November 9 - December 13, 2020
I couldn’t believe what I was reading — Italy was opening for international travel. As US citizens, as long as we spent at least 14 days in Croatia and received a negative PCR test, we were good to go. We hadn’t thought about spending time there, but there was a five-week hole in our calendar so why not fill it with pasta?! We also liked the idea of traveling a bit south to catch some warmer weather. Southern Italy seemed like the perfect place to explore.
Of course in the time of Covid, you can’t rely on anything — good and bad. By the time we left, the PCR test requirement had been dropped and southern Italy was on lock down. Time to pivot. Rome was more or less open — so that’s where we began. Kelly had been before. I had not, though it was on my bucket list.
The Eternal City
When I think of Rome I think of ancient ruins, massive crowds and piles of great food and wine. But what would we experience in these Covid times?
The lonely view of St. Mark’s Square from the dome atop St. Peter’s Basilica.
There were restrictions in place — restaurants were open though had to close their dining rooms by 6pm (open for take-out after that). Museums and cultural sites were closed, but churches were mostly open. Though I soon discovered that Rome in and of itself is an open-air museum — just by wandering around the city we could experience thousands of years of layered history. It was an otherworldly dream…
The Pantheon (closed to visitors, but still an iconic sight, especially at night).
And Trevi fountain without the tourists (except us).
Did you know Rome has a pyramid?
Food and Drink
And then there was the food.
Roman cuisine is not as refined as I had remember from Florence, but it was a delight. Pasta and wine accompanied most every meal. And fried artichokes hearts! Like crispy potato chips — a bonus. We threw out our low-carb diets and dug in.
For drinks, I mostly settled on a half litter of local house wine and Kelly found a new addiction — Aperol Spritz (now a request in every country we visit).
Surprisingly, gelato wasn’t as prevalent as I had remembered. I’m thinking it was due to the cold weather and the lack of tourists, as many places were closed.
History in Stone
As I mentioned, all the museums were closed including the Vatican, the Colosseum and the Forum. But that didn’t stop us from wandering around the cobblestone streets day and night to visit these magnificent places — WITHOUT CROWDS! How crazy is that? Rome was more or less empty of tourists. Only locals shared the streets and restaurants with us. I’m not sure when or if this will ever happen again.
Luckily their churches were mostly open... imagine walking into St. Peter’s Basilica (as we did) with 10 other people in the entire church. For those of you who haven’t been, it’s a massive space, more than a football field long and high! Without a wait, we even snuck up to the top of the dome and peered out city city and across the empty square below.
It is a memory that will stay with us forever.
Friends Around the World
And what is a visit to a new town without meeting new friends?
Our Santa Barbara friends, Nancy and Neal, connected us with friends of theirs, Ilan and Caroline. We met them at a lovely Israeli restaurant in the Jewish section of Rome known as the Ghetto. We instantly hit it off.
They are world travelers, born in Africa, who had a ton of stories to share. Meeting and connecting with people like Ilan and Caroline is one of the greatest gifts of traveling; something we cherish.
We connected several times and even drove out of town to explore the countryside one day (and had a wonderful lunch). We continue to stay in touch with them and hope that our paths will cross again in the future in some other distant land.
E-bike Heaven
When we first arrived in Rome, we booked an e-bike tour of its greatest sites. It was a perfect way to see the city up close, get some exercise and have fun. Our guide Fabio was wonderful — full of enthusiasm and stories of Rome’s colorful history.
After our tour, we made plans to do an additional ride outside of the city — along the Appian Way. On that cool sunny day we headed away from traffic and out into the country.
Fabio knew of this great little market along the way. We picked up a delicious lunch of freshly carved pork sandwiches and grabbed two plastic water bottles filled with house wine. Everything was delicious!
The Appian Way
This storied road has had quite an impact on Rome. Starting around 300 BC, it was the main avenue connecting Brindisi on the coast to the royal city. Passing through layers of granite gates, this road has seen armies and a supply chain that fed an ever growing metropolis.
An artist’s view of the historic Appian Way
As a traveler 2,500 years ago, one would have passed by hundreds of Mausoleums (mostly built by wealthy Romans establishing their lineage) which lined the edges of the road. It must have been an amazing site to behold. Now, almost all of them are worn down to their bases, if showing at all.
It is still very much a magical place. On the day we visited, it was almost empty except for a few hikers, some bikers and a trail of sheep. Gazing along its potted surface, it disappeared into the distance. The ruins, reduced to rubble, stand guard along its length.
It doesn’t take much to imagine it’s once imposing grandeur.
We rode for miles along the bumpy road. I’ve never seen Kelly so happy. The weather was cool and clear and the day was magical.
After a few hours of biking, Fabio led us to a large municipal park edged with one of the massive ancient Roman aqueducts. We found a picnic spot and enjoyed our picnic — and then wobbled home.
Birthday in Venice
During our visit, the entire country of Italy was on a regional, color-coded COVID-restricted system. Red, orange or yellow were the designations, with yellow being the most relaxed with fewest regulations.
Yellow cities allowed us to dine-in at restaurants until 6pm and to move freely throughout the city without permits. Rome was yellow during our visit, and so was Venice.
Kelly’s birthday was coming up in a few days and I wanted to do something special. I asked if she would like to celebrate the beginning of her sixth decade in the romantic city of Venice? How could she refuse?
So off on the bullet train we went.
Our original thought of visiting Italy to enjoy some warm weather vaporized by the time we got to Venice. It was damn chilly! But hey, we were in one of the most romantic cities in the world. We could always cuddle.
For Kelly’s birthday, we strolled along the canals (what else!) and found a lovely restaurant near our Airbnb where we sat down to enjoy the sun on one of the warmer days to enjoy a nice glass of wine. At the table next to us, a waiter delivered a beautiful platter of food. OMG, we wanted it! It would turn out to be our favorite meal in Venice and a perfect plate of goodness to celebrate her special day.
Happy birthday Kelly!
Where Is Everybody?
Now this is where it all gets strange. Who has visited Venice in the last 50 years without wall-to-wall tourists? I mean, it’s insane. Especially when cruise ships arrive and 3,000 gawkers beeline to St Mark’s Square. But for us it was mostly empty.
Enjoy the view…
If you’ve ever wondered what life is like after the apocalypse
But the rest of Venice wasn’t dead. The locals were out. And what better way to spend our days than exploring the canals, popping into bars and restaurants — trying to get lost.
We did a few touristy things — we took a ferry to Murano to see the beautiful glass shops.
Another day we had a very expensive (and over-rated) martini at Harry’s Bar. We considered a gondola ride “$20 for 30 minutes!” someone yelled, but it was too chilly for that. Then the next day, the rains came and the tide rose, leaving water everywhere.
Our 8-day visit was drawing to a close. The weather continue to worsen. In fact on our last day, Kelly saw snowflakes. Brrrr. We didn’t pack for this. Let’s get the hell out of here!
Awww… SICILY
The Italian online newspaper I read every morning suddenly announced that Sicily had just switched from orange to yellow. It didn’t take much to convince us that this would be our next warmer spot.
Palermo’s iconic festival image
Gangsta’ Palermo
A festival cart.
I have to admit I knew very little about Sicily. It really wasn’t on my got-to-go list, but everyone we talked to raved about it. It’s such an interesting place, historically — jutting into the Mediterranean, seafaring cultures over the millennium couldn’t help but bump into it as they crisscrossed from Africa to Europe to Asia. The Carthaginians, the Greeks and, of course, the Romans all made this sizeable island their home.
The first part of our island journey started in Palermo — a city with a sordid past (think Mafia).
This island off the southern coast (just west of the boot ‘toe’) was off the radar of the Italian government for much of the 20th century, so the mafia was all too eager to step in and take control. The results aren’t pretty.
As recently as the 1990’s, Palermo wasn’t the sort of place you’d want to visit — it was dangerous, to say the least. But now the Mafia’s hold has retreated and we found it to be a fascinating and safe place to stay and explore.
Trapani
Sicily is a large island. To experience it fully you need at least three weeks. To make it easy, we decided for the second part of our journey to focus on the western coast closest to Palermo — the towns of Trapani, Erice and Marsala (home of the beautiful dessert wine).
We wandered along the northern coast in our rental car to Trapani — a beautifully preserved historical town — charming, but empty of life during our visit. And as soon as we arrived, the rains came and hardly let up the entire time we stayed. Was that a sign?
We had one amazing meal at Osteria Li Moro and enjoyed wandering the beautiful town and deserted streets, but were having our doubts about our choice to visit.
Old town Trapini at night
On our second morning we looked out the window and the rain was only getting worse. I hauled out my computer and noticed that the eastern side of the island was bathed in sunshine. It didn’t take much to convince Kelly to hop in the car and embark on the 5-hour drive across the Island. Once we left town the storm clouds moved to our rearview mirror, the sun broke through and we happily drove along uncrowded highways through rolling green hills. Life was good again.
Island of Ortigia
We had heard about the tiny island of Ortigia — just a bridge away from the seaside city of Syracuse. And without a doubt it turned out to be one of our favorite stops. One of those perfect places that blends reality with dreamy imagination. This ancient city was filled with magic — nice restaurants, dotted cobblestone streets and a few nice bars and restaurants. If you ever visit Sicily, it’s a must-see.
We spent our days exploring its narrow alleyways, and enjoyed meeting the young owner of one of the local bars, Dada. We enjoyed a few afternoon cocktails with him — spending time getting to know him and his city.
Taormina and the Road Home
In a flash, it was time to get back to Palermo for our flight to Istanbul. We prepped ourselves for the 6-hour drive, but had one last stop on our list — the ritzy hill town of Taormina.
This is the place where all the jet-setters go and hang out during the travel season. But by the time we arrived it was just us and a few other visitors. We had a delicious lunch and wandered through the parks and streets. Another place to put on your upcoming travel list.
ADDITIONAL TRIP NOTES
Restaurants
We knew eating out in Italy wouldn’t be cheap, and rest assured it wasn’t. A simple but nice lunch with wine would cost us around $100. Because of this, we usually had yogurt for breakfast and then only a little snack for dinner (OK, sometimes maybe a pizza or two). Since the restaurants closed early, this worked out nicely.
Weather - This is always an important factor in deciding where we stay. Rome started out cool but comfortable (50s and 60s), but by the end of our stay, the weather had turned too cold and rainy.
We knew Venice would be chilly but we were willing to brave the cold since we were so close. We enjoyed a few lovely moments of sun but then the city quickly turned cold on us.
Palermo was nice until the rain hit. And we didn’t escape it until we hit Ortigia where we were finally bathed in sunshine and warmer temps.
Where we stayed
Rome - A large beautiful Airbnb apartment in Trastervere, our neighborhood ($52/night). We walked our legs off to sites like: Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, the Forum, the Vatican and numerous bars and restaurants.
Venice - A large Airbnb near the train station ($47/night).
Sicily (Palermo, Trapani, Ortigia) - Airbnb apartments always located in the historic districts ($40 to $50 per night).
News back home
We watching the disputed election results unfold. Fielding questions from people who found out we were from the US,“What’s happening in your country?” We didn’t know how to answer that.
Parting Thoughts (Arrivederci Italia!)
Not long after we left Italy, the entire country went on lockdown. In our own lucky way, we had managed to see and explore this magnificent country without the chaos that is usually associated with it. Even though our waistlines took a hit, it was a beautiful trip and we felt lucky to have added it to our journey.
Back to Istanbul…
We could barely contain ourselves knowing we would be back in Istanbul for Christmas with Heather and Summer.