Lowe Family Travels

We love to travel! This summer, we took a wonderful vacation to Italy, basing ourselves in Rome and taking some excursions out of the city. I was unprepared for how much I would love Italy, and especially Rome. I thought that Rome would be a dry experience of museums and monuments. My husband suggested staying there, and I reluctantly agreed. I'm so glad. I was captivated by the eternal city! The museums and monuments were absolutely not dry, but more importantly, the entire city was just a delight for the senses. Narrow, quaint alleyways with blooming flowerboxes, sidewalk cafes, architectural details, cobblestone streets, and the food. Oh, the food. I can't wait to get back. If you want to whet your appetite for the amazing experience of Rome, I highly recommend Athony Doerr's book Four Seasons In Rome . I read it later. If I had read it first, I would have better known what I was in for. I did a lot of research before we left, and we learned some things as we went. In...

Welcome to our online travel scrapbook! I love to travel, and I love to write about it so that I can relive it again. If you're planning a first trip to Italy, maybe there's something here that will help you plan! On July 4, 2019, we boarded a Delta plane at Atlanta's Hartsfield Internat'l Airport to leave the country we love for a few days. We were headed to Rome, Italy - a first trip to the European continent for both myself and Mary Beth. Kevin had visited Spain, so he was a continent up on us! We had a 4 hour layover at Charles de Gaulle in Paris, which was about an hour and a half too long, even considering that we had to go through border security/customs. Both France and Italy are part of the Schengen Area and honor each others' border controls , so once we went through border security in Paris, we didn't have to do that again in Rome. We flew right through the border control process and then had plenty of time to wait. We got a snack, and soon enough,...

We chose our hotel, Navona Colors , for its location and good reviews on Trip Advisor . It was a welcome bonus that the price was reasonable. It's just a couple of blocks off of Piazza Navona but down a little street that's removed from the tourist hordes. By European standards, our triple room was huge. We had a king and a single bed, casement windows that opened onto the picturesque Via Dell'Orso, a minibar, kettle and nespresso maker, and a wardrobe that unfortunately didn't provide passage to either Narnia or the Elysian Fields. We were pleased that almost all of the outlets had USB ports for charging. The bathroom was also surprisingly large and had two pedestal sinks, toilet and bidet, towel warmer, and a shower that was generously sized. I had foolishly followed Rick Steve's advice to use the hotel hair dryer  , and I didn't bring one. The one provided was one of those cheapies that attaches to the wall, has little power, and you have to hold the ...

Thankfully our first scheduled event on our first full day in Rome was a 1:15 pm skip-the-line tour of the Colosseum  and Roman Forum. We didn't rush through our morning, but got up when we felt like it and made our way down to breakfast. The hotel (Navona Colors) provided continental breakfast with your choice of coffee. The coffee was one of my hardest adjustments. My morning routine starts with lingering over about 10 oz. of coffee before I can think or carry on any kind of conversation. Italians start the day with a quick espresso or cappuccino. Even the cappuccino is only about 4 oz. It's only about 2 swallows. But, when in Rome... I adjusted. Next time, I'll take one of these pour over thing s and take advantage of the kettle to make some American coffee.  (Learn more here:  How to Drink Coffee in Italy .) Another adjustment is that Italian breakfast is mostly just a pastry. Our hotel did provide other options - fruit, yogurt, cereal, and usually boiled eggs and b...

Figuring Out The Train On our second full day in Italy, we took the train from Rome to Pompeii. Train travel in Italy is very easy, but we were nervous until we'd done it the first time. So, the first part of my post is all about how to get there. There are two high-speed train choices, Trenitalia and Italo . To get to Pompeii, you'll go to Naples (the ride is about 1 hr. 15 min.) then a commuter train to the site (30 min). You can purchase the high speed tickets ahead online, but not the commuter train. The Italo trains are the newest, and I found their website easier to manage than Trenitalia, even though the navigation on the page was a little confusing. You can also use Rail Europe's website , which will add a booking fee. Also, the earlier you purchase your tickets prior to the trip, the cheaper they are. I bought them online over a month in advance, and tickets are available up to 120 days in advance. You'll have to guess at how long you'll want to stay...

Our third full day in Italy day started with a 10:30 skip the line tour of the Vatican museum, the Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter's. Especially since this turned out to be our most grueling day, it was nice to sleep in a little. We set out walking at 9:45. The walk to the Vatican was interesting. We crossed the river, and the closer we got, the more we began to encounter street vendors selling things - bottles of cold water, souvenirs, etc. They would call out to us - "nice American family, cool water?" Geez, are we that obvious? At the Colosseum, we had been warned by our tour guide never to buy bottled water from the guys on the street. It's just the same water you're getting from the fountains, he told us, and sometimes, they took the bottles from the trash. Just another reason to carry your own water bottle !  In the first Vatican throne room We soon met up with our tour guide from The Roman Guy, Jeanette. She was delightfully funny, and from Kis...

Our fourth day in Italy had an early start as we had planned to be at the train station by 7:45 for an 8:15 train to Venice. Having barely made it on time for the train to Naples, we overcompensated and got to the station by 7:30, but that gave us time to grab some breakfast. We were thrilled to discover that the heat had given way to cooler temperatures! Soon, we were on our way. The high speed trains get you there in 3 hrs. 45 min. We did not complain about spending the morning sitting after having walked nearly 25 miles over the three previous days. We all dozed a little. We did something a little unusual here - we kept our room in Rome, but booked a BnB close to the train station in Venice for just one night. This allowed us to have enough time in Venice to see the things we wanted to see without having to rush back on the train. It also allowed us to just bring small overnight bags. Since neither room was very expensive, it meant that one night of our trip cost what it might hav...

We woke up in Venice to temps in the 70s after the rain in the night! I can't tell you how refreshing that was! At our BnB, Aquavenice, we were served juice, cappuccino, and cream-filled croissants right in our room. Perfect! Before checking out and boarding our 10:00 train, we decided to walk down to a little patisserie we had seen the day before, Pasticceria La Donatella . We bought macarons and ogled at the many beautiful pastries. We took some more photos, then headed on back to Rome. Must admit, we got some fancy chocolate in the train station to enjoy on the way! We arrived in Rome about 2:00 and got a taxi back to the hotel. As always, we grabbed a pastry from the breakfast room as we walked by. We freshened up a bit, made a call for reservations for dinner, and set out again. Even though we chose Navona Colors Hotel partly for its proximity to Piazza Navona, one of the major squares in the city, we hadn't been there yet! So, we walked the 2 blocks and fo...

On this final day of our trip to Italy, we took a City Wonders bus tour to Tuscany . I worried that it might be more bus, less tour, but we felt we got our money's worth and had a great time. There were a number of people, but not so many that we felt like sheeple. Our guide, Andy-the-best-Australian-Tuscany-guide-ever, did a great job of keeping us entertained on the bus. As he said, this was a teaser tour - a highlights reel designed to make you want to come back. It was successful. I can't wait to go back. We first drove from Rome to Montepulciano , a lovely little medieval hilltop town. The drive took about 2 1/2 hours, but we stopped along the way for a restroom and coffee break. This was quite welcome as we left our hotel at 7 am and skipped breakfast.  Montepulciano is just beautiful. The views from the hill are as beautiful as any Tuscany views can be, and the town is so picturesque and quaint - so unlike anything we have in the US. There was an arts fest...