Italy Wrapup

Here's a few random tidbits:

Three Lessons Learned in Italy:

1. Cross the street when the locals cross. They have no fear. They just step out and the traffic stops.
2. If you need a bathroom, find a McDonalds. I'm serious. They are always clean and are so busy you can walk in and just go to the bathroom. You can't do that at smaller restaurants.
3. God loves us....or at least one of us. Mike said the way you know God loves you is that it doesn't rain while you're on vacation. Well, it did rain two days, but both were travel days. So, in general, I guess God does loves one of us. We had some discussions on which one it was. I think I got crossed off the list fairly early. Oh well.

Handy things to bring when traveling internationally:
-small flashlight (we actually used it a few times)
-hand wipes
-bug-off wipes
-baseball hat
-toilet paper!!!!
-notebook and pen (more on that later)
-the vault.

What is the vault you ask? Well, it's a fanny pack..excuse me.. waistpack that Mike bought at a sporting good store. The strap is lined with steel and the front pouch has steel mesh so nothing can be sliced through. It also locks up and has a couple of zipper pouches. It wasn't that expensive and gave really good peace of mind for locking up tickets and passports, etc. I would definitely recommend one for international travel. Although it did look a little geeky...just kidding!

This is the accountant in me speaking....one thing I do on all my international trips is I take a small spiral notebook and pen (or several different colored pens...) and write down everything I spend money on. It's a little anal, but I actually think it's fun to look back on them and kind of 're-live the day'. I can see where I went, what I ate, or where I stayed. The notebook also comes in handy for writing down directions or train times, whatever.



Ok, that's it! I'm done with my Italy posts. Now back to our regularly scheduled programming....


Oh,....and for those strangers that I've never met but that Mike/Annette/Matt told you to come check this out to hear about Italy?.....please stop reading now. Thank you.