The Lygers » Italy http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog Sun, 04 Dec 2011 06:32:01 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3 Rome pics http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/11/rome-pics/ http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/11/rome-pics/#comments Sat, 04 Nov 2006 13:37:00 +0000 Ryan http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/?p=267 A nice shot inside St. Peter’s Basilica
Trevi Fountain
Rome from the top of the Monument of Vittorio Emanuele II. St. Peter’s Basilica can be seen in the distance.
The Monument of Vittorio Emanuele II (aka “The Wedding Cake”)
The Roman Forum
]]> http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/11/rome-pics/feed/ 1 Ryan Goes to Italy: Rome http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/11/ryan-goes-to-italy-rome/ http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/11/ryan-goes-to-italy-rome/#comments Sat, 04 Nov 2006 12:04:00 +0000 Ryan http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/?p=266 I finally arrived at Termini only 20 minutes or so later than I had originally expected. I had been to Rome in 2000 to visit my sister for a few days. At that time I also stayed near Termini station. I think the area has picked up a bit since then because it used to be a pretty sketchy area, but isn’t so bad anymore. My hostel, Yellow Hostel, was only a few blocks away from the station so it wasn’t too bad to lug my packs. Yellow Hostel has come up with a unique layout where the reception desk is also the bar. On Thursday evening when I arrived there was some kind of upcoming open bar so the reception area/lounge/TV room was packed. To check in I had to fight a herd of thirsty 20 year-olds ordering beers. Needless to say, it took a while to check in. One of the hostel workers showed me to my room – a typical hostel room with two bunk beds. I took one of the bunk beds and decided to just go to bed to be able to get up early the next morning and see the sights. I didn’t get much sleep. It sounded like there were about 30 parties going on all throughout the building for pretty much the whole night. The only time it was quiet was between the hours of 5 and 7am. Needless to say I didn’t get much sleep. I  got up – still groggy from not getting any sleep – and headed out to see the city. My first stop was the Colosseum. I had already been inside the Colosseum in 2000 so I didn’t feel the need to pay the 12 euro fee to go inside again. I then walked through the ruins of the old Roman Forum http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_forum (which is still free). I then went to the Piazza Venezia and walked up the Monument of Victor Emmanuel II (well, halfway up – you couldn’t go to the top level). I then made my way over to the Pantheon. I continued my walk through the city across the river, past the Castel Sant’Angelo and to Saint Peter’s Basilica. At the Basilica I opted to fork out a few euro for the audio guide so I could learn about all the art and sculptures inside the massive structure. I took a bus back to the hostel and had a few drinks in the reception area/bar before headed off to sleep. Either this night was quieter or I was just so tired I didn’t hear the noise, but I slept much better. However, I did get up to use the restroom (which was down the hall) at 4:30am and there was a contingent of college kids just returning from the bars. I guess when you’re in you 30’s, coming in at 4:30am just isn’t a regular occurrence anymore. The one thing I didn’t get to see the last time I was in Rome, but really wanted to, were the Catacombs. So, on Saturday morning I went off in search of the catacombs. My hostel had their own “Yellow Hostel” maps showing some key sites, bus lines and how to get to various places. The catacombs were on the map and all it took was a few stops on the subway then a transfer to the 218 bus. The map showed where the bus stop was and the direction the bus left town but the map didn’t extend all the way to the catacombs, which are outside town a bit. Now, when I got to where the bus was supposed to leave from there were no 218 buses. I walked all over the area and still found no 218 buses. I walked down the street my map said the bus traveled down and still no 218 bus. I asked people on the street – they never heard of the 218 bus. They also didn’t know how to get to the catacombs. Eventually after about an hour of getting frustrated with my crappy Yellow Hostel map I broke down and paid 3 euro for a comprehensive map (plasticized, no less) with all the bus routes on it. I finally found the 218 bus which left from a completely different place than my map said and went off in a completely different direction (but did go to the catacombs so the Yellow Hostel map was right on one thing). I finally made it to the catacombs and bought my (5 euro) ticket. There are actually several catacombs in the same general area, but I went to the one closest to the bus stop which, as it turned out, was the biggest and best (well, according to my tour guide anyway). I say that because it originally had several popes buried there in addition to 500,000 people and over 22km of tunnel (of which I only saw a very small portion). All tours were led by a guide and separated by language. First they called for German speakers and a few people went, then Spanish and a few more went. Next came Italian and 4 or 5 went through the gates and finally they called English and about 60 people came forward – basically all Americans. My guide was Indian which I thought was interesting, but he gave a good tour. I’m glad I finally got to see the catacombs. The afternoon took me to the Spanish Steps and Trevi Fountain. Saturday night, being my last night in Italy, I decided to join the 20 year-olds for a pub crawl around Rome. With the exception of one 18 year-old the rest of my group wasn’t too young. A couple mid-20’s and I was the old man at 30. There was one guy who lived in Antarctica which I thought was interesting. The night was fun, but I were definitely slow getting up the next morning. I just wandered around near my hotel in the morning before catching the airport train from Termini. I don’t know why they do this, but they put the airport train on the furthest possible track from anything. The one train that everyone is guaranteed to be carrying all kinds of heavy luggage takes 15 minutes to talk to from the front of the station – even with the moving walkways. Well, it didn’t really matter to me because I forgot about daylight savings time so I got to the airport an hour earlier than I were expecting. I had plenty of time to take in all the duty free shops in Terminal C before my flight. Terminal C at Leonardo Da Vinci Airport is quite nice. There are ramps all around the terminal for the airplanes to dock at, but of course they put the flight to Bulgaria way out on the tarmac in the middle of nowhere. I had to take a bus out to my MD-80. There were two MD-80’s parked near each other on the tarmac (the other one was probably going to Albania or someplace like that). The bus pulled up to one of them and we all got off and headed to the plane. The bus driver all of a sudden decided he had taken us to the wrong plane so started yelling at us to stop. At this point we all figure, well, it must be the other plane out here on the tarmac so we all start walking towards this one. All of a sudden the driver changes his mind and yells at us to stop walking to the second plane. At this point all passengers independently start wandering in random directions on the tarmac looking for another plane. The bus driver is now about to have a heart attack. The pilot comes off the plane we originally parked at and sorted out the problems. This was in fact the correct plane. We all pile on and have an uneventful ride to Sofia. Both flights to and from Italy were packed so they Sofia-Milan/Rome routes must be making Alitalia some money.

]]> http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/11/ryan-goes-to-italy-rome/feed/ 0 Siena pics http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/11/siena-pics/ http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/11/siena-pics/#comments Thu, 02 Nov 2006 12:17:00 +0000 Ryan http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/?p=265 One of the famous floor mosaics in the Siena Duomo
Inside Duomo #3
Me in front of the famous pool thingy in the Piazza del Campo
The Piazza del Campo in Siena
]]> http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/11/siena-pics/feed/ 0 Ryan Goes to Italy: Siena http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/11/ryan-goes-to-italy-siena/ http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/11/ryan-goes-to-italy-siena/#comments Wed, 01 Nov 2006 08:30:00 +0000 Ryan http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/?p=264 Thursday I left Florence for Rome, but decided to stop in Siena for the day (which is sort of on the way). I arrived at the train station hoping to find a place to store my bags while I walked around the city. Well, despite signs showing the station had baggage storage, it in fact did not. When I found this out, I immediately had this vision of tramping through Siena lugging around 12 kg packs. I asked at one of the ticket desks where I could store my packs. “In the center”, they said. Great – how do I get to the center? “Take a bus.” No problem – I just have to take a bus. Too bad there are no bus maps or any indication of which busses go to the center. I tried to board one bus that showed up, but found it I had to go somewhere else to catch the bus to the center. Eventually, after more hassle than I was expecting, I made it to the center and thankfully found a bag check at the bus stop. Note to my readers: If you travel to Siena – take the bus because the buses stop right in the center and have baggage storage. The train station is outside of town and they make it rather difficult for foreigners to figure out how to get into town. The center of Siena is a UNESCO World Heritage site – and I can see why. The town looks like it hasn’t changed since the 15th or 16th century. I wandered around the city until I found the Piazza del Campo – “one of Europe’s greatest medieval squares.” I sat on the square and ate some pizza while taking in the architecture. After a few more minutes of walking I ran into … guess what? That’s right – another Duomo! Duomo #3 is smaller than #1 or #2 but is still worthy of the “Duomo” name (mainly because it has a dome). This Duomo’s claim to fame are its intricate mosaic floors. Naturally, I had to invest in the audio guide to learn more about them which you can read about online or just go and visit yourself. Duomo #3 also has works by Michelangelo and Bernini – like all respectable churches in Italy do. After a seeing a bit more of the city I made my way back to the bus station. Finding the correct bus back wasn’t much easier than my trip into the city. I bought my ticket to Rome and I was on my way. Most trips from Siena to Rome require one train change. If you get off at the wrong stop it requires two. This was my fate. I were coming into Rome and the train stops at a large train station. I can’t see out the window very well, but this was about the time I were scheduled to arrive in Rome. My whole car gets up to leave (well, all 6 of them) so I do as well – thinking I’m at Termini station. As soon as I get off and catch my bearings I realize this isn’t the stop. At this same moment the train locks the doors and pulls away. The funny thing is, none of us in the car wanted to get off at this stop, and we all realized my mistake at the same time. A Japanese teenager who made the mistake came up to me and asked with a scared look on his face, “Where we are?” I don’t know Japanese dude, I don’t know. After 60 seconds or so of confusion the platform sign changed to indicate a train was arriving in 15 minutes going to Termini. Great, I’ll just wait around for 15 minutes and catch that train. About 1 minute before the new train was scheduled to arrive, the platform sign went blank. Uh-oh. An announcement came over the intercom, but it was all in Italian so I didn’t understand it. Even if it was in English I wouldn’t understand it because train station intercom systems are designed to make any speech incomprehensible. I decided that the announcer was probably announcing a new track for my train. I ran down the ramp and found a terminal showing my expected train was coming in on another track. I ran down to the track and arrived just as the train was pulling in. I hopped on that train and finally figured out that had gotten off two or three stops away from Termini at one of the suburb stations.

]]> http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/11/ryan-goes-to-italy-siena/feed/ 1 Florence pics http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/11/florence-pics/ http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/11/florence-pics/#comments Wed, 01 Nov 2006 07:23:00 +0000 Ryan http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/?p=263 View of Florence. The three tall buildings from left to right are: the Palazzo Vecchio, Duomo #2, and the Basilica di Santa Croce.
The Basilica di Santa Croce. Looks kind of like the Duomo, huh?
My next car
Me with the Ponte Vecchio in the background.
The Florence Duomo (aka “Duomo #2″)
]]> http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/11/florence-pics/feed/ 0 Venice pics http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/10/venice-pics/ http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/10/venice-pics/#comments Tue, 31 Oct 2006 12:34:00 +0000 Ryan http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/?p=261 How to get around when the city floods.
Me in Murano
The Piazza San Marco in all its chaos. Notice the hundreds of flying rats who make the piazza their home because stupid tourists keep feeding them.
The Grand Canal
One of the “main streets”
A Venetian trash boat.
]]> http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/10/venice-pics/feed/ 0 Ryan Goes to Italy: Venice http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/10/ryan-goes-to-italy-venice/ http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/10/ryan-goes-to-italy-venice/#comments Tue, 31 Oct 2006 09:02:00 +0000 Ryan http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/?p=260 Saturday night I arrived in Venice. I don’t know why anyone saw a marsh and thought, “Hey, here’s a great place for a city!”, but they did. Somehow they turned that marsh into a beautiful city. The only problem is, well, it’s still a marsh and pretty darn close to sea level. If global warming does cause sea levels to rise, like Al Gore told me, Venice is screwed. Already sections of the city are underwater during high tide – including the Piazza San Marco, the main tourist center of the city. Many of the first levels of buildings along the canals are unusable because of rising waters. My guess is that long term real-estate speculation would be very risky in Venice – unless you’re investing in house-boats. Upon arrival I opted to buy the 3 day tourist pass which allowed me entry into all the civic museums (including Doge’s Palace and the Basilica di San Marco) as well as unlimited rides on the ferries. That last bit was key because, even though the passes were 50 euros, one ride on the ferry was 5 euro – and I took the ferry a lot. My hotel which was (thankfully) not far from the train station so I didn’t need to lug my bags very far. After checking in I walked from my hotel down the “main street” to the Piazza San Marco. I like how the “main street” is only 2 meters wide in places and has about 10,000 tourists all trying to squeeze through at the same time. I can’t imagine how crowded Venice must be at peak season, but I’ll bet getting around is a pain in the bum-bum. After the walk I decided to take one of the ferries back down the Grand Canal. This is when I decided ferries were a far better way to get around than trying to navigate down the crowded (and sometimes flooded) streets. Venice has no cars. I know this, but it was still strange to see a city where the only means of transportation was by boat or walking. I saw trash boats, UPS delivery boats and Ambulance boats all doing their daily routine in the city. Small canals and streets wind everywhere and all start to look the same after a while. Even with a map it’s very easy to get lost wandering around the city. Venice would be a great place for a big game of “Capture the Flag”. Early Sunday morning I took a ferry to Murano – another island in the Venetian Lagoon. Murano is famous for its glass making and has held this tradition for many centuries. I visited the Glass Museum (free entry with my pass) and saw some exquisite pieces. I then walked around the town which is populated nearly entirely with stores selling glassworks. I caught a ferry back to Venice and visited Doge’s Palace. The Palace, built in the 14th century, was the residence of the Doge (basically the mayor of Venice) and housed several Venetian governing bodies as well. It has “one of the largest rooms in Europe” which, as the name implies, is quite large. Connected to the Palace is a prison which was also included in the tour. I continued using my free entry pass at the Correr Museum which in many countries would have been a museum full of amazing art, but was just ok by Italian museum standards. At the end of the day I took a tour around the island on one of the public ferries my passes were good for – sort of a poor man’s tour of the island, but enjoyable nonetheless. Sunday I saw Basilica di San Marco – located in the piazza of the same name. It supposedly contains the relics of St. Mark the Evangelist (hence the name of the church) which the Venetians were somehow able to get out of Alexandria in the 9th century. Like all the cathedrals I saw it was grand, although to get into the cathedral you had to walk across footbridges because the first part of the basilica was flooded due to high tide. Next was the Peggy Guggenheim Collection. Peggy lived in this house for many years and it contains works from Picasso, Dali, Ernst and Pollock. Although small it contained an impressive display. My personal favorite was Marino Marini’s “The Angel of the City.” I tried to buy a T-shirt with the sculpture on it, but they didn’t have my size so I had to settle for a refrigerator magnet. After the Guggenheim I picked up my bags from the hotel and hopped on a train to Florence.

]]> http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/10/ryan-goes-to-italy-venice/feed/ 0 Milan pics http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/10/milan-pics/ http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/10/milan-pics/#comments Tue, 31 Oct 2006 08:48:00 +0000 Ryan http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/?p=259 Inside the palace from my trapped viewpoint.
The piazza in front of the Duomo.
Inside the Milan Duomo
]]> http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/10/milan-pics/feed/ 0 Ryan Goes to Italy: Milan http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/10/ryan-goes-to-italy-milan/ http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/2006/10/ryan-goes-to-italy-milan/#comments Mon, 30 Oct 2006 10:49:00 +0000 Ryan http://www.ryanlyford.com/myblog/?p=258 In keeping with October’s theme of “travel ‘til you drop” I booked a trip to Italy. The itinerary was:
Day 1 (Friday): Fly into Milan
Day 2: Milan/Venice
Day 3: Venice
Day 4: Venice/Florence
Day 5: Florence
Day 6: Day trip to Pisa
Day 7: Siena/Rome
Day 8: Rome
Day 9: Rome
Day 10 (Sunday): Fly home from Rome

I flew into Milan on Friday evening. Like most cities, the airport isn’t anywhere near the city so you have to take a 45 min. bus ride to get downtown. I step out of the airport to look for transfer buses to Milan and there were two buses. I was trying to figure out which bus to take when I figured out that one was 5 Euro and the other was 5.50 Euro. Guess which one I chose? I have no idea why one was 0.50 cents more. The cheaper one even left the airport first. The buses drop you off at the central train station. My first night was the luxury night – I stayed at the Hilton. All the hostels were booked and the Hilton was only $20 more than the budget hotels, so that was a no brainer. I had no idea where the Hilton was and didn’t feel like dragging my backpacks around looking for the hotel so I just hopped in a taxi and said, “Take me to the Hilton”. The taxi drove exactly 200 meters to the front door of the Hilton. The price for those 200 meters was 7 euro. I wasn’t too excited about that. I check into the hotel and learned from their room literature that you can call housekeeping to request special pillows. I tried to do this but, naturally, the phone in my room didn’t work. I was too lazy to go back down to the lobby to complain, but not to lazy to complain about it here in my blog. Like all beds in Europe – in both high priced and budget hotel – the bed was about as hard as a slab of concrete. The best part of the room was the shower. The Hilton could have chosen a simple shower faucet like every other hotel, but they decided to choose the “Mensa Approved” faucet. Turning on the hot water from the shower head was so complicated that the hotel had included an instruction set on how to do it. The instruction set wasn’t two lines either – it was about 7 separate things you needed to do just to get hot water coming from the shower. It was like trying to solve a Rubik’s cube. Eventually I figured it out, but not before getting pissed off that taking a hot shower was so complicated. The next morning I went down to the Hilton’s lavish breakfast. I double checked with the waiter that the breakfast was included with the room and he said, “yes”. After breakfast the reception desk said, “no” and Kat had to do a bit a sweet talking to get me out of the 50 euros extra they wanted to charge me. I got it taken off the bill and headed down to the train station to store my bags while I spent the day roaming around Milan. One of the things I hear about Italy all the time is “The Duomo.” “The Duomo” is always described as an amazing cathedral that everyone must see. Little did I know that every city in Italy has a “Duomo.” I saw 3 separate Duomo’s on my trip and all were impressive. Milan was the first Duomo. It is the second largest Roman Catholic Cathedral in the world after the Cathedral of Seville. Saint Peter’s Basilica in Rome is larger, but is a basilica and not a cathedral – which are completely different … somehow. Although the outside was covered in scaffolding, the interior was huge, impressive, and many other superlatives. This was the Duomo that I thought a “Duomo” should look like. It was dark, cool and had a whole 16th century plague feel to it. In contrast, the interior of the Duomo in Florence was bright, airy and looked far too upbeat to be a real Catholic church. After the Duomo I went to the Ambrosian Art Gallery. The gallery, opened in 1618, is the oldest gallery in Milan. There are a few famous pieces there including Raphael’s “School of Athens”. I though this was pretty cool until I saw about 20 other Rapheal’s during the course of the week. I think there were only about 4 people total in the entire museum which was quite nice for me, but perhaps not so great for the museum’s accountant. Naturally I used my BU Student ID card to get a reduced rate ticket. After the Ambrosian museum I went to check out the Castello Sforzesco. The Castello is a big impressive castle that now contains various museums on art, furniture, archeology, musical instruments and a few others. I went to the art and furniture gallery where I saw, among other things, Michelangelo’s last sculpture, the ““Rondanini Pieta.” At one point in the museum I came to the end of a long gallery. There was a door at the end that was unmarked, but didn’t have any “alarm will go off” signs on it or anything. There was a barrier next to the door, but it wasn’t across the door or look like it was supposed to be across the door. I thought this might the continuation of the gallery, but I wasn’t sure. All of these galleries are set up to have the visitors funnel through on one path in one general direction. I walked back to ensure I didn’t miss a door somewhere in one of the previous galleries and I didn’t see one so I assumed this was the door. I went through the door and found myself outside on one of the castle walls. I saw a sign out there that said “Museum Continues” or something like that with an arrow so I was indeed on the right path. The signs led across a castle wall (with a great view of the courtyard) and to another door on the opposite side. The door on the opposite side was locked. That’s strange. I went back to the door I came through and that door was locked as well. I was now trapped outside on the castle wall. Most interesting. I looked all over to make sure I didn’t miss a door somewhere – nope, no door. When I was confident there was no way out I went back to the door I came through and banged on it hoping someone would let me in. One of the security guards was nearby and looked through the window on the door trying to figure out why someone was outside. I gave him a big smile and pointed to the door knob. He let me in and started to berate me for entering a restricted area. I started to berate him for not putting any signs (in English or Italian) noting that this door was off limits. I then noted that the barrier which was sitting off to the side of the door should perhaps be put in front of the door. I even took the barrier (2 poles and a rope) and put it in front of the door. He didn’t like that and put the barrier back to the side of the door. Whatever Mr. Security dude – you can do something that makes sense or you can confuse the visitors. Obviously confusing the visitors is high on your priority list. As it turned out I had to walk all the way back through the entire gallery to get out. Bizarre. After this little fiasco I caught my train to Venice.

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