Tour day – Rosslyn Chapel and the Scottish Borders

Posted on May 19, 2017 by herktrav

Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Another tour day, this time we are headed south of Edinburgh. Highlights will include the rolling hills of the lowlands, a stop at the inspirational view point of Sir Walter Scott and then ending at Rosslyn Chapel.

We made our way over to the starting point in the drizzling rain; little did we know what weather lie ahead for today’s journey. Our driver / guide today will be Jodie. We have our full compliment of sixteen people loaded so off we go – cue the rain. It rained steadily the entire day, with a few bursts of downpours. While it surely took a bit away from the overall experience, it was still an interesting journey.

On our way to Sir Walter Scott’s inspirational point, Jodie shared some history of the area and told us the story of Mary Queen of Scots. Mary lived a rough life, even though she was crowned Queen at only 6 days old after the death of her father. She was married three times, imprisoned by her cousin Queen Elizabeth I, and was beheaded as a traitor to the state at the age of 44. Luckily, we arrived at the viewpoint before the story became any more lurid.

Despite the rain, the view was beautiful. Definitely inspirational, especially for someone coming from the excesses of the city.

Back on the bus and off to see the first William Wallace memorial. It was an oversized statue built on a hill overlooking the valley. This one wasn’t our favorite as we had to hike about fifteen minutes in the rain to get there from the car park. It played into the itinerary, so we grumbled quietly to ourselves.

Our next stop was the town of Melrose. We had a little time to see this quaint little town and also Melrose Abbey. Melrose Abbey is where William “Braveheart” Wallace’s heart is buried. Since we’ve not seen the movie, we were forced to learn the true facts rather than the movie version. Interesting and definitely a hero of the people.

Finally, for us DaVinci Code people, the final stop on the tour – Rosslyn Chapel. Very charming little chapel on the lands owned by the Sinclair family, with much mystery surrounding it. Inside the chapel, floor to ceiling, are carvings that are still argued about today.

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Rosslyn Chapel

It truly was a site to see. Angels, devils, animals of every kind, people, fruit, flowers and mysterious faces everywhere. Yet, the stained glass windows kept it spiritual and warm feeling.

A couple of interesting notes: the chapel was falling into ruin and had actually been abandoned for a great many years. When the Dan Brown book came out, the Rosslyn Trust people were thrilled. The additional tourists it brought in helped bring in some extra funds for restorations. When the movie people came calling, the Rosslyn Trust people were ecstatic. The film makers helped out greatly with the restorations and additional tourist funds have allowed the trust to restore and protect the chapel for the future.

As for the supposed treasure, I think the chapel itself is a treasure.

With this as our last stop, we journeyed back to Edinburgh and bid farewell to Jodie before heading back to the apartment.

Tonight’s dinner is at a restaurant called Michael Neave – Kitchen and Whisky Bar. This is another highly anticipated dinner (aren’t they all). Dinner was fabulous! The restaurant definitely lived up to the ravings we had heard – casual yet elegant, great food, terrific service and reasonably priced. We both thoroughly enjoyed our meals from start to finish – ratatouille, scallops, lamb, venison and sticky toffee soufflés. Our main wine for the evening was a Mercurey Burgundy. On our way out, Sue even had a chance to compliment the chef.

Beautiful evening as we strolled back to the hotel – and it wasn’t raining!

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Edinburgh at night

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Tour day – St Andrews and beyond

Posted on May 18, 2017 by herktrav

Edinburgh, United Kingdom

In case I didn’t mention it, the bed is really comfortable in the apartment. That said, we got another good night’s rest before heading out on our tour this morning. Today we are taking a Rabbie’s Tour to St Andrews, which includes stops at the fishing village of Anstruther and the town of Falkland.

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Rabbie’s Tours

We meet the group at 9:30 am, which I’m sure surprises many of you who know our normal sleeping pattern. The tour group is limited to 16 people and the driver / guide Nik is terrific. Nik told us lots of stories along the way and was very entertaining, besides being knowledgeable. So while we’re driving along, he shared the following story.

Please skip the next paragraph if you’re easily offended.

So back in the day, Edinburgh was not so developed as far as plumbing goes. People would fill a bucket when they needed to go to the bathroom. When filled, it would be tossed out the window. To make things a little more civil, people would toss the bucket early in the morning or late at night. When they did, they would shout out “gar de loo”, which basically translates to “watch the water”. Well, people, especially sailors from other countries would come into port and go out and get drunk then walk back to their ships. Not understanding the local customs, they would unfortunately look up when they heard people shouting out “gar de loo”. And that is supposedly the birth of the phrase to be “shit-faced drunk”.

Onward, our journey took us down to the waterfront where we stopped to catch a glimpse of the three bridges that cross the Firth. One of the bridges, ‘The Forth Bridge’, is renowned for its design and strength and is a UNESCO World Heritage structure. Referred to as the train bridge, it’s a heavy steel girder bridge that was built after a rail accident in the 1800’s.

Our next stop was the fishing village of Anstruther. We made a short stop here to get the feel of a real Scottish fishing village. It was a cute and quaint little village, that is still in use, though not like in the olden days.

We continued our drive through some lovely land, green rolling hills with lots of sheep and cattle. Very idyllic and peaceful.

We arrived at St Andrews and it is a beautiful little town. Besides the golf course, it is also an University town. In fact, it’s where Kate Middleton and Prince William met while attending school together.

We walked through the town a bit and stopped at a pub for a bite to eat and a bit of refreshment. So our first pub meal was fish and chips with mushy peas. Mine washed down with a blonde ale and Sue’s with a large pinot grigio.

After our meal, we made our way through town and over to the old course at St Andrews, where we got to watch grown men act like children as they fulfilled a golf fantasy. Maybe someday I’ll get my chance, but for now we just watched. It was a cool, windy day, so they got the true Scottish golf experience. Our driver Nik, took the road which cuts across the golf course so we could tell our friends that we drove the first and eighteenth at St Andrews – albeit in a mini bus.

Old Course at St Andrew’s
The Clubhouse
Golf shack

On the way home, our final stop was at the town of Falkland. Not well known except for one thing…. The filming of Outlander. We got to see the inn where Jamie and Claire spent their wedding night. Oooohhh…. It was fun as their were a couple of younger women on the bus that were Outlander devotees and were so excited to see the town.  After our stop, it was back to Edinburgh.

 

Once back in town, we stopped by the train station to pick up our tickets for Glasgow and then headed back to the hotel to rest until dinner.

Since we had enjoyed our meal the night before, we returned to Angels with Bagpipes, this time ordering from the ala carte menu. Not surprising, the meal was equally as delicious as last night. Such a great place to have right next door.

Tottered back to the apartment to relax and get aggravated by the camera issues. All in all it was a delightful day. A bit chilly, but we were prepared.

Tomorrow we’re off to Rosslyn Chapel and the Scottish borders.

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Checking out the Edinburgh Castle

Posted on May 17, 2017 by herktrav

Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Another good night’s sleep and we’re ready to go. Today’s schedule includes a tour of the Edinburgh Castle and whatever else we stumble upon.

Walked the 100 meters to the tour starting point and met our guide for the afternoon – David. He is just as knowledgeable as yesterday’s guide, but even a little more out there. The good news is he’s right in our humor roundhouse so this should be entertaining.

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Our guide – David

After introductions, we’re off to the castle. It’s about a five minute walk to get there – straight up the royal mile. The royal mile got its name as it’s roughly the distance from the palace of Holyrood to the castle. The distance the royals would scurry if someone was coming to attack – and apparently they ran fast!

The castle has been rebuilt many times throughout the centuries. Only the St Margaret’s Chapel is original to the 1100’s. The rebuilds were the result of attacks and sieges, mostly fights with the English through the years. The castle is much more than a battered shell or ruins. In fact, a portion is still used to house Scottish military personnel.

You start by going through the main gate with memorials to Robert the Bruce and William Wallace ‘Braveheart’ on either side. It’s a more modern gate, as the real gate is four gates deep – three locked doors and an iron drop gate. Our guide David described it as knock knock squish!

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Main Gate

Inside are many interesting exhibits and buildings that house museums. The views are also incredible. You can see for miles in every direction. If you remember yesterday’s lesson, the castle is built high up on a rocky cliff, which helped in its defense and our views.

Many interesting stories and displays including artifacts going back hundreds of years. Sue was excited to see some history from the Scottish Dragoons participation in the Napoleonic Wars, including the gold plated eagle captured from the French troops by the Dragoons.

After the official tour ended, we were able to wander around the castle until closing time. If you happen to be in Edinburgh, it is definitely worth a visit.

The oldest building within the Castle is St Margaret’s Chapel.  It days back to the 11th Century.

While walking home, we checked out the meeting point for tomorrow’s tour. It’s pretty close to our hotel, but there is a set of stairs that we will need to take. A quick count says there are ninety steps. I’ll let you know what we think about them when we return and have to go up!

Dinner tonight is at a restaurant named “Angels with Bagpipes”. It is literally right next to our apartment. Even after some wine, we should be able to manage the walk home. Despite being located in a touristy area of town, the restaurant comes highly rated.

We decided to try the Chef’s tasting menu. It’s four courses with wine pairings and everything looked delicious. The courses were goat cheese and beet salad, seared salmon, saddle of lamb and we chose a cheese plate for desert. All were absolutely delicious. In fact, we liked it so much, we made a reservation to return tomorrow evening so we could try items from the full menu. So much for grabbing something quick after our tour.

Feeling sated, we headed home to relax and get a good night’s rest for tomorrow’s adventure.

 

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We have arrived in Scotland

Posted on May 16, 2017 by herktrav

Edinburgh, United Kingdom

We have arrived in Edinburgh. I think I’m already developing a brogue after just a few hours. The flights over were both good, though both were delayed a bit. The flight from Newark to Edinburgh was in United’s new Polaris business class, which was very comfortable and provided a flat bed for a little shut eye on the way over.

So once out of the airport, the taxi ride over to the Old Town in Edinburgh was a delight. The town is as quaint and cute as you might expect. Cobble-stoned streets, old stone buildings, a huge castle perched high on a bluff – you know, just everyday sights. We are staying in an apartment located right on the Royal Mile in the heart of the Old Town. The street is teaming with tourists, buskers and a few Scots.

When we arrive, you walk down a small alleyway or ‘Close’, which is a cut through to another street. However, along the way are shops, pubs, restaurants and residences. Our apartment is in a building called the “Old Town Chambers”. Check-in was as easy as can be. We said hello, gave them our paperwork and up to the apartment we were led. It’s taken longer to just say hello in other places.

The apartment is perfect. Two bedrooms, a kitchen and dining table, a lounge area, nice bathroom and a small balcony over-looking a small square in the close. The first order was a short little nap before we join up with a walking tour of town at 2:00.

This was just a get acquainted tour of the town, but we covered a little distance in the 2 hours we walked. Our tour guide James was a hoot. He made the tour interesting with a combination of knowledge and humor. Some in the group looked a little put off by some of the stories, but we weren’t and that’s what’s important. Lots of interesting history surrounds the country and city – much of it dark as the country and town fought for its independence and became more civilized. Castles, kirks, graveyards, you name it, we saw it – including the graveyard at Greyfriar’s Kirk where J. K. Rowling got many character names for the Harry Potter books.

By the time the tour ended, we were both pretty hungry and thirsty.  We decided to try a highly recommended pub called ‘The Devil’s Advocate’. It is located in a close one down from ours and it was terrific. Everyone was friendly, and it looked like the bar crowd was enjoying their pints and whisky’s. The food was delicious and the prices were reasonable.

Walked back to the apartment to rest our weary bones for the evening. The apartment has a Bose system that connected to my phone via bluetooth, so we listened to some music before dosing off. All in all it was a good first day in Edinburgh.

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Let the games begin…

Posted on May 15, 2017 by herktrav

Williamsville, NY

Hard to believe but it’s just about time to go. All the planning, reading and listening to bagpipers on You Tube will hopefully make for a great trip.

We’re heading to Scotland for a couple of weeks, basing ourselves in Edinburgh and Glasgow. Lots of little day jaunts are planned with an edge towards history and mystery. Castles and fortifications, along with chapels, villages and even a boat or two. Places that are said to be haunted should be good for a goose bump or two.

We’re packed, so tomorrow we’re off!

Feel free to comment along the way. I have lots of picture requests noted (i.e. – Jamie, Jamie, Jamie, Nessie, Jamie and Claire)

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Italy 2016 – Italy review – Questions and answers…

Posted on June 24, 2016 by herktrav

Buffalo, NY

So we’re back home and just getting our body clocks back in sync.

Thanks to everyone who read along. It makes it much more fun to share the journey with others. Wish it could have been a group trip!

So while the laundry pile is being worked on, I thought I would just share the answers to some of the questions that were asked.

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Would we change anything?

Nope. Everything was wonderful – from the amount of time we were in each place to the places themselves. I have to add that we loved all the hotels we stayed in too.  Oh wait, maybe the colds, we could have done without them.

Any problems with the language?

Not really. You all know me and my cheesy attempts to speak foreign languages. In most places there was someone who spoke some English and when there wasn’t, we were able to use enough Italian to communicate. I think that the fact that we were trying made the people want to make it work and it did.

Were all the attractions crowded?

There were some crowds, but overall it wasn’t bad at all. We were there at the beginning of the high season, I guess I wouldn’t want to be there when the weather gets hotter and the crowds get larger. The major places like the Vatican, St Mark’s Square, or the Colosseum probably are busy all the time.

Was everything expensive?

Surprisingly, no! We went with the expectation of spending much more than we actually did, especially on meals. As you can tell from the various posts, we ate very well and the prices were very reasonable.

We did not go to gourmet restaurants. We went to places that were recommended as places the locals eat. The food was homemade, the portions were large, the wine was cheap, the ambience was awesome and it was a great experience.

We’re not shoppers, so I can’t comment on the prices, but I can say that it proves you can control your costs. Without the shopping, we were able to stay well within our budget.

What were our favorite things about the trip?

That is such a tough one because we enjoyed so many different things. In consult with my travel partner, here are a few things:

– the people
– the mosaics in Ravenna
– the Castle in Petroia
– the town of Assisi
– the chairlift ride on Capri
– the boat ride around Capri
– the Borghese Gallery
– the Vatican and Sistine Chapel
– the truffles in the meals
– the drive along the Amalfi Coast (glad we weren’t driving)
– the beautiful blue water in Positano

The list could go on and on, we loved it all.

How much time did I spend planning everything out?

We have speculated that I spent around 1,000 hours in total, BUT, that includes reading articles, blogs and websites to learn about the areas. The actual time to make the reservations and buy the tickets was less than 40 hours in total.

Besides, I love reading about locations to travel to, so I don’t consider it a burden at all. It’s a hobby.

Would we go back?

Laundry should be done by Monday, we can be packed by Tuesday!  Yes!

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Italy 2016 – From Rome to Home

Posted on June 21, 2016 by herktrav

Day 34 – Buffalo, NY

Early morning alarms woke us up at 4:45 am. We need to take showers, pack and check out by 7:00 am when our car arrives to take us to the airport. Everything went smoothly despite our eyes being only half open.

We checked out with one of our favorites – Mauro. While we thanked him for everything, he thanked us back for staying there and being such good guests. We really enjoyed the moments and conversations we had with him as we were coming and going.

Our car was right on time and whisked us to the airport. It was like a thrill ride cutting down side streets and zooming along. I know we hit 140 kph at one point, so I stopped looking. When we arrived, the Delta counter was empty. We were able to walk right up to the counter, check in, go through security, catch the shuttle bus and get to our gate in less than an hour. So much for having to worry.

As it turned out, our plane was delayed by almost an hour so in reality we had a lot of time to kill waiting.

Once we did board, the flight went smoothly. The meal they served was tasty and they routinely walked around with water to keep you hydrated. The flight time was just short of 10 hours, but went by pretty fast, even without snoozing.

We flew into Detroit Airport and couldn’t have been happier about the choice. We used the re-entry kiosks for customs, went through passport control, got our bags and re-checked them, went through security all in about an hour. We’d probably still be standing in line today if we went through JFK.

Unfortunately, we do have a five hour layover, but that means plenty of time for a decent bite to eat. I had a craving, after all the great Italian meals, for a good, old-fashioned hamburger. Found a place and topped it off with a bottle of root beer.

After eating, we walked down to the gate area, found a spot by a charging station and waited. By the time we were ready to board, we were both pretty tired. Just another hour we kept telling each other. The flight to Buffalo was only thirty nine minutes, but my eyes only lasted about five.

Once on the ground, we grabbed our bags, grabbed a taxi and were on our way home. It felt strange driving along – all the lights and all the English, nobody tail-gating, no scooters diving in and out of traffic. Even stranger was pulling up to the house.

We’re home again, though we never felt like we weren’t home throughout our travels. A final victory kiss to celebrate an awesome vacation!

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Italy 2016 – Pantheon and chill

Posted on June 20, 2016 by herktrav

Day 33 – Rome, Italy

Hard to believe but today is our final day in Rome. After all of the walking tours and exploration of the city for the past few days, we decided to make today an easy transition day. We slept in until 9:00 which felt decadent, then took our time getting ready to go. It was actually almost 11:00 before we left the room.

We stopped down at the front desk to make arrangements to get to the airport tomorrow morning. With security, they are recommending that you arrive two and a half to three hours ahead of your flight. So with a 7:00 am pickup, we now had boundaries.

For the record, a cab to the airport was €48, while a private car was €55. That’s a no-brainer in my book.

So our first and only stop of the day was at the Pantheon. It was our first stop when we arrived in Rome and now that we knew more of the history, we made it our last stop. this time I also had my camera.

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It really is an impressive structure, especially the dome with the open oculus. It was originally built as a pagan temple to all Gods before becoming a Christian church. The three main tombs located inside are of Raphael, Umberto II and Vittorio Emanuel I, though most people just come to see the “ancient building and dome”.

After walking around for a while, we decided to have a nice lunch and then just grab something quick later on. We tried a recommended restaurant, but it was closed on Monday, so we ended up going back to one of the restaurants we ate dinner at. They were open and they remembered us.

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We ended up having a lunch that was really a dinner. They don’t change the portion sizes for lunch. We both had a delicious pasta dish and then we split a pizza. We topped it off with a nice bottle of Rose’ wine and had one heck of a nice meal.

Just before we were gearing up to leave the restaurant, it started to rain. No, make that pour. We were able to scoot close to the buildings and then make a ten second dash to the hotel door. We both still got drenched in that short time.

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Going back to the room, we were able to open the windows and watch the rain pour down for a good part of the afternoon. We even snuck in a couple of little naps. When dinner time arrived, we both agreed that we were still full from lunch, so we just relaxed and read and blogged for the evening.

Tomorrow will be an early morning, so we went to bed early after listening to our opera buddy for a little bit.

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Italy 2016 – Chasing Angels and Demons

Posted on June 19, 2016 by herktrav

Day 32 – Rome, Italy

We’ve been looking forward to today’s tour, though after all the walking the last few days my legs aren’t as excited. Being fans of Dan Brown, today we are taking the “Angels and Demons” Tour.

We will follow the book version of the story and see the places that were part of the story and learn some of the history behind each place. With the story in mind, the Angels will point the way on our path of enlightenment as we trace Professor Langdon’s and Vittoria’s steps. The altars of science await.  Our guide Robert will lead the way.

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We start in the Piazza del Popolo or Piazza of the People. Here we find the Church of Santa Maria del Popolo. Inside is the only crypt that was designed by Bernini. We see the “Devil’s Hole” or entrance to the crypt. Above we see the Angel in the sculpture pointing.

“Earth”.

Having been too late to save the first Cardinal, we must find the next stop on the path. Professor Langdon spotted the next marker, so we were off to St Peter’s Square. They were once again too late to save the Cardinal, but we find the plaque on the ground of the Angel blowing wind towards the west. The outer square with its columns and carved Angels was designed once again by Bernini.

“Air”

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We follow the direction of the Angel’s winds and head towards the church of Santa Maria della Vittoria. Inside, there is another Bernini sculpture, said to be his favorite, called the “Ecstasy of St Theresa”. The statue is beautiful and the emotions are quite evident on the faces of St Theresa and the Angel. Unfortunately, Langdon and Vittoria were once again too late to save the third Cardinal. But the arrow points them on.

“Fire”

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The tour has been part walking, part motorcoach, but now we will walk the finale. Before doing so, we stop for a much needed Gelato break. The break is in the Piazza del Rotondo, which just happens to be where our hotel is located.

For those who have read the book, the first church they stopped in was the Pantheon, but it turned out to be the wrong place. That was when they sped to Santa Maria del Popolo.

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In the book the time is growing shorter and the fourth Cardinal is in peril, Vittoria has been kidnapped and Langdon is beside himself trying to find the last stop. Then he remembers, “Water”, where else could it be besides the most famous of Bernini’s sculptures – “The Four Rivers” in Piazza Navona.

The sculpture is beautiful and very large. In the book, a black van drives up, the back doors open and a body is dropped into the fountain. Here, there’s just water pouring down with the crowds all around. Too late for the Cardinal, but there is still Vittoria to save and the overall theme of the book.

“Water”

Next stop, the Castel Sant’Angelo or Castel of Angels. You walk across the bridge of Angels and enter what is now a museum. It was originally Hadrian’s Tomb, then taken over after the fall of the empire, but in the story it plays the role of hideout for the assassin and, of course, the secret passage to the Vatican. For us, the story stops here.

This was really an interesting tour. Roberto or Robert was extremely knowledgeable about the book and all the sites along the way. Funny listening to him take exception to the differences between the book and movie. He made it fun re-living the story – even without the assassin or explosions. But you don’t need them, that’s why we have imaginations.

After the tour we walked back to the hotel and rested for a while. We have dinner reservations at 8:00, so we have plenty of time to relax.

Dinner was once again scrumptious. We had been here before, so we knew the meal would be good. We had different servers this evening and they were equally delightful.

Had fun with our bad Italian, while being coached by our waitress. She seemed excited by our exuberance and when she came back with a top off to our limoncello, she won our hearts.

Quick stroll back to the hotel to get the camera and then a romantic stroll over to the Trevi Fountain.

Lots of people hawking fake purses, Rolex watches and all sorts of stuff, but then the sounds of the fountain’s waters caught our ears. Around the bend, in all its splendor was the Trevi Fountain. The restoration was awesome as its marble gleamed under the lights.

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Very beautiful! We maneuvered our way to the front of the fountain and then down next to the rail. We both tossed our coins into the water with the hope of returning to Rome once again.

A nice walk back to the hotel ended our evening and we were both ready to go to sleep after a long day. Tomorrow we can sleep in and pace ourselves.

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Italy 2016 – The Colosseum and Roman Forum

Posted on June 18, 2016 by herktrav

Day 31 – Roma, Italy

Our tour today will be at the Colosseum, Palatine Hill and the Roman Forum and promises to be lots of walking. Someone told us that Rome is like lasagne – lots of layers built on top of each other. I’d like to add that each layer has lots of steps and stones.

We grabbed a taxi over to the colosseum, but since it’s Sunday many of the roads are closed to traffic. We ended up getting out at Trajan’s Column and Forum and then walked the rest of the way.

Trajan’s column is a tall column with the story of his exploits carved in a spiral to the top. While the column is intact, not much of the forum or market is left.

Continuing down the street the colosseum comes into view. It’s a huge structure and what we see is only about 40% of the original complex. This is partially due to an earthquake which collapsed a large part of the structure and due to “repurposing” of the marble and travertine after the fall of the empire.

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Just a couple fun facts, the colosseum was built over what was a huge man-made lake in Nero’s Golden Palace. There was also a huge statue or colossus with the head of Nero that once stood next to it. After Nero was deposed, they replaced the head and then eventually tore it completely down.

Despite the condition, the Colosseum is still interesting to see. Our guide, Francesca, is an archeologist and was so knowledgeable about the ruins and the things that have been unearthed. She actually worked at the colosseum for a while as a student of archaeology.

So you have to use your imagination a lot on this tour. Most of the lavish ornamentation is gone, having been taken by the barbarians, people and the Vatican. Unlike many of the other ancient Roman buildings that were turned into churches and thus saved by the Vatican, the pagan sites were not saved. That said, there are still many items among the ruins that you can picture in a much better state then what you see.

So in the colosseum, we got to see the main level, then went underground to see the underbelly where the slaves, animals and gladiators would have prepared. There were trap doors and crude lifts to bring items up from below. All very impressive when you consider how long ago this was going on.

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Elevator to bring in the acts

After going down, we went up to the third level terrace, where we had some gorgeous views of the city and surrounding area.

Next stop on the tour was the arch of Titus. It was very interesting to see, as on one of the friezes was a depiction of the Romans parading home victoriously with their war booty including the Golden Menorah and what looks like the Arc of the Covenant.

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Francesca says they would have been on display after the troops returned, but went missing after the fall of the empire. Nobody knows what ever happened to them.

We continued up Palatine Hill to see the remains of the emperor’s palace. The ruins cover the entire top of the hill and had a wonderful view all around and over the forum. It’s incredible to think that the Romans had the knowledge to pipe up water and keep things sanitary back then. Everything fell apart after the Empire fell to the point that the plague came about due to unsanitary conditions.

The tour continued on and the day was getting warmer. You could see that many of us were starting to droop. Next stop was the Roman Forum.

Two things jump out at me. One, I wouldn’t have wanted to be a vestal virgin. The responsibility was high and the consequences were unpleasant should you stray. You got to retire after 36 years and received a pension. The bad news was the average lifespan was 40 years back then. And two, my feet were hurting walking over the stones with nicely padded sandals. The leather sandals they would have had could not have been comfortable. Just saying!

Completing the tour, we headed home tired and sore. Stopped to grab a taxi and the guy gave us attitude. “It’s not so far to walk”, he said. “We want a ride”, we said; and off we went.

We took naps and slept until dinner time.

We had a nice dinner close by and then went back to the hotel. We stood in the windows listening to a guy sing beautiful opera in he square. Seems only right that “Nessum Dorma”, one of our favorites, would be the last song before we headed to bed.

We have another early tour tomorrow.

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