Back from Viva Italia

[LEB]

I believe they did have shampoos and conditioners in each of the hotels, although we didn't use any of them. They had hairdryers at each place also, but my wife didn't like them because she had to hold the switch on the entire time using it, so she just used her own. You will love this trip. It truly is magical.

Thanks for the info, I forgot to ask about the hair dryers so that was great information. I am excited about the trip, never been to Europe before. Traveling with my new college grad will be a real treat!

 

[helenk]

Thanks for the info, I forgot to ask about the hair dryers so that was great information. I am excited about the trip, never been to Europe before. Traveling with my new college grad will be a real treat!

I travelling with my daughter who just graduated from college, we are both getting very excited.

 

[tigger_ttfn]

This will be our second overseas trip - the first was ABD Ireland last year. Is it common for the hotels not to have washcloths? We didn't have an issue in Ireland so I'm glad you mentioned it. I absolutely must have one for a shower.

Thanks for all the advice and I can't wait for your trip report! So glad you had a wonderful time.

 

[LTFrench]

We did not have wash clothes in London, Paris or anywhere in Italy. I took old ones from home, tossed them as I used them and ended up with that much more space in my luggage for olive oil.
Something I wish I had bought *even* more of. You can not get olive oil like in Italy, in the states, anywhere, same for the Parmesan cheese and the olives. Yum, yum!!

 

[Diskidatheart]

One other little word of advice. Obviously you can buy souvenirs where ever you want, but some things that I found were as follows:

1.) In Rome, if you want to buy clothing, this would be the place for it. When I mean clothing, it's probably the same stuff that you can buy in the states, but it would be from Rome.

2.) Vatican City...Obviously, anything religious you would want to buy here. I bought rosaries that were blessed by the Pope. They vary in price from anywhere between 12 Euros up to 100 Euros.

3.) Orvieto...if you want to buy some very good wine at a very low price, you will have time to get it here. You can buy it here for about 3 or 4 Euros a bottle and it's very good. You can also get Pottery here. They have beautiful pottery here.

4.) Tuscany...more wine here. I didn't buy any wine here, but it was also very good as it's made in Aritimino. I think it was a little more expensive than in Orvieto, but certainly not expensive. The one thing that I would highly recommend to buy here is Olive Oil and Balsamic Vinegar. It is by far the best that I have ever had and as mentioned above, I also wish I had bought more.

5.) Florence - Leather, leather, leather. If you ever wanted that perfect leather jacket that looks oh so good on you....buy it here. It is really good quality and reasonably priced. I wouldn't call it cheap, but not outrageous either. They sell scarves here too which are really cheap. My wife was a little disappointed that she didn't get any since you could talk them down to about 3 Euro.

6.) Venice - Masks (you can get masks of all sizes here). We bought a whole bunch of little ones for 3.50 Euro eachas Christmas presents. They can be used as refrigerator magnets or Christmas ornaments. We could have bought them cheaper in Florence, but I personally think they were nicer in Venice and we wanted to buy Venetian masks in Venice. My wife also got a Murano glass necklace and earrings in Venice. They were pretty reasonable too, but you'll definitely have to shop around for good prices.

If I was to do it again, I would have packed some bubble wrap in my carry on to wrap more olive oil up and bring home...it was that good. The place in Orvieto recommended that she wrap our pottery in bubble wrap and take it with us rather than shipping it due to the cost of shipping. Some places will ship it to the US free of charge, but I'm guessing their prices are a bit higher to cover the shipping. Believe me, there are many other things that you can purchase in all of these places and it really depends on your taste and style. I just wanted to give everyone a little bit of my personal advice because you always end up wondering "If I buy wine here, will it be cheaper somewhere else?" or "If I buy these Venetian masks in Florence, could I get a better price in Venice?". Hopefully this helps.

 

[LEB]

Thank you so much for the shopping tips. I am going to print your suggestions and carry them with me. Did you bring the olive oil and vinegar on board the plane as carry on? Was that a problem with customs, etc? Would you have considered shipping more home or are the costs too high?

 

[Diskidatheart]

Thank you so much for the shopping tips. I am going to print your suggestions and carry them with me. Did you bring the olive oil and vinegar on board the plane as carry on? Was that a problem with customs, etc? Would you have considered shipping more home or are the costs too high?

We actually kept them in the boxes that they provide and I packed them in my suitcase. I put plastic bags around them and then surrounded all the boxes with clothes to secure them. I didn't carry them on because the 3 oz rule applies in Europe as well. Ours ended up fine as I did really secure them in our luggage, but I would have been more comfortable if we had wrapped the bottles in bubble wrap. The hotel in Tuscany did have bubble wrap at one point, but ran out. I don't know how expensive it would be to ship, but I don't think the hotel was set up for shipping. That would be something to ask your guides. I know there was a limit of 2 bottles of wine per person that you could bring back, but I don't know if there was a limit of olive oil per person. We only brought 3 bottles back in total, so it wasn't an issue for us.

 

[Bronxboy52]

Having been on the same trip as Diskid, I concur with all of his recommendations. We did bring bubble wrap with us, which gave us more peace of mind that the bottles wouldn't break when the baggage handlers used our luggage for the Delta Airlines version of the Olympic Hammer Throw. My wige and I brought back 2 bottles of wine each, as well as 2 big bottles of olive oil and 3 smaller bottles. The olive oil is definitely worth bringing back, especially from Tuscany. Based upon recommendations from our tour guides, we also brought back 2 large cans of Italian tuna, which once you are there, you will understand why. I would also suggest that you bring back vacuum sealed parmigiana reggiano. If vacuum sealed, it can stay unrefrigerated for a long time until you get back home. If you do, however, you will have to go through an additional customs check for agricultural products. this took all of about 10 minutes.
Two pieces of advice. Be prepared to pay for using many public toilet facilities and watch out for the lunatic drivers. Even while walking on the sidewalks in Rome, you must be vigilant and alert!

 

[LEB]

BronxBoy and Diskid - I can't thank you enough for your suggestions. I am a first time visitor to Europe and I can surely use all the advice I can get!!!

 

[tigger_ttfn]

Thanks for all the great shopping advice. I always hate that feeling when you get back home and think "Man, I wish I had bought xxx!"

 

[helenk]

How were the hotels in Tuscany and Venice? The ABD website lists Hotel Paggeria Medicea as the hotel in Tuscany, but my booklet indicates the hotel is Borgo di Artimino.

 

[LTFrench]

How were the hotels in Tuscany and Venice? The ABD website lists Hotel Paggeria Medicea as the hotel in Tuscany, but my booklet indicates the hotel is Borgo di Artimino.

Those are the same hotel, or at least the same property, in Tuscany. It's an old estate dating back to the 1400's (?) belonging to the Medicea family. The AbD group pretty much filled up the stable rooms. You are on top of a mountain with pretty much nothing but this estate and the views. The ride to the top is very interesting, pick your side of the bus carefully, LOL! This is the place to get the olive oil. Be sure and save space. This is also the place to enjoy the local olives, at the wine tasting. They are not grown by the estate, but down the road. We did not find them available for purchase, so eat all you can get, and some for me, too!!

The Venice hotel we stayed in was the Dei Dogi and it was very, very nice. 3 bridges away from *the action* which was perfect. Far enough to be quiet but still plenty close enough.

One thing that we noticed is that the Italians really don't want you to enjoy coffee in your room. My DH usually goes and gets me a cup to enjoy as I get around, not easily done on this trip and definitely not done with a smile when you can make it happen.

 

[helenk]

Thank you, I thought that the website for the the "2" hotels looked very similar and that explains it.
I am going out today to get some bubble wrap so I can buy olive oil to bring back.
I get so excited each time I get more information. This time next week we will be doing our last minute packing because we fly out Tuesday evening.

 

[Diskidatheart]

Helen - You are going to have such a wonderful time. It really is magical! I'm envious that you are leaving in week even though I just got back. As much as I hated the long flight, I would hop on a plane again today to do it all over again. One other thing that I remembered is to make sure your adapter is compatible for Italy. The one we bought was good for everywhere in Europe except Italy. It probably is, but it's good to double check anyway. We didn't read the small print and were fortunate enough to be able to borrow one from one of our guides.

 

[helenk]

Helen - You are going to have such a wonderful time. It really is magical! I'm envious that you are leaving in week even though I just got back. As much as I hated the long flight, I would hop on a plane again today to do it all over again. One other thing that I remembered is to make sure your adapter is compatible for Italy. The one we bought was good for everywhere in Europe except Italy. It probably is, but it's good to double check anyway. We didn't read the small print and were fortunate enough to be able to borrow one from one of our guides.

I am not looking forward to that long flight. I am so use to the 2 and half hour flights to Florida! Last year I went to California and I just want to keep asking "Are we there yet"? I will definately take some good books to read.

I will have my daughter check her adapter today. She used it when she went to Ireland, but I did not think to look to see if it could be used in Italy. If not we have time to run to our AAA to buy another one.

 

[Bronxboy52]

A few other bits of information that may be helpful. When in Orvieto, definitely get a porchetta sandwich. There are many places that sell them. They are roasted pork (either stuffed or unstuffed) and are "indescribably delicious"! I am sorry that I didn't by an extra one to take back with me. Also, be prepared for the "restaurant pimps" in Venice. The competition among the restaurants is so fierce that an employee stands outside and as you walk by tries to convince you to sample the restaurnat's fare. It is pretty amusing, although after a while, gets somewhat annoying. We actually went to 1 place along the Grand Canl based upon the description of the pizza. However, we got up and left because the manager would not allow the 4 of us to split 2 pizzas. He insisted that we had to buy 4 entrees. We did find an out-of-the-way small pizza shop not far from the Rialto Bridge that served the thicker cristed pizza that we are used to.

 

[glassslipper2004]

It's amazing, we have done two great trips since Viva Italia, but it is still so fresh in my mind and brings back such wonderful memories.

We ate at a wonderful place on the Grand Canal in Venice. We did each order our own entree (we weren't forced to, we just did), including some of the best linguini with clams I have ever had. It was lovely to be able to sit right there, with one of the world's most amazing views. Don't discount the lovely views at the tourist places - that lunch and one in Rome on a piazza were among my favorites.

I wish I had known about buying olive oil in Tuscany - I'm not sure how I missed that! But I did get some great pottery in Orvieto. I only wish I had had more time there, or had tasted the sandwich a poster mentioned above.

You will adore this trip, and the guides (when we were first confronted with a pay toilet, as I rushed my daughter to one in Rome, Heidi even came up with the change!)

 

[LTFrench]

We tasted the porchetta at the meat and cheese shop, bought a small amount to munch on later, no bread necessary! Then had the meat and cheese trays at L'Oste Del Re, a sliced tomato on the side and all the relishes they offered for the cheese. A liter of house white (like drinking water!) and some bread with their olive oil, a lunch sent from heaven! We bought their olive oil, their spicy, sweet relish and took their recommendations for which cheeses to go back and get at the cheese/meat shop.

 

[DisFan10]

Here's another tip for those who use hair dryers. While at the Bernini Bristol, I plugged my Conair 1875 watt dryer into the dual-voltage outlet as I thought it would be compatible. Well, it wasn't because the entire room went black once I turned on the dryer. I had to call the Front Desk to restore power to my room but they were very understanding...

 

[wdwsos]

Turtlemom, I was thinking of you this week when I FINALLY put up some of my Bella Italia photos from last year! http://picasaweb.google.com/DottiSa...?authkey=Gv1sRgCO3J3KyV3-znDQ&feat=directlink

They're a bit people-intensive, but all 19 of us were friends, so I got a little carried away. I have a lot more to put up, but these 200+ will have to do for now.

A note on hairdryers and adapters vs. converters. An adapter only takes the plug of your electrical appliance and adapts it to fit into the socket -- period. If you are taking something as powerful as a hairdryer, you need an electrical converter or you will destroy it immediately. Some laptops, cell phones, iPod chargers, etc. have the converter built in, but many don't so be especially careful with those!

Dotti