By Glenda Winders
The typical response I get when people find out I went to Italy with a tour group is a wrinkled-up nose, a shake of the head and a dismissive "That wouldn't be for me." They imagine spending hours in a motor coach, moving to a new place every day and having to put their luggage in the hallway for a 5 a.m. pickup before heading out yet again — and they're right.
But in concentrating on the less attractive aspects of group travel, they forget that someone else makes hotel reservations, picks good restaurants and buys museum passes. Another positive is that the price of all these experiences is lower because the tour company gets group rates. And while there is a certain amount of mingling with fellow travelers, there's also plenty of free time to pursue activities that aren't on the schedule.
My adventure began when I saw a newspaper ad for "Classic Italy — Rome, Florence and Venice" offered by Holiday Vacations. I rang up my travel buddy, Julie Kean, and she said, "Let's go!"
The trip began when travelers from all over the country arrived in New York and met up with our tour guide, Sue McNamara. An overnight flight took us to Milan, where we were met by our Italian-speaking guide, Bruno Monteiro, and our genial coach driver, Ricardo. That's when the fun really started.
As we drove through the countryside Monteiro gave us some background about the sights we were headed to see. He explained that the country was established just 153 years ago, which explains why people were known before then by the province from which they came — Romans, Venetians and Florentines. He told us that although the country is small (850 miles long and 80 miles wide), it has been important historically because of its location at the intersection of major trade routes.
Before long we stopped at Sirmione in the province of Lombardy (named for a barbarian tribe that invaded in the sixth century), where we explored this lakeside resort town and toured Scaliger Castle. Then fortified by lunch at Ristorante Erica — bruschetta, lasagna, pork scallopini, Italian bread and house-made hazelnut ice cream drizzled with chocolate — we set off for Padua, where we would spend the next two nights.
This city, we learned during a walking tour with Monteiro, is most famous for being where St. Anthony — to whom Catholics still pray for lost items — lived and worked. That being the case, most of the visitors here are pilgrims, but Padua is also known for its university, the second oldest in Italy, which was established in 1222. (The oldest is the University of Bologna, founded in 1088.)
The next morning found us on a ferry headed for the magical city of Venice, which is actually situated on 118 islands connected by bridges and canals. As a group we toured the Doge's Palace and learned about the area's political history before crossing the Bridge of Sighs — so named because that's where condemned prisoners had their last look at the outside world — and walking through the prison museum. Since Venice is famous for its glass, we took in a glass-blowing demonstration and learned how mineral oxides create jewel-like colors as well as how to tap a piece lightly and listen to its tone to determine if it was handmade.
We had the afternoon free, so Julie and I opted for a lunch of gelato and a long walk through several neighborhoods to the Guggenheim Museum. We rejoined our group just in time for a gondola ride and dinner at Taverna di Doges before getting back on the ferry and watching Venice recede into the mist behind us.
We spent the next day en route to Florence with a long stop in the city of Ferrara before crossing the Apennine Mountains.
"We are arriving in Florence and the sun is shining," Monteiro said. "What else do we need? Nothing!"
Our hotel was centrally located on the Piazza Santa Maria Novella, so we could walk everywhere we wanted to go. And that's what we did the next morning when we met our guide, Elvio Ancilotto, whose credentials identified him as a professor of Italian language and culture.
As we moved from the magnificent Santa Maria del Fiore, Florence's cathedral, to the Santa Croce Church where Michelangelo, Galileo and Machiavelli are buried he explained that Florence was the birthplace of the Renaissance, pointing out architectural details along the way that supported his point.
At the Accademia Gallery we bypassed the long line of visitors waiting to get in because of arrangements previously made for our group. Inside, Ancilotto gave us what amounted to a short course in art history as we walked slowly past Michelangelo's "Prisoners," and by the time we arrived at the statue of David we knew how tall he was (17 1/2 feet), why he was depicted nude (Renaissance artists saw the human body as a celebration of proportion) and why one of his feet is connected with a tree stump (to give the statue balance).
Florence is as famous for leather and gold as Venice is for glass, so our next stop was at a showroom where Julie and others from our group were selected to model the coats and jewelry the company had on offer.
Once again we had the afternoon free, so some from our group set off along the Arno River toward the Ponte Vecchio ("old bridge"), the only one in the city not bombed by the Nazis during World War II. The stores along the bridge that once housed butcher shops today sell mostly jewelry and souvenirs. Others toured the Uffizi Gallery, home of Botticelli's "Birth of Venus" and significant works by Titian, Raphael, Rembrandt and da Vinci.
Our trip to Rome the next day took us through Tuscany with a stop at San Gimignano, a well-preserved village from the Middle Ages where the families tried to outdo one another in building towers so that at one point there were 72. Two famous gelato stores are here, so Julie and I kept up our tradition of having some — but not until we'd first eaten some panini at an outdoor cafe.
After dinner our first night in Rome Monteiro surprised us with an unscheduled walk that led to a lit-up St. Peter's Square. It was the perfect introduction before our tour the next morning with Filippo Tucci — another knowledgeable and passionate guide who led us through art galleries, the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica.
When the organized tour was over, some from our group climbed up to the dome and cupola of St. Peter's and later attended a Mass. Julie and I visited the house next to the Spanish Steps where English poet John Keats worked and died.
Tucci met us again the following day for a tour of the colosseum, the Roman Forum and Trevi Fountain, where we tossed in a coin in hope of a return visit. That night we ate dinner at LaTana dei Re, where opera singers serenaded us with various arias and ended up with "Arrividerce Roma."
Next morning we had a last gelato at the airport and began the long flight home.
"Touring takes the stress out of traveling and leaves the best parts," MacNamara said. "You've seen the highlights of classical Italy while at the same time relaxing and enjoying the group. You knew we'd take care of you."
WHEN YOU GO
Several tour companies offer trips to Italy. Mine was Holiday Vacations: www.holidayvacations.net.
Glenda Winders is a freelance writer. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.
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