Show No Fear! DIS Exclusive Viva Italia+DLP TR Sept 2014*COMPLETE* New TR link added 7/3

[sayhello]

I have to admit, we didn't have that much time in St. Peter's, and I spent pretty much the entire time in front of the Pieta, just taking it in and taking photos. It's just such an amazingly expressive and moving sculpture. I definitely need to go back and see more of the Basilica. That was the downside of doing Italy with the ABD cruise add-on. We only had one day in Rome. We saw a tremendous amount of stuff, and I loved it, but we were rushed at some points, and did not get to see Rome (or any of the sites) lit up at night. Definitely going back some time!

Sayhello

 

[khertz]

Oh, that's one thing to point out! There IS a place to pray in St. Peter's. The Basilica is so crowded, but there is a chapel reserved for prayer on the right side further down from the Pieta and it was very nice and quiet!

Laurie

Hands down, best moment of the trip for me was being able to pray in that chapel.

I agree with Bill! The ABD trips really seem like the way to go. Everything is handled for you and the guides sound amazing.

I have often heard how Rome is beyond spectacular. My aunt and uncle go there frequently and just live there for about 6 weeks at a time. Seeing you pictures of the basilica is so inspiring. I'll admit. I had tears in my eyes when you described your experience. How very moving.

Lunch looks delicious and, even though dinner was not the greatest, you really DID have a spectacular view.

I would have a hard time passing up the different churches. I find them to be such fascinating works of art. Even the most humble church has such beauty.

I will tell you, Mary Ellen, it was HARD to convince Dustin that we should spend the money on this trip vs. planning it ourselves, especially because the DIS exclusive version of the itinerary was more expensive than a normal departure. However, having done it, he was the first to say that we wouldn't go to a foreign country without ABD. The guides are absolutely invaluable! And in all cities, but Venice ESPECIALLY, the magical luggage is also a huge perk. Add in not waiting in lines, concierge service, beautiful hotels, and amazing travel companions, and you're starting to wonder why you didn't book and ABD sooner.

6 weeks in Rome would be AMAZING!! We did a lot in our few days, and still only felt like we scratched the surface. I would love more time at the places we visited, and also to see a lot of the things we didn't end up having time to do. It's such a busy city, it's hard to do it all in just a few days.

The view at dinner definitely made up for the food, and we had eaten so well at lunch that it was already a tough comparison. It was just unfortunate that there weren't many restaurants around the Colosseum to choose from, and that was where we wanted to be on our last night.

Cristina was telling us that it's common for visitors to get "church fatigue" because there are just so many, but we NEVER did. We rarely passed up an opportunity to go inside of one and look around because you never knew what you could be missing. Seeing those pictures up thread that Mike posted make me a little disappointed that we didn't go into that one, despite all the ones we did get to see!

I have to admit, we didn't have that much time in St. Peter's, and I spent pretty much the entire time in front of the Pieta, just taking it in and taking photos. It's just such an amazingly expressive and moving sculpture. I definitely need to go back and see more of the Basilica. That was the downside of doing Italy with the ABD cruise add-on. We only had one day in Rome. We saw a tremendous amount of stuff, and I loved it, but we were rushed at some points, and did not get to see Rome (or any of the sites) lit up at night. Definitely going back some time!

Sayhello

I can't even tell you how badly I wanted to just stand in front of the Pieta too, but that we went through the rest and I was absolutely awestruck at everything else there was to see and experience. I don't feel like there could ever really be enough time in St. Peter's! It's so huge and so many details. Pete did mention that even though we weren't there for an extremely long time, it was quite a bit more than he had experience on the ABD cruise add-on too. I can't imagine trying to squeeze all of Rome into a day. We wanted more time even after having a day and a half extra added on to the front of the trip!!

 

[scottny]

I'll have to come over to yours and see if I can fill in any gaps.

Right now we just finished Switzerland and now are in Venice so not in Rome yet.

I don’t remember about the pinecone either. LOL. Nice pics so far.

I took a photo of all the tapestries and maps. LOL.

LOL he sneaked a pic inside there. I might have too. It was like a cattle call when we went.

You got some fantastic photos there.

Beautiful pics of the Colosseum at night. I wanted ot se eit lit up but never mad eit back there.

Great updates and pics.

 

[KelleyK75]

Loving your TR. Every post is so interesting and the pictures are just gorgeous! Can't wait to see where you go next.

 

[afwdwfan]

I can only imagine how incredible it must have been for you to experience the sights of St. Peter's in person. I mean, I'm Christian... although not Catholic, and just knowing what that place means and represents would probably have a pretty big impact on me if I were able to go there.

Now the church/crypt with the bones.... I just don't even know what to say about that.

The first thing that came to my mind was what did they do with them while they waited for them to just be bones?

The night trip to the Colosseum seems like it was a great idea. I'm sure it was nice to see it under the different lighting conditions. The pictures are certainly nice.

 

[khertz]

Right now we just finished Switzerland and now are in Venice so not in Rome yet.

I don’t remember about the pinecone either. LOL. Nice pics so far.

I took a photo of all the tapestries and maps. LOL.

LOL he sneaked a pic inside there. I might have too. It was like a cattle call when we went.

You got some fantastic photos there.

Beautiful pics of the Colosseum at night. I wanted ot se eit lit up but never mad eit back there.

Great updates and pics.

We loved going through the Vatican museums! So many interesting things to see! I have to say, DH was pretty sneaky, I was standing right next to him and didn't see him take the picture!

Thanks, Scott!

Loving your TR. Every post is so interesting and the pictures are just gorgeous! Can't wait to see where you go next.

Thanks, Kelley! I'm glad you're enjoying it! I am loving having the opportunity to relive the trip through these posts.

I can only imagine how incredible it must have been for you to experience the sights of St. Peter's in person. I mean, I'm Christian... although not Catholic, and just knowing what that place means and represents would probably have a pretty big impact on me if I were able to go there.

Now the church/crypt with the bones.... I just don't even know what to say about that.

The first thing that came to my mind was what did they do with them while they waited for them to just be bones?

The night trip to the Colosseum seems like it was a great idea. I'm sure it was nice to see it under the different lighting conditions. The pictures are certainly nice.

It was absolutely a life changing moment for me, and I feel so blessed to have had the opportunity to experience it.

The bone crypt was so weird, but so fascinating at the same time! The process was actually described on Wikipedia. It says the bodies were buried for about 30 years before being exhumed to use in the display. As new friars passed away, the oldest buried bodies were removed so the new body could be buried there.

The pictures came out great, and it was fun getting to experience the night life of Rome a bit.

 

[khertz]

Day 5: Friday September 19th

The next morning was another early one. We had to have our bags out in the hall for our move to Florence by 7:30 am so we were up at 7 to finish up our last minute packing and get dressed. We set our bags out and went down to have breakfast. When we went back up to our room, we saw the porter taking our bags, which kind of ruined the idea of magical luggage! Lol

We relaxed in our room a bit and reminisced about the great time we’d had in Rome until it was time to go down to the front desk to check out and meet up with the family at 8:30.

We were getting on a luxury motorcoach equipped with wifi for our trip to the city of Florence, with a stop in the hilltop city of Orvieto. This charming little city ended up at the top of the list of our favorite things we did on this trip!

It was about an hour and a half ride to Orvieto, but we were very comfortable on our Mercedes Benz motorcoach! The bus couldn’t take us up into the city, we had to take the funicolare, or funicular.

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The ride on the funicular was pretty fun! Definitely an interesting way to get up to the city. Once we got there, it was a bit of a walk up to the center of town. Most of us decided to walk but some decided to take an internal bus or shuttle that would bring them up to the area near the Duomo. Those of us walking were led by Dusty who showed us some points of interest along the way, and told us we should continue to be mindful of traffic. We were told anytime we heard him yell, “Game off!” we should move to the side of the road to let a vehicle pass. Any Wayne’s World fans??

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There were a lot of things in Orvieto that Dusty told us about that sounded interesting, but unfortunately our time there was so short we didn’t have time to do everything that had piqued our interest. Just from our short walk to the center of town, I knew I was going to love this place. It’s exactly what you think of when you imagine a small Italian city with scenery that looks to be right out of the movies!

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One of the shops we passed along the way had the most enormous bottle of wine I have ever seen out front, and Dusty singled me out for a photo. Funny, since I probably drank the least amount of wine out of anyone on the trip!

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Apparently, pork was a big thing here. A lot of the delis we passed had big pork legs hanging in the windows, and Dusty told us about a café known for its porchetta sandwiches. There was even a place with a fake pig out front that Brian seemed to have an affinity for.

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The bell tower that we planned to climb


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We took a picture of this toy store to remember to go back later at Dusty’s suggestion. Woo boy was it an interesting experience! But we will get there in a bit.

Soon enough we got near the Duomo, which happens to be nearby the pottery shop that is a favorite place of John & Kevin.

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I think the folks from the bus ride were already inside and buying! Lol We decided to go over with the guides to have our photo taken in front of the Duomo.

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The amazing thing about the Cathedral in Orvieto is that the façade is made entirely of bas-reliefs & mosaics! It took 3 centuries to build, which is pretty incredible. Dusty put it in perspective in saying that only very few of the people who worked on constructing this amazing work of art were able to see it completed.

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As Dusty was about to send us out on our own to explore, Laurie asked if there were any good scenic overlooks, and he said there was one just steps away from where we were standing. He led us over there, and immediately, we saw that it was FULL of cats! Most of them seemed a little skittish but one that was up on the ledge just walked right up to us, flopped over, and started meowing. I fell in love! It was like he was asking to come home with us.

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Oh yeah, and there was a gorgeous view of the Italian countryside there in addition to the cute cat.

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Clearly cute cat > Italian countryside for me.

Continued in next post...

 

[khertz]

Day 5 Continued: Friday September 19th

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We said goodbye to the kitties and the other adventurers to go explore Orvieto. First thing we wanted to do was go inside the Duomo. If I’m remembering right, there was a small cost associated with getting inside. And I definitely remember that photos are not allowed inside of the church.

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Some perspective. HUGE!​

Since we couldn’t take photos inside, here’s a gratuitous amount of photos of the outside, which was beautiful!

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Bas-relief on the façade


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Close up on the mosaic work


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How did this photo get in there?? Apparently, DH likes to live life on the edge and snap photos when he’s not supposed to.​

So once we got inside, I felt like it was pretty plain considering how huge it was. It was mostly huge, open space although the baptismal font was gorgeous. But I definitely got the surprise of my life when we got to the front of the church and came upon a chapel to the right. When I stepped inside, I literally gasped out loud because it was floor to ceiling paintings. Every inch was covered and it was AMAZING! I continually learned on this trip not to judge a building before you had seen its entirety. What a beautiful surprise!

There was a second chapel on the other side of the main altar but it was being used for a prayer service so we only viewed it from the outside.

After getting our fill of the cathedral, we were ready to explore some of the shops.

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Out into the piazza


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If you have listened to the DIS Unplugged episodes of Kevin & John doing this trip in the past, you might remember they have a favorite pottery store. We decided to poke our heads in there to see what the hype was all about and found it full of DISers!

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Seriously, though, they were buying the place up! Pete had a whole stack of dishes that he had bought and the lady who runs the shop was telling him she would send him everything once she MADE the rest of the pieces he wanted! How amazing is that? We passed on buying anything there because it’s just not our style of stuff, but it was beautiful workmanship.

Instead, we found a little shop with odds and ends that had a little plaque I knew I just HAD to buy for my mom! It had NONNI in large letters on the top, which is what DS calls her. In Italian, it actually means both grandparents. There was more under it in Italian, so I asked the lady at the register what it meant and she translated for us. It basically said grandparents are a little bit of a teacher, a little bit of a parent, and a little bit of a great friend.” Needless to say, once we got it home to her she LOVED it!

We also stopped inside of a shop that sold almost everything you could think of for your kitchen made out of olive wood. It smelled amazing in there! They also had jars for lots of things you may need to keep in your home.

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I know all of you have some opiates, cocaine, ecstasy, and Viagra you need storage for! Lol

Next, we wanted to head to the toy shop to see if we could find something to bring home for DS. And that was such an experience that I think it's best left for the next update!

UP NEXT: More shopping & beautiful views

 

[KelleyK75]

That looks like such a cute little town!

The Duomo is just beautiful! Haha, love the secret pictures!

Awww, the kitties are too cute!!

The countryside picture is so picturesque. The shots of you guys in front of it are great!

Too funny about the jars in the pottery shop!!

 

[Imagineer5]

HI! So happy to pop in and see updates with Orvieto! I absolutely love the Tuscan coutnryside, so glad you were able to stop in for a bit. I did read back through the rest of your time in Rome, and it sounds like you had an amazing visit to the Vatican too. That is one place we skipped when visiting Rome, but your photos are beautiful. Looking forward to hearing about the toy shop lol! And what a neat gift you found for Paxton's Nonni!

 

[sayhello]

Wow! That's an amazing Duomo for a small town! Just beautiful.

Damn, I really could use one of those jars (NOT!) That's pretty funny!

Sayhello

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

Seriously??? Mercedes Motorcoach??? WOW!

HAHA, Wayne's World. Nice!! Game On!!!! Car!!!!!

I'll be honest. Seeing a pig in front of a cafe selling pork, fake or not, well I might have a hard time eating there I think.

Ha, all this beautiful scenery around and I still probably would have spent way too long playing with the cats.

 

[KathyTX]

I loved Orvieto so much! The Duomo was incredible, I think it was my favorite church exterior of the whole trip (and there were a LOT of fantastic church exteriors.) To think of the amount of work and the incredible beauty of this church, set in this tiny village where it would be seen by so few people, was staggering. There was a story that this was the "hideaway" church that the Pope would be ushered to if the Vatican became unsafe, or something along those lines. I'm not seeing any reference to this anywhere online, so I may be confusing multiple stories. Hmmmm...

 

[carpenta]

We also loved Orvietto. The Duomo is fantastic. Orvietto area is known for it's wild boar, white wines and rabbit dishes.One of the Popes loved the wine so much he moved the summer Vatican to the area back in the middle ages.(or so we were told) All are wonderful especially the rabbit . We also bought an item in the pottery shop and had it shipped home....easy-peasy.There is a whole underground tour that explores the carved out basements and caves that run under most of the top city. It still amazes me that Orvietto dates back to the Etruscans that pre-dated Rome. There is an old temple ruins by the city well that dates back pre Greece empire. Still amazed by the history.

 

[khertz]

That looks like such a cute little town!

The Duomo is just beautiful! Haha, love the secret pictures!

Awww, the kitties are too cute!!

The countryside picture is so picturesque. The shots of you guys in front of it are great!

Too funny about the jars in the pottery shop!!

It really was really adorable and so very charming. We really loved it! I just wish we would have had more time to spend there.

There were kitties everywhere! I love cats so it was fun to see them roaming around, even in the shops.

I think it was podcast Dustin who told us to go check out the jars in the shop. Nice find!

HI! So happy to pop in and see updates with Orvieto! I absolutely love the Tuscan coutnryside, so glad you were able to stop in for a bit. I did read back through the rest of your time in Rome, and it sounds like you had an amazing visit to the Vatican too. That is one place we skipped when visiting Rome, but your photos are beautiful. Looking forward to hearing about the toy shop lol! And what a neat gift you found for Paxton's Nonni!

Since we spent our time in Florence, we didn't have as much Tuscan countryside time as a normal Viva trip does, but it was nice to still have the day to spend in Orvieto for that countryside experience.

The Vatican was so beautiful and so amazing! I wish we would have had the experience that regular Vivas do with a private nighttime tour but I was just happy to be there.

Nonni loved her gift!

Wow! That's an amazing Duomo for a small town! Just beautiful.

Damn, I really could use one of those jars (NOT!) That's pretty funny!

Sayhello

It was so huge, it really dominated the skyline of the city, as we found out later. Pretty amazing.

Oh of course, I'm sure everyone needs jars like that in their home...they must have trouble keeping them on the shelves!!

Seriously??? Mercedes Motorcoach??? WOW!

HAHA, Wayne's World. Nice!! Game On!!!! Car!!!!!

I'll be honest. Seeing a pig in front of a cafe selling pork, fake or not, well I might have a hard time eating there I think.

Ha, all this beautiful scenery around and I still probably would have spent way too long playing with the cats.

It was SO comfortable! The seats reclined back and even moved apart to give you more arm room. Only bummer was no Italian Celine Dion music. lol

We all got a kick out of that! We used it for the rest of the trip when cars were coming up behind us.

I'm with you on that. I couldn't eat it with a pig looking at me!

I definitely spent too much time with the cat. I had to force myself to walk away because there was so much we wanted to do while we were there!

I loved Orvieto so much! The Duomo was incredible, I think it was my favorite church exterior of the whole trip (and there were a LOT of fantastic church exteriors.) To think of the amount of work and the incredible beauty of this church, set in this tiny village where it would be seen by so few people, was staggering. There was a story that this was the "hideaway" church that the Pope would be ushered to if the Vatican became unsafe, or something along those lines. I'm not seeing any reference to this anywhere online, so I may be confusing multiple stories. Hmmmm...

Orvieto was a fantastic little stop on the way to Florence. I agree with you on the exterior of the duomo, all of the mosaic work was breathtaking!

I did a little google search just now, and it seems like you have the right idea! Orvieto itself was the hideaway, and they would reside in the Papal Palace, which was adjacent to the cathedral.

We also loved Orvietto. The Duomo is fantastic. Orvietto area is known for it's wild boar, white wines and rabbit dishes.One of the Popes loved the wine so much he moved the summer Vatican to the area back in the middle ages.(or so we were told) All are wonderful especially the rabbit . We also bought an item in the pottery shop and had it shipped home....easy-peasy.There is a whole underground tour that explores the carved out basements and caves that run under most of the top city. It still amazes me that Orvietto dates back to the Etruscans that pre-dated Rome. There is an old temple ruins by the city well that dates back pre Greece empire. Still amazed by the history.

I remember that we really wanted to do the underground tour, but we just ran short on time. Another hour or two in Orvieto would have been perfect!

 

[KathyTX]

I remember that we really wanted to do the underground tour, but we just ran short on time. Another hour or two in Orvieto would have been perfect!

Well, I guess we'll just have to go back!

 

[sayhello]

Well, I guess we'll just have to go back!

Take me with you!!!

Sayhello

 

[khertz]

Well, I guess we'll just have to go back!

Take me with you!!!

Sayhello

I'm in! When do we leave?!

 

[missangelalexis]

I don't blame you for getting emotional when seeing the Pieta, it certainly sounds like you were excited for that moment! Being in St. Peter’s Basilica was really a special time for you!

What a yummy lunch!

"I'm done talking to them" Oh DS!!!!

Stinks that the food wasn't that good, but you certainly had a great view! Great nighttime shots!

Haha love the "Game off" reference!

Such great pictures in Orvieto, so pretty! The gift you bought for your Mom sounds lovely!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

wow, Orvieto looks really cool - and definitely like right out of a movie ... could definitely see some sort of romantic comedy taking place there, though with sad parts too

The outside of the cathedral is amazing! So nuts to think tons of people starting working on something they knew they would work on for their entire lives and there was no way it would be done before they died. Amazing, but also a little sad too.

yeah, I'd say that was a pretty good view

That's pretty cool just the concept to live a life where you are able to have been in enough pottery stores in Italy to have a favorite one.

That sign you got for your mom is super sweet - great selection!

Wow, apparently I have been storing both my cocaine and my viagra improperly