The birthplace of PIZZA: Naples

As the closest major city next to the Amalfi Coast, you expect something out of Naples. But it really isn't what you expect at all if that makes any sense. Prior to the trip, I mostly knew Naples as the birthplace of pizza. As our time in Naples came closer, we continually heard the same warning, from locals and tourists, be very careful, wear no jewelry, hold on to you things and don't go out after dark. Reassuring right? Our driver back from Positano goes "Sorrento peaceful, easy. Napoli, mini gangs, people everywhere."   While we didn't across "mini-gangs" (fortunately and not to our knowledge), our less than 24 hour experience in Naples was somewhat memorable, i.e. we had a lot of amazing pizza. True to reviews, it's unfortunate to see an Italian city so dirty and congested. People are everywhere and you are literally forcing yourself to cross the road regardless of oncoming traffic (your nonverbals must scream "I own this!). A couple of times we even shared the sidewalk with a motorcycle who was trying to bypass street traffic.   After awhile, an overwhelming feeling of "Does it end? When does it get better?" It never seemed to jn the areas we walked through.   The pizza helped forget the outsidd as we devoured the freshed made pizza with cheese that stretched and stretched. Parimal retracts his claim of the pizza in Como being the best with saying that he had the best pizza ever in Napoli. Pictures to come of the excitment of this deliciousness that was experienced.   Off to our last city... The big one, ROMA!

Belli Tempi in Positano

We started in the north, in Como, where you could actually cross the Swiss border, and made our way down to the south, to the Amalfi coast, specifically Positano.   Positano may sound familiar to some of you. Yep, Under the Tuscan Sun again. Positano, land of linen and limoncello, oh boy!   Our ever so friendy driver was helpful and really more of a tour guide. With his self-made iPad stand, he gave us an introduction to the area and highlights of major attractions. We decided to take him up on a quick detour to Pompeii (we're here afterall). Seeing the grandeous of Mt. Vesuvius is one thing but to see the ruins of Pompeii... It took more than a moment just to take it all in.   Pompeii was a major city in it's day. One of my favorite tid bits was they used marble stones to light the streets so people could walk safely at night with the moon light or their torches reflecting on these stones. They also had communal eating cafeteria because no one cooked (what an odd thiught since I also picture a big Italian mama when I think of Italy). Unfortunately within the last few centuries, kings and others have pilgramiged the area so what's left are the empty rooms and layout of the city.   Back on the road, we winded along the coast - stunning. Made to the hotel, where we then decided to have dinner at a restaurant along a cliff. How people drive there without a fear of flying off the cliff is beyond me. After the chaos of the last few days, we needed a day on the beach. It was a stony beach where unfortunately my sandals met their end but a gorgeous beach with blue blue water, a lack of tourists and wonderful sunny 75 degree weather.   We spent the rest of the time wandering through the streets and finishing our meals with complimentary limoncello. A fantastic last meal outside, with the sunset and a young man's singing echoing through the alcove we were in. Bellissima.

Florence... wish we could have stayed longer

Florence is what I think of when anyone talks about "Italy" (this may be credited to my love of the movie Under the Tuscan Sun). The villas, the warm glow, the vineyards... Definitely feeling excited, even more so because Florence is flat!   We made it out of the chaos of the La Spezia train station without battle wounds (a definite win). Right from the start, Florence had a great vibe. We were told of a special event at the Accademia that night where we could see the David for free. Before that, we made our way to the Uffizi, home of the greatest Renaissance works. It really made us reflect on the art and architecture that we are leaving behind. Hmmm... How do you feel about the addition of the Shard to the London skyline?   So what do you do when you are the 2nd people in line, 20 minutes before a free gallery opening? Go buy a tub of gelato from the corner market and proceed to eat the whole thing. Then marvel at the perfection of the David and how pig-ish you now feel, comforting yourself with the thought that David did not have access to gelato. But in all seriousness, the percision that David is carved out is stunning.   Next day in Florence was a day in a Tuscan kitchen... But that's another post :)   After an amazing meal, what to do what to do? We decided this would be a good time to climb up the duomo dome (cupola del dumo) - 463 steps each way. Our inner cinque terre hikers were itching for another climb. Another view completely worth it. It's amazing how well thought the art and engineering is and that they started the dome knowing that eventually someone will come along to complete it.   A quick trip to the designer outlets (think absolutely crazies and Parimal on a 8:45 am bus), with a day of wandering the streets of Florence, which led to us joining a night parade!   Wish we could stay... but the Amalfi Coast beckons!

The lovely towns of Cinque Terre

Off to the opposite coast - the lovely 5 towns of Cinque Terre. The quaint little towns had been separated by mountains but in recent years joined together with coastal walks and hikes. We stayed in Manarola, the 2nd most southern of the 5. Right out of the station, you look up into a colorful array of homes, with moutain-side vineyards... And a wonderfully steep hill that allows you to get acclimated. 160 steps from our room to the station and town center... every day.   Lucky for us this is also the birth place of pesto and foccacia bread. They literally put pesto on everything. Spaghetti e pesto, pizza e pesto, gnocchi pesto... Needless to say we did not eat pesto for the rest of the trip. :) We did eat twice at a yummy Trattoria alla Billy... Once because it was so good and 2 because I couldn't walk up and down the hill again for a meal. On a side note, and perhaps a premonition, we passed an elderly local couple as I made my first of many trips up a hill and the eldery woman chuckled at my under breath muttering and said, "fatigua." Day 1 of hiking (obviously a Parimal excursion choice). Wuue started from Manarola to Riomaggiore. Not bad... Paved coastal walk with an occasion hike down to the water (later described by the lady at the hiking store as a "stroll" in comparison to other trails but more on that later). At the end of it, I thought "totally do-able." So with this optimistic attitude, we hiked in the opposite direction to Corniglia. This was really a hike - 3.7 KM of uphill rockiness and the view was absolutely worth it. To see glimpes of the next colorful town over the mountains and through the vineyards was amazing. You really get a feel on how the locals lived with their pulley system to cart their grapes down the mountains not to mention the locals going out to sea for their daily catches (at Billy's they bring out your fish options and ask you which one you'd like to eat).   So survived Day 1 of 3. Parimal is loving the hiking, I'll consider not falling down the side of the narrow paths a win. Day two, we took the train to most northern and largest of the 5 towns, Monterosso. Being the largest, it is also the busiest and most "modern." We hiked from here to the next town, Vernazza. Here's when our first mishap happened. I dropped the point and shoot... Yes, my awesome burnt orange camera took a leap into rumble and got jammed. Fortunately for me, I married MacGyver and he managed to fix the camera back to 97% with a swiss army knife and bobby pin. Yay Parimal!   After hiking a total 15 km, it was time to leave... One last bite of pesto, one last swig of the local Chianti and a really fun race rolling our suitcases down the hill.   Off to Firenze!

The Waterways of Venice

An entire city that travels on water ways... but you already know what city I'm talking about - Venice. Despite being a bit run down and more graffitti on the walls than we cared for, there's a certain charm about the city that you can easily get lost in. We started our Venetion experience eating as the local eats, at chicceteria bar... It's a really fun experience seeking out these bars that have bit size morsels on the local cuisine. After about 4 or 5 (don't forget the wine!), it's easy to say dinner is done. We also spotted Parimal's 60 year old doppelganger... I'm sure he'd have no problems retiring in Italy. At St. Mark's Square is an experience; to imagine the pride Venetians felt when it was first established, not to mention the patience people had laying all the individual tiles down to create the amazing art work (and here I'm avoiding retiling a bathroom). We were actually in Venice during two major events: the Venetian International Film Festival and the Regatta.   The Film Festival On the rainest day (again the packed ponchos were left behind) we made our way go the island of Lido. After a few wrong turns, a walk along a beach with a inside out umbrella, we made it to the festival. Crossing our fingers for tickets, we got to see Welcome Home, a Beligum movie, To quote Parimal, "Not bad for a Indie move, it had alot ofifferent layers of meanings." We also heard a Q&A with the director and saw all actors... Alas, no George Clooney again. One other note, it's pretty crazy how two days without the pollution of cars really makes the difference in the air quality! Standing on the Rialta bridge, you can only imagine the effeciceny people had in manuevering around. From going to the market, trading goods... And now can you imagine the efforts of the fire fighter boat?? One of our initially sightngs was a man in a speed boat, completely reclined, on the phone as though he were in a car. And yes, you do need a license to drive around a boat.   During our Austrailia trip two years ago, we met two lovely women from the Venice area, with the promise of one day visiting them. True to word, our friend Maria spent a wonderful day with us. First, off to the regatta! This water parade dates back to the early 18th century where only Venetians can participate. It starts off with a boat that carried the royals, followed by family boats. Next, off to the races!  Teams raced for the pride of being named the winner. It was pretty amazing how they were able to row in unison.. I'm just happy if the boat moves when I use an oar! The regatta was followed by a tour of Maria's favorite places. Off the tourist path, Venice is actually very serence, filled with kids playing soccer in the plaza, friends/family gathering, women hanging laundry. It was a day and night experience. Our evening with Maria ended with one of the best dinners. Mind you, we could have had big neon signs over our head flashing TOURIST since the places was filled with only Italians. Well, when in Venice, do as Maria does. Are you ready to hear what I had? Cloud like pumpkin gnocchi SERVED in the pumpkin. I felt like a pumpkin after this meal. Parimal's meat lasagna was another amazing dish. As Maria pointed out to us, Italians in this region savor the natural taste of the food without too many additional spices. How different we'll learn from Southern Italy later in the trip.   Farewell well to the water ways of Venice. We hope the sinking problem is solved so we can return one day.

The Pearl of Como - Bellagio

The Pearl of Lake Como really should be called the Pearl of Italy... But the again we haven't made our way to Cinque Terre or the Amalfi Coast. Our Italia adventure began in Bellagion, with a quick stop in Milan. Packing somewhat "light" we made our way to the Duomo (church) which is the 4th largestin Europe and took 4 centuries to complete! Luggage and all we went, meaning we visited the inside separately... This made for interesting people watching as we saw a number of well dressing peoplebe turned away (shoulders and knees covered please!). After a maze-like journey we found Luini Panzerotti, a local-known calzone place. AMAZING! I don't think eating Italian back in the States will ever be the same!   Milan was very commercialized, which we were expecting... A lot of tourist and a lot of well know stores. The Galleria was beautiful... If only malls like at home looked like that!   Next stop - Bellagio in Lago di Como. Before you begin to wonder, yes, this is the area where George Clooney lives, but no, we didn't see him. Bellagio is surrounded by gorgeou mountains and all the small towns sit in pockets in the mountain sides. First night, delicious penne puttenesca for me and rissotto with local fish for Parimal. YUM! I find it really interesting how they season their found so well that additional seasoning is not required. Not to mention the freshness of their food. Each day we wandered through the towns, traveling via ferry, and walking through gardens.   We've come to realize Americans are like magnets to each other abroad. We've met so fantastic people all ovwr, with great tips and bits of information as we cover Italy.   And that brings me to the best part of Como - our trip to Menaggio, at Lugano Pizzeria (completely off the beaten path, and filled with locals). I quote Mr. New York himself, "This is the best pizza I've ever had." You know it had to be good :)   A great way to start our journey. The challenged by Rick Steves jn the Lake Como section was to see how slow you can movr. After the go go go of home, we fortunately completed the challenfed successfully!   Off to the water ways of Venice!

Good Times in London!

London was a whirlwind of spending time with family, friends and giving Parimal a quick taste of London (with the hopeful promise to return sooner than later!). Afterall, it really just feels like coming home. After a lovely English brunch (courtesy of my aunt's amazing cooking) set us on the road for a fun day with our friends Neha & Jason (who have a lovely flat) and a great surprise, Sunil! Really, it felt like good ol'Dallas times, well with a British accent and rain. Between the rain, Sunil's obsession with the Shard (a newly built, controversial skyscraper) and fighting jet-lag, it was a rockstar night. Favorite place of the night - Gordon's wine bar, est 1889. It's a wine bar in a CAVE! One word - awesome. Leveraging the American accent, we got a table. Interesting part of the night was seeing a group out for a hen night (bachelorette party literally dressed up as hens. An evening topper was 2 of my cousins coming out :) I've engrained "hook-em horns" in one. Made me so proud!   The best part of London was seeing family which was long overdue. It was a great reunion of the Charavda clan in London. It was wonderful seeing Parimal's grandmother and eating her yummy idli... I wonder if she'd ship them over the pond.   Now... The lingering question... Did Parimal see any of London as we tasted our way through? In one trip we saw all of London from The Eye of London, took the long way in a cab ride around Big Ben and the Palace, took a walk through Hyde Park, road the tube many, many times, he had fish and chips (I had the best veggie burger on the planet... Thanks Neha!) and lastly, experienced "It's Pimm's o'clock"... Whew! What a recap!   It was great seeing everyone... Thank you for making time to see us and look forward to see everyone again!   London... Until next time... Cheers! Unfortunately, we're having issues uploading pictures... soon I hope!

Ready? Set? Here we go again!

Off for another adventure... to the other side of the world... Italia! We're off for 24 days, making our way from Lake Como down to the Amalfi Coast and then end up in Rome! But we couldn't start a trip to Europe without a detour to jolly ol'England.

Armed with the ultimate medicine kit, a two hour lesson singing in Italian while driving (thanks Poojie!) and 2 carry-on's each, we were ready to go.... if you'd like to see yhe ultimate pack last for a 3.5 week trip, please contact Piyusha directly. :)

First stop.... family, friends and  Pimm's in London!