A Country Mouse in the Big City

When it comes to every day living, the pastoral beauty of the Virginia countryside has my heart.  Quiet, unpainted roads, skies lit up by stars instead of light-bulbs, the steady thrumming of tractors, and more cows than people for neighbors - I wouldn't trade any of it, not even for the convenience of living near cafes, grocery stores, and movie theaters.  I choose to commute many miles and long hours to the office in order to enjoy the serenity of country living; it's a sacrifice, but one I'm willing to make.

But while the countryside has much to offer in terms of bucolic beauty, most cultural attractions and museums are found in the city, and so our travels primarily revolve around cities.  However, we throw in a dash of country sights here and there to give us a little bit of relaxation while on the road.  Here are just a few examples of how we've managed to put both cities and countrysides on our trips:

My five cent grin

Italy
Our trip to Italy had a heavy focus on city sights (Rome) due to the high number of attractions available to see: the Colosseum, the Pantheon, the Vatican, the museums, etc.  However, we made sure to spend time outside Italian cities, too, beginning our trip in the quiet modern town of Pompei just outside the ruins of Pompeii, spending a gloriously relaxing day on the coast outside Sorrento, and an invigorating morning hiking Mt Vesuvius!  This country mouse can better tackle a whirlwind tour of European cities with a few days spent recharging in the countryside first!

Germany
Our visits to Germany always highlight the best of both country and city, thanks in large part to the flexibility of having many friends and family members to visit while we're there!  From the tourist-packed town of Rothenburg, to the World-Cup frenzied streets of Stuttgart, to the alpine beauty of Neuschwanstein, we've seen a lot of Germany - but still not enough of it!  Munich, Berlin, Cologne, and Germany's North Sea coast are still on my bucket list.

Beautiful Rothenburg

Selfies at St Vitus Cathedral

Prague
We visited Prague in 2012 before flying to Germany, and this trip was entirely city-oriented.  But when you're walking fairy-tale streets and gaping at beautiful Gothic churches, getting stressed out by the confines of a city is the last thing on your mind!  We would dearly love to return to Prague and then venture out into the Czech countryside.

London
My whirlwind 48-hour trip to London in February was all city.  But I didn't mind one bit!  I fell in love with London - crazy and overwhelming as it can be at times! - and can't wait to return.  But like with Prague, I also yearn to see the English countryside and venture north and west to Scotland, Wales, and Ireland.  Last weekend we entered a raffle to win a trip to Ireland and the UK and when the results are announced on St. Patrick's Day, I'm hoping to hear our name called!

My "please don't send me back to the States tonight" look.

Boston
Having family ties to the Boston-area might make the city seem like an old hat to some, but for me it's anything but!  This city has attitude and historical sights in spades.  This past May we were able to walk the Freedom Trail, eat lunch at the historic Green Dragon Tavern, and reflect on our revolutionary roots at Bunker Hill.  Later we made an excursion outside the city down to Plimoth Plantation to learn more about the settlement of America in the 1600s.  While only a weekend trip, it was a perfect combination of city and country sights.

Visiting both cities and countryside on your travels not only gives you the best of both worlds, but provides you with a more well-rounded feel for the cultures with which you're interacting.  City-life is not the only facet of a society, and neither is country-living.  Experience them both and you'll come away with a deeper awareness of the culture and a more satisfying understanding of the country you're visiting.

My natural habitat is somewhere green, warm, and in the great outdoors!

Do you prefer visiting cities or countryside on your travels?  Or do you try to see the best of both?

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Linking up with Bonnie Rose and Camila for #TravelTuesday!

Getting Lost in the Vatican Museum

Before you visit the Vatican Museum, you need a plan.  Whether it's a detailed battle plan or a simple list of "must see" items, walking into the Vatican Museum without some sort of plan will result in hours spent wandering aimlessly from room to room, wondering how anyone could possibly say they've "done" the Museum without spending an actual lifetime there!

When we visited the Museum in July, our plan consisted of nothing more than making sure we saw the Sistine Chapel.  But before you ever reach the Sistine Chapel,* you walk through nearly seven kilometers worth of galleries featuring some of the world's finest paintings, sculptures, ancient artifacts, mummies from Egypt, and jewelry - all spanning from ancient civilizations to modern creations.  Although we knew the Museum was extensive, I don't think it really sank in just how much so until we showed up after a morning in the Basilica.  In retrospect, I wish I had compiled a battle plan instead of a "let's just show up and see what's what" kind of plan!

Personal Favorites

The Raphael Rooms ~  Call me incredibly clueless, but I had no idea there was so much of Raphael at the Vatican Museum (obviously, I've forgotten all the art history I learned in high school).  I could've spent hours in the Raphael Rooms, mouth agape and completely engulfed in the School of Athens or the masterful Battle of Milvian Bridge (a Raphael design painted by Giulio Romano).  After seeing these paintings peer out at me through school textbooks and tv documentaries countless times, I couldn't believe they were right in front of me.

Here are a few of my favorite shots:

School of Athens

Battle of Milvian Bridge

Ceiling painting in the Room of Constantine

Gallery of Maps ~  What a hidden gem!  These 16th century frescoes by Ignazio Danti depict the entirety of the Italian peninsula.  We loved looking for familiar-sounding towns and cities of those we had just visited and those that still remain on our bucket list.

Sistine Chapel ~  By far, the Sistine Chapel was the apex of our Museum visit - and yet, it wasn't the experience I wanted.  Sadly, no photos are allowed (but many misbehaving tourists were snapping them anyway).  We spent at least 40 minutes in the Chapel, listening to our audio guide's explanation and descriptions of all the artwork.  Michelangelo's artistry draws people from all over the world, but unfortunately the hordes of tourists detract from the experience.  Instead of being able to quietly ponder on the Biblical stories and lessons behind the art, you are being bumped by tourists surreptitiously trying to sneak a picture.  Rather than hearing Gregorian chants or hymns, you are serenaded by a Museum employee telling you, "Silencio.  No photos," in at least three or four languages.  Perhaps you can experience a more reverent atmosphere in the off-season, but there was none to be had in July.

Other Notable Mentions
Caravaggio, Titian, Bellini.... yeah, they're all there.  I couldn't possibly cover all these masterpieces in one post.  (Future post, maybe?)  By all means, buy yourself a ticket to Rome and go marvel over these pieces in person yourself!!!

Planning Your Visit
Buy your tickets ahead of time, especially if you're planning to visit in the busy tourist season!  Although it will cost an additional 4 euros a ticket buying in advance, it translates into saving precious time when you can skip the long lines of people just waiting to buy their tickets!

This pup wants to know when you're coming to visit him!  Have you been to the Vatican Museum?  What were your favorite galleries?

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Cost:  16€ a person, plus an additional 4€ per ticket if you purchase online in advance; audio guides were 7€ per person
Time Needed:  ~1 hour if only visiting for the Chapel; at least 3+ hours otherwise
Accessibility:  Currently, the Museum is not immediately near a Metro line.  We took Line A to the Ottaviano - "San Pietro" station and walked south on Via Ottaviano for 2 blocks, then a right onto Via Germanico for 2 blocks, at which point the walls of the Vatican are directly in front of you.  Follow the wall to the right (eventually turning onto Via Vaticano - as if that isn't a clear indication of where you're going!), and it will bring you to the Museum entrance.  It was about a 10-15 minute walk.
Website:  http://www.museivaticani.va/
Tips:  Unless you're planning on queuing up at least 30 minutes before the doors open at 9am, do yourself a favor and buy your tickets online before you ever leave home.  You can reserve a specific entry time (we were able to enter the museum before our allotted time) and having that ticket will allow you to bypass the excessively long lines!  We chose to rent an audio guide, which was very helpful for the artifacts that piqued our interest.  Just like with visiting the Basilica, you will have to go through metal detectors and other security so make sure you don't accidentally bring any prohibited items with you.

* There were signs indicating how to bypass or cut through various galleries in order to get to the Sistine Chapel faster.  This would be very helpful for visitors on a strict time schedule or those who have no interest in anything but the Chapel.

Linking up with Bonnie & other travel bloggers for #TravelTuesday!

Where to eat in Pompeii

Whether you're planning to visit Pompeii on a day-trip or book a hotel to stay longer, at some point during your visit, you'll probably need to grab at least one meal.  During the two and a half days we spent in Pompeii, we tried out two restaurants, a cafe, and some street food.  While most of the eatery choices in close proximity to the ruins are very touristy, some are better than others, and even good restaurants near the ruins may appear deserted for dinner since most tourists visit Pompeii only for the day.  Here are our recommendations, ratings, and caveats of available eateries in Pompeii (the ancient ruins) and Pompei (the modern town):

Hostaria Plinio
http://hostariaplinio.weebly.com/

For warm Italian service and delicious Italian cuisine, Hostaria Plinio will take care of your needs while in Pompei.  From their crunchy bruschetta to rich lasagna, our taste buds couldn't get enough of their generous servings.  On our first evening, we sampled their spaghetti alla carbonara and lasagna dishes, pairing them with half liters of chilled Peroni.  What a meal.  It was our first meal in Italy and set the bar high for the remainder of the trip.  We returned to Hostaria Plinio on our third (and last) night in Pompeii, this time ordering pizza and spaghetti con carne.  The pizza was bigger than the plate, and the spaghetti portions were also substantial.  We waddled our way back to the hotel, completely sated.

This place appeared to be family-run and operated, and while our young server couldn't speak a lick of English (nor we a bit of Italian!), food is a universal language and communication proved to be no problem.  On both our visits we ate in their beautifully appointed garden and enjoyed service that resembled the hospitality extended to friends more than a business taking care of patrons.  Does it get any better than that?

Price range: $$
   Appetizers: 4-5 euros
   Pasta dishes: 7-10 euros
   Meat dishes: 10-15 euros
   Pizza:  8-10 euros
   Alcohol:  3-4 euros (per glass or half liter)
Service: 5 out of 5
Bang for your Buck Value: 5 out of 5
Location:  Less than a 10 minute walk from the main entrance to the Pompeii ruins (14 Via Plinio).

Source.

The Coffee House (Lucullo's Garden Bar)

Located in the same building as the Hostaria Plinio, we visited the Coffee House* on our second night in Pompei.  After studying the menu posted on their garden wall, we finally went in and took a seat near a bubbling fountain.  Although there was only one other family seated, it took nearly ten minutes before we were noticed and menus provided.  The offered fare varied from paninis and pizza, to pasta and meat dishes.  Having spent a long hot day under the sun in Sorrento, we settled upon a panini and an alfredo dish, paired with Peroni and a white wine purportedly grown on the slopes of Mt Vesuvius.  We had no complaints with the food, but it was nothing special.  The service was slow even by Italian standards.  Danny ordered a second beer after his meal and twenty minutes later had still not received it, even though the waitress was standing in the doorway between the garden and restaurant, clearly not busy.  When we were ready to ask for our bill (il conto, per favore), the waitress finally remembered to bring the beer, extending our dinner by another twenty minutes when we were desperately craving our pillows.  Since Hostaria Plinio provided a better experience, both in terms of the food and the service, we would suggest giving the Coffee House a pass.

Price Range: $$
Service: 2 out of 5
Bang for your Buck Value: 3 out of 5
Location:  Less than a 10 minute walk from the main entrance to the Pompeii ruins before you reach Hostaria Plinio (14 Via Plinio).

*We committed a travel blogger faux pas and failed to note the exact name of the restaurant.  The Google street view from August 2012 indicates signs with "Lucullo's Wine Bar" but the TripAdvisor for a restaurant at that address is for the Coffee House.  

Not a picture of the actual cafe :)

Pompeii Scavi Cafe

When it comes to soothing growling stomachs while within the walls of the Pompeii ruins, you have only one choice: the Pompeii Scavi Cafe.  Since there is no re-entry into the ruins once you've left, if your time in Pompeii coincides with mealtime, you either must pack a lunch or spend your euros here.  Like most eateries that have a monopoly control over their locale, the food is passable and the prices are steep for what you get.  We indulged in two rather large pizza slices (three if you count the one that met an untimely end), a Coke and a few beers for only a little less than a sit-down meal at Hostaria Plinio.  Survey the contents of the deli window, pay for your choice, then present your receipt to receive your food.  This cafe is adequate for your needs but nothing more.

Price Range:  $$
Service:  2.5 out of 5
Bang for your Buck Value:  2.5 out of 5
Location: Located just north of the Roman Forum within the ancient ruins.  Convenient for a snack or light meal without leaving the site.

Bar Bouvette Misteri Di Vorro Luig

If you're desperate enough to eat here, you may as well just buy a bag of chips and wait for a real restaurant.  We grabbed a slice of pizza and a panini from this street cafe attached to the train station after returning late from our excursion to Mt Vesuvius to catch a train to Naples and on to Rome.  The pizza consisted of one pepperoni piece and a few crumbs of cheese on a half-baked, doughy mess; not even hunger was a suitable sauce.  Granted, our pizza came from the hot plate deli case, so perhaps they have better fare when you actually sit down in the restaurant area, but I don't know that I'd give them another chance.  I will say that the employees were very pleasant and engaging, but beyond that our experience could not validate a recommendation.

Price Range: $
Service: 3 out of 5
Bang for your Buck Value: 0 out of 5
Location: As you exit the station, it's to your right within the same building complex as the station.

While admittedly there are few solid restaurant choices near the Pompeii ruins. we would highly recommend the Hostaria Plinio establishment both for excellent service and delicious foods.  And speaking of food... here are a few drool-inducing pictures from there!

Massive pizza from Hostaria Plinio

Spaghetti con carne, also from Hostaria Plinio

Salute!

Peronis at the Coffee House

Alfredo at the Coffee House

Panini from Coffee House

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Have you visited the modern town of Pompei or the ruins at Pompeii?  Any restaurant recommendations or caveats?

Linking up with Bonnie Rose and other travel bloggers for #TravelTuesday!

All places were visited between July 4 and July 7, 2014.  All opinions are my own, and we received no compensation or incentive for these reviews.

A Few Hours in Amsterdam

Layovers can be a drag.  Being locked in an airport terminal, counting down the seconds until you can finally board your next flight, is not exactly a glamorous aspect of traveling.  However, sometimes you can maximize a layover into a sightseeing opportunity with a little bit of research and pre-planning.

While en route from Uganda back to the United States in August 2007 after a mission trip, I had the opportunity to get a brief taste of Amsterdam for a few hours, thanks to some forethought by our group leaders.  We arrived in Schipol Airport in the early morning hours (somewhere between four and six a.m.) and took advantage of their somewhat comfortable chair-beds to doze for a few hours before going out into the city.  Bleary-eyed and groggy, we secured our luggage in the airport lockers, made our way through passport control, and down into the train station below Schipol.  After only fifteen minutes on the Intercity direct train line, we emerged at the beautiful Centraal Station ready for a few hours in the city!

Having spent the prior nine days in Uganda, Amsterdam was a bit of culture shock for many of us in the group.  We were out and about before the street cleaners had finished their work, and the remnants of the prior night's revels still littered the streets.  Nevertheless, the buildings shone brightly in the early morning sun, the fresh flowers in the window boxes sweetened the air, and the canals provided a quiet playground for many ducks.  It was my first taste of Europe, and I was hooked!

We found a little breakfast cafe where we enjoyed an English breakfast and not-so-friendly service from our Dutch waiter.  To this day I'm not sure whether he just didn't like Americans (since the British couple in the corner seemed to get a warmer reception) or whether he lacked the patience to handle a large group so early in the morning, but I've often wanted to go back and give him a second chance to change my opinion.

After breakfast we continued to wander the streets.  The culture shock (and entertainment) increased as we encountered our first coffee shop.  For those of you unfamiliar with Amsterdam, a coffee shop actually serves marijuana.  Contrasted with our recent arrival from a Christ-centric mission trip to Africa, the idea and reality of a coffee shop simultaneously amused us and reminded us that "we weren't in Kansas anymore!"  For those of you who need actual coffee while in Amsterdam, find yourself a nice little cafe (preferably one with a great canal view) for a hot cup of Joe.

"This car is so tiny!"

Sadly, we were not in Amsterdam long enough to tour the Anne Frank house, the Corrie ten Boom museum, the Royal Palace, any churches, the Rijksmuseum (National Museum), or the plethora of other world-class museums located in the city.  We also did not visit De Wallen, more commonly known as the Red Light district, but then again, we had no desire or inclination to do so.  Even in the nicer neighborhoods, however, rainbow-colored flags shadowed many doorways, and we soon figured out that this is an indicator of it being a sex shop or something similar.

Having spent as long as possible walking through such beautiful neighborhoods as the Jordaan and admiring many pristine canals, it was finally time to return to Schipol for our flight to the states.  I have yet to return for a proper exploration of Amsterdam, but I will always hold those brief layover hours in high regard as the beginning of my love affair with Europe.

Have you ever squeezed any sight-seeing into a layover?  Have you ever visited Amsterdam?

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Linking up with Bonnie Rose and other travel bloggers for #TravelTuesday!

Mapping My Month: October 2014

Yet another month has come and gone.  Weather-wise, I think September has been my favorite of all the months we've spent at home this year.  The mornings have been cool and refreshing, but we've still enjoyed a few hot and sunny days as summer gives out her last few gasps for the year.

As anticipated, September was a quiet month in terms of travel and events.  Although we began the month in the Outer Banks over Labor Day weekend, our other weekends were spent here in the Old Dominion, celebrating a wedding in the family, showering presents and love onto friends at a "Baby-Que" shower, sneaking in two last float trips on the James River, and enjoying a little bit of Bavaria here in Richmond at St Benedict's 10th Annual Oktoberfest.  And with our foray into the Oktoberfest celebrations, our travel bug has been inflamed once again, and we've started researching in earnest as to where our international travels might lead us next year.

I have a feeling that October (and probably every month until spring) will have only modest travel activity.  International travel is certainly out of the budget for a while as we continue to save, and the holidays will keep us (and everyone else!) quite busy.  But we do plan to pet a few bunnies and coo over some baby ducklings at the State Fair of Virginia, check out the Deutscher Club of Richmond's 46th Annual Oktoberfest celebrations (can you tell I'm a little obsessed with all things Oktoberfest lately?!), sip more than a few Virginia wines at the 12th Annual Powhatan Festival of the Grape, and wrap up October with a little bit of Halloween shenanigans.  Oh, and a little kitten showed up at our doorstep and decided to adopt us, so we've got our hands full with a curtain-climber and dog-tail chaser!

The as yet unnamed feline we refer to as "Kittles and Bits" until we come up with a proper name!

As always, I'm so excited and blessed at all the comments you all continue to leave on my blog posts and am continually amazed by the camaraderie of the travel blogging community in general!  Although our feet may be firmly planted in the East Coast of the U.S. for the next few months, I still feel like we can continue to "travel" vicariously through your trips. too!

So what's on the books for your October?

Linking up with Bonnie Rose and other travel bloggers for #TravelTuesday!

The Price of War - Stuttgart's Birkenkopf

War is a terrible thing.  Whether justified, unprovoked, for religious or for political reasons, war is a very terrible, yet unfortunately common thing.

In an effort to remember the fallen and also as a reminder to make war the last resort, monuments and memorials are prevalent in the western world.  I can think of several dozen just here in the Richmond-metro area, yet perhaps one of the most interesting monuments I've ever visited was the Birkenkopf just outside of Stuttgart, Germany.

View of Stuttgart from the Birkenkopf.

Measuring at 511 meters and easily the highest point in the area, the Birkenkopf (roughly translated as "birch head" probably due to the trees) differs from other hills in that it is not wholly natural.  The Birkenkopf grew nearly 40 meters in height after World War II when the rubble from Stuttgart was carted to the top of the hill.  Allied bombers destroyed 45% of the city (including almost all the city center), necessitating reconstruction after the war.  As one walks around the summit, you can see the remnants of beautiful carvings, plumbing, columns, and other indicators that the rubble once adorned more than just a hillside.

A cross marks the highest point of Birkenkopf, and a plaque stands by with the admonition: "This mountain piled up after World War II from the rubble of the city stands as a memorial to the victims and a warning to the living."  (translation)

The walk up to the summit is not arduous and affords wonderful views of Stuttgart.  On clear days, you can even see as far west as the Black Forest.  Although not the biggest attraction in Stuttgart, the Birkenkopf touched me with its solemnity and insight into the brick-and-mortar price of war. 

Have you visited the Birkenkopf?  What monuments or memorials have you visited that moved you?

Linking up with Bonnie and other travel bloggers for #TravelTuesday!

The Roman Forum & Palatine Hill

What is there to say about the once-beating heart of the Roman empire that hasn't already been said?

As I surveyed the wrecked and ruined remains of marble and stone scattered haphazardly where the Palatine and Capitoline hills meet at the Roman Forum, I couldn't help but recall the words from Shelley's Ozymandias sonnet:  "Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"  What once stood proudly, embossed with gold and bright paints, now lies broken.  All the power and authority which once ruled the entire civilized world is divided or dissipated - just a few broken pillars mark where the Roman Forum once stood.  And yet the legacy of Rome continues to fascinate centuries later, and arguably, all roads still lead to Rome.

Looking up at the Palatine Hill

I did find it difficult to picture what the Roman Forum would have looked like.  Unlike the Colosseum, which only needs a little bit of imagination to fill in a few missing seats, pillars or arena floor, the Roman Forum requires a stronger imagination as not much remains unbroken.

Nevertheless we spent four or five hours wandering the valley between the Palatine and Capitoline hills where one of the greatest civilizations this world has known came into existence.  Thanks to the detailed podcasts by Rick Steves (available for free download on iPhones and Android devices), we were able to refresh our knowledge about what once existed here.  Having an audio guide or book is necessary to interpret the rubble as there is limited signage.

Temple of Romulus (left) and Temple of Antonius and Faustino (right)

In the remains of the House of the Vestal Virgins

Where Julius Caesar's body was cremated

Temple of Saturn

View of the Circus Maximus from the emperor's palaces

View across the valley between Palatine and Capitoline hills

Have you visited the Roman Forum?

Linking up with Bonnie Rose and other travel bloggers for #TravelTuesday!