Jose and I renewed our wedding vows after 10 years (March 2007) then took the Honeymoon we never had (July 2007). This was a dream two weeks together.
My parents stayed with Ryan and Camille the first week then, Aunt Leigh-Ann came the second week. They had a blast together. We are so thankful for family!
We loved every second spent together roaming the cities, eating wonderful foods
and seeing amazing sights.
We flew into Paris. We had help from a travel agent to plan all the travel, hotels, etc. When checking into our hotel in Paris we were told there was a mistake and we were only booked for one night instead of four. The hotel was fully booked and there were no rooms available anywhere because of the Paris Air Show. We were a bit panicked, to say the least. We got our key and went to the room to shower before heading out for our first day in Paris. After all, we had spent the last 20 hours travelling. The first rule in travel: BE FLEXIBLE. Not my strong suit. We headed out to look at different hostels- not our idea of how to spend romantic nights in Paris, sharing room with other travelers! We found one that was the cleanest and decided to be positive, after all- we were in Paris. Here I am in front of our hotel-
Our hotel was right across the way from Notre Dame. The rose stained glass window is exquisite. There were 350 steps up to the Notre Dame bell tower. Worth the climb to see across Paris- even on an overcast day.
We ate here a few times...love crepes. Sweet with nutella or strawberries and the savory crepes with ham and cheese. Other favorite foods for us that we enjoyed were Croque-Monsieur, pastries, and gyros. There were so many stores that sold gyros. Definitely not expected to find those in Paris. A gyro was an inexpensive meal on the go as we walked and explored. One of our most memorable meals was eaten late one night (@ 11 pm). We had the best shish kebob.
River Seine. We walked along the river and also rode the boat pictured here. Great sites and very relaxing after all the walking and climbing stairs.
Jose is standing on top of the Arc de Triumph...you can see how crowded it was.
he's holding our souvenirs (new sunglasses for both of us).
The Louvre
We stopped for a few hours in the Jardin du Luxembourg. There were several boules (bocce) games going on all day. Many older men playing pretty competitive games. After wandering the park, we found benches to sit and enjoy reading.
Eiffel Tower- we couldn't believe we were actually standing here seeing this spectacular tower.
We rode up the elevator and some steps to view the top. It began to pour as we exited...again, flexibility. We found a vendor and bought an umbrella. We were pretty good with the selfies back then. Most of the time, I'd bug someone to take our picture. Most travelers are happy to take your picture, then you can take theirs.
Two pictures...in one
We became experts at reading the metro schedule...took the train to Versailles
Versailles- the Hall of Mirrors in the chateau.
sitting and waiting for our tour...we got tired and were happy to sit on a curb to read
We flew from Paris to Venice. We walked from the airport right to the water edge to get on our water taxi. Here I am sitting in the wood speed boat...we were dropped at St. Mark's Square. This is the square famous for all the pigeons. Since we were there, it is now illegal to feed pigeons so the square is not scattered with the birds. We walked for a way through the square pulling our luggage to our hotel. Nowadays wheeled luggage is banned in Venice. The ban is to decrease noise pollution and wear and tear on the cities delicate streets. For all of you that have heard that Venice smells- it doesn't! It was clear weather- not like the overcast skies in Paris.
I have so many pictures of the streets, houses...we didn't see many cars there. Everyone walked, the streets are so narrow. We had a map of Venice while we wandered the many bridges that connect over 100 islands. We got lost.
We weren't really lost- we just couldn't find where we were on our map.
A romantic trip to Venice needs a gondola ride. It was so serene and yes, our driver sang for us.
We travelled through the small canals under countless bridges, including the Bridge of Sighs (below) this bridge connect the old prison with Palazzo Ducale.
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After our gondola ride, back in St. Mark's Square for a drink and snack. Men were selling roses everywhere we went. Jose bought me one so we could pose for our own episode of Bachelor In Paris. I know, it sounds stupid. I AM a fan of terrible reality tv shows.
We rode (on a boat) over to Murano. It's 4 miles across the lagoon from Venice and is known as the glass island. We sat in a very hot room watching the artists blowing glass. Glassmakers have been working here since the 16th century. Fortunately we were by an open window so we could feel the outside air. It was incredible to see what they made and how easy they made it look. Afterwards, we looked at all the beautiful glass that was for sale in the showroom..
This night was the most romantic evening EVER! We asked the concierge at the hotel where he would suggest a nice dinner? He said "don't worry, I'll take care of you." He arranged for our water taxi to take us to dinner. We had the most beautiful sunset over St. Mark's Square as we departed to our unknown destination. We arrived at a restaurant, right on the water. I can't remember what we ate but, it seemed like the most perfect night ever.
We took the train to Florence. Our hotel was right in the middle of all the action. We looked out over Piazza della Signora. I am not including all the pictures we took of the gelato, chalk art, Leonardo da Vinci's exhibit, Duomo because I have just finished my entry for our trip in 2015!
Here we are at dinner. We were adventurous and ordered the wild boar. Wild boar are found throughout Tuscany & can be found on menus throughout the area.
Each night of our vacation, we planned to call home and talk with our sweeties. Here I am sitting on a bridge talking with Ryan and Camille. This night we sat on the bridge until the sun was completely gone then we walked back to our hotel.
Below is Ponte Vecchio at sunset
Bronze Il Porcellito-
if you rub the nose of the boar, it will bring good luck and ensure a return visit to Florence.
We wanted to spend a day relaxing by the sea. We took a train to Naples (3 hours) then a taxi from Naples to Sorrento. When we were boarding the train, there were no seats so Jose and I sat in the luggage space behind the seats. We spent some time sitting "on" our luggage and switching to sitting on the ground. This was the longest train ride ever! We had fun talking and being with each other. Another interesting experience in our adventure together!
Once we saw the view off the Amalfi Coast, we forgot every minute of that long train ride.
This is the view from our hotel room. It was so high on the cliff.
We wandered the cute little town & shopped. This is where we both bought a pair of sandals. Still my favorite sandals. Everything lemon! This is where Limoncello originates.
After breakfast, we headed to the beach.
This is the tunnel we walked down...kind of creepy. It opened up midway to see beach. When we got to the bottom it opened up to a wonderful sight of umbrellas and bathing vacationers.
We found a spot on one of the docks that extended out from the beach.
We stayed out until the sun went down
We were sad to leave this place. Wish we had a week here in Sorrento!
We took the train back up to Rome (this time with seats).
Here is our hotel. It was walking distance to the Spanish Steps.
Again, an old fountain...it was so hot!
The Colosseum- what a great tour
Vatican City
Our last day just about everything was closed- it was Patron St. Peter and Paul Day.
The restaurants and tourist stores were open. We mostly shopped and ate.
Trevi Fountain- lots of people there to take their turns throwing a coin over shoulder to ensure a return visit to Roma.
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