Trains, Planes and the Italian Police

I'm back...gone a bit longer than anticipated but home at last! I had every intention of posting great pictures from my adventures; however, my backpack with two cameras, my wallet with all my credit cards, money, Polish residency card, Minnesota driver's license and, yes, my passport were stolen as we were waiting to clear security at the Pisa airport. I was devastated to say the least. After frantic attempts to reach Craig, he managed to fly into Florence late the same evening so we could get to the American Consulate for an appointment the next day. A couple of hours later I raised my right hand and was issued a temporary passport. I will have to travel to Krakow Poland to get a permanent passport in the near future.

I wasn't able to get a reasonable flight out until the following Tuesday so Craig and I had an unplanned four-day holiday in Florence. The weather really cooperated so we were able to walk all around Florence and capture some great shots. We went to a gallery to see Michelangelo's "David". To say it is impressive is truly an understatement. We visited some incredible cathedrals and churches and feasted on Italian foods and drank plenty of chianti. Because of my circumstance I needed to get my hands on a new wallet and purse. Hmmmm....can you say Italian leather???? Needless to say I will never have a purse without a shoulder strap again!!! My wallet is soft, smells wonderful but is depressingly empty! I don't even have pictures of my kids or the two-dollar bill my mom gave me when I left for college in 1975.

Enough of the depressing stuff....want to hear about my trip?

Here is a quick breakdown:

Day 1: Frankfurt, Germany
Days 2 - 6: Venice Italy
Days 7 - 9: Briere Switzerland
Days 10 - 13: Annency France
Days 14 - 18: Florence Italy (with a side trip to Siena Italy)
Post-theft days: Florence Italy (with a return trip to Pisa to fly home)

With the exception of Venice, the trip was a "girls only" holiday. Our husbands flew with us to Venice where we thoroughly enjoyed the kick-off weekend of the Venice Carnivale. This is the equivalent of Mardi Gras. Valerie and I bought some kick-butt masks and were the subject of hundreds of photographs. It was like being surrounded by the paparazzi. The costumes people wore were incredible!!! Craig took some great shots and I had downloaded a hundred or so pictures before he left Venice so we do have some pictures I will post later.

Valerie and I took a train from Venice to Switzerland where we stayed with some friends of hers. Switzerland is amazingly beautiful. We had snow for two days so we weren't able to drive through the Alps because of road closures but we did have an opportunity to drive to Montreux which is the site of an annual jazz festival. Montreux rarely gets dumped on with snow but the day we visited a meter of snow fell!!! Evidently they hadn't received that much snow in over 10 years! Definitely a city I would visit again! Craig and I are planning on a train trip through the Swiss Alps later this spring or summer. My new Swiss friends have extended an invitation to stay with them and join us on this adventure. How blessed I am to have met two great, new friends!

Time for another train trip from Geneva to France. I had always romanticized train travel in Europe. After spending nearly 20 hours on trains during the course of my holiday that notion has changed. Ok...it was cool but it really was like being on an airplane except you had two people seated across from you, staring you in the eye! One of the trains we were on was capable of going 200 kilometers/hour. Pretty amazing - felt like we were standing still.

The weather wasn't as cooperative in France - a bit on the cold side - but we had a great visit with some friends we met in Wrocław. The road directly behind their house was part of a recent Tour de France which she said was incredible to watch. She said the riders were like blurs as they raced down the road. The sunsets from her house were beautiful (wish I could show you a picture)!!! France is definitely beautiful. I think I've convinced Craig to give Paris a shot now.

Another train brought us to Florence which was the beginning of the end to our vacation. Great city, lots to see and has an American Consulate right on the river!

Some general observations:

- Italian men our everything you imagine with the exception of the three scumbags who took my backpack.
- You pay a per/person service charge to sit at a table in Italy.
- If I hear one more loud, American college student using "like" every third word I will cry.
- Always "compost" your train ticket before boarding the train in Italy. It will cost an additional five Euros if you don't.
- NEVER, NEVER, NEVER pick up dropped change in a crowded airport unless you have a firm grip on everything valuable.
- ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS carry a copy of your passport and birth certificate when travelling. Important note: Don't carry them in the same purse, backpack or suitcase.
- When you are lost, in a hurry and confused it is guaranteed the person you ask for help will not speak English.
- Italy is for lovers - and they don't care who is watching!
- Don't plan on shopping in Italy between the hours of noon and three. Everything is closed.
- Be thankful you have someone who loves you enough to drop everything and fly blindly to a foreign country to dry tears, bring money and buy you new underwear when you didn't pack enough for an extended stay.

I promise to post some pictures as soon as I get them downloaded from Craig's computer. They are worth the wait!!!

Special thanks to mom and dad for taking an early morning call and contacting the bank and credit card companies for me. I guess the kids may leave the house but you are never really rid of them, huh????