Rome & Sorrento, Italy

Touring the Colosseum

The Colosseum by night

The morning light over St. Peter's in Vatican City

An afternoon stop at the Pantheon

The streets of Pompeii

Positano on the Amalfi Coast

Steam spews from Mt. Vesuvius

The glowing waters of the Blue Grotto on the island of Capri

Our week in Italy started off with an overnight train to Rome. This comfortable and easy way to travel didn't prove to be punctual, however. Arriving late into the city, we rushed off to the Colosseum to make a prebooked tour. We were surprised they allowed us through security with not only our 2 rolling suitcases and 2 backpacks, but also my Swiss Army knife with a 4 inch blade! But that's Italy I guess, no one seemed to mind us slumping around the ancient ruins with all our luggage.
While we saw other highlights like the Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, Spanish Steps, and the Borghese gardens, by far our Rome favorite was the Vatican. In order to beat the crowds, we visited St. Peter's Basilica and it's cupola when it opened at 7 am. We then hustled off to another prebooked tour (again sparing us from the hordes of tourists) of the Museums. Of course the main draw of the Museums tour is Michelangelo's life work in the Sistine Chapel.
After Rome we headed a couple hours south to the coastal city of Sorrento. Our first stop was the ancient city of Pompeii which was completely buried in volcanic debris in AD 79 and only rediscovered in 1748. The size and details of the site are astounding. Though my imagination begged the answer to what it would actually look like if they were able complete the estimated $330 million USD in further necessary work. All in all, Matt and I felt like Pompeii was poorly managed and is continually being damaged due to many factors, but probably the worst being tourism.
Of course no visit to Pompeii is complete without a look at the volcano that caused all the destruction, Mt. Vesuvius. A mini bus and entrance fee to the National Park got us right to the trail, where in a short 10 minute hike you can peer down into the crater where steam eerily drifts. We also were afforded an extraordinary view over Naples and the ruins of Pompeii.
The last day of our vacation we spent on Capri. We took a boat around part of the island and parked in a little cove where we switched into a row boat to see the famous sea cave, the Blue Grotto. Sunlight seeps into the cave from below the water creating a rare but natural luminescent blue color. The island of Capri itself was a madhouse of tour groups, but we still enjoyed taking a chair lift to the island peak and absorbing the stunning scenery.
We returned to Zürich last Saturday night and have been getting back into our daily routines since. The past couple of months have been so busy with vacation travel, but we were glad to get to explore while the weather is at it's best in Europe.