[Italy 2012 Trip Report] Day 17: Venice

"How many do you need in Venice?" is a question often asked on travel forums. At the moment I thought two days would be enough, but the longer time has passed, the more I felt I needed more time.

Itinerary of the day: Pescheria → Venice → Toronto

[Italy 2012 Trip Report] Day 16: Venice

I usually never consider traveling to the same place twice, just because there are much left to explore in the world. After today, Venice became an exception to that sentiment.

Itinerary of the day: Burano → Doge's Palace → Campanile → Ponte dell'Accademia

[Italy 2012 Trip Report] Day 15: Bolzano & Venice

This day was a day filled with fascination! I had the honour of meeting a famous mummy who rewrote history of mankind...and visited a World Heritage city that had to be seen to be believed! 

Itinerary of the day: Santa Magdalena → (transfer Bressanone) → Bolzano → South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology → (transfer Verona) → Venice → St. Mark's Square

[Italy 2012 Trip Report] Day 14: Villnöß

At a place where sun shines 300 days of the year, the two days we were there got horrible weather! Hikes up the mountains were out of the question, so I ended up dedicating this entire day to taking photos.

Itinerary of the day: Santa Magdalena → St.Johann chapel → viewpoint near Santa Maddalena

[Italy 2012 Trip Report] Day 13: Villnöß

After meeting the Rockies and the Andes, Villnöß was my first encounter with the Alps. Although only a tiny part of the mountain range, this place gave me the cutest first impression ever.

Itinerary of the day: San Marino → (transfer Rimini → Bologna → Bolzano → Klausen) → Santa Magdalena

[Italy 2012 Trip Report] Day 12: San Marino

I was inspired to visit San Marino after seeing a stunning photo on tumblr, but well aware that not much else would be offered in terms of sightseeing. However, knowing the backgrounds and trivia about this Republic made the day worthwhile.

Itinerary of the day:  Ravenna → San Marino → Palazzo Pubblico → Guaita → La Cesta → (night photoshoot of both towers)

[Italy 2012 Trip Report] Day 11: Ravenna

Ravenna was a gem to visit! I'd never seen so much beautiful mosaics concentrated in one small area, and in such pristine condition given their age and historical significance.

Itinerary of the day: Milan → (transfer through Bologna) → Ravenna → Tomb of Dante → Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo→ Arian Baptistry→ Baptistry of Neon→ Domus dei tappeti di pietra→ Basilica of San Vitale→ Mausoleum of Galla Placidia

[Italy 2012 Trip Report] Day 10: Milan

During the planning stage of this trip, I came across two common stereotype about Milan: "fashionable Milanese" and "cold Northern Italians". One proved itself to be somewhat true and the other didn't!

Itinerary of the day: Florence → Milan → Duomo → Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II → Luini → Amorino → Santa Maria delle Grazie → Castello Sforzesco

[Italy 2012 Trip Report] Day 9: Florence & Pisa

Many travelers claim that Uffizi is an overrated, badly designed museum swarmed by people who aren't even into arts. Others say Pisa is a tourist trap with no architectural merit worth visiting. I enjoyed both and Uffizi was actually my favourite museum of the trip. There's no way I'm missing these places just to be a travel hipster!

Itinerary of the day: Galleria degli Uffizi → Piazza della Signoria → Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella → Mercato Centrale → Piazza dei Miracoli (Pisa) → Florence

[Italy 2012 Trip Report] Day 8: Florence

"So this is Rome". No this is definitely not Rome! I was in Florence, the city which continues to inspire all art forms (questionable ones included) even long after the Renaissance.

Itinerary of the day: Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore → Museo Dell'Opera Del Duomo → Mercato Centrale → Galleria dell'Accademia → Basilica di Santa Croce → Piazzale Michelangelo (sunset)

[Italy 2012 Trip Report] Day 7: Tuscany

The journey across Val d'Orcia continues! Tuscan sun didn't hold up today but we got the cypress-line roads, the wine, the olive oil, the leather bag, and some AC2 sceneries covered. 

Itinerary of the day: Agriturismo Podere Palazzi del Papa → Cappella di Vitaleta → Brunello wine tasting (near Montalcino) → Castiglione d'Orcia → Sant'Antimo Abbey → Siena → San Gimignano →  Piazzale Michelangelo (Florence)

[Italy 2012 Trip Report] Day 6: Tuscany

We only stayed for a minimal amount of time in Rome, but I was eager to leave the crowds behind. If I had extra days, a few would definitely be added to Tuscany. All those books and movies praising the sceneries and foods of Tuscany weren't lying! We also encountered some of the most beautiful and friendly people...

Itinerary of the day: Rome → Lake Bolsena → Civita di Bagnoregio → Orvieto → (scenic stops) → Pienza → Agriturismo Podere Palazzi del Papa

[Italy 2012 Trip Report] Day 5: Pompeii & Naples

Pompeii was one of the most anticipated part of the trip, but turned out to be the most disappointing. Naples, which was only added to the itinerary at the last minute, left a much stronger impression.

Itinerary of the day: Rome → Pompeii → Naples → Museo Archeologico Nazionale → Rome → Colosseum night shoot

[Italy 2012 Trip Report] Day 4: Rome

After I returned home, a friend asked me if I was amazed by the Vatican Museums. "Yes" I replied, "but I loved the Capitoline Museums even more." He was surprised, but I'm not planning on changing my answer anytime soon.

Itinerary of the day: Piazza Barberini → Santa Maria della Concezione dei Cappuccini → Spanish Steps → Via Condotti → Trevi Fountain → Musei Capitolini → La Bocca della Verità

[Italy 2012 Trip Report] Day 3: Rome

What are the chances of running into Ezio in Rome? A bit higher than running into Klose.

Itinerary for the day: Colosseum → Palatine Hill → Roman Forum → Basilica di San Pietro in Vincoli → Piazza Venezia → Pantheon → Piazza Navona → Castel Sant'Angelo

[Italy 2012 Trip Report] Day 1-2: Vatican

"Work in the morning, Catholic headquarter in the afternoon" was what the first day felt like. It took me a while to finally immerse in the fact that I was indeed in Italy!

Itinerary for the day: Toronto → Rome → St.Peter's Basilica → Vatican Museums