Florence, Italy:
- Ufizzi Gallery, where we saw Francesca's Duke and Duchess of Urbino, Leonardo's Annunciation, Titian's Venus of Urbino, and Rembrandt's self portraits
- Beautiful view of the city with sunset from Piazza Michelangelo
- Michelangelo's David sculpture in the Accademia
- Second largest synagogue in the world, built in the late 1800s. It has a magnificent copper dome that holds its own against the Duomo. We received an excellent tour and learned how the synagogue was used as a garage by the Nazis and was severely damaged in a 1966 flood, which destroyed many sacred Torah texts.
- Two walking tours of town (free with stay at our hostel) that included stops at Palazzo Vecchio (city hall) and Palazzos Medici and Strozzi, home of rival wealthy families
- Tasty wine at Le Volpi e l'Uva
- Best meal of the trip at a restaurant showed to us by an American woman who had lived in Florence. There was no set menu, and we were unsure how much the meal would cost, so we explained that we just wanted 20 euros worth per person. That got us prosciutto with melon appetizer, hearty bean soup, and four different types of pasta including delicious cheese ravioli. Did I mention unlimited red wine?
- Stepping outside the train station, hearing a siren, and seeing an ambulance speed past. Except the ambulance was a boat. Soon we saw police-boats and fire-boats.
- Visiting Piazza San Marco for as little time as possible due to extreme numbers of tourists.
- Taking tour of Doge's Palace, which rivals Versailles in its elaborate gold decorations, colorful frescos and columned facade.
- Going to top of the belltower to get panaromic view of the city.
- Walking through town with British exchange student Alex, who took us to see the Jewish ghetto. Synagogues were identifiable only by a pattern of five horizontal windows.
- Running on La Giudecca, dodging drunk ladies and hitting dead ends at dirty dark alleys and hotel courtyards equally often.
Naples, Italy
- Stepping of the train to unbearable heat and horrible traffic. We found our hostel on a street where men were selling stolen goods and in the process of getting busted by police as we arrived.
- Nearly getting run over several times by reckless moped drivers.
- Eating pizza at its birthplace.
- Running in a hilltop park, only refuge from the madness on the streets.
- Taking a bus to and then hiking the last fifteen minutes to the rim of Mt. Vesuvius. It looks pretty tame now. Had excellent views of the city and Bay of Naples.
- Spending the afternoon strolling around Pompeii in intense heat. We saw temples, baths, marketplaces, private homes, a theater, a stadium, and a brothel. There were piles of artifacts that had just been thrown into sheds; archaeologists didn't know what to do with it all.
- Taking tour of the Colosseum, site of thousands of gladiator battles and man vs. beast contests. Beneath the sandy stage we saw ruins of the complicated trap door network used to add and take away props.
- Walking through the Roman forum, the center marketplace of ancient Rome. The best preserved ruins had been converted into churches.
- Seeing the Palatino, the living quarters of the Roman emperor. He had his own personal stadium where he could watch gladiator fights and plays.
- Fontana di Trevi, where 3000 euros are thrown away every day. Liz and I contributed 2 cents.
- Lots and lots of churches. Can't beat St. Peter's Cathedral for size, though.
- Spending the better part of a day at the Vatican Museum, where we saw the Apollo Belvedere, Laocoon, Leonardo's St. Jerome, Raphael's School of Athens and Disputa, and some incredible tapestries including one of Jesus's resurrection.
Naxos
- Hanging out on the beach for a day. Good to relax after non-stop traveling for a month. The water was pleasantly warm.
- Renting a car and driving around the northern half of the island. We saw many Greek ruins older than those in Athens, including the Temple of Demeter (6th century B.C.) and a statue of Dionysus. We climbed up to the cave of Zas where Zeus was born. In the tiny village of Apollon we watched the U.S. come back from 2-0 to tie Slovenia! Our drive down the west coast cliffs of the island as the sun set was incredible.
- I rented a bike and retraced our route in the car the day before. I stopped for lunch in the village of Koronos, where a friendly cafe owner was very excited I was American. The cycle was challenging but rewarding.
- We saw the main sights on the Acropolis including the Parthenon and the Erechtheum. We also saw the Temple of Zeus, of which only a handful of columns remain, and Hadrian's Arch.
- We visited the Greek parliament building and saw the changing of the guard. Also took a stroll through the city gardens.
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