# Italy 2018



## Marco (Jun 4, 2020)

Italy was the destination for 2018.

Rome > Florence > Venice > Verona

Rome



IMG_0779 by Marco, on Flickr



DSC_0104 by Marco, on Flickr



DSC_0151 by Marco, on Flickr



DSC_0279 by Marco, on Flickr



IMG_6678 by Marco, on Flickr



IMG_6697 by Marco, on Flickr


Florence



IMG_1546 by Marco, on Flickr



IMG_8150 by Marco, on Flickr



IMG_8960 by Marco, on Flickr



IMG_9012 by Marco, on Flickr


Verona



IMG_0829 by Marco, on Flickr



IMG_0819 by Marco, on Flickr


Venice 



IMG_2317 by Marco, on Flickr



IMG_2514 by Marco, on Flickr



IMG_2578 by Marco, on Flickr



DSC_0538 by Marco, on Flickr



IMG_2544 by Marco, on Flickr


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## Ray (Jun 4, 2020)

Fantastic! A few years earlier we did Venice>Florence>Cortona>Rome>(private tour of Pompei)>Sorrento


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## Marco (Jun 5, 2020)

Ray said:


> Fantastic! A few years earlier we did Venice>Florence>Cortona>Rome>(private tour of Pompei)>Sorrento


 
Ray - We had a grand time in Italy. The highlight of our trip was the tour around the Vatican. We toured (a group of about 15 people) the Vatican before the doors opened to the general public (9am) and were able to take in everything without the crowds. We had the place all to ourselves and literally helped open the Vatican. Everyone in the group had a turn in opening gates/doors to exhibits. The tour ended at the Sistine Chapel. The person who guessed which key opens the Sistine Chapel door opened it. Normally, visitors are not allowed to take photos inside the Sistine Chapel. We were able to.

Maria and I also had some milk from the Pope's farm.


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## Happypaphy7 (Jun 5, 2020)

I would definitely visit again once the vaccine becomes available. lol
May I ask which restaurant served such beautifully displayed sea foods??


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## Marco (Jun 6, 2020)

Happypaphy7 said:


> I would definitely visit again once the vaccine becomes available. lol
> May I ask which restaurant served such beautifully displayed sea foods??



Happy - Good to hear from you again. I hope things are well.

The last photo is a creme brule mussel and was the first course in a tastings menu at Il Ridotto in Venice. At first glance and hearing what it was we were skeptical. However, we dove right in and it was absolutely amazing. We both loved it and it was a perfect opener to set the tone for the rest of the course.

The other standout I recall was the pasta fagioli that was made with monk fish liver, escargot and goby sauce.

Il Ridotto is a quaint venue that likes to push the envelope on the seafood dishes that they serve. There's a link below that has photos of the rest of the course along with a link to their website. You should also be able to get to the rest of my Flickr albums through the link below. I've posted photos from most of the notable restaurants we enjoyed during our travels.

https://flic.kr/s/aHskQ7ibTk

https://www.ilridotto.com/en/home-en/


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## KyushuCalanthe (Jun 13, 2020)

You guys certainly did some traveling! Italy would be a must see just for the food alone. My gosh, where does the pope have room for cows - tucked away somewhere in that huge museum? Secret admission: I've always wanted to look like David...


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