Italy highlights ... - Thorn Tree travel forum

Italy highlights

Replies: 63 - Last Post: 19-Jun-2009 16:13 Last Post By: MTL

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Posted
22-May-2007 14:47
by: romanb

Posts: 684
Registered: 01/01/70

Italy highlights

Hi all

If you've been to Italy then we'd love you to share your experiences as part of the highlights section of our Italy guide. It can be something quirky and unexpected, a particular place that you'll never forget or your take on a classic experience. To get you thinking along the right track, imagine what anecdotal Italy highlight you might tell a friend who is thinking about going to Italy for the first time.

thanks
Roman

Posted
24-May-2007 03:23
by: samadhya

Posts: 43
Registered: 03/05/07

1

I have a friend who went to Naples years ago and just keeps going back because she loves it so much. It has a bad rep (and proabably even more so at the moment - if you've had a look at the news recently the refuse collectors are on strike and there is rubbish all over the city srteets - ugh! But i'm sure they'll sort that before long!) and many tourists avoid it as a destination.

There is a famous saying that goes "See Naples and die" and there are many different interpretations - many people believe it stems from the heavy presence of the Mafia in the city in the past and others believe it means that Naples is one place you have to see before you die. There is another story however that is far more interesting!

In the late 19th Century and early 20thC groups of young "gentlemen" from western europe used to tour eastern Europe and north Africa before coming home to settle down to marrying and all that nonsense. Naples was one of the last stops on the tour and as the gentlemen were aware that it was their last shot at freedom they used to indulge in the local houses of "ill repute". Now, with the amount of visitors passing through it is no surprise that there was a high risk of picking up something nasty and the gentlemen returned to the good ol homeland with more than a few memories of their travels!! So they saw Naples and died (from a lack of treatment for STD's in those times!)

Regardless of its poor rep though its supposed to be an amazing city and with a smaller number of tourists than most Italian cities.

Posted
24-May-2007 15:07
by: MirandaC

Posts: 86
Registered: 01/02/07

2

My favorite Italy experience was in Siena. My best friend and I were staying at the Hotel Duomo, in a room that had a balcony with a view of (you guessed it) the Duomo. There was a small shop on the same street (about a block away) that sold wine, fresh produce, and some other misc. grocery items. It was run by a very charming gentleman and his daughter. We stopped there in the evenings after a day of sightseeing, and bought a bottle of wine, which they graciously opened for us. (We had forgotten a corkscrew.) We spent the remains of the evening on our balcony, sipping fine wine from plastic cups, and enjoying the view.

Posted
24-May-2007 15:51
by: MTL

Posts: 3,614
Registered: 15/08/00

3

If they go to Italy for the first time they should go see the standard tourist traps- Venice and the Colloseum. and the like. Judging by the many posts here from first time visitors to Italy that;s all they wanna see- no matter how much i recommend them the more off-the beaten track places.

To live in fear, is a life half lived...

Posted
25-May-2007 01:25
by: mckellan

Posts: 38
Registered: 19/08/00

4

Like MTL - try to get off the beaten track.
A queue 200m long of tourists waiting for a visit to a ruin/museum is, but also isn't, Italy.

Try a day out of Rome. Visit the wonderful Ostia Antica - everyything the forum is without the crowds. Take a bus to Tivoli and wander the Villa D'Este. Take Salami you bought from a small deli and some crusty bread - you don't need anything more as espressos can be bought and drunk under a wonderful sidewalk umbrella. On the way home wander through the Villa Adriana. And finish off that salami and maybe the cherry tomatoes and that bottle of Sagrantino you bought at the Co-Op.
take the slow train or a bus to one of the small mountain villages in Umbria, north of Rome. Enjoy a proscutto and cheese roll.
Imagine sitting watching a Serie A match. - probably AC Milan or Roma might be hard to get into - try Seri B - just as much fun. ........ And Marinello - all those Ferraris.
Italy offers soemthing for everyone.
It is the Collisseum and Venice, but its also Grevi and Viterbo and Spello and Montefalco - and people.

Posted
25-May-2007 11:00
by: aussieenchantress

Posts: 4,155
Registered: 27/03/05

5

we stayed at camping michelangelo in florence in may 2006.

In the last 2 years of travelling nothing has beaten than waking up and looking out of the tent- through the gorgeous olive grove, in which the camp is set, down the mountain to an awesome view of the Duomo, Battistero and Campanile. A view that you just cant beat. The midnight visit by a baby hedgehog was special too!

"I was born with an enormous need for affection, and a terrible need to give it"- Audrey Hepburn

Posted
25-May-2007 14:31
by: ddaser

Posts: 6
Registered: 30/06/05

6

Going to the Museum of Torture in Rome, which was located in a police station!

Also, visiting the only Gothic church in Rome, which had a small museum of photographed ghosts. I had to get a grumbling old priest to open the door to the room. Suffice it to say, I was the only visitor. :)

Posted
26-May-2007 05:14
by: qwovadis

Posts: 15,000
Registered: 25/05/06

7

an off the beaten path sunset cycle on top of the city walls around the beautiful tuscan city of lucca...totally amazing...

it is what it is...
it will be what it will be...
acceptance is the answer...
flexibility the key...

Posted
26-May-2007 05:24
by: qwovadis

Posts: 15,000
Registered: 25/05/06

8

Have a seat on Atilla the Hun's Marble Throne outside the basilica in Torcello in the venetian lagoon...

take Vaporetto #12 across to the Island of Torcello. Torcello is the earliest settlement in the lagoon and at one time is alleged to have been home to 20,000 people. With the rise of Venice, Torcello's fortune went into freefall, and the island is now home to about 60 (!) inhabitants. Hemingway used to come here for solitude, and it's easy to see why. Take a stroll from the Vaporetto stop to the Basilica (dates from 1008AD, with remains found of a church from the 7th Century next to it).Unbelievable mosaic art
forms the taproot for all european artistic development over the next few centuries...

it is what it is...
it will be what it will be...
acceptance is the answer...
flexibility the key...

Posted
27-May-2007 02:02
by: Nzssa

Posts: 24
Registered: 01/01/06

9

I love the experience in Italy of finding yourself somewhere just because its in the middle of 2 destinations you had planned to visit, and realising the previously unheard of place where you ended up is even better than your original goal.

We ended up in the stunning town of Orvieto in Umbria one Sunday night, and planned to have an early night so we could head off early the next morning. I have no idea if it happens regularly, but that night the town came alive in everyway possible - the streets were amazingly crowded, there were food stalls everywhere, dancing in the streets and music, then everything quietened down whilst the congregation paraded through the stone streets towards the Cathedral, singing soft hymns as they walked. It was magical to see and take part in the amazing 'energy' of the town - one of those amazing and unexpected experiences you come across in Italy, that show you should never plan too much!

Posted
27-May-2007 03:34
by: sevenstiles

Posts: 53
Registered: 02/09/06

10

We drove into Paciano and parked. It was early evening and deserted except for a 4x4 on the roadside. We strolled through the quiet , narrow streets loving the peace, wondering what lay behind the high walls and narrow doorways. My eye was caught by a flash of white and I heard a peal of laughter. Ahead of us I caught a glimpse of a beautiful young girl in her wedding dress darting round a corner. She was followed by a young man who called after her. As we came closer we saw that he had caught up with her and was holding her close. Then she pulled away and ran off again. As we walked on we realised that this was the couple's wedding video - caught on camera by another young man nearby. The setting was so beautiful and the couple so young and lovely - I can't think of a better way to sum up the romance of Umbria

Posted
27-May-2007 07:22
by: pete_coach

Posts: 12
Registered: 28/02/07

11

The very first time we walked out of Stazione Ferroviaría Santa Lucia (train station) in Venice. The veiw is everything we ever expected and exactly as we have seen in any movie, travel show or photograph. We came to realize that most places you visit in the world have a preconceived impression in your mind but over the years the place has changed, progress does that. Venice has not, it is everything you ever imagined.
Also, sitting in Piazza San Marco in Venice, at the Cafe Florian, watching people, watching pigeons, sipping Spritz's, eating a snack, listening to the music, paying an exorbitant amount for the privilege, yes, one of life's real pleasures.
Walking over Ponte Vecchio in Florence. The Golden Bridge, seeing the gold in the shop windows, seeing the people drooling and fantasizing of owning some of the magnificent handcrafted jewelry. If only we had unlimited funds...but it is fun to dream.
Just walking in Venice and Florence, it cannot be truly explained, many have tried, it must just be done.

Posted
27-May-2007 10:41
by: clair

Posts: 52
Registered: 16/02/02

12

An echo of the Orvieto experience narrated above; I had planned to use Orvieto as a base for exploring the rest of Umbria, but between the Orvieto Classico, the beautiful archaelogical walks, and the discovery that the town has a renowned festival in celebration of Pentecost, I ended up staying right here (where I still am). Orvieto is one of those tourist destinations that actually retains the character of the people who live here, in fact it seems like many visitors are day-tripppers, and the true nature of the town is revealed in the evening, when locals come out to socialize. The quiet pace of life is infectous, and the pressures I felt in Florence and Rome to be constantly in tourist mode have vanished. Although I am here on a weekend, the town has not seemed overly crowded, other than for the afternoon Pentecost festivities and, as the above poster noted, a town-wide social in the early evening on Sunday. I would also note that while the archaelogical walk around the town is not exactly an unbeaten path, it is not an overcrowded path. In two days of walking various portions, I encountered two or three people each time.

Posted
28-May-2007 14:26
by: clodbod

Posts: 657
Registered: 05/06/04

13

Unexpected but memorable finds during my first trip to Italy last November include: Rome: walking into the Centro Italiniano di Studi Americani and discovering a fabulous courtyard, Piazza Navona in the early morning light, the artisians shop along the Via Della Reginella in the Old Jewish Ghetto, an expensive but I'm-still-thinking-of-that-lunch at La Taverna Degli Amici, the inexpensive internet cafe on Largo Arenula, the fact that most restaurants have maps on the back of their business cards, the breads, and the deep fried artichokes at Da Giggetto in Piazza Navona.

In the hilltown of Radiconfini I and my friends sought a place for lunch. As it was November mostly everything was closed except for La Grotta. My friends needed cash so they went in search of an ATM (by the church) and I walked into the restaurant alone. The place was packed with Italian families enjoying themselves but a hush came over all of them as I stood there looking for a table. Guess an older female doesn't often saunter in alone. The charming hostess who spoke a little English found me a table and the owner a rather no nonsense man who spoke NO English came over to set the table. I smiled at him as he set the table for tres but he wouldn't smile back. No one was speaking, all were staring and i was wondering if I had a scarlett A on my chest or something. The place is all stone and wonderful and even though I was the center of attention for the moment I felt in my bones that this was the Italy I was looking to find. My friends came in and it was if a new day had dawned. The stares stopped, the man smiled and poured the wine and the families went back to enjoying their meals. I had the most wonderful soup and dream of returning just to have the pasta with truffles my friend ordered.

"One means of sanity is to retain a hold on the natural world, to remain insofar as we can, good animals." Wallace Stegner

Posted
28-May-2007 16:35
by: lagatta

Posts: 720
Registered: 12/04/00

14

Hi Roman,

Twenty years ago I studied in Perugia, and returned there last summer to translate at an international conference. It remains not only a beautiful medieval hilltown (or small city) but is also an example of successful immigration of some of the many "foreigners" who arrived there as students, refugees or wanderers. Now it is blessed with a much larger variety of "ethnic" businesses, restaurants and associations than is typical of a smallish Italian city.

Another thing that is worthy of note is the outstanding experiments in public transport in a city with a medieval core - first the scala mobile etc, now a "minimétro" system that will whisk passengers up from the periphery - including a popular hostel and the railway station - to the ancient city core. I'm very excited about the minimétro - it will also make Perugia more accessible to disabled people, always a problem with the hilltowns.

Like Clair this would extend to other places in Umbria.

clodbod, I think they simply didn't know what to make of you. (I speak fluent Italian so I wouldn't have had that problem). Glad all worked out in the end.)

Roman you are more than welcome to send me a PM or e-mail if you would like more input.

bisous de Montréal
lagatta

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