It’s evening in Rome. It’s cool up here on the hotel’s breezeway, but it was hot today when we were out during our tourista stuff and walking my socks off at the Coliseum and the Forum. I am feeling my age. Grandpa is feeling his age. We’re sitting here watching the kids as they filter back into the hotel. (The hotel has an elevator. It holds two people. If the doors aren’t properly closed the elevator doesn’t go anywhere.) It will be a challenge getting all of us and our luggage downstairs and on the bus by 8 AM.
The youngest grandkids are asleep. Their mommies are doing the packing for tomorrow’s early morning bus departure. This is the first bus day on the tour.
Kids and the older grandkids are filtering in. Some of the older girls have had fish pedicures. (No. I did not. Will not!) They’ve walked for miles and miles with their dad.
Today we celebrated Uncle Alan’s birthday on the patio at Harry’s Bar. The food was great but the most interesting part happened when two Smart Cars sandwiched a Mercedes S550. It wasn’t a good result for any of the aforesaid vehicles.
Tuscany in the morning. I said it was cool in Rome in the evening. It’s really cool in the morning here. We had breakfast on a lovely patio surrounded by flowers and gardens. Today, I’m taking a day off from touring to finish some editorial work while the younger generation is doing their bit in Florence. I believe I’m speaking for all of us when I say we’re having a great time. This blog is little more than a brief travelogue. I trust you’ll forgive me for that, but really, this is supposed to be a vacation, and it is.
Don’t forget to shop on the Bridge of Gold.
Rome and that area is amazing. But one of my favorite areas is Orvieta just to the north of Rome in the mountains. Great winery there also. But be sure to see the church.
Enjoy for all of us! We’ll enjoy vicariously!
Sounds wonderful. 🙂
Saluti,
What a wonderful country to choose for a family vacation. Italy is on my check-off list and that includes the Tuscany region. I need to search for ‘unknown’ relatives to update the family tree.
Enjoy your journey, peaceful time for writing, and avoiding that fish pedicure. There are good reasons why many states have banned them!
Ciao…
Don’t know what a fish pedicure is, but I suspect I wouldn’t want one either! Enjoy your vacation. I wonder where your next book will be set? Hmmm.
Traveling in Europe always has surprises that are not in guide books. The hotel in Paris where my family stayed once years ago had room for four. It was like a cage and kinda scary. I had the feeling that if it stopped it would take a long time for someone to rescue us.
Another thing is showers or the faucets in them. There should be one standard type that is used everywhere. It is so frustrating to figure out how to turn them on and get the right mixture of hot and cold water.
However, those are minor complaints and shouldn’t spoil a trip.
Enjoy, you deserve and have earned it! Thank you for sharing your adventures and for making me smile and laugh out loud!
That’s what I love about her writing. She describes the strange things that happen to her in such wonderful detail that it makes you feel like you were there with her. . I, too, find myself laughing out loud.
I once visited Rome to visit a childhood friend who work there. It’s a great place. I remember I had jet lag during the trip but I was able to survived it thanks to JetLagFX (http://www.jetlagfx.com/). It is an natural supplement designed to help us cope with the stresses of long journeys.