May 14, 2001.

With tons of frequent flier miles, use-or-lose leave, a strong dollar, and a favorable tax return, Christina and I took a three-week vacation to Italy. This had been a dream of ours for some time and it was exciting to finally go.

After a crazy flight schedule (Reagan to JFK, to Heathrow, then to Gatwick, to Rome), we landed in Rome on April 18th, our anniversary. We spend a day and a half touring Rome before we met up with our Globus tour group.

Our tour group was a blast -- we were known as "the young couple" and every breakfast had plenty of prunes (if you catch my drift). We were surprised by the average age of the trip but it was wonderful. The first half of each day had structured tours, and then we were free to wreak havoc for the second half. Our tour director was outstanding and knew everything about every town in Italy.

We started in Rome and then went to Florence (by way of Pisa). From Florence we traveled to Lake Maggiore, and then to Venice by way of Lugano Switzerland. After Venice we went to Ravenna and then Assisi. From there, we went to Pompeii and then Sorrento (with a day trip to Capri). From Sorrento we were back in Rome (13 days later). After the tour, Christina and I spent two more days in Rome. By that time, Christina and I were exhausted and our Visa card was maxed -- it was time to come home.

We never stayed in a hotel more than two nights and were always on the move. It was nice to have everything pre-booked so we never had to wait on line for tickets or wait on line to get into museums. Our luggage was delivered and picked up from our rooms which was another nice touch. The hotels were beautiful. The food -- well, Christina and I managed to put on some extra pounds in spite of all our walking.

Everyone asked us our favorite place, which is impossible to answer. If forced to pick, we would say Assisi. It was beautiful, authentic, romantic and charming. But we loved every place. Venice and Florence had the best shopping. Florence and Rome had the best art. Pisa had the most crooked buildings. Lake Maggiore was the most relaxing. Pompeii was the most intriguing. And Rome had the best ice cream. My favorite structure was the Pantheon -- an old pagan temple that was converted to a church (then again, EVERYTHING in Rome has been converted to a church).

We hope you enjoy this web site and our pictures.

Michael & Christina O'Brien