Our quick trip to Italy
Posted 04-27-2009 at 05:20 PM by Danno
My wife and I were able to take advantage of her father's frequent flyer miles to take a free plane trip to Italy. Due to the resrtictions we were only able to go from 20-24th of April. We decided to go for it.
We departed Dulles airport on Monday around 620PM arrived around 830AM Tuesday morning at Rome airport. After walking for miles to passport control and waiting for luggage and then getting the rental car we departed the airport at 10AM . It took almost an hour to get to the Autostrada heading to Sorrento because of the traffic. It is always bad at that time of day. We stopped at the first Auto Grill to get our first cappuccino and paninni. It was really worth the wait!
Then we headed south to Sorrento. Because I do not sleep well on planes , I was getting tired after about 2 hours of driving. My suggested that we pull into another Autogrill and take a short nap. So we did, along with several other cars taking a riposo. We slept for about a half hour and then went on our way.
We made it to our hotel in Sorrento (Hotel Eden) around 3:00 PM and proceeded to take another nap since the stores were closed anyway. I did not mention that the weather was lousy, hard rain all day.
We got up from ur short nap and went to the piazza to the main cafe and had hot tea and sandwiches to tide us over until dinner.Then we strolled thru the back streets of Sorrento and shopped for gifts . Tasted limoncello and bought a bottle of chocolate cello. Good stuff!
WE found a restaurant that was recommended by a friend, Z'Antonio and it was fantastic. I had an antipasto of insalata di mare and it was to die for and thenmy all time favorites of spaghetti vongole. I was a happy camper. There was a couple seated next to us from the UK and we had a great time. By the end of dinner we exchanged email addresses in hope of house swapping!
We left for the hotel and had a losy night sleep because a bus load of Italian high school children were staying at the hotl and decided they wanted to raise hell until all hours. Very rude children.
We awoke the next morning to blue skies and sunshine! That was a surprise since the weather called for more rain. So we ate breakfast and got in the car and headed down the Amalfi coast. WE actually stopped in the town of Amalfi. All of the years that I lived in Italy and driven the coast we never stopped in because it was a pain. This time we did it and went to the Main church where St. Andrew's bones are located. (WE go go to St. Andrew's United Methodist Church so this was a treat)
Then we headed to Ravello for lunch.Stopped in a wine shop called "Wine and Drugs" for some vino tasting. The first wine I tasted was a 2001 Taurasi riserva. It was excellent and at 65 euro a bottle it should have.
the next 4 were also very good. The owner was willing to give a discount on quantity, he was more than willing to ship me a 12 bottle case of the Taurasi wine with shpping costs only 120euro! Maybe that's why the store is called "Wine and Drugs" because he was definitley on something. I told him I had to check with my wife. I did and never went back.
We left Ravello and headed to Vietri to a ceramic shop that my wife loved but when we got there it was undegoing renovation and he told us to come back in a few weeks. I wish. So, we went to my wife's sencond favorite store and she bought more plates to match some of her others. The proprietor was so friendly and was very apprciative that we spoke Italian.
Left Vietri and got on the Autostada and headed back to Sorrento for more shopping and eating
We stopped in a little store called La Botteguccia to see the owners who are friends of ours. They were very happy and surprised to see us.
We left there and went to another restaurant but although it was good it was very pricey and too touristi.
The next morning, Thursday, we checked out of the hotel and headed north to Rome. We decided to take a side trip to Latina. I spent 6 months there back in 1975 going to a NATO school. There was a little restaurant there that my wife loved and we wanted to see if it was possible it was still opened. WE never found it but stopped in a really nice restaurant right on the beach. After lunce we asked our waitress if the restaurant was still around and she said Si, lungo mare, in the opposite direction. My wife was bummed , so we said next time.
Drove on up to Roma to our Hotel, Concelli Rossi , took a nap and then took the rental car back to the airport so we wouldn't have to deal with it in the morning.
Friday morning , we boarded the shuttle and went to the airport. It seems the American airlines (United,Delta, US Air) have their own terminal for check in. The terminals are A, B, C and 5, I have no clue why they are lettered/numberd that way.
Anyway you check in at terminal 5 go thru a person who checks your passport then go back to the check in desks.After you check in and check your luggage, you go over to passportcontrol, then you get on a shuttle bus to transfer you to Terminal C. Makes sense to me
We board our flight on time, 11 AM but sit on the tarmac for about an hour so the flight was late getting in to Dulles.
When the plane finally took of and they atarted the on board service, I asked for 2 bottles of red wine. "Sorry sir we don't have any red wine, they drank it all on the way over" .I said you you have to be kidding me! He offered me white wine so I said okay, but whe he handed me the bottle it was half frozen! He said it was okay , it would thaw out in a while. I told him he could put it where the sun don't shine.
In all the years I have flown back and forth across the pond , I have never heard of them running out of red wine. I will write a letter to United and tell them what I think, even if the tickets were free.
Anyway we arived in Dulles about 345PM, waited almost an hour to get luggage. Got luggage , picked up our car from long term parking and drove to my sister-in-laws home in Burke, Va. Spent the night there, then drove home . Had a great weekend and now I am back to work
Almost seems like we never went.
We departed Dulles airport on Monday around 620PM arrived around 830AM Tuesday morning at Rome airport. After walking for miles to passport control and waiting for luggage and then getting the rental car we departed the airport at 10AM . It took almost an hour to get to the Autostrada heading to Sorrento because of the traffic. It is always bad at that time of day. We stopped at the first Auto Grill to get our first cappuccino and paninni. It was really worth the wait!
Then we headed south to Sorrento. Because I do not sleep well on planes , I was getting tired after about 2 hours of driving. My suggested that we pull into another Autogrill and take a short nap. So we did, along with several other cars taking a riposo. We slept for about a half hour and then went on our way.
We made it to our hotel in Sorrento (Hotel Eden) around 3:00 PM and proceeded to take another nap since the stores were closed anyway. I did not mention that the weather was lousy, hard rain all day.
We got up from ur short nap and went to the piazza to the main cafe and had hot tea and sandwiches to tide us over until dinner.Then we strolled thru the back streets of Sorrento and shopped for gifts . Tasted limoncello and bought a bottle of chocolate cello. Good stuff!
WE found a restaurant that was recommended by a friend, Z'Antonio and it was fantastic. I had an antipasto of insalata di mare and it was to die for and thenmy all time favorites of spaghetti vongole. I was a happy camper. There was a couple seated next to us from the UK and we had a great time. By the end of dinner we exchanged email addresses in hope of house swapping!
We left for the hotel and had a losy night sleep because a bus load of Italian high school children were staying at the hotl and decided they wanted to raise hell until all hours. Very rude children.
We awoke the next morning to blue skies and sunshine! That was a surprise since the weather called for more rain. So we ate breakfast and got in the car and headed down the Amalfi coast. WE actually stopped in the town of Amalfi. All of the years that I lived in Italy and driven the coast we never stopped in because it was a pain. This time we did it and went to the Main church where St. Andrew's bones are located. (WE go go to St. Andrew's United Methodist Church so this was a treat)
Then we headed to Ravello for lunch.Stopped in a wine shop called "Wine and Drugs" for some vino tasting. The first wine I tasted was a 2001 Taurasi riserva. It was excellent and at 65 euro a bottle it should have.
the next 4 were also very good. The owner was willing to give a discount on quantity, he was more than willing to ship me a 12 bottle case of the Taurasi wine with shpping costs only 120euro! Maybe that's why the store is called "Wine and Drugs" because he was definitley on something. I told him I had to check with my wife. I did and never went back.
We left Ravello and headed to Vietri to a ceramic shop that my wife loved but when we got there it was undegoing renovation and he told us to come back in a few weeks. I wish. So, we went to my wife's sencond favorite store and she bought more plates to match some of her others. The proprietor was so friendly and was very apprciative that we spoke Italian.
Left Vietri and got on the Autostada and headed back to Sorrento for more shopping and eating
We stopped in a little store called La Botteguccia to see the owners who are friends of ours. They were very happy and surprised to see us.
We left there and went to another restaurant but although it was good it was very pricey and too touristi.
The next morning, Thursday, we checked out of the hotel and headed north to Rome. We decided to take a side trip to Latina. I spent 6 months there back in 1975 going to a NATO school. There was a little restaurant there that my wife loved and we wanted to see if it was possible it was still opened. WE never found it but stopped in a really nice restaurant right on the beach. After lunce we asked our waitress if the restaurant was still around and she said Si, lungo mare, in the opposite direction. My wife was bummed , so we said next time.
Drove on up to Roma to our Hotel, Concelli Rossi , took a nap and then took the rental car back to the airport so we wouldn't have to deal with it in the morning.
Friday morning , we boarded the shuttle and went to the airport. It seems the American airlines (United,Delta, US Air) have their own terminal for check in. The terminals are A, B, C and 5, I have no clue why they are lettered/numberd that way.
Anyway you check in at terminal 5 go thru a person who checks your passport then go back to the check in desks.After you check in and check your luggage, you go over to passportcontrol, then you get on a shuttle bus to transfer you to Terminal C. Makes sense to me
We board our flight on time, 11 AM but sit on the tarmac for about an hour so the flight was late getting in to Dulles.
When the plane finally took of and they atarted the on board service, I asked for 2 bottles of red wine. "Sorry sir we don't have any red wine, they drank it all on the way over" .I said you you have to be kidding me! He offered me white wine so I said okay, but whe he handed me the bottle it was half frozen! He said it was okay , it would thaw out in a while. I told him he could put it where the sun don't shine.
In all the years I have flown back and forth across the pond , I have never heard of them running out of red wine. I will write a letter to United and tell them what I think, even if the tickets were free.
Anyway we arived in Dulles about 345PM, waited almost an hour to get luggage. Got luggage , picked up our car from long term parking and drove to my sister-in-laws home in Burke, Va. Spent the night there, then drove home . Had a great weekend and now I am back to work
Almost seems like we never went.
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