Review: Italy Tour, Rome, Naples, Cinque Terre, Florence, Siena, Bologna, Amalfi Coast, Capri, Lake Como, Vatican

I am afraid the list of enjoyable and memorable parts is too long, but if you are willing to listen, here goes.

In  Como, our guide on the boat tour of Lake Como was a fabulous introduction to Italy.  Pointing out historical and present day celebrities, our guide enlightened us with past and present day uses of villas, castles, and villages.  This relatively quiet town gave us a more relaxed atmosphere to navigate our culture shock and jet lag.  Our hotel was very comfortable and strategically located.  Thanks to our agent, we satisfied our trekking interests by hiking a trail we found after reaching a mountain village by cable car.  The view of Lake Como and nearby snow-covered mountains was spectacular!

Our next venue, the Cinque Terre area in Liguria, provided the most unique area we discovered in Italy.  Our B&B in Manarola put us high up with a view of the ocean, the rest of village below, and a close up of the national park trails on the mountain across from us which was filled with vineyards and olive trees. The laughing and royal seagulls seen flying overhead from our balcony and terraced breakfast nook completed the sense of how high up we were.  Walking and taking trains between the five villages gave us a sense of community with tourists and natives alike.  Our guide gave us a lively overview of the area and pointed out specific sites to visit.  Luckily, I also discovered he and I shared a passion for horticulture, and he  delighted me in answering my questions about local flora.  This was a magical place!

Next was Florence, the city of the long awaited beautiful and amazing artwork and antiquities. It did not disappoint.  Our first day was very relaxing as our driver took us on a tour of Sienna for shopping and the wine tasting in a vineyard in Chianti.  There we also enjoyed a full lunch and were enchanted with the owner's tour of his wine-making facilities.  As we really pushed ourselves to try to see as much as we wanted, it was very comforting to have our host and her mother to take care of us during this self-imposed frenzy.

By the time we got to Rome, we were a little exhausted.  However, our guides made sure we saw Michaelangelo's works and others in the Vatican museum and St. Peter's.  Staff at the hotel were very helpful.

Naples was our last stop.  We loved the quiet, out-of-the-way, elegant hotel that was also convenient to the waterfront where we enjoyed restaurants, castles, and the ship transport to Capri.  Awww...Capri.  Even though the Amalfi drive was fantastic, Vesuvius was incredible, and Pompeii was astounding, our boat ride around Capri including the visits to all the Grotto's was the icing on the cake.  We also ran out of time exploring the island, but it was a wonderful last day in Italy.