Traveling to Italy. Part 2 (The Best Part)

PART 2 OF 2

Before it was official that I was going to Italy I jotted a couple things down that I knew I wanted to experience while being there. I even shared them with you all in the first post I wrote about going to Italy. (When you get to travel to a place you've only dreamed of)

It was a small and simple list, but here they are:

-Eat an Authentic Italian meal that I've never tried, then eat all the pasta & pizza I can find.

-Take the Metro to Rome and view the Colosseum and Trevi Fountain.

-Sip a cup of "un caffé macchiato" (shot of Espresso with steamed milk) and take in all the views.

- Soak in the view of the ocean coast.

And do you know how many of those I experienced? All of them and some more!

The Taste of Italy.

I soon found out that a lot of their restaurant foods were not healthy or at least I couldn’t read it well enough to know. I actually went to the base commissary while I was there to get groceries. Yes, I could probably eat spaghetti every day, but I didn’t want to. I enjoyed a plate of spaghetti with tomato and basil at the Hotel in Naples and a plate creamy garlic spaghetti with clams in local restaurant in the little town of Ravello. Between the two, they both were delicious. I didn’t get to go to a restaurant to try their famous pizza, but I ordered one from the pizza cafe on base. So it counts right? It tasted like normal pizza to me. Nothing fancy. My favorite of all was the Authentic Italian Gelato. Oh my was is it delicious! It was Cantaloupe flavored with a little bit of raspberry. Another thing I wanted to try was their espresso. The first morning I walked to work, I got there super early and I walked over to the food court to see what all they had. One of the places was a Breakfast Cafe. Espresso Coffee ended up being the first thing on the menu and that’s what I asked for and a cream filled fancy breakfast dessert that I didn’t know the name of. Apparently, they were all called the same thing. Got the espresso and it was not what I thought it was going to be because duh, I’m new here. I thought it was going to be a drink. Not a shot. It didn’t say shot of espresso, it said, “ espresso coffee”. It was the tiniest shot of espresso I’d ever seen. But after trying their cappuccino, I’d sip on their shot of espresso happily. I wasn’t fond of any of their coffee. There were quite a few things I tried, but don’t remember what they were called.

Ravishing Ravello.

When I arrived at the command, the first question I got asked is, “are you going to go out and explore?” I wasn’t sure if I’d be given the opportunity, but they were all for traveling as much as you can within Europe. I was told about tours the base support sites would do. So the first friday after work I signed up to take an evening tour to the town of Ravello. I hadn’t heard of it before but I knew I wanted to get out and do something. It put me more at ease being able to travel with a group. Friday evening I hopped on a bus with others off the base and I had spoken with another woman prior to getting on about the area. We ended up sitting beside each other and decided to roam around the area together. The bus ride was about a 2 hour trip up the mountain sides of Naples and other towns I don’t know the names of. And the whole ride up, my body would tense up, It was scary. The roads were narrow and all size vehicles drove fast, even the buses. At one point, our bus got into it with another bus driver, yelling in Italian, about who is going to back up to get by each other. We eventually got through, but I could see the town of Naples, far far far down the edge of the mountain. We eventually made it to Ravello and the view was breathtaking. Soak in the view of the ocean coast, check! As your walking through this little town the entire place smelled like flowers. Because, well you’ll see! There were flowers everywhere. We spent the entire evening until about 9:30 pm roaming the town, taking photos, eating gelato, spaghetti, and visiting their shops and touring the Villa Rufolo and Ravello Cathedral. It was beautiful and I recommend this place to all.

Roaming around Rome.

I had planned a trip to Rome with a tour on base, but it was cancelled because they didn’t have enough people. I wanted to explore on the first Saturday I was there, but I ended up talking myself out of it that day and relaxed. By the end of the evening I was mad at myself for being to anxious about it. I told myself again, that I would go the next day. Well, Sunday came and I woke up around 9 and I kept telling myself it was too late to go. I ate breakfast and decided to forget about being nervous and I got ready to go. I walked to the bus stop near the airport like I did when I first got there and I took it to the train station. I was used to the bus by now since I had taken it quite a few times when I first arrived and stayed in town. I grabbed something to eat at the train station and bought a ticket to Rome. (insert another check off my list) I decided to take the 2 hour train ride because it arrived at the same time as the next 1 hour ride and I was getting better seats than the shorter ride which was the same price. Besides getting confused about which part of the train I was supposed to be on, the ride was easy and very comfortable. I chose first class and I thought I was in the wrong area. There were only fancy people there, but I was in the right spot after asking 2 different locals. Once the train arrived in the Rome train terminal, I just started following the crowd. Walking outside and into the town area was a piece of cake. I had an offline map on my phone just in case, but I was able to follow the big crowds and make it that way. At one point, I noticed my map was telling me to go one way, and then I turned to my left and saw the Colosseum. I turned left and went on my way. The Colosseum was amazing to see in person. I wasn’t able to tour it because I had left to late in the day and the lines were ridiculously long. That will be my next check off item when I take my family one day. Once I walked around the Colosseum a little, getting all the good shots I wanted of it, I noticed the road that all the crowds were using. I joined the crowd and continued to walk. I was able to view multiple buildings that were extremely breathtaking. But I honestly have no clue what their names were. How horrible, right? But every where you walk, you are in awe of these buildings. I made my way down into the town and then to the famous Trevi Fountain. This place was insane and packed. I had to weave and climb under railings to get down to an area close enough to take a picture. There were so many people that I couldn’t get close to the water to toss a penny in. I quickly made my way out of the crowd and visited a few local shops. I was able to buy a couple things I wanted for my family and make my way back to the train station. It was about 4 pm when I left. I wanted to see some other places but since they weren't within a decent walking distance I decided to save those places when I bring my family back. I was so proud that I actually got out of the hotel and toured Rome. My check list for Italy is going to be much bigger next time.

Would I go back?

When I read over what I wrote, I realize I didn't do much. But I'm proud of myself and extremely grateful for getting the opportunity to go and experience new things. Yes, of course I would go back. But next time I won’t go for work or stay in Naples. It will be for vacation so that I can see more and not have to rush. Enjoy the photos I got below.

Town of Ravello, Italy. (All images were taken from my Nikon and edited with VSCO)

THIS VIEW WAS WORTH THE CRAZY BUS RIDE UP!

RAVELLO WAS PURE BEAUTY.

Rome, Italy.