I am starting this narrative [2012-08-06 MO 15:40] a few days before the actual trip.  The idea is to place here all the itinerary materials that I prepared in Excel to be available online (instead of paper).

 

Gather your Things – Stiamo andando a Roma (we are going to Rome)

First, let me present a sequence of preparatory steps:

May 2012 – Picked a destination – Hot Rome instead of an Olympic London
5/21/2012 – Request a long vacation at work
6/15/2012 – Rosetta Stone Italian (Level 1, 2 and 3)
7/8/2012 – Bought direct tickets to Rome – kill me now! – $3,473.20
7/12/2012 – Rick Steves guide books reviewed in detail
8/1/212 – Schedule Anniversary notices to be sent in our absence
8/8/2012 – Bills paid ahead of usual schedule

Here is our itinerary, as it was just before departing for Rome:

 

Date	Location	Night	KM	Time	Description
8/9 Thu	Boston				Last Updated: 2012-08-09 15:24
8/10 Fri	Boston			17:10	Leave Logan – flight AZ 615 @ 17:10 Terminal E ($3,473.20)
8/11 Sat	Fiumicino	0
				07:10	Arrive Fiumicino Terminal 3
				8:00	Get FR1 train €8 tickets to Ostiense (about 25 minutes).
				9:00	Pyramid – Protestant Cemetery
				10:30	Fermata CAVE ARDEATINE – Linea 280 (MANCINI) – per 16 fermate – Scendere alla fermata VITTORIA COLONNA
				12:00	Leave bags at L’Hotel Sant’Angelo
				12:15	Reserve Borghese Gallery
				12:30	Perilini in Prati – €8 lunch buffet
				13:30	Vatican – €15
				19:30	La Rustichella – €7 single trip buffet
				20:30	Back to hotel
8/12 Sun	Rome	1
				11:00	Colosseum: just register a ticket – €12
				11:00	Foro Romano (p.110),
				12:00	Monte Palatino (p. 124)
				13:00	Lunch
				15:00	Colonna di Traiano – free – near VEM
				15:15	Traijan Market – free
				16:00	Via del Corco
				17:00	Borghese Gallery – Roma Path holders reserve +39-063-2810 €12.50 / €8.25
				19:00	Scalinata Spagna
				20:00	Ужин
				21:00	Back to hotel
8/13 Mon	Rome	2
				9:00
				10:00	Terme di Caracalla – €6/3 – open MO – near M Circo Massimo – bus 81
				12:00	Colosseum – open on MO – actual visit
8/14 Tue	Rome	3			Musei Capitolini €8.50 – 9:00-20:00 Museo Nazionale Romano – Palazzo Massimo – €7 /€3.50
8/15 Wed	Rome	4			Car Reservation @ Fs Stazione Termini
			92	1:26
	Viterbo				The Palace of the Popes Macchina di S. Rosa – rebuilt every year Parco dei Mostri
			31	0:36
8/16 Thu	Bagnoregio	5			Forgotten on the border shell of a town – 2012-06-24 SU – mentioned by Rick Steves
			42	0:54
	Orvieto				Underground city
			84	1:23
	Castiglione d’Orcia				In constant need of repair, steep narrow streets, Fountain – 1618
			55	1:10
8/17 Fri	Sienna	6			Shell shaped Piazza del Campo, Park Hotel. Aug 16 – avoid Palio di Siena – horse race
			41	0:49
8/18 Sat	San Gimignano	7			Bike tours stop in here Voltera to San Gim. = 31km
			50	0:55
	Arcetri				Galileo spent the remainder of his life under house arrest (Via del Pian dei Giullari)
			7	0:15
8/19 Sun	Florence	8			Uffizi – €11+4 – 13:45 conf # 88021 Academia €11+4 – 16:45 conf # 88033
8/20 Mon	Florence	9			Santa Croce – €5- tombs of Galileo Galilei, Niccolò Machiavelli and Michelangelo (9.30-17.30)
8/21 Tue	Florence	10
			66	1:03
	Collodi				2 parks, stepped streets. Carlo Collodi wrote Pinocchio (1881)
			15	00:23
8/22 Wed	Lucca	11			Rick Steves: complete walls that one can bike. Puccini house – Corte San Lorenzo, 8 – re-opened in Sept. 2011
			79	0:58
8/23 Thu	La Spezia	12			Base for exploring Cinque Terre
			47	0:45	No driving is needed
	Levanto		-47		Rialroad and Walk Day Trip to Cinque Terre
			47	0:45	No driving is needed
8/24 Fri	La Spezia	13	-47		Back to Base after a day trip
			64	0:49
	Villa Puccini				Villa Puccini a Torre del Lago Puccini – Viale Giacomo Puccini, 266
			19	0:27
	Pisa				Tower €15, Duomo €2, Field of Miracles €10 (to Villa Puccini 18km or 0:28) (from Coloddi 48km or 0:48)
			110	1:20
8/25 Sat	Piombino	14			Parco Archeologico di Baratti e Populonia – €12 To Elba: Portoferraio has 2 Napoleon museums
			103	1:26
8/26 Sun	Scansano	15			Hotel Antico Casale di Scansano
			43	0:49
	Pitigliano				Rising on volcanic tufa peak
			37	0:37
8/27 Mon	Canino	16			Very small village – Cerrosughero Hotel
			184	2:21
8/28 Tue	Latina	17			Just a middle point on the way back to Naples
			193	2:22
8/29 Wed	Naples	18
			27	0:35
	Pompeii				35 min (860m) path to the top. Crater tour (€6.50) includes a guided walk
			30	0:41
8/30 Thu	Sorrento	19			Base to explore the Amalfi coast
			18	0:45
8/31 Fri	Capri	20			Gorky on Capri: (1) 1906-1909 – Villa Krupp – Viale Giacomo Matteotti, 12 – villakrupp.com (2) Mar 1909 – Feb1911 – Hotel Ercolano / Villa Spinola / Villa Behring or red house – corner of Via Longano and Via Sopramonte (3) Feb 1911- Dec 1913 Villa Pierina or Villa Serafina – Via Mulo.
			34	1:09
9/1 Sat	Positano	21			Amalfi Coast, Ravello
			147	2:02
9/2 Sun	Cassino	22			Just a middle point on the way back to Rome
			148	1:29
9/3 Mon	Ostia Antica	23			Near Rome Fiumicino
			9	0:11
	Fiumicino				Flight to Boston AZ614 11:00 Terminal 3
					Arrive to Logan 14:20 Terminal E
9/4 Tue	Boston
Total			1728	28:25

 

I did a cost estimate for the trip.  This 3-week-trip will cost us more that 10K, and a one cent jump in a cost on Euro (€) will change the estimate $55 up or down.  This estimate is done with 1€ = $1.25 equation:

 

Largest expense is air tickets.  Next are accommodations.  As you can see, this estimate is done based on average €100 per night for a hotel.

 

How to make a reservation for Uffizi and Academia in Florence

(1) First, pick an open date and time slot using http://www.firenzemusei.it/
This site will redirect you to http://www.b-ticket.com.  Switch to English.  As you can see on the picture bellow, in August 2012 openings are available only 9 days from todays date (August 7):

 

 

On the right site, there is information on availability by hour and quarter of an  hour.  Pick your desired time slot, and now you ready to make a call.

(2) Next, call on Skype to Italy -039-055-294-883 ($0.023 a minute from USA)
Call several times, if you get disconnected.  They will ask your desired date and time to visit, and your last name.  No credit card information is needed.   Write down your reservation number and note your pickup gate number.  Expect to pay €15 per person in cash upon arrival.   You will pay €4 per person extra for reservation. Normal tickets without a reservation are €11.

While on the call, also make another reservation for Academia 3or 4 hours later (or earlier). Once again, expect to pay €15 per person in cash upon arrival.

This is as close to ideal as possible.  You do not pay any money upfront – what if your travel plans to change.  And you only need to use your reservation (and pay extra €8), if there is a long “live” line to enter.

 

 

Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel

It appears a bit easier to reserve a ticket for a Vatican visit.  But you have to actually purchase nonrefundable tickets and the price is €19 (€15 + €4). You can get a reservation for a next day. This is how Vatican availability looks at 8PM European time on August 7:

 

As you can see you still can make a reservation for August 8.  Taking all this into account, and the fact that we will stay very close from Vatican, we will (1) try to avoid paying any money now, and just get in line or (2) reserve right from our hotel room in Rome.

 

 

Currency Wars

If you hold your money in a small bank, you are not obligated to exchange money only there.   Usually, the smaller the bank, the more unfair is the exchange rate.  As of today – 2012-08-09 TH – the official published exchange rate is 1€ = $1.2338.

If you call your local bank, they might wave any fees (you feel warm and cozy now), but they will “kill” you with an astronomic exchange rate – $1.3229. That is over 7% premium on a simple no-brainier transaction.

No, thank you. I better use an ATM with $3 fee and 3% over published exchange rate. On a €1000 transaction this difference turns out to be just under $50.

 

Let’s fly to Rome now.

Navigate through the List

1. Italy 2012 August - Roma, Firenze, Napoli and between (2017/09/19)
2. Aug 10-11 FRI-SAT - A two-day flight to Rome (2017/09/23)
3. Aug 12 SUN - First steps in Rome - Pantheon (2017/09/27)
4. Aug 13 MON - Vatican (2017/10/01)
5. Aug 14 TUE - Colosseum (2017/10/05)
6. Aug 15 WED - Getting the car - Starting North - Viterbo (2017/10/09)
7. Aug 16 THU - Bagnoregio in Lazio, Orvieto in Umbria (2017/10/13)
8. Aug 17 FRI - Orvieto - Montepulciano - Siena (2017/10/17)
9. Aug 18 SAT - Siena - Villa Galileo - Firenze - Day 1 (2017/10/21)
10. Aug 19 SUN - Firenze - Day 2 - Uffizi Gallery (2017/10/25)
11. Aug 20 MON - Firenze (Day 3) - Collodi (2017/10/29)
12. Aug 21 TUE - From Pescia to Lucca (2017/11/02)
13. Aug 22 WED - Lucca (Toscana) - La Spezia (Liguria) (2017/11/06)
14. Aug 23 THU - Cinque Terra [... in progress ...] (2017/11/10)
15. Aug 24 FRI - Torre del Lago Puccini - Pisa and Agriturismo (2017/11/14)
16. Aug 25 SAT - Agriturismo in Pitigliano [... in progress ...] (2017/11/18)
17. Aug 26 SUN - Road to Napoli [... in progress ...] (2017/11/22)
18. Aug 27 MON - Napoli - Day 2 [... in progress ...] (2017/11/26)
19. Aug 28 TUE - From focused Napoli to havenly Sorrento (2017/11/30)
20. Aug 29 WED - Capri - Day 1 [... in progress ...] (2017/12/04)
21. Aug 30 THU - Capri - Day 2 [... in progress ...] (2017/12/08)
22. Aug 31 FRI - La Dolce Far Niente [... in progress ...] (2017/12/12)
23. Sep 1 SAT - Mount Vesuvius [... in progress ...] (2017/12/16)
24. Sep 2 SUN - Last day in Rome [... in progress ...] (2017/12/20)
25. Sep 3 MON - From Rome back to Boston (2017/12/24)
26. Italy 2012 - Final Summary - Rules to Adopt and Follow <br> (2017/12/28)