Category Travel

Italy – Hotel v.s. Monastery stays…

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When I tell someone I stayed at a monastery, they give me a strange look. Am I overly religious OR becoming a Nun. It does make me smile. I know they are missing out by being narrow minded.

A few years ago, I was in Florence for an extended period. Given that, I searched hotels, hostels, etc. for a more economical way to stay there. Up popped this website — www.MonasteryStays.com. You can see from the Home page, it looked interesting. I was intrigued.

To date, I have stayed at three monasteries in Florence, one in Assisi, one in Cortona and one in Rome.

The monastery in Cortona felt like a boutique hotel. You would not know it was a monastery. FABULOUS!! In fact, I did not see any Nuns around. Don’t quote me, but I think they had TVs in the room.

Here’s what you should know. While each monastery is different, they do have similarities:

  • Breakfast served at a certain time. Sit where your name is placed on the table.
  • Breakfast – bread, butter/jam, yogurt, lunch meat, cereal, fruit, coffee/tea. Unique to each stay.
  • When you leave monastery, leave your key at reception.
  • Curfew, need to be in by 11 or 12 pm, depends on the monastery.
  • TVs, some monasteries have them, some don’t.
  • Wifi — yes, most of them.
  • Summer – check if they have air conditioning.
  • Note: Sometimes the Nuns only speak Italian or at reception they have an English speaking person.

WHO CAN STAY? Anyone – single, married, parents with kids, workers who are on assignment stay there. Now, honeymooners??? LOL – if you are loud at sex/love making, you certainly would have ALL of us entertained and in shock. In fact, I imagine the cross hanging in my room would start shaking. The monasteries do tend to be quiet.

HOW ARE THE ROOMS? I must say, quite spacious and nice. Great bathrooms.

This was my place in Rome. Nice, very clean and a balcony. LOVE the white pressed sheets! Resembled some normal hotels I stayed in Munich.

Trying to think if I missed anything. If you browse the Monastery Stays website, you’ll see ALL the rooms, read through what they offer. Good rates too.

Any questions… leave a comment, happy to answer.

REALLY love the monastery stays. Wish they had this type of website for Germany.

Rome – St. Peter’s Square

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They say people are having REVENGE travel right now. I don’t know. Before COVID people were traveling as they are now. The streets in Florence were so packed with tourists, it was hard to see the sights. I honestly thought, I don’t need to come back, it’s no fun.

Fast forward to now. So much turmoil in the world, I wanted to see Florence once more. I would be sad if I didn’t see it again. It’s my mother’s birthplace.

Normally, I would fly into Florence connecting through Munich. Now, with fewer flights, the best deal I could find was either flying into Milan or Rome, not even Pisa. I decided to go to Rome.

Being Catholic, I felt I should see the Vatican again too. Say a few prayers, visit the Nuns. I like the Nuns in their habits, they each have unique personalities. In fact, I got scolded at breakfast one morning by a feisty Nun. I had sat at a random table not realizing they had placed name cards at the tables. She KNEW immediately I was at the wrong table, because there were two priests names at my table.

She had to BELLOW out, so everyone knew my mistake. In Italian she said, ”Why aren’t you HERE?”

I apologized, saying, I did not see the name cards. She sighed heavy, picked up my name card, banging it on the table for emphasis and said in Italian, ”TOMORROW YOU SIT HERE!”

She was cute, shaking her head, thinking such dumb tourists, can’t follow simple rules.

The next day, as soon as she came in, I SMILED and in Italian said, ”LOOK, I’m at the right table!”

I was staying in Rome at Istituto Maria Santissima Bambina, a monastery. Did you notice the AMAZING view of St Peter’s Square that I had from the monastery’s rooftop. WOW – it can’t get any better.

Also, look at the square, NOT many tourists. The taxi driver told me in May/June many tourists like before COVID. I got LUCKY, beginning of July, maybe because of the heat, not many tourists. WONDERFUL!

Trivi Fountain was a bit crowded. People had to make their WISHES! Taking a picture with so many people in front of the fountain was challenging. I did my best. Even through a coin over my shoulder. Hoped it made it in the fountain. I was up a few steps with a lot of people in front of me. FUNNY if my coin ended up in someone’s fluffy hair, right!

Well, that’s all from Rome today.

Oh, I got lucky with my flights. Direct flight from Chicago to Rome and back, no delays or cancellations. Going there I even had three seats to myself. It was a full flight, it just happened that way. GREAT!!

In case, you are wondering about masks policy. I didn’t have to wear my mask anywhere except the bus. Even on the plane, we didn’t have to wear them. Some people did, but most did not.

So — traveling, I got LUCKY and enjoyed seeing Florence / Rome with few tourists. Many traveling horror stories, I wonder if that is the norm or that’s what the media focuses on. I had an easy pleasant trip. I do recommend direct flights if you can do it. Less stops, less chance of lost luggage. Also, I took a small weekend carry on suit case, ended up working fine. Did not need a bigger one. Traveling was EASY!

Glad I went, but also GLAD to be home!

Colorado – Nature

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Recently, I was in Colorado. Imagine my surprise to capture a picture with an eagle, moose and mountain lion all at once. One of my daughter’s thought I had actually seen the moose on a wilderness trail. That means she QUICKLY looked at photo, did not analyze it.

I love this moose. Perfect taxidermy work. I do feel as if I met him on the banks of a river. The mountain lion is cleverly hidden to the right coming out of the cave.

If you are wondering, I was in a Sporting Goods store called, “Scheels.” First time I have been in one. It was similar to a Bass Pro Shop, if you’ve gone there. HUGE – hard to leave without buying something.

Case in point, I found these orange ON gym shoes. I’m not familiar with this brand. Turns out they are from Switzerland, founded in 2010 by three guys who wanted a good running shoe. They’ve been worn by a lot of athletes who have won in their fields. I tried to find out what the logo on the shoe stands for, but couldn’t find anything. If you know, leave a comment.

These are slip ons, so not meant for running. So far, so good, they feel comfortable. Although, I need to tighten up the laces. I love the color.

I’m all set for more walking. We have a heat wave coming though, that might have me indoors, let’s see!

Happy exercising!

The Peabody Memphis – Hotel

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I was recently in Memphis for a wedding and we stopped off at The Peabody Memphis hotel to see the DUCK MARCH. I found this YouTube video, so you can see what it looks like. The ducks have a special home on the rooftop / penthouse. They come down the center elevator and march down the red carpet to the lobby fountain every day at 11:00 AM. People come from all over the world to see the ducks. THEN at 5:00 pm, the Duckmaster escorts the ducks back to their rooftop penthouse for the evening.

In 1940, Mr Pembroke became the first Duckmaster and taught the ducks the famous Duck March. He served in this position for 50 years. He was a former circus animal trainer. I loved this photo of him.

Of course, while we waited, we had to have the signature Peabody Duck Drink, little floating duck on top.

It’s amazing that something so simple as marching ducks to a hotel fountain can be so entertaining. We enjoyed seeing them. The weekend was especially busy with families coming to watch with their children.

It’s a beautiful historic hotel. I tried to visit St Jude Hospital to see the Danny Thomas Memorial Garden, but the hospital was closed to visitors. Music on Beale street was fun!

Glad we had a wedding to go to in Memphis, fun visiting.

FANCY–> Non-alcoholic drinks… FINALLY!

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I just read an article in the February issue of Travel-Leisure, “No Hangovers Here.” Music to my ears! It talks about how more and more people want alcohol free drinks on the menu. I’m one of those people. I don’t drink on a regular basis. Why? I’ve never had a taste for it.

Wine, beer, a cocktail — nothing excites me. As we get older, who wants the dreaded hangover. Well, I do like a slushy margarita. I admit if a friend brought that to the table, I’d gladly accept.

Apparently, Hyatt Hotels Corp launched the Zero Proof, Zero Judgement Initiative in August 2021. They noticed a market for this as more consumers are focusing on health and wellness. So, Hyatt had their restaurant and bar teams come up with creative non-alcoholic drinks they have added to the menu. Great idea!

Around the world, alcohol free drinks are being offered. The Ritz Paris says one in five guests orders non-alcoholic. In Ireland, The Merrion Hotel is distilling its own nonalcoholic gin. Cruise ships have added alcohol free drinks to their menus too.

So, YES, when I say, “FANCY drinks, FINALLY!” I mean its great to see a drink I can order off the menu that’s alcohol free versus whispering to the waiter to bring a club soda with a lime on the side.

Health and wellness are a priority these days. I’m curious to give these NEW drinks a try. I hope there is a big plant close by in case I have to spit it out. Not sure how it will taste!

Here’s to ZERO PROOF, ZERO JUDGEMENT — I look forward to that toast!

Hopefully, as a joke, my friends don’t seat me at the grandkids table! THAT would be FUNNY!

Rhode Island – Providence

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On the way to Providence, our flight was in line to take off. I looked out the window and took this photo. So many planes in line and pretty close together. Looked beautiful. Upon landing, I saw this map that shows how close other well known cities are. So, depending on how much time you spend in Rhode Island, you can travel quickly to Boston, New York, etc.

As Rhode Island is on the water, I saw this gold ship on the top of one of the buildings.

We walked over to Brown University and saw their Mascot, the brown bear.

Along the way, saw this house. You can see the style is so different, so took a photo. Not sure of the significance…

Another interesting house. I liked the BLUE doors, but they don’t seem to fit with the style of the house.

I was reading in the Brown University newspaper that these scooters have become a big deal for Athletes. Since they have so many practices and would be walking 1-2 miles between class and practice, they were getting worn out. So, some of them started using these scooters. Then more started using them, while they can be dangerous in traffic, the athletes said it was worth the risk.

Here is an old bank, now that looked like a fortress.

Here you can see the river…

The Rhode Island trip comes to an end. Providence is small. We did walk the street where they have the Italian section. Being Italian, I would like to jump up for joy, but I was not impressed. It felt like a run down area, so that was sad. They did have my favorite cookies from Italy, but expiration date was June 2021. How fresh do cookies stay after expiration date? I passed.

I did meet a woman who had moved with her family from Southern California to Rhode Island. She said she LOVES Rhode Island. Simpler way of life, not so materialistic and she liked the change of seasons.

So, if COVID is holding you back from International travel. Take some small trips close to you, it’s worth it! We had fun!

Rhode Island – Sunset on way home.

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I’ve always wanted to see Rhode Island and this was the time. I traveled with my daughter, we stayed in Providence and took a day trip to Newport. TRAVEL TIP: Take the bus from Airport to the city – $2 / bus versus $35+ / Uber. We also took the bus to Newport about one hour 15 min ride. Again, $2 per trip versus $60+ / Uber. Can’t beat that and it was a pleasant bus ride driving through the different cities along the way to Newport.

I REALLY liked Newport. It’s on the water and has the most amazing homes, shops, etc. In fact, on our way to the Cliff Walk, I found an Irish shop and bought this cute hat. You can see a view of the Cliff walk too.

This huge home is The Breakers. Cornelius Vanderbilt II built this as a summer home between 1893-1895. In 1994 it was declared a National Historic Landmark. It’s now a tourist spot with tours, owned and operated by the Newport Preservation Society. The Society agreed to let the Vanderbilts live on the third floor, which is closed to the public. It appears in 2017, the Society wanted the Vanderbilts out. After 120 years of living there the Vanderbilts were told there were issues with electrical/plumbing, etc.

So many articles, hard to keep up with the latest. I will leave that to YOU, if you are interested. BUT there is an article stating that Trump bought The Breakers for $112M, plans to turn it into a casino? That would be sad, I hope not. This is such a beautiful area, why have a casino there.

This house is next door to The Breakers.

Many homes are hidden by bushes, so you cannot see them. In many ways, this walk reminded me of parts of Ireland on the cliffs and also the weather was sunny, then shady like it might rain.

There are a lot of nice shops down by the marina. Shop owners said they really suffered last year during COVID, not sure if they could stay open with no tourists, hard to pay the rent, so some places closed, some remained.

It’s a BEAUTIFUL area. I’d like to go back and stay a few days in Newport, explore that area more.

Travel Virtually– NEW site — Heygo!

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I just came across this virtual travel site called, “Heygo.” It looks like a great site, the idea is good. Of course, right now it is FREE; however, you can’t view a tour unless you sign up on the site. They are asking that you tip the tour guides, which is fair.

It appears that “VirtualTrips.io,” was founded in May 2020 by Liam Garrison and John Tertan. This year, April 2021, they changed name to “Heygo,” which is a fun name (HEY – GO!). They say new name better reflects who they are. I was able to view a snippet of a Quebec tour, it was quick before they cut me off. Need to sign up on site to view full tour.

Sharing with you. We can’t travel Internationally yet, virtual it is.

They have 200+ tours around the world. A place for everyone to travel.

Let me know what you think.

Florence, Italy… I miss you!

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I was taking to my Italian mother the other day. She said was one of her cousins was in Florence and it felt so strange. There aren’t many tourists, so to be able to walk and “see” the city was an eery feeling. We are used to so many tourists that we are elbow to elbow with them. Instead, my mother’s cousin arrived in Piazza Della Signoria with open eyes, as if seeing the Piazza for the first time. BEAUTIFUL!

I remember that feeling years ago. I was in Florence in June, it was so packed with people that I could not enjoy the city and I wanted to leave. I thought, I am DONE, I do not need to visit Florence for a long time.

THEN, one year, I visited in late November. I was walking the streets, hardly any people. Like my mother’s cousin, I had this strange feeling that something was wrong. Where were the people? My next thought was… ah, it’s late November – no tourists – this is GLORIOUS!

Fast forward to COVID 2021. My friend is in Florence right now. She said that August is SO HOT, over 100 degrees, she can see why the Italians go to the seaside the whole month of August. She remembers going around town with me, but couldn’t remember where restaurants and shops were.

So, I marked up this quick map for her. Once I did that, she had her bearings. She said there are not that many tourists. When outside you don’t need a mask, but inside you must have it. Also, because of COVID there were no new things to see in the market place or the shops. Everything seemed as it was from 2 years ago. Oh… this was funny. She was looking forward to a good dish of pasta. The pasta came, but it was SUPER AL DENTE. Not good.

My Italian girlfriend said her husband did that sometimes. I mean, there is AL DENTE, and there is ULTRA AL DENTE. She would tell her husband, “You must have been REALLY HUNGRY to serve pasta like this! YUK!”

Anyhow…

Traveling right now is challenging and different, because COVID rules / regulations keep changing.

If you are traveling… BE SAFE!

Florence… I miss you. I’ll be back.

Who’s eating the bird seed?

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Visiting with friends in Michigan. A cardinal came by, but I was not fast enough to take the picture. We filled up the bird feeder in hopes of seeing more birds.

Later in the day, we wondered why the bird feed was so low.

WELL, look who was visiting. Amazing how athletic these squirrels are. They spook easily, so I had to be quick to take some photos. It was challenging. The wind was making the squirrel twirl around while he was trying to eat. I laughed and thought, “He’s a CIRCUS squirrel!”

Nature is amazing!