Italy

Taormina

12/20/2003
Dominick A. Miserandino
Taormina, one of the most beautiful cities in all of Sicily and for that matter, Italy.

That theme of running didn't seem to stop. We grabbed some muffins from the breakfast buffet and ran downstairs to meet the tender for the 9:00 tour.

A quick tender ride to Naxos, then a bus to Taormina and we were at Messina Gate. Taormina is probably one of the most underrated cities in all of Italy and even when it is being praised it is still not praised highly enough. It's better than even that.

First off, it's a walled city, which instantly makes it cute and quaint, but as is typical of Sicily, it has Arab and Roman influences throughout.

Naples

12/20/2003
Dominick A. Miserandino
Even though Dominick's family comes from Naples, he might love the museum, but he felt a bit unsafe on the streets.

This was it. This was the last day at port, and the port was Naples. My family originally comes from Naples, so in a way, it should have felt like a homecoming. Instead it was a bit nerve racking. Everybody warned us, don't go to Naples. It's dangerous.

I told them that we spoke Italian and Margherita was so Italian that they'd salute her.

They explained that whatever I thought was dangerous before would be redefined at Naples.

I told them I was from Brooklyn and had experienced all there was to fear.

Naples has some beautiful sites.

Portoferraio

7/21/2002
Dominick A. Miserandino
The island's biggest claim to fame is that it was the exiled home of Napoleon, it also is the home to precious stones and minerals.

Portoferraio is another one of those towns with a name that hints towards what it is about. One of the largest towns on the island of Elba, Portoferraio's name refers to the mineralistic portion of the island. Ferraio comes from the latin "ferro" or iron, which the island is abundant with, in addition to other precious stones and minerals.

The island's other claim to fame, and the bigger one is that it was the exiled home of Napoleon.

Porto Vecchio

7/21/2002
Dominick A. Miserandino
With an Italian name, PortoVecchio just tricks you. Is it Italian, or is it French?

With an Italian name, PortoVecchio just tricks you. Is it Italian, or is it French? It's a bit of a mystery. Yes, it's currently French, which becomes abundantly clear as the natives all speak to you in that language, but as with many areas in Europe, it has changed a few times over the years. It was originally an Italian town, and it still retains many of those elements.

Of all of the ports we stopped at, this wasn't our favorite, but it could be more so because the town is small. I'm sure you've heard towns are small before, but it's very small. Excessively small.

Portovenere

7/21/2002
Dominick A. Miserandino
Portovenere, Portofino, Porto this and Porto that... The Cinque Terre (Five Lands) area of Italy is arguably one of the most beautiful areas in all of Italy. The port of Portovenere has buildings which look like they're from a postcard.

Portovenere, Portofino, Porto this, and Porto that... The Cinque Terre (Five Lands) area of Italy is arguably one of the most beautiful areas in all of Italy. The port of Portovenere has buildings that look like they're from a postcard and scenes that can put most other ports to shame. Every angle you turn looks like it's set from a postcard.

That is the good news.

The bad news is even after visiting them you'll have no idea which port of Cinque Terre you're in.

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