Day 1 :
Took the flight from Gothenburg to Bergamo, Milan. Left office a little early and at 7 PM I was in Milan. Boarded the airport shuttle to the Milan Central.
The central-station is encompassed by a huge dome. It has a palatial façade. It’s the biggest station in Europe. I had booked my train ticket from Milan to Rome online. I just had to enter the booking number in one of those yellow machines which coughed up my travel ticket.
I bought my other train tickets to be used in Italy at Milan station itself. Milan has really old trams running on its wide streets. I just tried one to while away some time. Got to know the cathedral and the city centre are a bit far so decided to visit them on the return date.
I boarded the train at 10:45 PM. Trains in Italy are very efficient and despite carrying the infamy of being late I never found them late even by a minute.
It was a comfortable journey and managed to catch some sleep. I woke up at about 4:30 AM and the panorama truly mesmerized me. Those beautiful vineyards, the lush green slopes and rustic charm of countryside.
Day 2:
I was in the Rome Termini at 6 AM. I found lots of similarities between India and Italy. I was always mistaken for being an Italian and of course the knowledge of Spanish helped too. I found the houses resembled a lot the ones I see in my country. People had their clothes getting dried up in sun over their balconies, courtyards. There were crows sitting on television antennas. People looked much tanner compared to the rest of Europe and of all it was their rash driving that made me nostalgic of India.
I found my way to the hostel. Took shower and after breakfast decided to go to Vatican. I bought a 2 day commuters pass which would enable me to take any form of public transport in Greater Rome. I reached Vatican at 9 AM and joined the queue to get inside the basilica. This must have been the hottest day for me in Europe. It was about 42 C at 10 in the morning itself.
St. Peter’s square is majestic. This circle is covered by the pillars and in the front there is St. Peters basilica.
This must be one of the most powerful places in the world considering the control of Pope over lots of issues. In the centre of the circle there lies a beautiful fountain. After some wait time I found myself inside the basilica. It was such an admirable architecture painted all over by the geniuses thoughout the history. The central dome had a gold-plated design. There were tombs of all the previous popes in the basilica and many incredible artworks related to Christianity. People from all over the world trying to get a glimpse of the sanctum sanctorum.
After spending an hour I joined the queue to Vatican museum. This museum houses the works of Michaelangelo and many other great Italian painters. There were marvelous statues and ceiling frescos. Some of the paintings were so vivid as if the characters would come out of the wall any minute. After going through a series of masterpieces the last one to see was the Sistine Chapel. It must have been the most artistically satisfying moment to see and adore the beauty of the Sistine Chapel. What an unbelievable work! Angelo must have been a God’s gift to the mankind. Truly the renaissance artist! I sat there for quite long admiring the Last Judgement until my neck started to ache.
Made my way to the castle which was not too far from Vatican. Crossed the river to Piazza de Espana or the Spanish Steps. It’s a church with lots of steps where people relax for hours in the sun. Very near to the Spanish Steps there is the Roman Temple we know as Pantheon.
This was another highlight of the day. Beautiful statues of the Roman deities and the high and lively dome. Was totally starved so helped myself with a large pizza and a gelato. There is this street where one finds all the Italian fashion stores like Gucci, Armani, Dolce & Gabbana and Versace to name a few.
Next attraction on map was Trevi’s fountain.
Had read a lot about this one. Through the zig-zag and narrow streets I found my way to the fountain. What a treat to the eyes! Such a marvel! Hoards of people were around the fountain. So many that there was police to prevent any chaos. There is a belief that if you through a coin over the shoulders and it falls in the fountain you would visit Rome once again. I followed the ritual and my coin landed there as well. It was about 6 PM and I had already ticked off many Roma attractions with a great deal. I headed to the Caesar’s palace. Yet another jewel in the shining crown of this grand city. A white palace with a huge black statue in front. After clicking a few pictures I decided to check an Italian pasta shop. There must be atleast 500 varities of pasta in the shop and a similar number of types of cheese and wines. I got to see a yellow bottle of Limoncello made from lemons in Sicily. I had dinner of pasta in the hostel and came to this square from where the entire city could be seen. It was a bird’s eye view of the city at night.
Day 3:
Got up early to avoid long hours of wait to the colloseum. It was as magnificent as they had shown in Gladiator.
A giant and standing testimony to the Great Roman Empire. The collosseum was quite an experience. The oval walls of it and the passage from where war prisoners would be taken out to fight with fate to death. Had lunch of pizza and rested for a while. Next to see was Ruins of Rome. The ruins had the entire city of ancient Rome and the palaces of kings Caesar and Augustus.
The grandeur of ruins could tell how it would have been once upon a time. There so much to click that my camera battery and memory both began to complain. That meant I had to go back to hostel and recharge the battery and find another memory card for the rest of the tour. I was able to locate a place where I bought another 2 Gb memory. Day 4:
Got up at 6:30 AM to catch the eurostar to Florence. Rome had been a wonderful tour experience but I still had a lot to explore in Bella Italia. Boarded the train at 7:40 AM and reached Florence at 10:30 AM. Rome-Florence route is quite scenic and passing them through at 300 kmph made it quite a sight to behold. I navigated my way to the hostel and left my backpack there. I first went to the Castle which had a square-stoned square. Next to see was the Old Bridge which had a house made on the bridge.
In the morning time I didn’t find to many visitors thronging the place. One of the residents advised me to go to the hills from where the red roof-tops of the entire city are seen.
I walked on the serpentine road to the hilltop and yes it was a breathtaking view of the entire town. I could see the duomo, synagogue and old bridge from there. Those roof-tops made a special picture in the scorching Italian daylight. Next to see was Michelangelo’s David in the famous museum. I rushed to the museum and saw all I could hastily.
Grabbed delicious pasta at one of the stores and got on the train to Pisa. It takes about 45 minutes from Florence to Pisa and on the way there is lovely countryside. Bought one gelato and walked to the leaning tower. Yeah, it was a very touristy thing to go up the tower and get a picture. It’s funny but the truth is that the bad engineering has made this tower such a hot travel spot.
The tower is tilted and they have tied the base of the tower to the massive twin iron spheres to make sure it doesn’t tilt to the point of getting uprooted some day. The castle was equally stunning as the tower and together they made a great background for some nice pictures.
I saw people posing in the funniest of ways around the tower to make it look as if they are pushing it from the bent side or a few supporting it from their shoes. I bought some souvenirs for my nieces and nephews. On the way back I took a different route which had a historic bridge over the river. The houses around it must have been more than few thousand years old.
I took the train to Florence and got off at one of the stations little before the Florence city. A beautiful Italian village was nearby. I walked towards the hills, saw how the farmers lived and worked. Captured a few snaps of their lovely abodes and boarded the next train to Florence. It was getting dark and without wasting any minute I reached Florence Dome.
It was a very special cathedral with a very fine work of marble on its outer walls. I sat at the steps and admired it for a long time. I also wanted to see the green-topped synagogue so began to walk till there. The streets in Florence are very different from the rest of world. Every square inch is made of stones and they are quite narrow. From a distance the synagogue seemed to be just half a kilometer away but I realized it must have been about three kilometers. My legs throbbed but I didn’t want to give up. From synagogue, I returned to the Dome squarw where I bought some juice, dry fruits and cookies. I took a stroll around the town and at about 8 PM had dinner of lobster ravioli and salad. Garlic bread was the best I had tasted in Italy. Following this, I went to the old bridge. There was a band playing live jazz and the same place which looked almost deserted in the morning had so many humans vying to find a place to sit. I joined the crowd and it was quite a moment sitting on the bridge and listening to the harmonies emanating from the guitar. I almost instantly lost all my pain and tiredness. I sat there for an hour and reached my hostel at about 10 PM.
Day 5:
Got up at 5 in the morning to catch the Eurostar train to Venice. One the train reached the blue lagoon I started to plan my day in Venice. The moment I stepped out of the Venice station awe struck me. Wow, the most special place on earth, Venice! They say, there is no other city like Venice in the world. I bought a 24 hours boat pass and journeyed to St. Marco’s square in the centre of Venice. The way to square was full of beautiful marble bridges and it complemented the turquoise blue color of water. There is a castle with the lion with wings mascot of the city of Venice at the St. Marco’s square. From St. Marco’s I took another boat to the Murano island. This island is known for its world class Italian glass.
The houses on this island had very vivid colors. Each one having a different color from its adjacent ones. There were flower pots at each balcony, further enhancing the effects of color. The stores in Murano sold finest glasswork, all manufactured locally. From there I hopped on the boat to Burano island.
The houses had even more colors than in Murano.
This island is known for the handicraft work. Canals were narrower with sleek boats plying on them. The next island I went to was Torcello. Here there was a medieval church still standing tall in all its glory. The water here was green unlike the other islands where it was blue.
I came back to Venice and had lunch. In Venice you find ambulance boats, boats as police vehicles, boats used as fire-brigade vehicles.
They call the boats used for public as buses and the boats you call them at your time as taxis. I decided to see the bridge of sighs known so after the prisoners who sighed when taken to the jail connected by this bridge. From there I headed to the grand canal which as the name suggests is the widest canal in Venice. The Charles Bridge is something nobody visiting Venice wants to miss and I didn’t either. It’s a covered vridge very different from all other bridges in Venice. The narrow canals joining the grand canal had gondoliers sailing their gondolas. The shops in Venice had those beautiful masks you see in the pictures of Venice festival. Those masks make the best souvenir from Venice. I aimlessly took any boat and went to different parts of the island. In the eveninf I was back to St. Marco’s. It was the time when the restaurants created an unbelievable atmosphere at the entire square. Each one had a live band playing some classics like Beethoven and Mozart. Almost everyone was driven by this symphony. After a while I went to Lido, the island where Venice film festival is organized. This was a different and considerably new and posh island. Wide and tarred roads, modern homes and upscale cars. I had something to eat at one the pizzerias and kept going to the other end of the island. It was fascinating to see the islands at night. It was about 2 AM and I decided to go back to the station.
Day 6:
I waited for about two hours at the Venice station and took the train to Milan. On the way I saw the town of Verona going by but couldn’t visit it as I had to return to Gothenburg the same day. I reached Milan central at 8 AM and that left me about 5 hours to see the Milan city. I took metro to the Duomo station. Milan cathedral is just outside the station. It was the most beautiful cathedral I had seen.
Great work on the white marble. I found hundreds of pigeons on the square. A little boy came and asked me if I want my picture with the pigeons. I thought that would be great. Then he offered me corn seeds which he asked me to keep on my open hands. The pigeons saw it and he immediately took my snaps. The fashion complex which houses all the big Italian brands signature stores is just 5 minutes walk from there. I walked around the city for some time and returned to Milan Central. I took the next bus to Begrgamoo and I checked I still had about 1.5 hours. I decided to see the city of Bergamo in this time,. It was quite an old town and quite nice to my surprise. I took the train to the airport and flew back to Gothenburg. It was such a great trip to remember. At times I lost my way, when asked for directions the people didn’t know English. Somehow I managed with Spanish. Tasted finest gourmet Italian food and got to see some of the most wonderful man-made wonders.
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