General: Italy

Introduction and General Information

This year my wife and I decided to inter-rail around Italy, flying into Pisa; taking in Florence, Pompeii, Sicily and finally ending up for a quick stop in Rome, a mini grand tour if you will. The review starts with general information for the first time Italian traveller, then cities and sites and, finally, is rounded off (as I was) by food and shopping. I managed to convince the wife that taking ...
...so I wrote the review as I went round. It's a long one so I hope you enjoy.

Inter-rail

Inter-rail provides regional and countrywide passes allowing the use of all domestic trains within the region where it is bought. Recently changed to allow purchase for the over 25's (though sadly more expensive) they can be bought from www.interrailnet.com. The passes allow travel for a certain number of days within a month; ours ... more

Introduction and General Information

This year my wife and I decided to inter-rail around Italy, flying into Pisa; taking in Florence, Pompeii, Sicily and finally ending up for a quick stop in Rome, a mini grand tour if you will. The review starts with general information for the first time Italian traveller, then cities and sites and, finally, is rounded off (as I was) by food and shopping. I managed to convince the wife that taking the laptop would be a good idea on this one so I wrote the review as I went round. It's a long one so I hope you enjoy.

Inter-rail

Inter-rail provides regional and countrywide passes allowing the use of all domestic trains within the region where it is bought. Recently changed to allow purchase for the over 25's (though sadly more expensive) they can be bought from www.interrailnet.com. The passes allow travel for a certain number of days within a month; ours allowed 6 days of travel in Italy and cost €189 each. In addition to this initial cost major lines require seats to be reserved and a supplement to be paid (AV trains €20, Intercity €5). This can be done at any station and despite my lack of Italian a phrasebook and a website printout allowed me to get through. Major train stations in Florence and Naples spoke English.

Money

Italy uses the Euro which at the time of writing had risen dramatically to 82p for €1 which added about 20% to the cost of the holiday, given my time again I would have paid everything in pounds upfront and saved myself a packet. Places to change exist everywhere though the exchange rates are terrible. All the hotels accepted visa credit and debit cards. Cash points would not let me withdraw more than €150 per day but were accessible. Watch out for banks charging you every time you use a card or withdraw (flipping Barclays £2.29).

Language

The language is of course Italian, though a smattering of Latin can help to enjoy some of the many cultural ruins and relics that you meet on your travels. English is widely spoken in major cities and tourist restaurants and attractions however smaller towns will require a phrase book to make yourself understood. Sicily and Pompeii both had train stations with no English speakers. Making the effort to speak Italian will endear you to those you are speaking to even if after a few phrases you lapse into English and they take pity on you. 1-10, days of the week, please (per favour), thank you (gratzi), goodbye (ciao), how much (quanto costa), the bill (il conto) and the all encompassing prego (come here, go, your welcome, follow, ok) were enough to see me through.

Culture & Advice

Italy is a mainly Christian (Catholic) country as can be seen by so many fantastic Christian sites. Be aware that many sites require modest clothing (no shorts or bare shoulders) including the Vatican and nearly all Cathedrals. Many shops and attractions close on Mondays and there is a long lunch break in the afternoons from 12:00pm to 3:00pm with shops closing for a couple of hours in this period but staying open well into the evening. Restaurants open later than in the UK and in tourist areas will happily seat you after midnight. Italy is a country with the contrast of a richer north and a much poorer south but there were no signs of poverty comparable with say, China or Jamaica.

Many restaurants place a cover charge on the table of a couple of Euros, some see this as the tip and say so on the Menu, others state no tips included in which case 10-15% is about right. All in all Italy is a pretty safe country in which to travel but petty crime such as pick pocketing is endemic so the usual safety rules of watch your wallet and don't walk around unaccompanied obviously apply.

If you want to use the internet when you are out there then you will be asked to provide ID as the government tracks what you are looking at. A driving licence will suffice if you don't want to give your passport details. There were no unsecured wireless networks I could log on to because of this. Charges are from €1 to €5 for an hour.

Pisa - Half Day

We flew into Pisa from Bristol (with Easyjet, because it was cheap) and did not spend a lot of time there, just enough to see the leaning tower and grab lunch. You can hop to the centre on a train direct from the airport. The leaning tower itself is a tower which well, leans. Not as much as it used to, but lean it does. This is due to works conducted a few years ago to stop it collapsing altogether. It does mean however you can go up it if you so desire, though only 40 people at a time for safety. We declined due to the long queues.

The leaning tower is actually the belfry of the cathedral that stands just a few feet away; it, the tower and the baptistery make an impressive renaissance architectural display. We played the highlight tourist, came, snapped the tower, ate a pizza and were on our way to Florence.

Florence / Firenze in General - Four Nights

Florence is known as a city of culture with art galleries, cathedrals, churches, gardens and buildings making a cracking scene for anyone who likes this sort of thing. We stayed at the Kursaal Ausonia (3*) hotel a short walk from the station, a little nuts for having its reception on the third floor but otherwise serviceable enough, the only issue being an intermittent wireless connection which I had paid for (for anyone interested we did all our hotels through www.booking.com.) We had four nights and three days in Florence which was about perfect.

In general the bits of Florence that you want to see are reasonably central and all within walking distance, we only walked during our whole time there though there are taxis and horse drawn carriages available for those who wish. The pavements in Florence are very narrow and you might find yourself walking single file a lot (when you secretly want to punch slow walking people in the back of the head this can be a frustration). The place abounds with trattorias, vendors, markets and other eateries so however you are catering you are never more than a few metres from somewhere.

Uffizi - Florence

Our first highlight was the Uffizi the 16th century art gallery holding the private collection of the Medici family, basically the long time rulers of Florence who through devious means collected a lot of power, wealth and art, when you consider Machiavelli was a hero of the city you get the picture.

Pictures indeed are what you get in abundance but first I should mention the trial of actually getting in the place. Admittance is to put it mildly, a real pain. It is possible to book in advance which adds a couple of euros to the ticket (€6.50) and allows you to skip the queue (when I say skip I mean that queue takes about half an hour). Unfortunately by the time we got there all the reserved tickets were taken until the day after we had to leave (I believe it is possible to book on line and thoroughly recommend people do). This meant that we had the joy of queuing for three and a half hours, one of which was in front of a really whiney American couple who were clearly not going to make the three hours, lo and behold they left after an hour and twenty minutes with the man stating it was provided his partner did not whine about it all day; I feel he was in for a miserable afternoon. Flagrant queue jumping also is a big problem and there is a special type of hell waiting for these people I am sure.

When you finally get to the front of the damn queue you find the reason for it is that there is one ticket office and one security scanner for everyone and that they only let people in in specific 15 minute periods… madness. However I hear that in the height of summer queues can reach 7 hours long. Also be aware that this place is closed on Mondays.

Enough about the queuing, once inside there are two levels to the museum and you are forced to start at the top (after a long long wait by the women's toilets of which there is one and 3000 women who have queued for three hours). The rooms are filled with the works of renaissance masters, Botticheli, Raphael, Caravaggio and a host of others. The paintings are nearly all religious works especially the Madonna and child, pictures of saints or portraits. In fact after about an hour I was screaming for a still life or a landscape. They are all great but after a while they start to blend into one a bit. The most famous work that I recognised was Botticheli's 'The Birth of Venus'. There are also many many sculptures lining the place and pictures of all the famous people of the era line the main gallery.

Labelling is terrible and there is almost nothing in English (there is almost nothing in Italian either). Random works are missing or on loan elsewhere. Sadly a large part of the second floor was under renovation when we were there and this curtailed an hour or so of the visit. Overall the Ufizzi is great if you like art but I think it lacks the great works and shear scope of somewhere like the Louvre.

Duomo - Florence

Duomo means cathedral in Italian and Florence holds the world's fourth largest. It is huge and takes up an entire square for itself. Forget trying to photograph it in one go, specific bits are the best you will manage here. The green and white marble façade presents a pleasant alternative to the more gothic cathedrals of northern Europe. Entry into the cathedral is free but be warned there is almost nothing to see here, the interior is almost entirely bare with just a few pictures and an odd clock to keep you interested. It is possible to visit the foundations where you can see the remains of previous churches that have been built (€3); these are diverting but not spectacular.

For spectacular you have to trek up the dome of the cathedral (€6). The 459 steps take you up to the roof via the ceiling of the interior of the cathedral where you can admire the magnificent frescos. Be warned if you don't like heights this will be flipping petrifying as I don't mind them but was pretty nervous. Passages in the cathedral are low and narrow and there are several places where it is one person wide but people are coming both ways. Throughout there is a huge amount of graffiti perpetuated by citizens of every nation (who are scum in my opinion, I mean, who defaces a cathedral) and this really detracts from the experience on the way up.

At the top there are amazing panoramic views of Florence, it can get quite crowded up here and the floor slopes slightly towards the edge (more sadness for vertigo suffers here.) However it is an enjoyable 20 -30 minutes gazing over the red tiled vista.

Accademia - Florence

The Accademia (€6) is Florence's second museum but really it is a building to hold one specific item, Michelangelo's David, the sculpture of David (of David and Goliath fame) which is generally acknowledged to be the world's best sculpture. Don't queue in the morning here, we came early afternoon and walked straight in with no queue at all. The museum is fairly small and can be done in a couple of hours at most.

The museum is divided into three parts, two exhibition halls and the main hall. The exhibition halls when we were there contained a display of unusual musical instruments including the worlds only unmodified Stradivarius Viola and items such as a hurdy-gurdy. The other hall (upstairs) had a collection of religious icons from throughout the Christian world. Very nice, very gaudy and I am surprised there is a church in Italy with any ornamentation left as it all seems to be in museums but after the Uffizi I must say I was Madonna and Childed out.

David steals the show here, walking up the main hall you see a number of blocks of marble along the way of partial sculpts by Michelangelo and there are some great pictures by well known renaissance artists. Everything is well labelled in English as well as Italian but I guess that's easier when there are so few exhibits. David is great, bigger than you would think and well situated so everyone is able to get a decent view. It's worth a visit.

Other Attractions - Florence

In addition to the major attractions listed above, we also visited the Ponte Vecchio the oldest bridge in the city which has precariously placed jewellery stores along it. For a supposedly major attraction this is actually pretty lame, covered with tat sellers, crowded and unimpressive.

We also visited the Boboli Gardens (€9) for a little bit of a change from museum hopping. This gave us fantastic views of the surrounding Tuscan countryside as well as a chance to have a day without queuing. It was a nice change of pace. There was even a random porcelain museum in the grounds.

Pompeii in General - Three Nights

Getting from Florence to Pompeii requires jumping on the train to Naples and then the Circumvesuviano Metro train (not included but only €2.40) round to Pompeii itself. The ruins are great as outlined below however the city of Pompeii is awful and one of the least pleasant places I have ever stayed. Piles of uncollected rubbish lie half burned at street corners. There is constant hassle from people including children trying various ways to part you from your money. However the worst problem by far is the dogs. There are literally hundreds of wild dogs in the town. While less of a problem during the heat of the day while they sleep, during the evening they are a menace.

On our first night in Pompeii one of these dogs started following us as we walked the 800m into town from our hotel. Stopping didn't shake it, it waited, crossing the road didn't shake it, it crossed with us, the damn thing even ran ahead and waited for us round corners. While it never tried to bite being followed like this is pretty disconcerting. It was joined by two friends along the way, one of which was insane and ran at cars causing them to swerve. I named the evil trio Brian, Hippy and Yapster as they had become a permanent part of the scenery. We managed to get into a restaurant (inside and shook them) but on the way back they were joined by 3 more of their mangy compatriots who menaced us, other tourists and passing traffic on the way back. Don't stay in Pompeii, stay on the Amalfi coast and get the train in.

Our hotel 'La Villa' was an ok experience with the usual three star fare served up. It was advertised as 50m from the ruins (blatant lie) and was a pain to get to without a car as Pompeii lacks pavements and a road nearby was closed.

Pompeii - Ruins (Scavi)

Of course the only reason to come to Pompeii is to see the ruins, the preserved city which was buried by the eruption of Vesuvius 79AD. The ruins are open all day, the entrance is right next to the train station (the Circumvesuviano one not the main one) and the cost is €11. I reckon you need between 4-6 hours to see it all depending on how big a Roman buff you are (wild dogs come free as standard.) I'd bring a picnic if I had my time over as the sandwiches on site are extortionate and you cannot wander in and out of the site, be warned your ticket is strictly one time only. Strangely the ruins were closed on our second day when we walked past with no real explanation but some very pissed off tour groups.

The ruins are on a huge scale, there is enough here that you may not want to see any more Scavi for the rest of the holiday. You are able to wander quite freely around and knowledgeable guides are available for exorbitant fees. The only bad news is that just about all the relics and artefacts found on the site have been removed to the museum in Naples. I guess this is to stop them all going missing but does detract marginally from the experience.

Much of the city is just a series of walls without much inside, however there are some definite highlights. The house of Venus is largely complete and impressive with some cracking mosaics, as is the main amphitheatre which is an imposing structure. The baths are good and almost untouched. Other places of interest include the worlds first beware of the dog sign in mosaic Latin (how ironic) and the brothel where the mosaics portray a menu of services. The most poignant items however are the full body casts of the people who were instantly killed by the volcano's pyroclastic surge (I'm not knowledgeable I just read Richard Harris' Pompeii on the holiday). Children, animals and full grown adults can all be seen in various places around the ruins.

Overall I enjoyed the ruins, the two real impressions that it gives are one of vastness and one of history, you can see that people lived and worked here. Where they went to wash, to play and to shop. It really does give a good impression of how a Roman city would have worked. Far better than any other ruins I have been to.

Pompeii - Vesuvius

Our other activity in Pompeii was to clamber up Vesuvius. I have to say it was a bit of a mission trying to get up there by public transport. Because the ruins were all shut everyone had booked out the tours. There is a bus (€11 return), it does leave from outside the tourist office, it's just an hour later from when the timetable states. Oh and a random tip is in Pompeii you buy bus tickets from tobacconists rather than bus stations, trying to buy on the bus gets you a €1 surcharge.

Vesuvius was packed out, the long and windy road (the bus driver was a hero in my book) was clogged with cars that had just been abandoned about a kilometre from the main car park and we had to walk that bit of the road. Once at the carpark there is a €5 charge to go up the remaining kilometre or so to the top of the cone. Sticks are offered (for a tip of your choice) to help make the journey easier, we had got so used to waving off tat sellers that we said no but I regret this. The way up is steep and the ground made of shifting volcanic pumice and gravel, we had a good giggle playing spot the inappropriate shoes.

When you get to the top there are fantastic views of the bay of Naples and you can see into the cone of the volcano itself. Anyone looking for lava will be disappointed here as the volcano is well and truly dormant. It's more like looking at a rock basin rather than anything else. For those seeking a more active volcano experience I hear Etna is a bit more active. We wandered up, we wandered down, it took a couple of hours and my wife picked up a bit of volcanic rock. (She likes carrying rocks around).

Sicily - In General - 5 Nights

Moving on from Pompeii (which I was not unhappy to see the back of) we got the train to Salerno and then to Taormina in Sicily. A word of warning in all the stations we visited there were never any trains between 10:00 and 12:00 for some reason and as we hadn't checked we arrived at Pompeii station at 10:05, cue a 2 hour wait in Pompeii. Then the train in Salerno was delayed for an hour and a half. Then when we finally got to Sicily (Messina port, the train goes on a boat which is cool) we had a rail replacement bus. Only our British stiff upper lip and knowledge of the UK train network (I once had a 9 hour delay) allowed us to confront this with appropriate stoicism.

I immediately loved Sicily, the people were friendly, the food terrific, there were no menacing dogs, the pavements were wide and broad and on our first trip out of the hotel we were immediately greeted by an accordionist playing the Sicily tune from the Godfather. Sicily has a lot to offer, beach resort, Etna nearby, and if you have a car then exploring the interior is apparently great fun, you can even visit Corleone if you so desire.

We were staying just outside Taormina, right by the beach in a little village called Recanati. Our hotel Villa Linda (3*) was fine with a balcony view onto the sea, free wireless internet and a funny receptionist who was the most eager to please person I have ever met and who thought Birmingham was exotic and wonderful. Etna loomed over the beach and a string of nearby restaurants promised gastronomic treats. The sea was too cold for me but the wife (a veteran of Scottish lochs) did go for a bracing dip.

Our trip moved into a phase of wandering the village and nearby towns, walking near the beach and to the rockpools, taking a walk through the terribly overgrown and badly preserved ruins near our hotels (though there is a charming little museum) and moving from restaurant to restaurant along the sea front.

Sicily - Taormina

As well as our general lounging, cake and gelato (ice cream) consumption, we also made a visit to the nearest large town Taormina. We actually ended up going twice due to problems trying to catch connections to the nearest city, Catania. The bus service times were, shall we say, approximate. Taormina has some beautiful gardens, a couple of small museums and a large Greek amphitheatre overlooking the sea. The amphitheatre is well preserved and worth a look but the problem is, after having been to the ruins of Pompeii, everything else seems on a much smaller scale. Still the views from the theatre were spectacular.

We were destined never to see the Taormina Duomo either it was shut or there was a service on. The thing to do in the town really was to slow down and enjoy the ambiance. To have a meal at one of the restaurants who have their tables out on the twisting stairs into the medieval side streets. Taormina is known as a shopper's paradise and both local and designer goods are available throughout the town.

Rome / Roma - Half Day

There were no stresses or hassles in getting to Rome, the train left direct from Taormina station and got us in just under an hour late. We were staying at the Hotel Ducale (3*) which was further from the main station than it looked and had no lift for our third floor room.

Though we were only in Rome for half a day we made the most of it and managed to grab the metro (€4 for an all day pass for all Trams, Bus and Metro) to St Peter's Basilica by the Vatican. The queue here was very long but very fast moving and we were inside within twenty minutes. There are some hugely impressive statues in here but in effect it is a crypt where many of the popes have been buried; in fact you can see some of their bodies in glass cabinets underneath their monuments. The largest and most impressive is of course the tomb of St Peter himself. Just seeing it helps to bring home the fact that there really was a person who is buried down there wrapped up in the formation of Christianity. You can also go up the dome (no thanks I'd done that once) or visit the treasury but as we were in a rush to catch our plane we did not go in.

It was then just a metro, two trams, a metro, a bus, a plane and a car to get home of course if you include the journey from Sicily you can add in a coach, a train and a boat. This was the end of our Italian venture.

Food

Of course one of the main attractions of Italy is the food, pizza, pasta and salami are all instantly familiar to us. An Italian meal can be a huge experience. Antipasti to start, usually meats, cheeses or a salad. Then the primi plati of pasta. Following this the main course starts a full meat or fish with side dishes of potato or vegetable and then onto a dessert, usually a cake or ice cream.

Our first meal was the real blow out. Entitled the meal of happy memories (€35) It started with bread and oil, then a plate of mixed salamis, moved on to pasta with Tuscan ham and aubergine, then an 18 ounce Florentine T-Bone steak with a mixed bean side, amoretti biscuits, a lemon liquor, espresso as well as wine and water. That was… ample. Fortunately restaurants only really expect you to have one or two courses and won't blink if you just have a pizza or pasta.

In Sicily fish dishes abound, for a starter try a selection of smoked swordfish, tuna and salmon or a plate of pasta with clams and mussels. Sicily is also famed for its desserts and cannoli or cassata can be found in abundance. One restaurant was even happy to parcel dessert up for us as my wife apparently needed one despite being too full. A final mention should be reserved for the wines. This is one thing which is good value in Italy with house wines as cheap as €3 for half a litre, reds were better than whites with only one very poor bottle in the holiday.

Breakfasts usually comprise of some type of brioche, croissant or other bread, jam and maybe some salami, cheese, yogurt or cereal. All washed down with juice and coffee or tea. Perfectly adequate but certainly a long way from a full English.

Shopping

Italy has all sorts of goodies that you can bring back with you. As well as infinite tat and as many replica statues of David as you can shake a stick at, Florence provides excellent leather goods and jewellery. There are also hundreds of people selling fake designer goods, DVDs, pictures and paintings and sunglasses on the streets. While I would not advocate the quality of these goods (Italy has huge marketing campaigns against them) they seem popular.

Pompeii has nothing of interest to buy really, Sicily however is a different proposition with ceramics, marzipan fruits, Limoncello liquor, candied fruits and jams and local silverware all a good purchase. Rome as a large capital city has of course anything you might wish to get hold of.

Conclusion

I thoroughly enjoyed Italy though it seemed much more expensive than I had anticipated. Cultural visits are the big thing here, though it would be just as easy to do a beach holiday or to stay in the Tuscan countryside. The highlight of the trip was probably Florence where there is enough to keep you occupied for several days even if you are just going to see the highlight.

As to the inter-railing aspect this worked out ok and is certainly more environmentally friendly than flying, you get to do multi-centres. However we spent 2 of your 13 days travelling and not really seeing anything so it's got a downside as well as benefits. Also there is something to making your own way in a foreign country that gives a sense of accomplishment.

Photographs

All photographs were taken by me on the trip. 

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