decided they should be segregated in a 4-block area next to the river, which at the time was undesirable due to flooding. The area still is the home to a beautiful temple, thriving kosher restaurants, and galleries. We had lunch at a place that specializes in whole fried artichokes, which are in season right now. Delicious.

We came home, packed, and had a final toast in our lovely apartment. We are a little sad to leave Rome, but we are super excited about our next destination – Sicily!

If you think the above picture is chaotic, you are right. This is what the entrance to the Vatican Museum looks like. Visitors stand in a line that goes for blocks – unless you have a guided tour. Then, you are able to by-pass everyone and walk right in. And even better if the tour is of the gardens, where you can trade the picture above for this:

Ahhh . . . much better.

These are the gardens of the Pope. We were extremely lucky because they only open them twice a month to visitors. I had looked online a couple of months ago to see what tours they had and reserved this one because it looked off the beaten path, and we usually like that type of thing.

It was great! Not only were the gardens beautiful, but we learned lots of interesting facts.

– For example, did you know that Pope John Paul II jogged nearly every day in these gardens?

– Or that Vatican citizens have a special license plate? They can park anywhere in Rome and not get a ticket (like diplomatic immunity).

– The Gardener has his job for life and a house right below St. Peter’s Dome (see yellow house below), where he lives with his family. They all get to be Vatican citizens, until the children turn 18 and then have to become Italians.

– There is a 15th century tower, which was used as a look-out when first built. Each Pope is able to choose whichever rooms in the Vatican he wants for his apartments. One decided to live in the tower, so they fixed it all up for him. Now they let dignitaries stay there, including (they told us) American Presidents.

– There is an area surrounded by fountains where the Pope can have a private conversation that is guaranteed not to be overheard by anyone on the outside.

– And each Pope gets to decorate their own area – whether a type of garden or statue that means something to him. If a Pope has a favorite walking path, they will end up naming it for him. One Pope walked the same straight line so often that they installed a glass ceiling, so if it rained, he could still walk and see the sky.

So not only was the setting lovely, but it really was like walking around in history. What a fascinating and beautiful place.

Our apartment is in a residential neighborhood on the OTHER side of the Tiber River from many of the sites and is very peaceful. There are little markets and cute neighborhood restaurants filled with locals where the menu is only in Italian. So it was a little bit of a culture shock to go to the touristy side and see the mobs of people everywhere. But we were on a mission – to see the sites of Ancient Rome.

Coliseum

The most visited site in Rome is the Coliseum. People line up for hours just to get in. Fortunately, we had booked a tour so could by-pass the line (with The Roman Guy – we highly recommend!). Not only were we to see the Coliseum, but we were going to the one of the places where most tourists aren’t allowed – the actual floor.

We met up with our group, strode past all those waiting in line to a locked gate. Soon, a lady with a key emerged and opened it for the 8 of us. Before we knew it, we were walking through the same tunnel where the gladiators walked – to the floor of the Coliseum. Wow! Most of the public just gets to see the second and third levels – which are impressive in themselves. So was really amazing to experience the place from the floor – and with only 8 of us.

Then we went through another locked gate to the lower level that housed cages for the exotic beasts that were forced to fight in the arena – giraffes, elephants, lions, bears. Again, it was just the 8 of us, so you could take time to really think about what it was like “in the day.”

Next, we boarded an elevator that whisked us to the top tier – also not open to the public. We could take pictures and look down on the “regular” tourists and where we had just been. It was quite an experience.

Palantine Hill & Roman Forum

After the Coliseum, our little band of 8 headed over to Palantine Hill and walked all over the ruins of the Imperial Palace. This is the palace overlooking Circus Maximums that we had seen a few days earlier. We wondered who those people were up there – not it was us!

And then the Roman Forum. This is an area that dates back to Julius Caesar that has been excavated. There are temples, homes, and even Caesar’s gravesite.

Trastevere

After all that history, we were ready for dinner. So we walked back to our side of the river to a cool neighborhood called Trastevere – a working man’s area that now has trendy trattorias and shops.

We had an excellent meal and walked back to our neck of the woods – closer to St. Peter’s. We stopped in for gelato and found ourselves in the company of four “padres” (priests), who had probably walked over from the Vatican and were also out for a little after-dinner sweet.

What a fun and unique city this is – we are loving it!

We took Monday off for work and chores and then got up at 6 am for a tour of the Vatican, where we were able to get a head start before it opened to the public. And was it worth it – the Vatican can be mobbed with crowds and with huge lines wrapping around St. Peter’s Square. But with a tour, we got to walk right in before it opened so saw some highlights, like the Sistine Chapel, in relative calm.

Did You Know?

I could fill pages and pages with what we saw. Instead, I’ll list what I thought were the most interesting facts that I did not know before yesterday:

– Saint Peter was crucified on this spot, which is why it is Saint Peter’s Basilica. He is buried under the altar.

– As Michelangelo painted the Sistine Chapel, the Pope’s closest assistant was his biggest critic, so he painted him as the Guardian of Hell wrapped in snakes. (Take that!)

– The Sistine Chapel is where the conclave of cardinals meets to cast their votes for a new Pope. You cannot take pictures in the Sistine Chapel because the Vatican sold the copyright to a Japanese company in exchange for them restoring Michelangelo’s works. So you can only buy postcards.

– Each Pope chooses his own apartments. Former apartments that are very fancy now are galleries that house everything from ancient Egyptian mummies to French Impressionists to even a gift from President Nixon of moon rocks. Pope Francis, however, decided to just keep his same little apartment he was assigned as a cardinal.

– The Pope has declared 2016 a holy year, which means that sinners can walk through a golden door and have their sins forgiven – see picture of door below. They are expecting 25 million visitors (normally Rome gets about 9 million).

– The Vatican is a separate country and protected by the Swiss military – the “Swiss Guards.” We got to see the changing of the guard.

– The dome of St. Peter’s (painted by Michelangelo) is the tallest in the world. There is an unwritten rule that no building in Rome can be higher.

     
Climbing the Dome

You are probably wondering why I titled this page, “Limping Through the Vatican.” Well, during our visit it was pouring down rain. I can personally attest that marble is VERY slick when wet, and I took a tumble. I got right up, red-faced – “I’m ok, I’m ok!” But as the tour wore on, I could feel my knee smarting.

After the tour, Frank and I decided to keep going and set our sights on the Dome. You can ascend to the dome either by elevator or by walking up. We paid to take the elevator – remember how I said the dome is the tallest in the world? We were so excited that we somehow missed the signs and took a wrong turn. We started winding up and up, thinking the elevator must be around the next corner. After awhile, we realized we must be on the path to WALK up instead. At that point, we thought it would probably be just as far to walk down, so kept going around and round, up and up, until we popped out at the base of the dome. (By this time, I definitely was limping!)

But how worth it. We got to see Michelangelo’s dome up close and had a bird’s eye view of the Basilica floor below. Even better, we got to explore the rooftop of the Basilica – they even had an espresso shop up there!

I’ve posted a picture taken from the ground – you can see the statues on the roof – and then a picture of us behind the statues. Very cool.

It is possible to keep climbing to the cupola on top, but we decided not to press our luck, so this time took the elevator down. We hobbled home, where I have been icing my knee off and on, but doing ok.

We will go back later this week for a tour of the Vatican Gardens – this time, hopefully in the sunshine. : )

Sunday (Rome) –

What a highlight – we got blessed by the Pope this morning! We were joined by a few thousand other people, but it was no less thrilling.

A Papal Audience

We had heard that the Pope appeared each Sunday in his apartment window and offered a blessing. We live in the neighborhood so thought we’d check it out.

I thought this seemed a little too good to be true, but as we approached we saw crowds of people hurrying toward St. Peter’s Square with us. And when we turned the corner – thousands (maybe tens of thousands) – all lined up and waiting.

I had studied the map so knew where the apartment was to make sure we were facing the right direction. A few minutes later, a tiny figure in white appeared in the window above the flag and waved. The crowd went wild. They had Pope Francis broadcast on video screens, too, so everyone could clearly see. He prayed and blessed everyone (in Italian) and even called on what looked like several school groups who cheered as he said their names. Truly amazing. I thought how inspiring that so many thousands of people would line up to see a religious figure, just like he was a rock star. It was a wonderful start to our trip.

The Lay of the Land

We also had a tour of the city to get our bearings. We used a company (The Roman Guy) that specializes in small group tours – there were 6 of us. They drove us all over so that we could get a good overview and know where to go back. We got out in several places as well – like a private hop-on bus.

The tour was 3 hours, and we saw a LOT. Our favorites –

Spanish Steps

Covered in flowers – and people!

Trevi Fountain

Undergoing restoration, but Frank and I still threw three coins over our shoulders. One coin means you’ll come back to Rome, two means you’ll find love, and three means you’ll have a happy marriage. (No one else in our group wanted to join in, but as newlyweds, we weren’t taking any chances!)

Circus Maximus

Former scene of chariot races, with the ancient imperial palace overlooking the tracks.

Pantheon

Incredibly preserved and supposedly “mathematically perfect” building that has stood since 120 AD, with only light coming from hole in the top. The floor is sloped because it rains in. Supposedly the inspiration for the Duomo in Florence – also the burial place of Raphael.

Roman Forum

We went up to Capitoline Hill for spectacular views of the ancient temples and buildings uncovered. We will go back later this week for a real tour down in the Forum itself.

Next Up:

Early Morning Vatican Tour (before opens to public)

The Two Fools are back on the road. We will be here for one week before heading to Sicily to meet the family.

We rented a one bedroom apartment here that I saw on TripAdvisor – but came through a rental agency, Italy Perfect. I book most of our apartments through the owners themselves, and some are more organized than others. So it has been a pleasure to work with a professional company that sent us stacks of information beforehand and even arranged a driver to pick us up at the airport. Usually we are trying to locate our destination on GoogleMaps and frantically texting the owner to figure out a meeting spot. Having said that, these experiences have made us a little more street-savvy and have led to some of our most fun adventures – plus we have made friends with many of the owners, which adds a whole extra layer to our visit.

The Apartment

We love our apartment – especially the rooftop terrace (that is why we rented – I just kept coming back to that picture). We had a lovely Sunday morning breakfast on the terrace this morning, accompanied by the bells of St. Peter’s a few blocks away. The rest of the apartment is decorated very dramatically, with marble busts and antiques. We feel very Roman.

The Neighborhood

Our neighborhood is Prati, which is between Castel Sant’Angelo and the Vatican. It is on the “other” side of the river from the famous sights, like the Coliseum or Spanish Steps.  (Check out our gigantic front doors at left.)

Except around the Vatican, there are hardly any tourists, so the restaurants and markets are very local, which is what we like best. And St. Peter’s is only a few blocks away – we discovered it yesterday almost by accident as we were exploring – we were in awe!

Settling In

We have already hit the market for provisioning and were super proud of ourselves for knowing the ropes – brought our own bags, paid in Euros without blinking, bagged our own groceries, and knew exactly what we needed. Just like Italians.

As I previously reported, the Two Fools are on a 12-day hiatus back home so we can catch up on doctor’s appointments, household chores, and exchanging clothes for the summer season in Italy.

We have packed a lot in to a very short period – including a fun visit with Frank’s son and family. John, Valerie, CeCe (age 10), and Samantha (about to be age 7 in one week!) will be coming over to see us in Sicily this summer, so we have had lots to talk about. Frank’s parents are from Sicily, so it will be very cool to have 3 generations of Volpes there to meet the cousins.

And I am also very happy to report that my doctor’s visits have gone very well. One of the main reasons we returned was because I had my 6-month breast cancer scans and a lot of other tests. I don’t have all of the results yet but do know that my breast cancer screenings came back clean. Yay! I will go back for scans every 6 months for 5 years and also continue on tamoxifen, with regular check-ups with the medical oncologist. So we are moving through this. A big relief. Thanks for all your well-wishes and prayers.

Meanwhile, above is the view this morning from my HOME office – which I have to say may be my very favorite. : )

Next stop – Rome

Hi all! Just a quick update. We are back home for 12 days and then go back to Italy. For one, we can only stay 90 days at a time, so we didn’t want to overstay our welcome. But I also have my 6-month breast cancer scans this week plus a few other check-ups. Fingers crossed! I will update everyone.

So we are catching up on doctor’s appointments and household chores – and re-packing with summer clothes. We will be in Rome for one week and then Sicily the rest of the time, where Frank’s family lives.

P.S. If we do not answer right away, it is probably because our schedule is completely off kilter. We had some flight delays so were up 24 hours straight on the way back. And still on Italian time – we’ve been going to bed by 7:30 and getting up at 3:30. At this point, we may just keep this schedule to make it easier on the return. (This means we have lunch at 9:30 in the morning! It’s true, we really are two FOOLS!)

We had our most amazing day yet (I know I keep saying that) – but we love the water, and even more – we love being on a boat on the water. So we rented a small motorboat so that we could explore the lake on our own. So much fun! We had visited the boat rental place a few times to get the lay of the land and struck up a friendship with the owner, Mateo, who it turns out is a former World Champion Formula 1 speedboat racer. We saw all his trophies. Frank, especially, was very impressed. Now he’s the owner of the boat base and also a mechanic on the Formula 1 circuit, which takes him all over the globe.

Isola Comacina

We zipped around and studied some very impressive villas from the water, but our destination was Isola Comacina. The little island was settled in Roman times and an important ally of Milan in fighting off its then enemy of Como. The island also was a haven for Christians. But in 1169, Como conquered the island, burning all the churches, and causing its inhabitants to flee. It is said that a poet of Como put a curse on the island, and it was left uninhabited until the 20th century. It passed through Belgium rule and back to Italy and is now an artists’ retreat, nature preserve, and the setting of what the guidebooks call a “very exclusive” restaurant.

We had heard that, in season, the restaurant is packed with celebrities – their pictures are all over the walls – movie stars, rock stars, and world leaders. You must have a reservation to dine there – and obviously, must arrive by boat. There is a little ferry, but we thought it would be much more fun to arrive on our own. There is a rustic jetty behind the restaurant where we saw fancy wooden water taxis pull up, probably bringing their very wealthy guests. And so we rode right up with them in our motorboat with “Rent A Boat” painted in big letters on the side. But we thankfully don’t let that type of thing get to us and docked perfectly – whew!

And lunch was fabulous. It was served on the terrace overlooking the lake hosted by the owner, who is quite a character. They have had the same menu there – a set meal served family style – since 1947. Vegetables, lake fish, fried chicken, salad, cheese (which the owner cuts out of a huge wheel and serves at knifepoint), blood oranges and ice cream. But the highlight – the flaming coffee. At the end of every meal, the owner rings a bell and mixes up his magic potion, telling the story of the siege of the island by Como and how this flaming coffee will ward off the curse that has existed for over 800 years. The coffee actually has sugar and brandy, which makes it flame. I’m usually a tea drinker, but even I tried it. A very cool experience.

After lunch, we cast off our lines, slowly motored back to Argengo, and vowed to remember this magical moment and captivating place.