flyingboy

On our first cruise back in 98, we ventured up to the sun-bathing deck to check out the view & were a little startled to see a couple of elderly women sitting in their bras enjoying the sun. Not so big a deal now but I was kinda shocked at the time!:p

A few cruises later(Carnival), we witnessed a man & woman making out on deck lounges, rather(ahem) aggressively, near the pool where kids were playing. The woman demonstrated her 'affection' in what one could call theatrical moves of a stripper/hooker. It was starting to become embarrassing & like a train wreck, those standing around(including us) or sitting nearby just watched transfixed. :eek:

Wait staff were just standing about watching too until a parent pointed it out & staff approached the couple who broke it up.

Wow, I've never had a problem with my Lush shampoo melting. It's been to Egypt when it was 109 degrees, camping in Kenya, and to Italy and I did not have a problem. Do you remember which one it was? I can think possibly of Trichomania (the one sold in chunks and had lots of coconut oil to it), but that one is a different "formula" than the disks.

I never heard of paper shampoo; I've used paper soap and paper laundry, though.

Hi slidergirl,

I can't remember the name of the LUSH shampoo that melted & I don't recognize it from the current lineup. It was square & green.

It was years ago on a trip to Italy in 2008 where it melted. Was staying in a Rome convent that had a 'capsule' bathroom where the shower was just next to the toilet so the whole room got soaked when we showered:( I opened the bathroom window to get some ventilation in the room and left for the day.

When I returned, the heat of the sun coming into the bathroom must've melted it since it was just a green, gloopy mess! I've not gone off the idea of solid shampoo(my friend swears by Godiva) but won't use paper shampoo again, esp. if it's expired :rolleyes:

I get a lot of small sample shampoo & conditioner packs that I've collected over the years & generally bring them on trips now. There's usually enough for one or two shampoos. in them.

I loved using just carry-on since it was not a struggle getting on & off trains, rolling on cobblestones or carrying upstairs to apartments. Importantly, if you plan well, you have enough clothes for all events in your travels.

TIP:If you travel with a spouse, put some of your liquids in his ziplock baggie. The only liquid my husband brings is shaving cream, that's it, so this left me with room for more of my stuff.:)

The solid shampoos are a disk, not really a ball (the balls are their bath bombs). For me, they last just as long as 2 full-size bottles of shampoo. All you do is to wet the bar, then run it through the full length of your hair 3-4 times. They sell a nice metal container to put your shampoo in. If you buy a massage bar, they have one for that, too - they make nice lotion alternatives.

Before a vacation, a trip to the local Sephora store is always done. They have a HUGE selection of travel-size lotions, potions, cosmetics, etc. And, Lush is hit up if I'm running low on some of their items.

So many good ideas here! I will definitely be checking out Sephora shortly. I did carry-on only on my week trip to Paris in May. It was something I'd always hoped to achieve and with minor planning, it was possible. I don't want to go back now & think it will be possible for our cruise in December.

Lush does make fabulous solid shampoo that smells great too, however, in a hot hotel room in Italy a few years back, mine melted. :o

Brought along paper shampoo to Paris and that formed a glop on my head that wouldn't budge without other shampoo to help release it. Think the paper was expired, lol!

We stayed here 2 yrs ago for a week and loved it. Studio apt, entrance right beside Orso80, 3 cafes within 25 steps, bar Portugese half a block away. Piazza Naonna , Castel St. Angelo, 5 min walk. Very quiet and with a topper (2in Ikea mattress) on the sofa bed, surprisingly comfortable. We hope to stay here again on our next trip to Rome. Some quirks but great price and location.

http://www.rentalinrome.com/piazzanavona/orsoloftstudio

I am sure its not to everyones taste but for those who don't mind something a little bit different its a great place. Also, no stairs and 3 locked doors before access.

When we docked in Genoa last October we wanted to take a ferry to Portofino but could not. We were approached by a cab driver who offered to take us to Portofino, let us wander for an hour then take us to San Margherita where we could stop for lunch for an hour and then take us back to Genoa along the coastal, scenic road and show us the major attractions in the city for an hour before returning us to our ship, for 35 euro each. The only problem was that he wanted a minimum of 4 people. We managed to find 2 more people and made a day of it.

In retrospect we would have liked to spend a little more time in San Margherita and Genoa, Portofino was pretty but lacked depth.The driver was great, very proud of his city and had good knowledge of the local sites and history, but did not speak English very well.

I am not sure but believe that I have read similar posts in the past and the price has usually been 35 per person for the day trip, not sure about the cost of a one way fare.

Where to start? So, we (and some others here) could probably fill pages with recommendations just in Rome! And then there are the various places near Rome such as Tivoli, Orvieto, etc. But when somebody says they have been to Rome once and have seen it all I start to cringe. My favorite day in Rome (and we have been there and stayed there many times) was a beautiful day when DW and I sat down at one of well located cafes in the Piazza Navona. It was about 11am and we stopped for a cappucino. We did not leave those seats until nearly 5pm as we just had so much fun in that beautiful place (our favorite spot in Rome) eating, drinking, and People Watching. The latter was probably the best entertainment we had on that 2 month trip?

 

Hank

or you could stay in Civitavecchia and do nothing and people watch at a seaside cafe

http://www.sharevenice.com/en/transfer

This is a service that provides a shared water taxi from the airport to several stops in Venice including San Marco. Each taxi is shared by 10 people and costs 19euro each. You might have to wait a little while for all the people to show, but not long.

The cheapest way is the bus but the greatest way by far is water taxi. Truly an unforgettable experience.

If you are lucky you will be seated where you can stand up and enjoy the ride

We took a cab from the port in 2013 and it cost us 25euro. It was a pretty crazy ride down a lot of small streets and dropped us right at the crypt front entrance.

The price is a bit steep but we paid the same 5 yrs ago and that didn't include a gps. We reserved the civi car in advance thru expedia, no cancellation fee and did not have to pay until we picked up the car. Our cost was $125 for a small car, manual transmission, but not sure what the avis/budget price was. When we picked up the car we actually got a 4dr car with an auto transmission for the same price, don't really know why but the agent said it worked better for him.

Driving in Italy is pretty easy, just remember to use you signal lights and stay out of the passing lane except to pass. Harder finding a place to park than anything else.

I think the price is high because it is only a 1 day rental, I have rented cars in Italy for as little as 300 a week but have never found a good 1 day rate. Maybe try to find another couple to share?

Got off the ship and rented in Livorno, no advance booking. Wanted to make sure I got a car so I got off the ship as soon as I could ,rented the car and then returned to the ship to prepare for the day. Still made it to Lucca b4 9:30. The gps helped A LOT

Just returned from the Med where we rented cars in both Livorno and Civitavecchia. Avis and Hertz both had booths on the pier in Livorno. We rented a Fiat500 from Fabio at the Avis booth for 90euro which included a gps with preloaded destinations which was great. Drove to Lucca and then Volterra spending a couple of hours at each and made it back to the pier 1.5 hours too soon.

We reserved a car from Hertz in Civi b4 we left. The Hertz agency is beside the train station which is about a 20 minute walk from the new shuttle drop off point. The avis/budget agency is across the street from the drop off point.

Hope this helps.

Ken

We really like Navonna Notte close to piazza navona. Prices were very good, the menu posted in English and the staff very friendly. Very crowded always but well worth the wait. You will be seated elbow to elbow but your neighbor could be from a new friend from anywhere in the world, including Rome,as the locals also like this place. Have been to Rome several times and this is the place we always return to.

Teatro Massimo, the Palermo opera house, is within walking distance from the port and is pretty interesting. It was a location in Godfather 3 and the tour(in English) takes you into the royal booth where Micheal Corleone watched his son perform. Lots of other sights close by but the archeological museum which is also close by is not open.

We ended up taking a cab from the port to the crypts which cost us 25euro. The buses were running on a holiday schedule and at the bus stops the locals told us that the buses were not running that day. We walked back to the port and stopped at the Palermo cathedral and Opera house for a short tour.

We then went to the archiological museum which was closed but stopped for lunch and a few local beers at a bar across the square.

Had a great day in a city which threw us a lot of surprises. The crypt wasn't bad, but not the hi-lite of the day. The cab was a lot but I had read on trip advisor that it would be so I wasn't that shocked.

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Admission to the Diocletian baths ,Palazzo Massimo (the National museum near Termini) and Palazzo Altemps were all included on one ticket when we visited last time.

If you liked the dying Galatian then you should look for the bronze boxer of Qurinial in Palazzo Massimo. Also on the top floor are frescoes which have been placed in recreated rooms and are as beautiful as any from Pompeii,(imho).The basement level has a huge vault and contains golden roman jewelry and a huge coin collection dating from the first Roman coins to the present day Euro. There is also a Roman mummy of a young girl in another room.

We loved Mary Beards "Meet the Romans" and have tried to find a good latin translator ever since watching her. The tunnel at the Capitolne from one building to the other has a great collection of Roman epitaphs with English transripts for those those who don't speak latin.

We stayed in Meta a few years ago and swam at the beach. Meta did have a public beach beside the private ones. It was very crowded on the weekend but almost empty during the week( in May). I don't think that this was the beach area you saw, I don't think you can see it from the train and the stop is at least a half kilometer from the beach, also it was a pebble rather than a sand beach. There are beaches in Castellamare that are visible from the train but I don't know if they are public or not.

There are public swimming areas in Naples and also a wonderful beach at Baia.

I love the Palermo question because we have a suggestion :). Do some Google research on the Capuchin Catacombs (there are a few of these around Italy so you need to use "Palermo" in your search). This is one of the most macabre (for lack of a better word) places we have ever visited. It is possible to get out to that place via the local buses or a taxi (which cost more then the buses).

 

Hank

how much was the taxi or which bus?

What number bus or how much was the taxi to the crypt?

However... I have to ask one question... you took a picture inside the Sistine Chapel? Big NO-NO! You're lucky you weren't caught. Tsk tsk.

What they dont like are professional photos using tripods etc.It is really difficult to police the photo thing and who really cares. The only reason to not allow photos is the decrease in postcard and souvenier sales and if you think about the value of the treasures in the museum the concept is ludicrous.

A lot of underground sites have been listed but for good views of Rome these are a few of my favorite spots.

The top deck of the Vittoriano. Not everybody knows you can take a glass elevator to the top of the monument for a great view of the centre of the city.

The dome of St Peters. Walking on the roof of the cathedral behind the statues of the apostles was the best,maybe even better than the cupola.

The terraces on Giancolo, the monument to Garibaldi and the one for his wife are beautiful and touching,the views of the city spectacular and the park is peaceful with good sandwich trucks for an al fresco snack and drink.

The Pincio terrace for a gret view of the domes of Rome and the obelisk in piazza del popolo,especially beautiful at night.

Shortly after embarking on our first cruise, my husband and I went up to the top deck to look around. I was surprised to see an old German woman in a deck chair just wearing a bra and shorts. Later on in the cruise we got a glimpse of quite a few naked senior European breasts. I know Europeans think we North Americans have too many hang-ups about nudity but some of what we saw was downright disturbing and almost put us off our chow. Thank goodness for alcohol!