What A Trip!

Leaving March 24 - Returning around April 26

Things are back on - with a few changes - and I'm getting excited again.  The trip will go forward this time even if Mom isn't up to traveling.  We made that decision based on the fact that it will be the last chance Carol and I have to travel with Cari before she gets married.  Mom isn't doing what she needs to do to get well and prepared for the trip so if she isn't physically fit we aren't going to cancel again.  It's going to be a case of tough love and OH Well, we told you!

We've added a few days in Paris to this trip.  All of us are really excited about that.  I am surprised at how much I want this add-on.  It was my idea with Cari's support that got it put on the agenda and now all four of us are truly glad it's part of the plan.

We got a great deal on our airfare from Pisa to Paris and Carol booked a nice little hotel for us to stay in.  See pictures below:

Hotel des Grandes Ecoles in the Latin District of Paris oo-la-la (oui and si).

Our big number one wish is to see The Louve museum and then the rest of the tourist traps that are on all the post cards.  It's going to be fantastic-o.

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Our trip has been postponed until the end of March/early April, 2008.  My mother has hurt her back and cannot travel at this time.  All reservations have been cancelled and/or postponed.  Suitcases are stowed in the closet, all the clothes that can be returned have been matched up with their receipts and are in bags ready to go back to the stores, and everything else has been put in a box and stored in the guest room closet until next Spring.

Our trip will be scheduled around my daughter's spring break from Cal State University, Fullerton.  She feels like a lot of pressure is lifted off her because she was going to miss two weeks of school while we were gone.  In the spring, she will only miss one week of school.  She will also have time to save more spending money which  makes her happy.

All of us are trying to gleen some positive things out of the postponement but it's hard not to feel like the wind has been let out of my sails.

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Shopping for this trip is taking a lot of restraint.  I want to buy a lot of clothes and things to take but I don't want to haul it.  I am taking mix and match clothes and a very few pieces as I hope to fit everything into a carry-on size bag.  Can you imagine packing for a month in a carry-on bag?  The task seems daunting.

I pulled all the sweaters, blouses and tops I want to take and put them in the guest room closet.  There are 12 items hanging in there including 3 cami's and 2 tank tops for layering so that leaves 7 regular tops.  I have to narrow that down.  I have one pair of black pants that I bought and I am going to get two pairs of slacks, one khaki and one navy and one pair of jeans.  I have an all weather jacket, a new pair of New Balance walking shoes, a well worn pair of suede sandals, and a pair of black leather flats to wear to dinner. 

   Below are a few little things that I have purchased for the trip:

 I bought this Winnie the Pooh watch because I don't want to take any expensive jewelry with me.  I thought this was cute.

  TSA approved luggage locks are a must. 

  Rick Steve's travel wash ~ use it for washing clothes or bathing.

  Rick Steve's Quick Fresh Spray.  Freshen your stinky clothes or the airplane bathroom before or after you use it.

I'm not going to carry a purse.  I bought this Jansport tote.  The strap goes over my head and across my chest so the bag hangs at my side.  It's very light, has a place for a water bottle.  A front zipped pocket for my camera.  The one I got is brown with light blue hibiscus flowers on it.  Cute!

  A silk neck wallet to carry my passport, credit cards, money, and airplane tickets is a must.  It tucks under my clothes for safety and security.

And the sanity saving devise ~ noise reduction head phones.  These puppies can block out the noise from jet engines.  I will be able to sleep in peace or shut off the noise of a crying child or bitching adult on the long flight from California to Milan, Italy.  Ahhhh.................

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Ok, here is the deal.  Things are moving forward.  We are leaving for Italy in 44 days.  It is count down time!  Things have to start coming together and we have to get ready.

I have a lot of my shopping done but I have a few things left to get.  I need a few pairs of pants for the trip but I am waiting until just before we go to shop for them.  I want to lose 10 pounds and if I knuckle down, I could lose 15 which would be better.  If I lose that 15 I won't have to buy any new pants.  That would be ideal because then I would have more money to spend in Italy.  Everything I buy for the trip is coming out of my budget at this point and I'm trying to scrimp where I can.

The airlines called today and changed 3 of our flights.  Two were no big deal.  A five minute difference in departure and arrival times.  I don't know why they even bothered calling on those.  The other was a big deal.  They booked Cari on a new flight out of Rome to Atlanta that got her into Atlanta at 5:30 p.m. and the flight to Ontario leaving at 6:05.  Now how is she supposed to get off the plane, collect her luggage, go through customs, recheck her luggage and board that flight in 35 minutes?  It is impossible!  It will take her that long to get off the plane. 

My sister and the Delta agent rebooked her flight from Rome so she leaves 2 hours earlier.  That way she gets into Atlanta and has plenty of time to do the customs thing and make her flight home.  Whew!!!  Way to go.  I don't want any screw ups when she is traveling that leg of the trip alone.

Yesterday, Carol and I found out that Mom hurt her back two weeks ago.  She had an MRI and found out that she has a bulging disk.  Her doctor is pretty sure that physical therapy will take care of it.  She started her therapy today.  Now we are faced with the possibility of having to carry her luggage because she will be unable to do it for herself.  CRAP...  I  hate to sound pissy about this but it's not going to be an easy thing todo.  She wants to bring everything including her pillow and a silk sleeping bag thing so she doesn't have to touch the sheets where we are staying.  What's with that?  She has lots of clothes, shoes, etc. that she wants to take and we told her she had to fit everything into a carry-on.  You could hear her suck all the air out of the room with disappointment and frustration.

Jeez, the woman has a bad knee, one of her hands has a bad thumb which makes it impossible for her to use her hand for most tasks and now this back thing.  There is no room for her complaining that she has to cut back on what she takes.  If Carol and I have to make room in our suitcases to accommodate her stuff, she will just have to suck it up.  Right?  Right!

It was a busy week in the shopping sector.  I got the silk neck wallets from Rick Steves to hold our passports, boarding passes, etc.  They are so nice and light weight.  They will not look bulky under clothes which will be nice.  I got a top, pair of pants and some pajamas today at Kohl's.  All on sale plus 15% off because I'm an old bag.  LOL  I got a over the head, across the body, hang next to the body satchel so I won't have to carry a purse.  It's cool.  Brown with blue outlines of hibiscus.  It's made by Jansport so it's sturdy and has lots of zippered pockets for stuff.  I also got a new pair of New Balance walking shoes.  Cute white with pink trim.  I found 5 tops at Costco.  I know I'll take 3 for sure.  Will decide about the others when I go to pack.

Got 3 packs of flushable wipes.  There are no toilet seat covers over there so will use the wipes to do a little housekeeping when I use a public toilet.  Also good for a quick hand wash or to clean a surface if it's sticky or you're not sure what' or who has been there.  (Is that weird?  A friend of mine told me I'm obsessive/compulsive to clean the seat before I use it.  I think it's like the old saying goes:  "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."

I'm sure there is a bunch of stuff left to write but I'm exhausted and need to get to bed.  More later, gator!

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I'm getting so excited about my trip.  I have a drawer full of things that I've collected.  Hand sanitizer, 3 oz. bottles in a pouch, sun screen, toilet seat covers, ear phones to cut out noise on the plane, huggie wipes and baggies, an Italian/English dictionary, lip balm, and a tiny little deoderant for my carry-on.  I ordered each of us a silk passport/document holder that you wear around your neck.  It slips under your shirt so it's safe and secure all the time.  I have a list of things I want to get for the trip but I'm waiting until late Sept. to buy clothes.  I hope to take off 15 pounds by then.  Maybe I won't need to buy any pants.  I would LOVE that.  I want to get a nice blazer, a pair of New Balance walking shoes and a pair of leather shoes to wear to dinner.  I also heard that I should carry a nice handbag to dinner.  Italians like that.  I don't think I'm going to spend the money to impress.  If I was moving there, maybe....  LOL

                                                                                            I'm kind of stressing out about what I'm going to eat while I'm there.  My daughter, Queen of Picky, tells me the food is delicious.  I don't eat pasta or white flour.  I don't eat sea food or goat.  I think I'm in trouble.  She promises me I can get salads and I'm holding her to it.

   My friend Felicia asked me if I would buy some glass ware for a friend of hers.  The woman doesn't know me and is handing over $1800 in cash for me to buy her a platter and two candle holders from a glass factory in Venice.  Each piece is hand painted by two master glass painters, thus the high price.  The factory will ship it directly to her which is the only reason I have agreed to do it.

  I want to buy a new   camera before I go.  I would like to get a Kodak digital like my husband's.  It takes such beautiful pictures and it is SO easy to use.  I seem to take too many blurry shots with my camera and none with the Kodak.  I think it would be worth the splurge.

  Enough for tonight.   I found the picture below on Photobucket.  It looks just like my Kasey girl.  Couldn't resist snagging it and posting it here:

Good night!

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The first time we go to Florence, about 7 days into our trip, we will be staying at The Old Florence Inn B&B.  It has a wonderful reputation and we are really looking forward to our time there.

Below is some information taken from their web site:

The Old Florence Inn B&B

In the heart of Florence, attainable by foot from the Railway Station S.M.Novella, and only a few minutes of pleasant walking from all the wonderful artistic sites of the city, Old Florence Inn offers its guests the evocative atmosphere of an ancient, elegantly furnished Florentine house, together with all the comforts of your home. Art and dècor can blend together to give pleasant and relaxing results.

All of our rooms are equipped with private bathroom, television SAT, telephone, hair dress, safe box, mini bar, air conditioning or heating and a tray of continental breakfast in bedroom every morning.

Relaxant living room for your readings with balcony and view of Santa Maria Novella Cathedral at disposition of the guest.

For the car there is a garage service with a extra price.

 Lobby       Guest Room

 Map of Florence, the Inn is near the blue arrow.

A foot from the Railway Station S.M.Novella: to exit from the station from the left side (side pharmacy) and to cross the passage bus and the road. To cross the sidewalk in direction McDonald's, after turn left in Largo Fratelli Alinari. After 50 meters (always on the left) you will find us to the n°11. Second floor with elevator

I got a kick out of  seeing that we will be looking for a McDonald's on our walk to the Inn.  Also, have you ever had anyone give you directions that tell you to go 11 degrees to the north?  We will have to take one of those hand held GPS things. 

This is going to be FUN.

We return to Florence at the end of our trip for 8 days.  We have rented an apartment for that part of our stay.  It is an elegant place in what was once a palace.  I'll post the story and pictures of it later.

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Emails:

I sent an email to Roberto Carbone to confirm our Vatican tour. My email and his reply follows.

KaydeeJay5449@aol.com ha scritto:   < That's Italian for has written.  Cool, huh?

 

Dear Roberto,

 

We are finalizing our plans for our trip to Italy. While in Rome, will be staying at Obelus Bed and Breakfast 

Via Tasso 150, 00185 Roma

Tel:  0039 338 671 73 96

 

We are looking forward to our tour of the Vatican on October 16, 2007 at 1:00 p.m.  I have a question about tickets for our tour.  Should we purchase our tickets early?  I am concerned about spending a great deal of time waiting in line to buy tickets.  I have heard the time to buy tickets is very long.  Sometimes over 1 hour.  This is very wasteful of your time and ours.  Please tell me how to handle the ticket situation so we will have more time to tour the Vatican and very little time buying tickets.  Thank you very much.

 

Below is a map to the Obelus Bed and Breakfast where we are staying. 

 

We are all looking forward to meeting you on October 16!  It is coming very fast.

 

Sincerely,

 

Kathleen Jauert

 

 

 

 

L'email della prossima generazione? Puoi averla con la nuova Yahoo! Mail  > More Italian, So Very Cool!

 

 

 

Dear Kathleen,

 

Seems perfect to me, i'll try to make a reservation of tickets on that day,. See you on the 16th oct at 1.oo pm, i'll come to fetch you at obelus bed e breakfast.

 

with regards, Roberto Carbone  

 

I cannot wait to meet Roberto Carbone.  He's in his mid-fifties and leads private tours all over Rome.  We may have him take us on another walking tour of the sites if my Mom can handle a long walk like that.  He suggested starting out with her an if she got tired, he would call a taxi and send her back to the B&B so we could continue.  That might be work.  We are going to meet him and then decide.  He charges 60 Euro an hour but split 3 or 4 ways, that isn't much to learn the history of what you are looking at.

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My sister, mother, daughter and I have arranged for a private tour of the Vatican on October 16, 2007 at 1:00 in the afternoon.  This will be such a special day, not only because we will be viewing such an important, holy place but it is also my Mom's 80th birthday.  What a glorious way for her to celebrate!

 St Peter's Square

Basilica de San Pietro

 Rome Street Scene

 Michaelangelo's Pieta

This is one of the Top 5 things on my list of MUST SEE's while I am in Italy.  I can't wait to stand in front of this beautiful piece of art and soak in it's emotional significance.  I'm sure there will be tears.

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During our Rome stay, we are taking an overnight side trip to Positano.  We are also going to take a ferry to the island of Capri.  I will be posting pictures of that later.

This is where we are staying in Positano.  I can't wait!

Bw Hotel Pasitea
Via Pasitea 207
Positano, IT

 Exterior

View from terrace

 Hotel Bar

Another terrace view

 Inside guest room

Inside guest room

    Map of Area:           

Positano is near Golfo de Napoli (Gulf of Naples).

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