Italy and Greece Trip with Globus in May 2003 for the North Carolina contingent gathered by Paul. That contingent included Carolyn, Fred and Edie, George and Annette, Mildred and Pearl, Elaine and Dianne, and Betty and June.  Here is our planned route.  Numbers indicate the number of nights stayed at a location.

 

DAY 1, THURSDAY, MAY 15

Held up by lightning storm in Raleigh. Finally flew to Washington, DC, but missed the flight to Europe and spent the night in hotel. June had a heart problem so she and Betty went back to Florida.

 

DAY 2, FRIDAY, MAY 16

Flew in two groups to Toronto and caught Air Canada flight to Rome. Spent the night on the plane.

Rome has lots of Sycamore trees in town. They say the old Roman roads were often lined with trees for shade of marching soldiers. Still need that shade, I think.

 

DAY 3, SATURDAY, MAY 17

Optional excursion to Tivoli. Lots of fountains and roses in Tivoli. Also many Umbrella Pine and Cypress trees.

     

  

Had a nice dinner complete with three-piece band. They even played the Chicken Dance! Our tour guide, Hendrik, said that music was from his country, Holland or the Netherlands, but he was not proud of that fact! He would rather whistle along to classical music.  But Elaine loved to Chicken Dance!  Stayed at the Claridge Hotel.

DAY 4, SUNDAY, MAY 18

Optional excursion to Ostia Antica. They replaced this for a longer trip to Pompeii. Ostica Antica was much closer to Rome. It was once quite a Roman town and port. The river filled in too much for a port and finally the sediment even covered much of the town. It has been excavated and is now a tourist attraction. See the tile floors and public bathroom.  While we were there men dressed as Roman soldiers from many parts of the world were there for a re-enactment of battles. Very colorful with quite authentic shields and garb.

  

 

Had a shortened city tour to the Vatican (St. Peter=s Square and the Basilica) and the Coliseum. The Basilica is spectacular and they are so proud of the size that they put the length of other churches on the floor for comparison.  All less, of course!  Beautiful door that many laid their hands on.

 

Also saw a government building and the coliseum.

 

Optional excursion of Rome. Saw the Spanish Steps which were filled with young people. Had a nice dinner and excellent guitar music.

 

DAY 5, MONDAY, MAY 19

Followed the Aurelian Way north along the Tyrrhenian coast. There were lots of hilltop fortresses. In ancient times the Pope was the leader but he did not help defend the people. Saw the big ferry boats that go to the islands to the west. Not a good agricultural area. Some small vineyards and olive groves. Small grain just turning. Need irrigation and some used a drip system, especially if planting vegetables. There were lots of wild poppies in the fields here, as well as elsewhere throughout Italy.

At Pisa, the leaning tower, which was built in the 11th century, is 180 feet high and 16 feet out of perpendicular at the top.

       

On to Florence, capital of Tuscany and birthplace of the Renaissance. Stayed at the Mediterraneo Hotel.

 

DAY 6, TUESDAY, MAY 20

Saw SANTA MARIA DEL FIORE, Giotto=s Bell Tower, the Bapistry=s AGate of Paradise@, an impressive door, and the sculpture-studded Signoria Square. The highlight was Michelangelo=s DAVID in the Gallery of Fine Arts. Got a picture of a reproduction outside where the original used to stand.

  

    

Optional Italian dinner. Even had hors d=oeuvres and a blue drink of some kind which Pearl liked, and the dinner music was operatic.

 

DAY 7, WEDNESDAY, MAY 21

Drove across the wooded Etruscan Apennine mountains to the the plains of the Po and Adige Rivers. This is the breadbasket of Italy. Went past the city of Bologna and on to Padua, city of St. Anthony the Hermit. Visited the majestic six-domed BASILICA. Stayed at the II Burchiello Hotel in Oriago-Venice.

Optional Venetian night out. Took a ferry to the restaurant. Had a singer and two musicians that accompanied him.

 

DAY 8, THURSDAY, MAY 22

To Venice by bus then by private boat through some rain along the Guidecca canal. Toured St. Mark=s Square and the Byzantine architecture of St. Marks=s Basilica. Saw Doges= Palace and the Bridge of Sighs.

 

Watched some Venetian glass blowers and we spent some money!

Optional gondola ride, complete with serenade, under the arched bridges. Canals separate the islands of which there are 121 in Venice.

 

 

DAY 9, FRIDAY, MAY 23

Drove to Ferrara and visited the marble cathedral. Saw the Este Castle.

Drove on via the Via Romea to the capital of Umbria, Perugia. Stayed at the Perugia Plaza Hotel.  Had a unique, square commode.

 

DAY 10, SATURDAY, MAY 24

Visited Assisi. Walked from St. Clare=s church through the Piazza del Comune to St. Francis= Basilica, the hub of a religious order devoted to ideals of humility, forgiveness, simplicity, and love for God=s creatures.  Viewed frescoes on the walls of the churches. One church was built directly above the other, and both are above the tomb of St. Francis.

 

 

Also saw a Roman Tempe downtown and viewed the fort on top of the mountain.

  

Drove on to Ancona and boarded the ferry in the late afternoon. This ferry held 1600 passengers and 1000 vehicles. There were 11 decks; vehicles took 6, and we were on the 8th. Had and excellent cabin and spent the night on the ferry.

 

DAY 11, SUNDAY, MAY 25

Docked at Patras about 3pm and drove on to Olympia. Stayed at the Amalia Olympia Hotel.

 

DAY 12, MONDAY, MAY 26

Toured around Olympia where the athletes of antiquity performed in honor of the King of Deities. Some impressive remains. The Christians tore down a lot of things referring to other Gods when they became the dominant religion in about 300 AD.

 

 

Drove back to Patras and took a ferry across the Gulf of Corinth. They are now building a bridge to replace these ferries. Drove along the southern coast to Delphi. Stayed at the Amalia Delphi Hotel.  Could see the "Sea of Olives", the grey area in the picture below.  It extends for a few miles in each direction.

 

Greece has lots of bauxite (Aluminum ore) and marble.

 

DAY 13, TUESDAY, MAY 27

Visited the ancient sanctuary of the god Apollo and the theater next to it on the slopes of Mount Parnassus. Toured the excavations and saw the Oracle. Supposed to get some good vibes when you put your hand on this thing! Saw the Charioteer, a 5th century BC bronze statue, in the Archaeological Museum.

  

 

Drove on to Athens past Thebes and Marathon, where in 490 BC 10,000 Athenians defeated more than twice that number of Persian invaders. Runner who took news of the victory 26 miles to Athens and this set the stage for the current Marathon.

Stayed at the Zafolia Hotel.

Optional Athens Plaka dinner complete with folk dancing (and a belly dancer). Started with Ouzo, which seems to be a licorice liqueur.

Athens is big, 4.3 million people, 1/3 of all Greeks. Athens was occupied by Romans 200 BC to 200 AD, Byzantines to 1453, Turks to 1821, and finally liberated.

 

DAY 14, WEDNESDAY, MAY 28

Optional day cruise to the islands of Aegina, Hydra, and Poros. Good lunch, long cruise. Hydra best because of no traffic. Aegina is known for Pistachio nuts. Poros had the Clock Tower and we took the picture shown below.

 

DAY 15, THURSDAY, MAY 29

Toured the Acropolis, a sanctuary to Athena in Corinthian architecture, with a theater, the Parthenon, and the Erechtheum with its Porch of Maidens. One of the original maidens is in the museum.  The Parthenon was once (or twice) used to store gun powder and the Venetians blew it up with their artillery. The word Acropolis is from Acra and Polis, Top and City, and it is the top of this city!

 

  

 

Saw the bare hill where Paul preached to the Greeks.

 

Other sights were the Theseum, Roman Temple of Zeus, Theater of Dionysus, and the Agora where Socrates taught. Greece had many great teachers and philosophers who had a tremendous impact on the education system we now use, but that is not a tourist thing. Also had vistas of the Royal Palace, government buildings, and elegant homes. The Greek Orthodox churches do not use stained glass.

Shopped at the Plaka and rested at McDonalds!

Optional farewell dinner. We toured by the Pireas harbor first. During the meal we had an outstanding evening view of the Acropolis.

Left next morning, but not before viewing the city from the roof garden of the Zafolia Hotel.

     

 

DAY 16, FRIDAY, MAY 30

Flew to Frankfurt. Got there late and missed our flight to Washington, so took one to Chicago. Mildred lost her bag. In Chicago we stayed at the Hilton Airport Hotel.

 

DAY 17, SATURDAY, MAY 31

Flew back to Raleigh. There were many lost bags. Sort of a tough beginning and ending to this trip, but overall it was enjoyable and we were in a very interesting group. Had a good time.