warning: its a long one!
Began check in as soon as we landed @ 9:30am and had a LMM room, 15-20m later recieved confirmation the room was ready and got upgraded to a Cars Suite. So when we got to the hotel we went straight to the room. Bypassed check in. Took an uber xl, ride (10:02 - 10:23) was quick and efficient, a silent trip.
After unpacking we went to the in resort restaurant Landscape of Flavors. We had chicken strips (3/5 decent nothing special), impossible burger (3.5/5), sesame chicken (3/5), and tandoori chicken (4/5). Lunch was easy and simple.[$68~]
We traveled via Bus (20m wait) directly to Disney Springs to purchase Memory Maker at the Guest Service building [Military Discount, $98+ tax, otherwise we would have gotten it at package purchase] we perused World of Disney, Uniqlo, and Volcolm. We stopped at Marketplace Snack and had the Minnie Sweet Strawberry Sundae [$9~] that 3 of us shared. We made our way back with Disney Transportation again (10m wait).
When we got back we took a small rest to put away our Amazon Fresh order I sent to the resort, before heading to the pool. We swam for about 2 hours before getting ready for dinner. We took the skyliner to Disney Boardwalk Resort where we ate at Big River Grille and Brewing Works [$89~]. Our first choice was Tratoria al Forno, but the wait was 45m and we didnt want to be out all night. We had the Cajun Pasta (4.8/5), Chicken (3/5)/Beef (2.5/5) Brew Nachos, and the kids Macaroni and Cheese Meal (👍). We visited the general store and then rode the skyliner back to the resort. We were delayed for about 5 minutes randomly. Day 1 complete! 16k Steps.
Day 2 MK (Touring Plan 2 Crowd Level)
Woke up around 6:15am and we were ready and out the door by 6:45. We walked for a few minutes to the bus stop and were 2nd in line for the bus. I secured 7DMT and Jungle Cruise with Genie Plus [$22/pp] at 7:00am. We boarded around 7:20am. We arrived at the entry way and went through security, finally entering the park at 8:00am. We walked down Main Street and took a few photos with the castle and headed over to the fantasy land rope drop area. We waited less than 15m before early entry and then immediately went to the bathroom! (Kids!! lol) we walked on to the teacups, followed by a walk on to the Barnstormer (twice in a row), and then another walk on at Dumbo before 9am. We walked over to Haunted Mansion where it had a 20 posted wait time, but we only had to wait in line long enough to walk through the queue. We redeemed our ILL at 7DMT. We same wait as before, just as long as it took to get through the queue. We took a quick break for Breakfast at Sleepy Hallow. We mobile ordered the Funnel cake with strawberries and whipped cream (4.5/5), and the Fruit & Nutella Waffle (4.5/5). [$18~]
Next we went used G+ for Jungle Cruise. Standby was 45m, we walked on to the boat immediately after scanning our magic bands. After redeeming that I got another G+ for Pirates of the Carribean 15m later. We stopped for about 15 minutes to enjoy some ice cream at Sunshine Tree Terrace. Pretty standard fare, I really loved the Citrus Swirl. Would recommend [$18~]. We scanned into Pirates and I got a G+ for the festival of fantasy parade that was happening at 12. This was an ill used Lightning Lane for our crowd level. We got a spot by on the balcony at the Main Street train station. We waited for 30m for the parade, but honestly we could have waited for 10m for the spot we got.
As soon as the parade passed us we got on the monorail to the Contemporary Resort for our lunch ADR at Steakhouse 71 at 1:15pm. Wait was minimal, and the atmosphere was very swanky, but not off putting. We enjoyed the Stackburger (4.5 & 4.7/5), the Steak Frites (4.5/5), and the kids Grilled Chicken ("very juicy" 👍) [$96~]. We took a lyft ($17~) back to our resort and took a rest at 3:00pm.
We planned to go back to Magic Kingdom around 6pm, as I had stacked some Lightning Lanes, but the rain, sore knees, and hungry bellies decided for us to just enjoy some pizza and breadsticks (3.5/5)[$19~] and movies in the room for the rest of the day. We turned in around 9pm to get another early start for tomorrow at Hollywood Studios. Day 2 complete 13k Steps.
Day 3 DHS/MK (Touring Plans 3/3 Crowd Level)
Got in line for the skyliner around 6:45am and made it to DHS easily. Rope Dropped Mickey & Minnies Runaway Railway and we were on one of the first cars. It was very cute, we loved the dance studio scene. We made our way through Toy Story land and walked on Toy Story Mania. We went on to Galaxy's Edge for Rise of the Resistance, Smugglers Run, and Breakfast.
At 7am I secured a ILL for ROR @ 9:15 ($22/pp). We checked in a few minutes early and it was great! The Honda Onakka animatronic was not working, and only some of Kylo were working, but the ride was awesome, I felt really immersed.
We rode Millennium Falcon Smugglers Run (G+ 9:30) and it was also really good! I was worried I'd get motion sick, but i did okay, even with a 6 year old pilot (🫠). I booked a LL for Slinky Dog Dash for 6pm, I ended up canceling it later because we were pretty much done at the park by then. (Yes, I tried modifying to an earlier time, but no such luck). We had breakfast Ronto Wraps, and were impressed! (4.5/5)
We moved on to Frozen Sing-a-long which was very funny and a nice break from the heat. Then we got a Strawberry Funnel Cake from Epic Eats (4.5/5) before waiting a few minutes to see Chip and Dale. We walked around Galaxy's Edge again just shopping for merch before leaving the park around 12:30. We took a swim for about an hour, then a snack break and a nap, before heading out to Magic Kingdom for fireworks we had missed the night before.
This evening was a whirlwind of stacked lightning lanes and being herded like cattle. We ate dinner at Pecos Bill. Pork Carnitas Nachos (2.5/5), Beef Tacos (2.5/5). We caught the Friendship Faire Cavalcade as we left, very cool to see newer characters.
We rode Under the Sea, met Ariel, met Mickey, and got assorted snacks before the fireworks. We got a spot about halfway down Main Street and OMG! Happily Ever After is so good! The castle projections were beautiful but the building projections on Main Street were MAGICAL. The song selection was awesome and I teared up a few times. Even my husband was impressed, and he generally doesn't care for fireworks shows. We were sardines from our spot to the hub grass and scooted onto Tommorowland for Buzz Lightyear. Then to Fantasyland for Peter Pans Flight. We had a LL for Big Thunder Mountain, but we saw lightning in the clouds and decided it was time to go back to the hotel. Luckily we made it on yo the bus right away and were back at the resort by 10:40. We got some burgers and chicken strips to devour back in the room and went to bed around 11:30. Day 3 Complete! 20k Steps.
Dat 4 Rest Day...Kind of. AK (Touring Plans 4 Crowd Level)
We slept in until 8am! Mostly just lounged around until 9am, so we could get ready for our breakfast at Topolinos Terrace at 10:30am. We checked in about 15m early, but our table wasn't ready until 10:50. We had the Quiche Gruyère (5/5), 2 Eggs (3.5/5), and Kids Fruit & Yogurt (👍). The pastry bucket was very good, the croissants were perfect.
We met all the characters and it was good. Honestly a little underwhelming. We were there 1 hour and the characters only came to our table once. Idk if thats a common thing, but it was still alright.
Next we took a short rest before meeting a cast member friend of ours at Animal Kingdom at 2pm. We did Kilamanjaro Safari, Festival of the Lion King, Expedition Everest, Gorilla Trail, Its tough to be a bug, and had lunch at Flame Tree BBQ (3/5). We did some light shopping before leaving around 6:30pm. We snagged a pizza from Landscape of Flavors and turned in semi-early. I booked a last minute Boma breakfast for tomorrow morning. Day 4 Complete! 17k Steps
Day 5 AK/MK (Touring Plans 3/1 Crowd Level) Mother's Day
We started the day off eating at Animal Kingdom Lodge at Boma. We liked the breakfast selection, and I ordered a mimosa (duh, it's mother's day!). The food was good but nothing amazing, a solid 3.5/5. We went to Animal Kingdom after that to relax and we visited Rafikis Planet Watch. There we walked around, pet the animals, and sketched Todd, from "The Fox and the Hound". We stopped for a few cold treats, before heading back to the hotel room to swim and relax before meeting back up with my dad (who left for Tampa Friday afternoon). We ate at 'Ohana, and felt overstuffed. If only we knew we could take leftovers back home with us. The meal was good, but not mind blowing like everyone says IMO. 4/5. Since we were at the Polynesian we took the monorail into MK to watch the fireworks. Honestly, I don't even remember what we did between 6pm to 9pm, but it was a relaxing time just people watching until the Fireworks. Watched it again just to take Dad with us. We booked it to the. busses and got on right away and went straight to bed right around 10pm. Day 5 complete. 12k Steps!
Day 6 Epcot (Touring Plans 4 Crowd Level)
We got up and got on the skyliner for early entry. As soon as they let us in, we rushed over to Remys, it was very cute, didn't feel motion sickness. We walked through the pavilions and took plenty of pictures in an empty park. We got in line to meet Anna and Elsa, Rode Frozen then we went back to France for breakfast at Les Halles. 5/5.
We walked back and forth around World Celebration and did Turtle Talk, Soarin, Test Track, and Guardians. I was nervous about GOTG because I'm not a big rollercoaster person, but it was super fun, and I didn't experience any motion sickness. We ate around World Showcase F&G booths and then left for the day around 6pm. My party was pooped. We went back to the room and passed out. Some of us ate leftovers and some of us just slept through the night. Day 6 complete. 22k Steps!!
Day 7, Last Park Day MK/ DHS/ Epcot (Touring Plans 3/4/2 Crowd Level)
We were going to try for a 4 park challenge but AK got us! Why do they have to close so early?
Breakfast ADR in Cinderella Castle was very cute, and very expensive, but this was our first time and we wanted to splurge on the big once in a lifetime stuff. The food was good but not great. 3.5/5. The princesses came around once each since it was very busy. But they stayed as long as it took to speak with the group and take a few pictures. I won't be doing it again, just because its so expensive. We wanted to hit all of our favorites so we got a ILL for 7DMT, and a G+ BTMRR, so we rode those, met Tiana and Rapunzel and headed over to DHS for 2pm park hopping. We got a LL for SDD & MF:SR before eating a quick lunch at Woody's Lunch box. 3.5/5. We made the decision to eat instead of rushing to Animal Kingdom then back to Epcot. So we took the boat from DHS to Epcot. We had about 45m to kill so we rode Living with the land, Nemo, and chilled out in the aquarium. We made our way over to GOTG (ILL) and then decided we had enough. It was 6:30pm and we had missed our chance to hop to AK. We rode the skyliner back to AOA and promptly passed out. I was thinking back on our day and should have scheduled GOTG later then we could have made AK, but traveling all day with no rest with a 6 year old and a 60 year old was not an ideal situation.
We all woke up around 9pm and got some burgers from LoF at the resort watched 1/2 a movie then went to bed peacefully knowing we had no alarms, rope drops, Lightning Lanes, or Virtual Queues to join at the butt crack of dawn.
Day 7 Complete. 21k Steps!
Day 8, Departure Day We woke up at a leisurely 9am to get our room emptied out, and packed up. Around 10am we left and set aside things we didnt need. I joined a Facebook "Disney Pass It On" site where you can post the stuff you're leaving (Ponchos, Stroller, Balloon, Water, etc...) and some other family can pick it up and maybe pass it on to a different family when they leave. We dropped the rest of our bags off with Bell Services.
Rode the bus to Magic Kingdom, then the monorail to the poly. We had lots of time to leisure so we shopped a bit before we had breakfast at Ohana, oh man, this is the meal to go to! Simply made delicious breakfast staples, plus All you can eat, PLUS characters! 5/5 for me. :)
We took the bus from the Poly to Disney Springs to do more souvineer shopping, plus to say goodbye to our Cast Member friend who works at Disney Springs.
We wanted to go swimming but just to be on the safe side we left early for the airport. TSA was super quick and easy. We had a mediocre lunch, don't even recall the name of the place, and boarded our plane.
The ride was bumpy because of some incoming rainy weather but we landed safely right on schedule.
8 days, 7 nights, 5 park days 134k~ Steps (25 mi /41 km)
I'm sure I left out a lot, but all in all we had a great first trip and me and my daughter are ready to go back ( Currently in the queue to book vacations for 2024).
I'm working on a post trip report on a google spreadsheet with all the costs and a timeline and when I get that done I'll share it as well.
Feel free to ask any questions.

Hello, my girlfriend and I are excited to be vacationing in Italy for two weeks in August. We will be going to Rome, Florence, and Venice. We'll also be going to Bibione for a just few days and hang out at the beach and decompress.
First let's get this out of the way. Yes, we know it will be hot. Yes, we know there will be a lot of tourists. We live in New York City which has comparable heat in August, with the added discomfort of higher humidity than what Italy will apparently have.
That said, we are planning to go to heavy tourist areas early in the morning to avoid the crowds, and museums/galleries in the afternoons to avoid the heat.
Below is our itinerary, and we're wondering if any Italians or seasoned tourists could kindly review and provide any critiques or alternative or additional recommendations to what we currently have planned. Thank you kindly!
Day 1: We arrive in Rome early morning, and plan on a more leisurely day of random exploration. Likely head over to Testaccio, try a Trapizzino, and explore. I'm also hoping to go to Hollywood tutto sul Cinema, a movie poster shop sometime in the afternoon (I love cinema, so any further recommendations around Italian film would be great). We are also planning on going to Seu Pizza Illuminati for dinner.
Day 2: We have early morning tickets for the Colosseum. We will be doing the full guided tour including the arena floor, followed by a walk through Roman Forum/Palatine Hill. For lunch, we were thinking Forno Campo de' Fiori and Mr. 100 Tiramisu. In the afternoon we are planning to go to Borghese Gallery & Museum to escape the heat. I've been having a difficult time finding tickets for the Borghese Gallery. Are tickets not yet available for August? For dinner, we are planning on going to Cuoco & Camicia, and then cocktails at Drink Kong.
Day 3: In the morning, we are planning to do Curia di Pompeo, Piazza Navona, Trevi Fountain, and Spanish Steps. We then are planning on lunch on the early-side at Cantina e Cucina. Afterwords, we'll head over to the Pantheon, and maybe grab gelato at Frigidarium. In the afternoon, we are planning to get tickets for the National Gallery of Ancient Art in Barberini Palace. Dinner we are planning to go to Roscioli Salumeria con Cucina.
Day 4: Our last full day in Rome, we plan on going to the Vatican City and seeing St. Peter’s Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Museum. For lunch we are planning to go to Romane nearby the Vatican. No plans for the afternoon so we might just keep it casual. For dinner we plan on going to Casalino Osteria Kosher with my aunt and uncle who will also be in Rome at the same time. Afterwards, we might go to Ma Che Siete Venuti a Fà for some craft beer
Day 5: We then will take a train to Florence in the morning and check into the hotel late morning/noon and grab lunch at Sergio Pollini Lampredotto for some Lampredotto sandwiches. In the afternoon we've booked tickets to the Accademia. For dinner we're planning on going to La Buchetta Food & Wine Restaurant.
Day 6: We'll take a train up to Modena early morning as we have a lunch reservation at Osteria Francescana. We'll walk around Modena for a little, but probably head back to Florence right after we finish lunch. For dinner, we're planning a late meal at Lo Scudo.
Day 7: Early morning we'll go to the Duomo, climb the Duomo, and Giotto Tower, check out, Ponte Vecchio, Santa Trinita Bridge and Lungarno Acciaiuoli, Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, etc. If we start by around 8am I'm hoping we can be done by around 11am so that we can do a self-guided sandwich tour and hit up All’Antico Vinaio, I' Girone De' Ghiotti, and SandwiChic before the lines get long (my girlfriend and I will be splitting sandwiches). In the afternoon we'll cool down by going to the Uffizi Gallery. For dinner we are planning on going to Osteria dell'Enoteca.
Day 8: Likely a more casual, play-by-ear day, we'll go to Piazzale Michelangelo and Giarrdino delle Rose early morning, followed by Medici Chapel. Only other plan is dinner at Regina Bisteca.
Curious to know which bistecca fiorentina people here prefer between Regina Bisteca, Osteria dell'Enoteca and Trattoria dall'Oste Chianineria
Day 9: Another casual day, open to some recommendations. Might do some wine tastings at Enoteca Alessi. For dinner, we are meeting with my parents and some family friends at Ristorante Il Profeta Firenze
Day 10: We head to Venice in the morning and check into the hotel. Unsure about lunch plans, but might go to St. Marks Square, Saint Mark’s Basilica, Rialto Bridge, Mercato di Rialto, although alternatively we might save that for an early morning since they will likely be crowded by the time we get there. For dinner we are planning to go to Al Covo.
Day 11: We plan on going to some of the nearby islands such as Burano and Murano and go to Trattoria “Da Romano” for lunch. For dinner, we'll head back to the island, where we plan on going to Algiubagio.
Day 12: Nothing planned this day, any recommendations are welcome. Might just bounce around and drink wine and eat cicchetti. Might check out Caffè Florian just for the historical value. Maybe slot in a historical walking tour.
Afterwards we'll be going to Bibione and meet up with my parents and just relax at the beach, so we don't have any real activities planned. Any restaurants at Bibione would be welcomed.

This is my third trip to Italy but first for my wife and two daughters (ages 9 and 13). Since we have the kids with us, I have not scheduled many dinners too late at night and tried to avoid anything too fancy, although both kids are good eaters, like their dad. Also did not want to jam the itinerary with tours, as they might get a little bored. If there are good parks or fun things to do for them in any of the areas, that would be helpful.
I am not putting the hotel names because they are already booked and paid for and I am terrified someone here will say "no don’t stay there, terrible!" Lol, I will put the locations.
So take a look and if something jumps out as right or wrong, or if there is something nearby I am missing, please let me know.
Grazie mille!
Day 1: Rome-Orvieto-Florence. Arrive Rome 10:50 am, pick up rental car and drive to Locanda Orvieto Agriturismo for our first meal in Italy at 2 pm. Devour pasta and tartufo bianco, take a stroll around the farm.
Travel on to Florence, check into hotel 5 pm or so. Hotel is along the Arno, Via Baccio Bandinelli 98.
Dinner reservation at Antico Ristoro di CambiVia Sant'Onofrio (within walking distance of hotel)
Day 2: Florence.
After a long day of traveling, leisurely morning exploring the city, lunch reservation at Cibrèo Trattoria (Il Cibreino), Via dei Macci, 122r, 50122 Florence.
Afternoon swim at the hotel, visit Duomo and Santa Maria Novella, more exploring. Dinner at 8 pm La Busola (pizza and lasagna)
Day 3: Florence
10 A.M. Guided tour of Uffizzi Gallery (1.5 hours)
Continue exploring museum on our own before lunch at Centro Mercato, where we will pick up some items for the next part of the trip.
Shopping and afternoon swim, a few negroni before dinner at 7:30 pm - Osteria La Pescatoria
Day 4: Florence to Montalcino (~1.5 hr)
Leave Florence by car, 9 a.m.
Arrive 11 am - Vineyard Tour & Tasting at Poggio di Sotto, Castelnuovo Dell'Abate, Montalcino (1.5 hours)
1:30 pm – lunch at Boccon DiVino on the terrace overlooking Montalcino.
Walk around Montalcino, wine shopping at Fortezza Enoteca.
Drive to Monteguidi, near Casole d’Elso
Dinner in Casole d’Elsa?
Day 5: I mie cinquante compleanno
Breakfast at home at the agroturismo, morning walk, explore Casole d’elsa
Lunch: Il Colombaio Restaurant and Pizzeria, Casole d'Elsa
Afternoon poolside spritzes and rose until dinner prepared by Agroturismo host
Day 6: Siena
Cathedral/explore Sienna, possibly "hidden siena" tour
Need Lunch and Dinner plans either in or around Siena
Day 7: Drive to Rome/Flight to Catania
Maybe a lunch near Fiumicino, 4 pm flight
Day 8-11: Catania. Staying at a friend’s apartment, so have left most of the planning to her, but would love to hear any thoughts on Catania or in Sicily.
Day 12: Catania to Rome
Arrive Rome 9 am
Drop bags at hotel, which is across from the Borghese and just down from the Piazza del Popola.
Lunch options near hotel:
· La Vita è Un Mozzico (porchetta, panini, pizza bianco)
· Il Salumaio
· Emma (roman style pizza)
3:30 pm – 7:00 pm Rome Walking Tour (Spaninsh Steps, Trevi, Parthenon and Piazza Navona)
Dinner: Ask guide for reccomendation – maybe pizza or somewhere casual, OR go take a nap and then late dinner
Day 13: Rome
A.M. Explore, maybe Borghese gardens in the morning, walk toward lunch at Forno campo d’fiori (get there early for mortadella on pizza bianco)
P.M. Shopping and wandering the eternal city
Dinner – 8:00 pm: Poldo e Gianna Osteria
Day 14: Rome
9:00 A.M. – 12:30 pm: Colloseo, Roman Forum Guided Tour
If starving afterward– Ce Stamo A Pensa nearby for a snack, fried pizza!
1:30 lunch at Grazia & Graziella (I wanted to go into Trestavere but we will not be able to get there to get in line before the lunch rush, I don’t think)
Dinner: 7:30 Romane, Via Cipro 106
Day 15: Return Home

Hi all,
Yesterday I came up with the grand idea to make a pizza oven and have been researching how to make this all work. I came up with a basic design that I pulled from a few areas like YouTube and Forno Bravo but I want to bounce some ideas off of people in order to get what I want. I'll attach a basic sketch I made in CAD (I'm no CAD expert so don't judge) and a few pictures of what I want the final product to look like. My number one question as it stands is how I can make the foundation/base to ensure that it will support the oven as well as looking somewhat decent.
Photo #1 CAD Sketch
Photo #2 kind of the look I want to go for but if it is something incredibly difficult I'm not dead set on it

My husband and I are traveling to Rome (and Venice and Paris) for our anniversary in June. I’m trying to figure out some lunch and dinner options for our last day in Rome.
Lunch options (looking for the best pizza!): Bonci Pizzarium, Emma Pizzeria, Antico Forno Roscioli, Dar Poeta, L’Ementare, Ai Marmi
Dinner options (looking for Rome experience sitting outside!): Da Enzo Al 29, Nannarella, Ombré Rosee

So I recently got back from Italy. Visited Rome, Florence, Siena, San Gingano, Cinque Terre (all 5 towns), Verona & Sirmione (Lake Garde). Here are some tips to save money

1. DONT BUY THE PIZZA SLICE. Opt for the whole pizza instead. Pizza slices cost 5-9 Euros, whole pizza costs from 5-14 Euros. You get a lot more and can save it for the evening / night munchies lol.
2. Buy a Bottle of Wine from Co-op / Carrefour Vs the "decorated wine store of the region" / glass from "Wine dispensaries". It helps if you know the brand / type you want.
3. First Sunday of the Month is free entry. Lines aren't that bad in shoulder season. Make sure you are in Rome or Florence. We visited Uffizi, Academia & 2 more museums in Florence free of cost.
4. In shoulder season (esp Feb-Mar) you dont really need to book the "Skip the queue ticket". The longest we had to wait was 30 mins at the Vatican museum. Everything else was 5-15 mins max.
5. Book train tickets at the Terminals. Apps like Omio have a service fee. Book Bus tickets in advance not on the bus. They are slightly expensive through the driver.
6. GELATOS - yeah they are great, but not all places are created equal. Rule of thumb - if you are paying more than 3 euros (Std cone, smallest size) you are in a touristy place...walk 500mts.
7. VATICAN - (we were confused so..) Entering the City & the Basilica is Free. Top of the dome (highly recommended) is charged and the Museums are charged. In shoulder season DONOT do the skip the line - Its 30 Euros Vs Free (Guided tours donot include the top of the dome)
8. Local Butcher shops and cheese shops are A MUST VISIT!! The most pleasant people, and the best rates. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND Antico Forno Urbani (Rome) - Mauro is amazing!!!
9. MARCATO CENTRALE IN FLORENCE IS EXPENSIVE AND TOURISTY! Loads of Youtube videos recommending you to go there. GO FOR THE INGREDIENTS (Ground floor) NOT THE FOOD (1st Floor). Its overpriced and not that great.
10. Fridge magnets are 1 Euro in Rome they are around 2-4 Euros in other places. Buy from Rome for all your cities.

Hope this helps!

I’m trying to make a homemade pizza with a sweet pepper that is served as a topping at a local pizzeria. The pizzeria just labels them as sweet spicy peppers. Here’s a picture.
Whatever they are, they are very sweet and have almost no spice or heat. The texture is more like a cherry than a typical sweet pepper, maybe from some sort of brine. These may be imported, but I’d be happy with a close-enough substitution. Ideas?
EDIT: SOLVED! They are pepperdews. Thanks, all!

I've been experimenting with Chat GPT, and did some tweaking with adding must see places for Rick Steve's guides. The itinerary is Rome Cinque Terre Florence Venice Rome
Note: This itinerary was tweaked probably with 20 prompt modifications as Chat GPT did some dumb stuff like do (Rome Cinque Terre Florence venice Florence Rome).
I'll also be going with parents who are older which can walk, but not hike long distances, so I'm debating removing Cinque Terre for more day trips from Florence

1. Would be interested to see what ya'll think and what should be tweaked!

-- Chat GPT Generated Itinerary
Day 1: Arrive at FCO airport (Rome), take a train or bus from the airport (approx. 45 minutes - 1 hour) to Rome city center. Check in to your hotel and rest.
Day 2: Spend the morning visiting the Colosseum, the most famous monument of ancient Rome, where gladiatorial contests and public spectacles were held. After that, take a walk to the nearby Palatino, the hill where the emperor's palace was located and explore the ruins of the palace and the Roman Forum.
Day 3: Take an early morning train to Cinque Terre, (approx. 3-4 hours) spend the day exploring the villages and hiking the trails. Visit the villages of Riomaggiore, Manarola, and Vernazza. Stay overnight in Cinque Terre.
Day 4: Begin the day with a hike of the main coast trail from Vernazza to Monterosso, which offers stunning views of the Mediterranean sea and the villages. The hike takes around 2.5-3 hours and involves an elevation gain of around 656 ft (200 meters). Along the way, you can also make stops at the other villages such as Corniglia, and Manarola.
Day 5: Take a train to Florence (approx. 1-1.5 hours), spend the day exploring the city and visiting famous art museums such as the Uffizi Gallery and the Accademia Gallery to see Michelangelo's David. Visit the Ponte Vecchio and the Duomo.
Day 6: Take a train to Venice (approx. 2-3 hours), spend the day exploring the city, starting with St. Mark's Square, home to St. Mark's Basilica, one of the most famous churches in the world. Visit the Doge's Palace, the former residence of the city's rulers, and the Rialto Bridge, one of the most famous landmarks in Venice. Take a gondola ride.
Day 7: Continue exploring Venice, visit the Peggy Guggenheim Collection and the Church of San Giorgio Maggiore. Take a direct train to Rome (approx. 2-3 hours)
Day 8: Spend the morning visiting the Pantheon, an ancient Roman temple turned church, and the Vatican Museums, which house some of the most famous artworks in the world including the Sistine Chapel. In the afternoon, head Catholic Church. After that, visit the Borghese Gallery, which features a collection of masterpieces by Bernini, Raphael, and Caravaggio.
Day 9: Spend the day visiting the National Museum of Rome, which showcases the history and art of ancient Rome. After that, take a stroll to the nearby Campo de' Fiori, a picturesque square where locals gather to have a drink or buy fresh produce. In the evening, enjoy dinner at the popular restaurants such as Felice a Testaccio, known for its traditional Roman cuisine, or Bonci Pizzarium or Trapizzino Trastevere.
Day 10: Visit the Testaccio Market, sample local delicacies, and try some traditional Roman street food. Have lunch or dinner at Felice a Testaccio, a popular restaurant known for its traditional Roman cuisine. Stop by Antico Forno Roscioli Bakery for some delicious pastries before departing from Rome.

I've been experimenting with Chat GPT, and did some tweaking with adding must see places for Rick Steve's guides. The itinerary is Rome Cinque Terre Florence Venice Rome
Note: This itinerary was tweaked probably with 20 prompt modifications as Chat GPT did some dumb stuff like do (Rome Cinque Terre Florence venice Florence Rome).
I'll also be going with parents who are older which can walk, but not hike long distances, so I'm debating removing Cinque Terre for more day trips from Florence

1. Would be interested to see what ya'll think and what should be tweaked!

-- Chat GPT Generated Itinerary
Day 1: Arrive at FCO airport (Rome), take a train or bus from the airport (approx. 45 minutes - 1 hour) to Rome city center. Check in to your hotel and rest.
Day 2: Spend the morning visiting the Colosseum, the most famous monument of ancient Rome, where gladiatorial contests and public spectacles were held. After that, take a walk to the nearby Palatino, the hill where the emperor's palace was located and explore the ruins of the palace and the Roman Forum.
Day 3: Take an early morning train to Cinque Terre, (approx. 3-4 hours) spend the day exploring the villages and hiking the trails. Visit the villages of Riomaggiore, Manarola, and Vernazza. Stay overnight in Cinque Terre.
Day 4: Begin the day with a hike of the main coast trail from Vernazza to Monterosso, which offers stunning views of the Mediterranean sea and the villages. The hike takes around 2.5-3 hours and involves an elevation gain of around 656 ft (200 meters). Along the way, you can also make stops at the other villages such as Corniglia, and Manarola.
Day 5: Take a train to Florence (approx. 1-1.5 hours), spend the day exploring the city and visiting famous art museums such as the Uffizi Gallery and the Accademia Gallery to see Michelangelo's David. Visit the Ponte Vecchio and the Duomo.
Day 6: Take a train to Venice (approx. 2-3 hours), spend the day exploring the city, starting with St. Mark's Square, home to St. Mark's Basilica, one of the most famous churches in the world. Visit the Doge's Palace, the former residence of the city's rulers, and the Rialto Bridge, one of the most famous landmarks in Venice. Take a gondola ride.
Day 7: Continue exploring Venice, visit the Peggy Guggenheim Collection and the Church of San Giorgio Maggiore. Take a direct train to Rome (approx. 2-3 hours)
Day 8: Spend the morning visiting the Pantheon, an ancient Roman temple turned church, and the Vatican Museums, which house some of the most famous artworks in the world including the Sistine Chapel. In the afternoon, head Catholic Church. After that, visit the Borghese Gallery, which features a collection of masterpieces by Bernini, Raphael, and Caravaggio.
Day 9: Spend the day visiting the National Museum of Rome, which showcases the history and art of ancient Rome. After that, take a stroll to the nearby Campo de' Fiori, a picturesque square where locals gather to have a drink or buy fresh produce. In the evening, enjoy dinner at the popular restaurants such as Felice a Testaccio, known for its traditional Roman cuisine, or Bonci Pizzarium or Trapizzino Trastevere.
Day 10: Visit the Testaccio Market, sample local delicacies, and try some traditional Roman street food. Have lunch or dinner at Felice a Testaccio, a popular restaurant known for its traditional Roman cuisine. Stop by Antico Forno Roscioli Bakery for some delicious pastries before departing from Rome.

My wife and I just got back from a fantastic trip in Naples, and since we made our plan partly with info from this sub, I thought I'd share what we learned with other tourists. Hopefully this can be a useful compilation of advice from here and elsewhere - though I can only speak to the places we visited and not all of Campania.

Isn't Naples dangerous? How many times did you get robbed, pickpocketed, swindled, assaulted, or murdered?

The worst thing that happened to me was that I stepped in some dog poop in Chiaia. So keep an eye out for that.

Summary

Naples has become one of my favorite cities. Imagine the energy of New York and Taipei added together and jammed into a package where "pre-war building" refers to the Napoleonic Wars. Naples is so much more than a stop on the way to Amalfi. You should go.
General tips:

• Do not trust Google Maps for opening times. If the location doesn't have a website, you can sometimes check the Google Maps page to see the activity. When there is no one there is means it's closed, no matter what the hours say.
  
• Most things open late, rather than early. Most restaurants will open for dinner between 7 PM and midnight or later. About half also open for lunch between 12 and 3:30 or thereabouts. Shops tend to be closed during this lunch time. If a restaurant is open outside of these hours, it may only be serving wine, or it's a tourist trap.
  
• Many places open 30-60 minutes late, and close 15-30 minutes early.
  
• Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday are common days for places to be closed. Plan ahead - these are good days to go on a trip out of town.
  
• Download offline Maps and Italian translation data for your phone. You will get no signal indoors in most places, and wifi is not common. The cheapest SIM card we found cost 25 euro (10 activation + 15 for data) at the TIM store in Napoli Centrale, so if you have a European SIM card already from another trip, don't throw it out to avoid the extra fee.
  
• There are a lot of fake, unofficial websites that try to sell you overpriced guided tours. You will know if a website is official because it is ugly and does not load.
  
• Bring a lot of water.
  

Things to do

Naples is so chock-full of destinations that it would be hard to cover everything in detail. These are the major areas of the city and nearby areas that might attract you:

• Centro storico: The historical city center. You will find it difficult not to end up here at some point. The historical city center is where the majority of the tourists (and tourist traps) go, but you can also enjoy it without spending any money by visiting the beautiful medieval churches here. Despite the twisty and narrow medieval streets, it's also where the city's motorbikes, mopeds, and the occasional car go to take a shortcut - so watch out for that. Highlights: Santa Chiara (a lovely monastery and cloister), Capella Sansevero (statue of Veiled Christ is here). Lowlights: Treasures of St Gennaro (overpriced), Palazzo Venezia (not an actual museum).
  
• Lungomare: The waterfront is where you'll find some castles and the royal palace. The views of Vesuvius are excellent from here, especially from the ramparts of Castel dell'Ovo, but aside from the Palazzos this is not a high priority destination. We couldn't get into the national library due to a language barrier with the entry guy (I think there are timed guided tours?) or into Castel Nuovo (it has timed entry with strict capacity, book ahead if you want to go). Highlights: Palazzo Reale, Palazzo Zevallos if you like art. Lowlights: Basilica Reale Pontifica (it was boarded up and derelict), Galleria Umberto (the glass roof is pretty but the shops are lame).
  
• Chiaia: Fantastic opportunities to buy some very expensive things, which I'll cover later. Don't miss the Museo Pignatelli at the west end of the neighborhood for a lovely little villa, carriage museum, and a couple of curious cats living on the park grounds. If you're overwhelmed by the crowds of Naples, this area is much quieter.
  
• Vomero: Take the cable car or walk up the San Martino Stairs if you have legs of steel. The views from Vomero hill are unmatched. Go later in the day, as the dinner options are far better than the lunch ones. Highlights: San Martino monastery and cloister, Villa Floridiana park. Lowlights: Duca di Martina museum (entry is free but the collection is underwhelming).
  
• North Naples: This is not the 'real' name of the area, but I bundle everything between the archaeological museum and Capodimonte here because it's more sparse than the others. It's also quieter, and there are a lot of opportunities to buy traditional goods here. The newest archeological excavation - Ipogeo dei Cristallini - is here as well, but we didn't go due to the steep price (25 euro!). Highlights: Museo Archeologico Nationale (don't miss the Magna Grecia exhibit), Real Bosco di Capodimonte, Orto Botanico do Napoli (it looks closed but ring the bell insistently and the guards will admit you). Lowlights: The pain of walking up Capodimonte.
  
• Caserta: A nice day trip inland from Naples to see the much larger Royal Palace there and its expansive park. I recommend going first thing in the morning (it opens at 8:30), exiting the train from Platform 1, walking up the park via the left side to not miss La Castelluccia, then doing a lap of the English Garden and walking back to see the palace before the sun is too high up. It took us 3 hours to see the park; if you're in a rush you can see just the north part of the English Garden (between Rudei de Templo Italico and the lake) and an hour for the palace itself. This is a good place to go on a Sunday, since it is not as swarmed as more well-known sites would be.
  
• Pompeii: You don't need me to tell you what this is. Come right when it opens and see the Temple of Isis area before the tour groups get there. A bunch of passages such as the one to Villa dei Misteri were closed off for seemingly no reason. If you love ruins don't miss out on Oplontis and Villa Regina. There is an EAV bus that goes to Vesuvius from the main entrance and the Piazza Immacolata entrance - pay 3.60 one way (exact change). We spent 3 hours here and could have easily spent one or two more.
  
• Herculaneum: It's worth seeing even if you've already been to Pompeii. It's much better preserved and less crowded, but still go early. We spent 2 hours here. If you want to see Vesuvius, it may be better to pair it with Herculaneum than Pompeii - take the train two stops past Erolacno to Torre del Greco and hop on the tourist bus departing from there.
  
• Vesuvius: The signal on the mountain is awful, so get your timed tickets in advance - it can and does sell out, especially on weekends. The bus ride up is fun in a roller coaster kind of way. Just make sure you don't miss the bus back down... Also it is closed on different days of the week than Pompeii is, so if you want to visit both at once, plan ahead.
  

Eating

Neapolitan cuisine has only one weakness - the hours. Our hotel was centrally located so we could easily go back for an afternoon nap before heading out for dinner, but you may find yourself killing time before your dinner options open their doors.
Restaurants charge a few euro "cover fee" - coperto. We typically paid a total of around 35 euro for a complete meal (a few dishes, water, wine, sometimes dessert) at normal trattorias, the kind of place where 1/4L of house wine is 2-3 euro and tastes divine. The more expensive menus were rarely tastier.
Sit-down meals: La Cantina di via Sapienza (one of the only restaurants with a good selection of vegetables beyond a side of broccoli rabe or eggplant parm), Re Lazzarone, Taverna dell'Arte, La Chitarra, Starita (appears on everyone's top pizza list for a reason), Trattoria Antica Capri (get the pasta e fagioli alla pescatora), Mimi alla Ferrovia, Pizzeria Salvo. Avoid Tandem ragu - you can get better Neapolitan ragu and pasta genovese anywhere else.
Snacks/standing meals: Sorbillo (the main one has a huge line, find another location), Lello delle Granite. For pastries - Carraturo, Antico Forno Attanasio, Scaturchio - although we never had a bad pastry (try sfogliatella riccia and frolla, caprese cake, delizia al limone, baba au rhum). For gelato, Valenti, Fantasia, or Mennella are good and IMO better than Casa Infante. All the cuoppo places are largely the same (good). You can also just buy some snacking mozzarella from the salumerias in Centro Storico. Macelleria e Hamburgheria D'Ausilio Raffaele is incredible (it's also a butcher shop, the burger service starts at 7 PM).
Coffee: It's Italy, go anywhere. Most cafes will also do an absolutely delicious fresh orange juice. Despite what you may have heard, Campagnian lemons are not sweet enough to drink their juice straight, but most juice stands will do a mix of orange and lemon that's the perfect level of tartness.
Drinks: Naples has a burgeoning cocktail scene (Ex Salumeria, Flanagan's) but you can order a Negroni or a spritz anywhere (not a martini, as it is not actually Italian, and make sure to specify martini cocktail if you do order it or you will get only vermouth). Just don't buy the 1 euro spritzes off the street. Libreria Berisio was a bit of a disappointment in this respect. For beer, instead of ordering Peroni go to OAK Napoli. You can get good wine anywhere - but the most budget move is to go somewhere like Salumeria Ruocco or Alimentari Coscia to pick up an 8 euro bottle of amazing wine and cheese/meat snacks to go along with it. For dessert, many restaurants will offer powerful grappa or amari. Stick to limoncello if you don't have the stomach for adventure.

Shopping

Leaving Naples is not so painful when you can bring some of it with you. One note: when trying on clothes (especially leather), you want them to be a bit tight, as they do not come pre-stretched in Italy like they do elsewhere.
Food: Antica Freselleria Di Paolo (it doesn't look like a store but it is, ask the bakers to open the storefront for you) or Antico Tarallificio Popella are great for picking up massive bags of fresh Neapolitan taralli. Consider getting two, as the first bag might disappear piece by piece because you can't resist the taste. The aforementioned salumerias are also a great place to get packaged cheeses and pastas (outside of the tourist areas, they are cheaper). Visit a supermarket like Grangusto to load up on food that's probably really expensive where you live, but really cheap here, like olive oil or lupini beans.
Italian and European clothing brands: Even if you can't get the tax refund at the airport, a lot of shops will give you a discount. Via Toledo is the main street but don't miss out the high end shops in Chiaia, medium-end shops on Vomero and along C.so Umberto I, or vintage shopping on via Mezzonannone.
Local artisans: Look beyond the red pepper accessories and Christmas Alley. There are a lot of local designers selling around Vico San Domenico Maggiore (look up Kiphy Saponi, it's the area around that shop), Strada dell'Anticaglia, and jewelers in Borgo Orefici. Marinella is well-known, but also check out Omega Gloves (it doesn't look like a store but ring the bell and then go up the stairs to their workshop).

Transport

We stayed in a B&B very close to Napoli Central station (at Piazza Garibaldi), which I recommend - it is extremely easy to get to from the airport, and easy to go anywhere from there.
To get there from the airport, we took Alibus - leave the airport and keep walking straight, just follow the direction of the signs. It's a decent walk, especially with luggage. You know you're going the right way when you pass a small parking lot of white taxi vans telling you they are Alibus (they are not Alibus, keep walking). The bus takes credit card (but don't get used to this - it's not the case with any other city bus).
Once in town, you have a lot of options. These are the ones we took during the trip:

• Line 1 (subway): This line runs between Garibaldi and pretty much everywhere you'd want to go. It comes frequently enough. Unfortunately, ticket machines are often broken (leading to massive lines during peak hours) but most stations have one or two turnstiles where you can tap in with a regular credit card. Also there is no cell signal on the platform so bring a book or something.
  
• Line 2: This is a completely separate system from Line 1. You have to buy a ticket at the big red machine marked "bigletti" and then stamp it at the little machine next to it. If you don't stamp it, you can get a massive fine.
  
• Circumvesuviana: This is the train you will use to go to Pompeii and Herculaneum. They run about every 20 minutes ; go downstairs at Napoli Central and follow the signs (at one point the signs flip from pointing up to mean "go forward" to pointing down to mean "go forward"...just keep walking). It's 2.50 to go to Ercolano (for Herculaneum) and 3.00 to go to Pompeii. You can use credit cards here but cool kids bring exact change and don't hold up the line.
  
• FR (commuter rail): This one of the trains that goes to Caserta, along with a bunch of other regional trains like the MET. Make sure you are buying the ticket from the right machine, but I recommend buying it in advance online. We got a bit confused with the signage - turns out "cancello" does not mean "canceled" despite the similarity to the English word, it means "gate." So don't freak out.
  
• Taxis: Called through FreeNOW, Uber, or just by walking up to the local taxi queue present near any tourist attraction. We did not have a great experience with these but they'll get you to a local landmark like a subway station reliably enough, at a premium price.
  
• Walking: By far the best way to experience Naples is to simply hit the bricks (literally - most streets are paved with cobblestone). The neighborhoods are not that big and you're usually no more than 15 minutes from your next destination if you plan things right. Our typical day was around 20,000 steps, and we had plenty of energy from the pizza fritta to cover that distance easily.
  

Would you go back?

Probably! Naples was great, 5 stars. However in nine days we had time to do everything in the city that we wanted to, outside of a couple of small things that we didn't feel strongly enough about to prioritize like Napoli Sotteraneo and the cloister at San Gregorio Armeno. Oplontis was probably the biggest gap. Most of the markers left unchecked on our map were restaurants and bars - turns out that you can't visit 20 different pizza places in one trip. We also didn't do Paestum or Sorrento at all, so if we do go back I can see us doing more of a backpacking thing from Rome (or further north) with a day or two in Naples on the way south and maybe some time to visit the islands (despite the outrageous price of the Capri ferry).

Hi everyone! I'm visiting Rome for the first time in late November for about 2 and a half days with my mum and would really appreciate any feedback on the restaurants and attractions I'm visiting :) I'm a bit worried that there isn't much space between lunch and dinner and that my itinerary may be too packed.
Just a few questions: Are the queues for the colosseum/st peter's basilica/vatican museums long in late november? Is a guided tour beneficial for St Peter's basilica or just unnecessary?
Tuesday 22 Nov: Arrive at 1pm. We're visiting the Borghese Gallery and the Temple of Asclepius before heading over to the Spanish Steps where we'll grab a snack from Pompi Tiramisu. Next, we'll head to the Trevi Fountain and grab dinner at Gioia Mia Piscipiano, then head to San Crispino for gelato :D
Wednesday 23 Nov: Breakfast at Regoli Pasticceria, then head to the Colosseum/Roman Forum/Palatine Hill with a guided tour from about 10-1. Next, head over to the altar of the fatherland (Is going up to the top worth it?) then grab some ricotta pies at Pasticceria Boccione. Subsequently, we'll go to Antico Forno Roscioli for a quick lunch and Fatamorgana for gelato and just sit down and unwind for a bit. We'll make a quick visit to Largo di Torre Argentina if we have time. Then we'll head out to see Piazza Navona and the Pantheon, and have dinner at Osteria da Fortunata.
Thursday 24 Nov: Breakfast at Sant Eustachio Caffe, then arrive at the Vatican at about 930. We'll go to the Vatican museums/sistine chapel then to St Peter's Basilica with a guided tour, then head out to the Trapizzino near the Basilica for lunch. We'll then visit Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore and go to Trattoria Da Enzo for dinner, as well as Otaleg for gelato. There's likely going to be time in between Santa Maria Maggiore and dinner as Da Enzo only opens for dinner at 7, so we plan to either head back to our hotel room if we're tired or wander around Monti!
Some questions: Should I visit Sant' Eustachio Caffe or Tazza D'oro for breakfast? They're both in the same area so transportation isn't really a problem. Is Bonci Pizzarium overrated or is it good? I was originally planning to visit Bonci upon hearing good reviews from Katie Parla and others but heard from many Redditors and other reviewers that it was overrated and overpriced, so eventually decided to visit Trapizzino. If any of the restaurants or cafes I'm visiting are tourist traps, do let me know. Plus, is San Crispino actually good? I've looked over the internet but there seems to be mixed reviews -- some agree, some disagree.
Thank you so much for reading through! I would really appreciate advice or feedback if you have any <3

So me and my (newly) wife are visiting Rome, We've been here for a couple of days and we really like to eat good food. :)
We have been in a couple of restaurants, some are good and some are bad - all were followed by recommendations.
Good: Gioia Mia Pisciapiano (Went there twice, amazing Gnocchi and pastas) , Gelateria La Romana (amazing icecreams)
Bad: Antico Forno Roscioli (heard about their pizzas - tasted. mediocre at best, even less than that), Brillo Restaurant (tourist trap, but we were hungry and nothing else was around)
​
as you can see, we are more looking into traditional Italian experience - probably around pastas since we tried pizzas in 2 places and they were both not so good.
We are currently staying in Via Principe Amedeo street, so any restaurant within 3 Kilometers radius is good enough for us.
​
We also thinking about traveling to Trastevere tomorrow and would like to know what are the best restaurants for our experience.
We usually don't eat a lot of meat - bacon is okay but nothing extra than that probably unless its really worth it (If we do eat meat - its beef - We don't eat pork regular - we haven't eat bacon since 2016 until yesterday). We do like cheese - a lot. and we don't eat fish or any sea food. Any recommendations for these specifics?

This was my first international trip and had no idea what to expect. A lot of mistakes were made, nonetheless, I had an amazing time and I will forever remember this trip.
FLIGHTS - We booked our flights out of SJC with 2 hour layovers (one in Denver, Colorado and one in Munich, Germany) to Rome. We flew to Denver just fine, but then our flight to Munich, Germany got cancelled due to technical difficulties on the plane. As a result, United provided us a new itinerary, hotel, and food vouchers for the night. The new flights United gave us screwed us. It was from Denver -> Chicago -> Rome. Our flight out of Denver was delayed due to too many carryons. We ended up arriving in Chicago at 3:30pm when boarding for our next flight ended at 3:30pm. We ran as fast as we could to our next gate and they held the plane open for us. We ended up making it to Rome a day later than expected.
ROME - We arrived at 7:30am and bought train tickets at the Fiumicino train station across the street from the airport. However, the trains there weren’t in service, so we walked to the bus station and were able to use our train tickets to get on the bus (masks were mandatory).
Once we made it to Roma Termini, we decided that we could walk to our hotel. This was a terrible choice, it took us 25 minutes dragging our luggage in the heat on the cobblestone. We had tickets for the Villa Borghese at 12:30pm, we got there a bit early and were starving so I found a nearby restaurant on trip advisor that said they were open. We walk in and it looked closed. They said they were open but had no workers. So we ended up eating at the Borghese cafe. It wasn’t the greatest. However, I do recommend going to the Villa Borghese if you’re looking for extra excursions to fill your trip with.
We had a food tour that evening that we booked through get your guide and it was amazing! We learned a lot about the streets of Rome while eating good food. We also got to chat with other couples from the tour group. I highly, highly recommend this.
The next day, we woke up early and ate breakfast at La Casa del Caffè Tazza d'Oro near the Pantheon. The breakfast was so good we ate here both mornings in Rome. Tip: a server comes to you for the outside area. You can’t order inside and then sit outside. The lines for the Pantheon are very long, however people from our food tour group mentioned that it goes by very fast and they were right. It took us less than 10 minutes. We also found out that we could Uber so we took an Uber to the Vatican to save us some time. The lines there were long as well (due to everyone having to go through metal detectors) and it was also extremely hot. I wish we did a guided tour for St. Peter's Basilica because we just walked around for a bit and then left. We ate at that’s Amore and the food was really good!!
We also had a guided tour scheduled that day for the Colosseum (including the basement) and Roman Forum. Then, they cancelled it due to politics. So we scrambled to find a similar tour. As we were walking through the Colosseum, it started raining and thundering. When our tour guide was taking us to the Roman Forum, it started pouring. We waited for 20 minutes under an overhang until the rain lightened up. As we exited the overhang to begin the tour, she decided to cancel the tour out of no where. We were pretty upset given we knew nothing about the Roman Forum so we were looking forward to that part. It all worked out as crowds left due to the heavy rain and my boyfriend proposed to me in Palatine Hill!
That night, we decided to eat near the Trevi Fountain (another mistake). It was the most expensive restaurant we ate at (54€) and the food was not good. I realized that when the workers try to persuade you to eat at their restaurant, it’s not good. I was pretty disappointed in myself for not doing enough research on food in Rome. We also ended up going to the Farmacia since I got over 8 bug bites and they were all starting to swell.
VENICE - We took an Uber to Roma Termini in the morning and took an Italo fast train to Venice (masks are mandatory, we booked these in advance). We upgraded our seats to club executive and it was very nice for the long train ride. I had no idea how to get from the train station to our hotel that was near Mark’s St. Basilica. As you exit the train station, there are men wearing orange construction-type jackets who try to ask you if you need help (I figured it was another scam, but I’m not sure). We ended up asking at the ticket booth to buy tickets to the Rialto stop. We took the ACTV (masks are mandatory). We ate at Antico Forno and it was the best pizza ever!! We also had booked a gondola ride through Get tour guide and it was so confusing to find the meet up spot. I recommend just asking a Gondola worker. We also did a guided tour of St. Marks Basilica and Doge’s palace the next day. It was also amazing, I recommend doing a guided tour for this one!!
POSITANO - We woke up at 5AM to catch our 7AM train ride to Naples. (We bought our tickets for the ACTV ferry the night before we left because they don’t open until 7AM). As recommended on Reddit, we took a DayTrip shuttle to Positano. Our driver was driving manual on a very windy road while also voice messaging someone on his phone. We ended up pulling over because one of the other passengers got sick. Our driver was courteous though and dropped us off right outside our bed and breakfast! We got there around 3pm and most restaurants were closed so we ate gelato for lunch lol. Also, we stayed at dimora del podesta and it was AMAZING. It’s family owned and they own the restaurant below called saraceno d’Oro. The food there was also fantastic. Every morning, we’d just open the door to our room and they would bring breakfast and coffee to our balcony. Our 2nd day there, we went to the Arienzo Beach club for the day (it’s pricey but worth it). They offer a free boat shuttle there and the workers are very attentive compared to other beach clubs. They give you champagne, coffee, and fruit. When you reserve online, you book a time for lunch as well. The lunch was really good but not very filling.
ROME - We took DayTrip back to Naples and then a train back to Rome in the evening. We stayed near Roma Termini since our flight home was at 9AM the next day. We decided to Uber to Tonnarello and we have 0 regrets. The best meal we had all trip. There was a very long line, but so worth it. The next morning, we flew to Chicago and then flew back to Denver where we experienced another delay of 5 hours but successfully made it back home.
MISTAKES - Our two biggest mistakes on this trip was flying out of SJC and not booking a direct flight to Europe. Next time, we will fly out of SFO where there are way more flight options. Additionally, I would have done a guided tour for St. Peter’s basilica in Vatican City. I also would have brought some sort of bug spray and researched more restaurants.
Thanks for reading!

Pizzarium, Roma (Lazio)Antico Forno Roscioli, Roma (Lazio)Lievito Pizza, Pane… Roma (Lazio)La Masardona, Napoli (Campania)Saporè Pizza Bakery, San Martino Buon Albergo – VR (Veneto)Sancho, Fiumicino – RM (Lazio)La Pia Centenaria, La Spezia (Liguria)Tellia, Torino (Piemonte)Oliva Pizzamore, Acri – CS (Calabria)Granocielo, Avezzano – AQ (Abruzzo)PorzioNi di Pizza, Napoli (Campania)Campana Pizza In Teglia, Corigliano Calabro – CS (Calabria)‘O Fiore Mio Pizze di Strada, Bologna (Emilia-Romagna)Grotto Pizzeria Castello, Caggiano – SA (Campania)Gina Pizza, Ercolano – NA (Campania)Forno Brisa, Bologna (Emilia-Romagna)La Divina Pizza, Firenze (Toscana)Alimento, Brescia (Lombardia)Pane E Tempesta, Roma (Lazio)PezZ de Pane, Frosinone (Lazio)Fornoh, Lecce (Puglia)Pizzeria a taglio Angelo & Simonetta, Roma (Lazio)Pizzottella, Milano (Lombardia)Panificio Di Gesù, Altamura – BA (Puglia)Piedigrotta 2 Express – Il Pizz’ino, Alessandria (Piemonte)1947 Pizza Fritta Napoli, Napoli (Campania)Pizzeria Da Filomena, Castrovillari – CS (Calabria)Lievitamente, Viareggio – LU (Toscana)Ghevido, Sesto Fiorentino – FI (Toscana)Pistamentuccia, Bologna (Emilia-Romagna)Panificio Menchetti, Arezzo (Toscana)Scrocchia, Bergamo (Lombardia)Forno Urbano, Trento (Trentino-Alto Adige)Sauardò, Civitanova Marche – MC (Marche)Ben Cotta, Bologna (Emilia-Romagna)Pinseria La Spianata Genovese – Antica Vaccheria, Genova (Liguria)Pizzeria Al Trancio Da Charlotte, Albenga – SV (Liguria)Pizza Chef Roma, Roma (Lazio)IBRIS – focacce e pizze, Trento (Trentino-Alto Adige)Compagnia della Pizza, Giulianova – TE (Abruzzo)Kalavrì, Catanzaro (Calabria)Il Pizzicotto, Lecce (Puglia)Panificio Adriatico, Bari (Puglia)Elettroforno Frontoni, Roma (Lazio)Panificio Graziano, Palermo (Sicilia)50 Teglie, Torino (Piemonte)L’Orso in teglia, Messina (Sicilia)Fermo Pizza, Napoli (Campania)5 Lire, Potenza (Basilicata)20 Pizza & Delicious in Teglia, Cava de’ Tirreni – SA (Campania)

Premessa per i mod: dato che c'è chi mi ha chiesto "AMA" e chi "STORY TIIIIIIIME" faccio un post a parte. Anche perchè nel caffè sarebbe un wall of text e sarei il primo a downvotarlo.
Tra il 28 maggio e il 5 giugno ho fatto un giretto in moto per l'Europa occidentale. Ho percorso tanti km in moto, da solo, visitato alcune città troppo piccole per essere sulle rotte dei collegamenti low-cost da turista del weekend, ho mangiato bene. Questo è il mio resoconto per i curiosi. Non è un viaggio epico, non è un giro del mondo in bicicletta, non è un pellegrinaggio a piedi. Ne sono conscio, non lo voglio vendere per ciò che non è, quindi commenti del tipo "e allora?" teneteveli per voi, è un racconto di un viaggio appena oltre il "normale".

Preparazione

Avevo già deciso da Pasqua che mi sarei preso il ponte del 2 giugno per fare un viaggio in moto, non sapevo dove. Ma non era importante, dovete sapere che per me "viaggiare" non è scegliere una meta, raggiungerla e poi chiudersi in musei e andare a spasso tra attrazioni di vario tipo. Per me viaggiare è vedere i paesaggi che cambiano, ascoltare lingue diverse, sentire profumi e sapori sconosciuti, vedere nomi di città straniere sui cartelli per strada (o anche sui cartelloni nelle stazioni dei treni).
I punti fermi, oltre alla data, erano la moto (BMW F750GS) e di fare qualche notte in tenda, cosa che non ho mai fatto prima in vita mia. Sia per una questione di costi (8 notti fuori in albergo costicchiano, specialmente a nord delle Alpi) ma anche per fare qualcosa di nuovo. E anche che ovviamente sarei partito da solo, perchè l'unico amico con la moto è un poser con una naked che al massimo va fino a Rozzano (e so che sta lurkando e leggendo queste parole).
La rotta per il viaggio l'ho decisa solo pochi giorni prima in base al meteo: nord. Spagna e sud Italia troppo caldo, centro-sud della Francia era a rischio pioggia e poi le autostrade costano, Slovenia-Austria-Ungheria pioveva e in Croazia sono già stato l'anno scorso. In più potevo cogliere l'occasione per andare a trovare un'amica che si è trasferita a Amsterdam da poco.

Giorno 1 - Passo del Sempione

Il sabato della partenza è anche il compleanno di mio padre, quindi devo andare a fare il pranzo in famiglia e partire solo nel pomeriggio, motivo per cui i km previsti sono pochi. Valicherò il Sempione, perchè salendo dalla Francia e scendendo dalla Germania posso evitare qualche rischio di pioggia. La mattina prenoto la camera d'albergo e poi vado dai miei per il pranzo.
Alla partenza da Milano ci sono 36 gradi, ma il Sempione è a 2000 metri e è previsto freddo e vento, quindi sotto i pantaloni da moto ho quelli del pigiama leggero. Autostrada fino a Castelletto Ticino e poi un po' di lungolago. La rocca di Angera, il complesso del reattore nucleare di Ispra e gli hotel di lusso di Stresa passano uno dopo l'altro, poi si prende la direzione di Mergozzo (mai stato, bellissimo) e di nuovo sulla SS33 direzione Svizzera.
La valle che conduce al Sempione è stretta, impervia, ma la strada è larghissima, con tornanti e gallerie a prova di TIR e ci si ritrova in cima al passo in poco tempo. I passi Svizzeri sono delle autostrade in confronto ai nostri. Su tutta la salita e poi per la discesa c'è un bel vento forte, le raffiche mi destabilizzano un attimo ma dopo poco ci ho fatto l'abitudine. Discesa veloce, arrivo all'albergo, mi faccio due passi nel silenziosissimo villaggio e mi cucino la cena sul balconcino con il fornelletto.

Giorno 2 - Svizzera e Strasburgo

Riparto la mattina in direzione Martigny lungo la valle del Rodano, il navigatore mi fa fare giri strani perchè ha già un'autostrada lungo la valle del Rodano che in alcuni punti è un cantiere e in altri è ancora boschi e praterie vergini. A Martigny comincia l'autostrada vera e propria, il traffico è poco, c'è ancora vento, mi godo i panorami con le bellissime montagne svizzere e alcune cascate impressionanti a lato della valle. L'autostrada sale di quota tra Villeneuve e Losanna e garantisce una vista spettacolare del lago di Ginevra. Vanno tutti pianino, un po' per i limiti, un po' perchè sono tutti impegnati a guardare il panorama di un lago gigantesco di cui non si vede la fine.
L'autostrada prosegue e arrivo a Neuchatel, che ho addocchiato il giorno prima come bel paesino da visitare per sgranchirsi le gambe. C'è una specie di maratona in città, trovo un parcheggio per le moto ma non so se devo pagare, chiedo a un poliziotto che mi dice di no, bene. Visito il piccolo centro storico, salgo su al castello (che ospita una chiesa e il parlamento cantonale), mi godo l'ennesima vista spettacolare della Svizzera, due passi sul lungo lago, torno alla moto. In vista del piattume che mi aspetta per i prossimi tanti km, scelgo di entrare in Francia per Lucelle, un piccolissimo paesino nella parte est del massiccio del Giura, ci si arriva facendo un pezzo di autostrada (nella cui area di sosta pranzo con un panino al prosciutto e mando un audio ai miei amici dicendo che la Svizzera è talmente perfetta che non ci sono neanche le vespe che rompono i coglioni quando si mangia il prosciutto crudo), e una bellissima strada di tornanti e controtornanti, tutti larghi e dolci. Viene prurito al polso ma tengo il limite del 80, abbastanza per divertirsi in curva e a lanciarsi in uscita.
Poco dopo il confine, nelle foreste alsaziane vengo raggiunto da due motociclisti francesi e poi raggiungiamo due motocicliste tedesche. Facciamo un po' di strada assieme divertendoci poi le tedesche salutano e cambiano strada, così come poco dopo fanno i francesi. Arrivo nella "bassa" del Reno, e mi sparo l'autostrada fino a Strasburgo. Visito il centro storico nel primo pomeriggio, bellissima cittadina medievale circondata da fiumi, piena di ristorantini sotto agli alberi lungo l'argine. Vado in albergo, cucino con il fornelletto nel parcheggio e concludo la giornata.

Giorno 3 - Lussemburgo e Belgio

Lunga giornata di trasferimento, per evitare il pedaggio (l'autostrada francese è gratis da Basilea a Strasburgo), il navigatore mi fa deviare per la Germania, poi Lussemburgo e Belgio. A pranzo mi fermo in un Burger King in Germania, stessi pressi che in Italia, mangio al volo e riparto, faccio il minimo indispensabile di benzina perchè so che il Lussemburgo ha tasse ridicole. E in effetti il Lussemburgo mi accoglie con una sfilza di benzinai incredibile appena passato il ponte sulla Mosella, che segna il confine. Saranno stati 8 benzinai di fila, su ogni lato della strada. Ma io ho ancora autonomia e decido di farla dopo, proprio nella città di Lussemburgo.
Città in cui mi fermo per fare due passi, è circondata da un canyon verde molto profondo e si vedono palazzi medievali con torri e guglie aguzze sui due lati del canyon. Il centro non mi è piaciuto, molto insignificante, alcune parti ultramoderne che sembravano New York e altre da paesino medievale non troppo bello. Sento parlare italiano, spesso, e non sono turisti. Mi danno l'idea di essere businessmen trasferiti per evadere le tasse. Anche di fronte a dove ho parcheggiato la moto, c'è una coppia di italiani su un balcone che parla a voce alta.
Riprendo la moto, faccio benzina e riparto verso nord. Secondo il meteo le temperature notturne si alzanod i 2-3 gradi, quindi l'idea è di dormire in tenda. Trovo un bel campeggio in Belgio, hanno posto per me, mi fermo. Purtroppo il sacco a pelo era da 15 gradi e di notte ce ne sarebbero stati 7. Mi metto addosso il pigiana e gli strati caldi del completo da moto per la notte. Purtroppo non sono bastati e ho dormito pochissimo, rigirandomi in continuazione.

Giorno 4 - Spa e Utrecht

La mattina c'è luce prestissimo e stavo congelando, quindi esco dalla tenda e faccio qualche passo al sole. Quando anche gli altri campeggiatori nella mia zona (tutta gente arrivata a piedi) si svegliano comincio a mettermi su il caffè e far colazione. Vado nell'edificio dei bagni ma nelle docce non c'è acqua calda. Sporco e infreddolito metto via la tenda.
Sappiate che sono un fan della F1 e delle sue piste, e ovviamente ho scelto quel campeggio non a caso, vicino c'è il circuito di Spa e volevo provare a vedere dal vivo l'iconica sezione di Eau Rouge, quella S in salita che distingue i piloti con i cojones dagli altri. Arrivo in moto alla rotonda dell'ingresso principale e c'è uno steward a cui spiego che voglio vedere la curva e scattare qualche foto. Io parlo in inglese e lui in francese ma ci capiamo lo stesso, non riuscirei a fare una discussione in francese ma lo so abbastanza per capire che devo andare a un altro ingresso e provare a chiedere ai suoi colleghi lì, mi dà le indicazioni per arrivarci e ci vado. A questo ingresso spiego di nuovo la situazione in inglese e mi rispondono ancora in francese, mi dicono di andare avanti e di chiedere alla guardia giurata al gabbiotto d'ingresso al circuito. Mentre mi ci avvicino sento il rombo dei motori e mi carico a mille. La guardia mi dice che posso parcheggiare la moto lì e andare a piedi a vedere la curva. Percorro qualche decina di metri e ecco che vedo l'intero rettilineo in discesa che conduce a Eau Rouge e la curva in salita. In pista ci sono delle moto, scopro cercando su internet che sono le prove libere della 24 ore di Spa del mondiale endurance. Rimango 10 minuti a guardarli sfrecciare con la mente carica di adrenalina.
Torno alla mia moto e nel frattempo arriva un altro ragazzo che vuole anche lui andare a vedere Eau Rouge, con targa svizzera. Salgo in sella e riparto verso l'Olanda. L'amica che mi ospiterà a Amsterdam torna da lavoro alle 6 e mezza, quindi decido di fermarmi a Utrech, sulla strada.
Anche Utrecht, come Groninga, è molto più bella di Amsterdam. Nel caso di Utrecht si meriterebbe lei il titolo di "Venezia del nord", perchè i canali sono stretti, pieni di curve, i canali sono circondati da banchine poco più alte nel livello dell'acqua con un sacco di ristorantini e baretti. La città è piena di universitari, deve essere un paradiso studiare lì in questo periodo dell'anno. Dopo aver girovagato per quasi un'ora torno alla moto, nel mentre comincia a piovere e lascio Utrecht sotto la prima pioggia del viaggio. Però è leggera e dura poco come tutte le piogge nel nord, quindi neanche mi metto l'antipioggia, in poco smette e mi asciugo con l'aria in autostrada. Un'autostrada a 6 corsie che mi spinge fin dentro Amsterdam, scopro che l'indirizzo che mi ha dato la mia amica punta proprio a una casa nel centro storico affacciata su un canale. Ad Amsterdam le moto parcheggiano a caso come a Milano, quindi trovo un buco e la lascio. Però poi leggo online che tra olandesi ubriachi, inglesi strafatti e ladri le belle moto vengono vandalizzate o spariscono. Trovo un garage a pagamento, mi chiede 85 € per due notti, più di quanto pago a Milano al mese. Meglio che avere la moto vandalizzata o rubata.

Giorno 5 - Amsterdam

Avevo già visitato Amsterdam in passato quindi mi sono semplicemente fatto due passi in centro e sono andato a vedere il museo della storia della città. Il problema è che non hanno reperti risalenti al medioevo, non hanno memoria di come era la città, quindi la mostra parte dal tardo '500 in poi. La sezione vera e propria sulla storia della città è stata ridotta a soli due corridoi, poi c'è una sezione ben più grande su quanto la città abbia impattato sugli schiavi e di come devono pentirsene, robaccia da cancel culture americana. La sezione finale invece è messa insieme da un comitato di quartiere della parte nord della città che sta subendo gentrificazione selvaggia. Una storia triste che vivono tutte le città europee. Mi è piaciuta la riflessione riguardo al fatto che l'apertura degli spazi per artisti e alternativi quando era un quartiere degradato è stata la prima scintilla che ha fatto partire la gentrificazione, non una mossa per salvare l'identità del quartiere. Finalmente qualcuno che lo riconosce.
La sera sono andato con la mia amica in un ristorante di cucina tipica olandese, abbiamo mangiato due stufati leggermente diversi, accompagnati da patate bollite e cavolo rosso cotto nell'aceto.
Poi dopo cena birre in un irish pub, sfortunatamente avevano finito la Kilkenny, una volta tanto che un locale che l'ha è finita, argh.

Giorno 6 - Autobahn

Il giorno 6 riparto in direzione Germania. L'Olanda non è grande ma è piattissima, una noia mortale, così anche il Noordrhien Westfallen, però dopo qualche centinario di km iniziano le prime colline. In uno dei numerosi tratti senza limite decido di tirare la moto, arrivo a 180 km/h ed è ancora stabilissima e il motore per andare di più c'è, però le borse sono omologate per 120 km/h e mi dico che va bene così. Incontro un sacco di cantieri e code, a un certo punto nella direzione opposta ho visto 5-6 auto incidentate a distanza di qualche centinaio di metri l'una dall'altra, non ho capito cosa sia successo. Proseguo, con l'idea era di fermarmi vicino a Marburgo, però non volendo farla tutta in autostrada a un certo punto sono uscito e ho fatto stradine tra le colline/monti della Germania centrale. Bellissimi panorami ricchi di foreste, castelli e torrenti. Credo che abbiano pesanti problemi con qualche insetto, le foreste di pini stavano morendo, vastissime aree erano state disboscate e altre avevano alberi morti. Un peccato. A 70 km da Marburgo ero ormai stanco morto, cerco un campeggio nei dintorni e passo la notte lì, questa volta con un sacco a pelo da 5 gradi comprato in Belgio (5 gradi stocazzo, sono riuscito a dormire ma ho avuto freddo e la minima è stata ben più alta di 5 gradi).

Giorno 7 - Bamberga

Altra tappa tattica come quella di Spa, decido di deviare un po' a est dalla strada più breve per raggiungere Bamberga, dove fanno la mia birra preferita, la marzen affumicata del birrificio Schlenkerla. Fino a Marburgo il navigatore mi fa fare stradine per i colli tedeschi, con prati infiniti e villaggi tipici uno più bello dell'altro. Poi autobahn fino a Bamberga. Per pranzo mangio in una specie di autogrill, prendo cotoletta, patate al forno e una coca zero. Pago tantino, 18€ ma vabbè. Arrivo a metà pomeriggio a Bamberga, il mio albergo è in pieno centro storico e devo lasciare la moto a 10 minuti a piedi, però non trovo posti moto e tutti i parcheggi per le auto sono per residenti. Decido di lasciarla accanto a un cassonetto in un vicolo che diventa pedonale dopo pochi metri, confidando che non dà fastidio, ch è solo per una notte e che il giorno dopo è sabato e spero non raccolgano la spazzatura. La città è un gioiello medievale, con un fiume su cui è stato costruito un ponte che faceva da porta della città con annesso antico municipio.
Alle 18.30 provo a chiedere alla birreria se posso prenotare un tavolo per dopo e mi dicono assolutamente di no, che potevo provare a tornare dopo ma che erano già pienissimi e lo sarebbero stati anche dopo. Capisco che non avrei mangiato lì, alle 19.30 vado al birrificio (anch'esso antico) accanto all'albergo e cheido se loro hanno posto ma nulla, mi dicono di riprovare più tardi. Nel frattempo viene giù il diluvio, torno in albergo. Quando smette ormai sono le 20.30, torno al birrificio e mi fanno sedere. Ci sono tavolate su cui mettono varia gente, mi siedo in un tavolo da 8 con già 4 tedeschi, mi metto nell'angolo lasciando spazio in mezzo. Ordino una birra affumicata (la fanno anche loro!) e una spalla di maiale arrosto tipica della Franconia, che scopro essere la regione storica del nord della Baviera. La spalla ha la cotenna croccante ed è servita con crauti alla senape e canederli, buonissima come la birra.

Giorno 8 - Baviera

Giornata di trasferimento molto lunga, la mattina è nuvoloso e freddino e c'è un panorama magico mentre attraverso strade extraurbane in mezzo ai boschi della Franconia, campi sterminati e villaggi agricoli. Menzione d'onore per un falco appollaiato a bordo strada su un cumulo di terra che delimita un campo, mi avvicino in moto e non scappa, ci fissiamo per un po'. Che animali bellissimi, la Germania ne è piena, in cielo ne vedi sempre almeno uno. Meteo variabile, raggiunta l'autostrada devo mettere e togliere l'antipioggia un paio di volte lungo il viaggio. Disastro a Norimberga, l'autostrada a 3 corsie finisce in 2 corsie e con un semaforo in centro città che fa passare due macchine per volta. Chi ha progettato quell'autostrada è un criminale, chi ha deciso i tempi del semaforo ancora peggio. A Ulm il navigatore mi fa uscire, vedo da lontano la famosa chiesa con il campanile più alto al mondo però in ristrutturazione un po' coperto da impalcature.
Da lì fino al paesino dove ho preso la camera in una Landhaus (ogni paesino tedesco per quanto piccolo ha una stamberga per i viandanti con camere e ristorante). Passo l'ultima collina prima del lago di Costanza e.... Alpi! Alpi innevate in lontananza! Una vista così banale mi ha riempito di stupore. La zona del paesino è bellissima, piena di coltivazione di ciliege e di non ho capito cosa, delle piante che si arrampicavano su dei fili altissimi agganciati a dei pali. A cena filettini di maiale con spatzle al formaggio e cipolle fritte, leggerino.

Giorno 9 - Julierpass e diluvio universale

La via più semplice per tornare a casa sarebbe il San Bernardino ma mi autoinvito a pranzo da un amico e dalla sua ragazza che sono in vacanza in Engadina. Quindi giù per la Svizzera fino a Coira e poi verso il Julierpass, così lo aggiungo alla collezione (il San Bernardino l'ho già fatto). In un'area di servizio in Svizzera incontro un gruppo di una quindicina di motocicliste italiane, tutte donne sulla 50ina. Riparto prima di loro e poi mi riprendono, facciamo un tratto di strada assieme verso il Julierpass poi si fermano, le saluto e proseguo. Il Julierpass è come tutti gli altri passi svizzeri (eccetto lo Spluga, vaffanculo allo Spluga): tornanti larghissimi, strada larga, pendenze dolci e si va su tra panorami mozzafiato. In questa zona si parla romancio, che è una sorta di dialetto delle valli bergamasche ancora più stretto. In cima al passo c'è un bellissimo paesaggio di alta montagna (siamo a 2200 metri), rovinato da un ecomostro di forma cilindrica altro 6 o 7 piani color ruggine. Non ho capito cosa sia, dentro sembrava vuoto. Gli svizzeri in fatto di architettura non capiscono nulla. La discesa verso l'Engadina è veloce (anche perchè Silvaplana è comunque a 1800 metri), sul lago di Silvaplana era pieno di gente con il kitesurf, vederli dalla strada che scende dal passo tutti colorati è una bella immagine. Pranzo con il mio amico e la sua ragazza e poi riparto abbastanza in fretta, è previsto il diluvio universale in Lombardia.
In cima al Maloja guardando verso Chiavenna si vede nerissimo, metto subito l'antipioggia. In realtà a Chiavenna è molto buio, i lampioni sono addirittura accesi anche se sono le 15, continuo ad avanzare verso il lago di Como, prendo la superstrada del lago. Sempre più buio, si vedono i primi lampi, ormai sembra notte. Nei brevissimi tratti tra una galleria e l'altra comincia a piovere, poi all'uscita di quella subito a nord di Bellano... vento fortissimo, secchiate d'acqua, fulmini. Si rientra in galleria, le piazzole di emergenza in galleria e i distributori fuori sono pieni di camper, auto e motociclisti fermi. Comincia a grandinare, non si vede nulla, si procede a 20 km/h fuori dalle gallerie, la strada è completamente allagata, la grandine mi fa male alle braccia e alle gambe ma non mi voglio fermare, in queste situazioni succedono incidenti e poi code allucinanti, non so quando riuscirei ad arrivare a casa e sono stanco, vado avanti finchè riesco.
Nel tratto in cui la superstrada costeggia il lago prima di Lecco non si vede neanche il lago. Tra grandine, foglie e rametti mi arriva addosso un casino di roba ma si va tutti piano, non c'è un gran pericolo. Poi entro nel sottopasso di Lecco, coda. Non ci si muove più. Si sta fermi più di mezz'ora. Sono proprio nel punto più basso della galleria, esce acqua dai tombini e cascate di acqua escono tra le giunzioni dei pannelli del rivestimento della galleria. Non c'è neanche illuminazione. Lentamente si riparte, due auto distanti 100 metri non riescono a ripartire, sono completamente bloccate. Ma non hanno sbattuto contro nulla, non so. Si esce un superficie, la strada è allagata, dal viadotto di sopra vengono giù bombe di acqua ogni volta che passa una macchina, mi sposto sulla corsia di destra per evitarle. Però ha quasi smesso di piovere, ora l'unico problema sono le code e la strada allagata. Mi piazzo in mezzo tra le due corsie e le auto si spostano di lato per farmi passare, poi il traffico si alleggerisce e finalmente si riparte.
Dopo 2.777 km sono a casa.

running behind today, but you can always subscribe to Explore Winston to get this straight from the source. They do a great job.
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Explore Winston-Salem

Explore Winston-Salem connects adventurous locals and visitors to businesses and happenings with passion, personality, and professionalism. SubscribeBe sure to follow us on Instagram and Facebook! You can also share this newsletter by clicking on the icons below. 📷Share📷Tweet📷ForwardNovember 4-7📷Hey Winston-Salem, it's Christy.📷 Have you been to Footnote located downtown? Footnote is Foothill's very own coffee and cocktail shop. They have house-roasted coffee and pastries first thing in the morning and in the evening they have signature cocktails, wine, craft beer, and small plates. If you are looking to host a holiday party, rehearsal dinner, or baby shower, Footnote has a beautiful space for you!
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Thursday, November 4

• Shop the Block Enjoying shopping at various businessess' downtown Thursday-Sunday at Shop the Block. Participating businesses are offering coupons and discounts. Check out the list here.
  
• Gingerbread Arts and Crafts Fair Enjoy arts and crafts by local artists, door prizes every hour, a gingerbread café, and more all weekend long (Thursday-Saturday). More information!
  
• Boutique Pop-Up Enjoy shopping from a wide selection of clothing and accessories from Primm’s Pop-Up at Trouvaille Home. There will be wine and appetizers. 4-6:30 PM / More information!
  
• Blood Drive - American Red Cross Donate blood at William G. White, Jr. Family YMCA - Mobile Bus from 11 AM - 3:30 PM. More information!
  
• Food Trucks & Breweries
  
  • Que Viva! @ Wise Man Brewing / Music Bingo 7:30 PM
  • Yanks Franks @ Foothills Tasting Room
  • Urban Street Grill @ Joymongers Barrel Hall / Music Bingo 7:30 PM
  • Music Bingo 7 PM @ Gypsy Road Brewing
  • Salsarita's @ Radar Brewing
  • Twin City Mini's @ Kernersville Brewing

Friday, November 5

• Free Friend Friday Grab a friend and head to F45 for a fantastic FREE workout! More information!
  
• Reynolda Walking Tour Explore Reynolda Village on an outdoor walking tour and learn how Katharine Reynolds envisioned the original model farm. 3 PM / Purchase your ticket!
  
• Moravian Market Days Hand-made crafts, fresh baked goods, and Moravian Chicken Pies at South Fork Community Center on Thursday and Friday. More information!
  
• Food Trucks & Breweries:
  
  • Uptown Pizza @ Wise Man Brewing
  • Lobster Dogs @ Radar Brewing
  • Bandito Burrito @ Joymongers Barrel Hall
  • Que Viva! @ Foothills Tasting Room / Live music 7 PM
  • Twin City Mini's @ Kernersville Brewing

Saturday, November 6

• Crafty Llama Art, Craft, and Vintage Market The Crafty Llama Art, Craft, and Vintage Market is a community event and fundraiser at Divine Llama Vineyards. Enjoy shopping from local vendors, live music, food trucks, and more. 11 AM - 4 PM. More information!
  
• Miles for Meals 5k Enjoy a beautiful evening under the Festival of Lights at Tanglewood Park! The Miles for Meals 5K is a walk/run event with a course that takes participants through the lights at Tanglewood. A fun event for the entire family with food trucks, bounce houses, and more. 5:30 PM / Sign up!
  
• Holiday Ardmore Art Walk Kick off the holiday shopping season and knock out that gift list while supporting local artists at the Art Walk showcasing the work of Ardmore's talented residents! 11 AM - 4:30 PM / More information!
  
• Tea and Toast Tasting + Education Learn about various teas and sample them at Buie's Market. 8:30-10:30 AM / More information!
  
• Live Music at Old Nick Williams Farm Join The Happy One's Duo for a great night of your favorite Rock & Country tunes from artists like Kenny Chesney, Alabama, Zac Brown, Tom Petty, The Eagles, and more! 7 PM / More information!
  
• Weathervane Winery's 16th year Celebrate Weathervane Winery's 16th year as a North Carolina Winery. Enjoy live music, food trucks, and a car show. 11 AM - 4 PM / More information!
  
• Pop-Up Flea Market Pop Up Flea Market at Lewisville Vintage showcasing up to 40 vendors with everything from locally made items to vintage antiques, and other oddities. 9 AM - 3 PM / More information!
  
• Live Stand-up Comedy Show Head to Marketplace Cinemas for a live stand-up comedy show. 7:30 PM / Purchase tickets!
  
• Boards & Bordeaux Charcuterie Workshop Head to RayLen Vineyards to make your own fall-themed charcuterie board. Your ticket includes one glass of wine. 3-4 PM / More information!
  
• Acoustic Night Enjoy live acoustic music at the ARTC Theatre. 7:30 PM / More information!
  
• Art Show & Sale Fundraiser Art Show & Sale Fundraiser featuring over 60 artists and woodcarvers downtown to benefit Read Write Spell. 10 AM - 3 PM / More information!
  
• Food Trucks & Breweries:
  
  • Agueybana El Bravo (12-4 PM) & Medley (5-10 PM) @ Wise Man Brewing / Live music 7:30 PM
  • Lobster Dogs (1-4 PM) & Sliders Street Food (5-9 PM) @ Joymongers Barrel Hall
  • Big Apes @ Foothills Tasting Room / Yoga(mmunity) 11-12 PM
  • Don Express @ Radar Brewing / Pop-up Plant Sale with Patiently Rooted 3-6 PM
  • El Taco Vaquero @ Kernersville Brewing Company

Sunday, November 7

• Pork and Pinot A collaborative dinner experience with @native.root and @sipping.point. Enjoy hors d'oeuvres + bubbles followed by a 3-course meal paired with a featured wine at Southside Beer Garden. 4 PM / More information!
  
• Fall Leaf Walk Admire and learn about fall's colors, leaf shapes, and how autumn nuts and fruits help wildlife prepare for winter with Gateway Nature Preserve. 2-3:30 PM / More information!
  
• Wine Time Enjoy 5 wines for $30 with @nice.wine.time at West Salem Public House. 6 PM / More information!
  
• TOAST 2021 TOAST is the perfect event for families to experience the 'Totally Outstanding & Awesome Festival of Lights' from a completely different perspective. The walk is approximately 1.3 miles and will take you past all your favorite Christmas light displays. There will be hot chocolate, food, s'mores, and games. 5 PM / Purchase your ticket!
  
• Holiday Market Head to Wise Man Brewing for a market full of vendors to start your holiday shopping! 12-5 PM / More information!
  
• Venture Dog Walking Fall Festival Bring your pup to The Tanglewood Dog Park for cider and donuts, a doggy photo booth, and a raffle with Venture Dog Walking! 2:30-4:30 PM / More information!
  
• Food Trucks & Breweries:
  
  • Taste of Creole (12-5 PM) & The Heights Dominican Kitchen (12-6 PM) @ Wise Man Brewing / Live music 7:30 PM & Vinyl Night
  • Xocoyul @ Radar Brewing
  • Agueybana El Bravo @ Foothills Tasting Room / Live music 3 PM
  • Pinches Tacos @ Joymongers Barrel Hall

The Ginther Group

• FemFest is an annual benefit to raise awareness about domestic violence and sexual assault through female/femme music. The Ginther Group is proud to be sponsoring one of the incredible performances of the FemFest! On their most recent podcast, Adam of Triad Podcast Network talks to Sarah Burns and Billie Feather about FemFest NC. Check out this week's episode, donate to their Go Fund Me, and tune into their virtual event on Saturday, November 13th full of bands, art auctions, and more! 100% of the proceeds go to our local Winston-Salem domestic violence shelter via Family Services of Forsyth County. 📷 For all things FemFest visit this link: https://linktr.ee/theginthergroup

📷Local Business Spotlights

• F45 Free Trial - Go HIIT with F45 for 7 days, for FREE! Sign up here!
  
• CycleBar Deal - 20% off all packages and memberships. Sign up here and use code EXPLORE.
  
• Cugino Forno 📷Did you know Cugino Forno offers pizza-making classes? You can enjoy a hands-on class and eat your creation afterward. Interested in taking a class? Head to their website! Explore Winston-Salem and Cuguno Forno are partnering together to give away a FREE pizza-making class. Head to our Instagram post to enter.
  

📷📷Upcoming Events

• November
  
  • Charcuterie Workshop Learn how to curate your own stunning charcuterie board, using gourmet ingredients sourced from The Butchers Block on November 12th. Sign up!
  • Tanglewood Festival of Lights The light show begins on November 12th! Drive your own car through the light festival or take a carriage or hayride. More information!
  • Holiday Parking Deck Pop-Up Join Link Apartments at Innovation Quarter for their second annual Holiday Pop-Up with local artisans and vendors on their rooftop parking deck. November 13th / More information!
  • Reynolda Village Holiday Stroll Kick-off your holiday season with a stroll through the historic Reynolda Village. Enjoy carolers, free carriage rides, and the beautiful decorations throughout the Village on November 19th. More information!
  • Piedmont Craftsmen's 58th Annual Craft Fair Meet over 85 of the country’s finest craft artists creating one-of-a-kind, wearable, usable, livable, & beautiful pieces of art during this two-day event! November 20-21 / More information!
  • Turkey Strut 5k Participate in the Turkey Strut 5k at the Winston-Salem Fairgrounds on Thanksgiving Day. 9 AM / More information!
• December
  
  • Winston-Salem Jaycees Holiday Parade The annual Winston-Salem Jaycees Holiday Parade will be held on Saturday, December 4th downtown. More information!
  • Mistletoe Run The 38th Annual Mistletoe Run is taking place on December 4th. The 5k course runs through the Buena Vista Neighborhood while the marathon will be throughout the Reynolda area. Sign up here!
  • Preservation Forsyth Preservation Forsyth is excited to partner with the Kimpton Cardinal Hotel in offering a special holiday Tap into Preservation event on December 7th. Each ticket includes a 45-60 minute, multi-floor “behind the scenes” tour and any drink of your choice from the Katharine Brasserie & Bar! Reserve your spot!
  • Southbound Craft Fair Carefully curated vendors making distinctive crafts at Cobblestone Market on December 12th. More information!
  • Jingle Jog 5k The 5K race and 1 mile Santa Strut will take place on the Long Branch paved trail on December 18th. The post-race celebrations will be at Radar Brewing. Sign up here!

New & Soon

• Coming Soon (click here for the full list)
  • Eastern Standard WS - Fine Wines - Classic Cocktails - Intriguing Small Bites opening late November.
  • New Downtown Restaurant - Owners of popular downtown restaurants, Young Cardinal and Jeffrey Adams, are opening a new restaurant in Crafted's former space.
  • Six Hundred° - Bringing Local Food & Service to the heart of Bailey Park. Coming soon!
  • Melrose Coffee Bar - A California-inspired Coffee + Wine Bar opening November 20th.
  • Lucha Libre Ice Cream - Popular Greensboro ice cream & churro shop coming soon to Winston!

Job BoardAll of the following jobs are full time. For more information or to apply, click on the job title.
Does your company have an open position? [Reach out](mailto:[email protected]) to us about our job board!

• Community Manager at Flywheel Coworking
• Service Inspector at Carolina Basement Systems
• Junior Copywriter at The Variable
• Sales Manager at The Cardinal Hotel - The Katharine