Our first day in Italy

So, after a year of planning, we finally left Gainesville (using Garold's frequent flyer points with Delta Airlines) around 10AM Sunday morning and flew to New York, then on to Italy. By the time we arrived in Pisa it was Monday. I was able to sleep some on the plane, but I don't think Garold got much sleep. There were a lot of Italians on this flight, who were talking to one another in Italian (imagine that). Upon our arrival, it was just a short walk to the Hotel Royal Victoria. The building (at least part of it) has been there since the 10th century, and it has been run as a hotel by the Piegaja family since 1839. It is in a very busy location, but our room was on the 4th floor and in the back, so noise was not a problem.

This photo shows Garold standing at the bus stop across the street from our hotel (it is the five story white structure on the right), with the Arno River in the background. Our room number was 430, but it was on the top floor. This is because Europeans call the first floor the ground floor, the second floor the first floor, and so on. Oh, and you use the stairs to get up to the 4th/5th floor!


This was the key to our room. Very old fashioned, right? We had to spend a little time figuring out how to use it. It required two full turns of the tumbler to lock or unlock.

This was our private en suite bathroom. Some places have "private" bathrooms that are not actually located in the room (they may be down the hall, or even on a different floor). Notice the bidet in the back corner, complete with its own soap dish and towels. This was pretty much the standard throughout Italy! The shower was very tiny, but much appreciated. Just wait until we get to Rome, and you will understand why.

This is the view from the terrace that was on our floor. There were tables and chairs in case you wanted to hang out and have a cappuccino. At this time Garold wasn't yet hooked on them. But stay tuned: that will happen very soon!

Of course, a visit to Pisa would not be complete without the obligatory photos of the turiste holding up the leaning tower! Garold thought he could do it with just one finger.

Our efforts were unsuccessful, however. As you can see, the tower continues to lean.

As we strolled through the streets of Pisa, we passed by this cool bookstore.

We got pretty tired pretty quickly, so when we saw a park, we took advantage of the opportunity to sit down for a while. Children in Italy like to race their bikes just like the adults like to race their cars and Vespas!

No visit would be complete without a trip to the Duomo! It was amazing to see how these magnificent structures dominate the landscape of every Italian city.

Here is a close up of the giant front door. I wonder why they made them so huge.

This is a photo of the ceiling inside the church. They put a lot of work into ceilings and domes.

This photo was taken inside the Baptistry, which was a separate building from the Church. The acoustics in this building were so amazing! A guard chanted for us and we could hear his voice echo throughout the building. It sounded like three people were chanting instead of just one.

This photo was taken outside the Baptistry. Note the ancient wall of Pisa in the background.

This photo was taken through a window on the second floor of the Baptistry, where you can see the ancient wall of Pisa. This amorous couple most likely had no idea they would be in our vacation blog.

Tuesday morning we caught the bus to the train station and took the train to Rome. Bus tickets are purchased in Tobacco Shops in Italy. No problem, though. There is a Tobacco Shop on every block, and several in every train and metro station. We bought our Eurail Passes before we left home, from AAA in Gainesville, as well as the seat reservations on some of the trains. Seat reservations cost extra, but in some cases they are required, and they guarantee you a seat. We paid a premium for first class seats because we heard that they allow livestock on trains. I don't know where Italian livestock hangs out, but they weren't on the trains. Reservations for some local trains are not available. They just take you first come first served, and you may or may not get to sit down. You are supposed to write your passport number on the Eurail Pass, and each time you use it you have to write the date on the pass.