A change of pace today after Rome's jam-packed itinerary left us (and our feet) in need of some downtime. I'm not sure how to spice up our day of planning and laundry, but perhaps a word about lunch will do. We happened upon a trattoria with a hand-written menu offering a three-course lunch including wine and service for €11. After our experience in Rome where they charge you €6 for looking at a sandwich, we were more than prepared to be spoiled with a hearty...

Vatican City: the smallest country in the world, home of Pope Benny, and an absolute treasure trove of magnificent architecture. Our first stop was at St. Peter's Basilica, which is the probably the most impressive building that we've ever been in. From the high-vaulted ceilings and domes to the incredible golden monument behind the altar (pictured here), this building really did wow us at every turn. From there we went to the Vatican Museum, which culminated wit...

Things were looking up today in Rome as we found a proper market to get our day off on the right foot. We then braved the crowds (honestly, I can't imagine what high-season is like!) at the enormous and impressive Colosseum, which is without a doubt the feature of any tour around Rome. The culinary highlight of the day was this Colosseum-sized sandwich that we assembled in the shadow of the great stadium from wares we collected earlier. You know that your sandwic...

Our first impression of Rome is that it is night and day from Naples. In Croatia, we met an Italian couple on our boat tour who told us that there was a stark contrast between the north and south of Italy (south meaning Naples and everything below it). Believe me, they were not exaggerating. For every friendly, gregarious person that we encountered in Naples we have met a stiff and reserved counterpart here in Rome. I mean sure, you created Western civilization, ...

Our last day in Naples was a busy one, taking on the same hectic pace as the city around us. It is sort of an endearing madness in Naples though, like the entire city has some extra bounce in its step. The highlight of today was the Naples underground tour that took us into the ancient Greek/Roman aqueduct system. The neatest thing that I Iearned was that during WWII, the underground system was used as a refuge from the bombings for thousands of Naples' elderly ...