Volume 18 - Day 105/260, 2026 - Wednesday

I knocked on Paulina's door this morning at about 7AM (as I recall), and we walked to the tour pickup point, which was close to the train station. We had breakfast there, and the tour guide met us, and we went and made two other stops to pick up participants. I think this bus carried twenty folks, not including the tour guide and the driver, so it was a much more manageable group, and no one was particularly obnioxious. There were people from Paris, Dallas, Canada and some Asian countries, so it was a good group. On the way to Sorrento, we passed Mt. Vesuvius and were close to Pompeii, which is interesting that we were that close to Pompeii but did not stop. I am pretty sure we bought t-shirts at every stop we made today; Sorrento, Positano and Amalfi. I have no idea how many photos I took, but I am sure I could have taken photos until the battery in my phone died, there are just so many beautiful sites to be seen. Somewhere between Positano and Amalfi we stopped for lunch, and then when we got to Amalfi, there was suddenly an option to take a boat ride off the coast. I am 100% sure that, if that boat and that body of water were anywhere in the U.S., we would not have left shore. But, we did, and we all made it back and nobody vomited. We did see Gina Lollobrigida and Sophia Loren's home while we were touring by boat, and lots of interesting 'blue caves.' Overall, a good day. We got back to the hotel, rested for a while, then went for dinner at a seafood restaurant. I cannot tell you how many decades it has been since I had a fish dinner, the WHOLE fish, and I had to work around the fish bones. I have to admit, I did pretty well. Tomorrow, I will knock on Paulina's door at 9, and we will take a Ferry to Capri. So far, and very interesting and fun visit to places I have NEVER been before, and will likely never be again.

Volume 18 - Day 104/261, 2026 - Tuesday

Today was not quite as busy as yesterday, but we still got a lot of things done. We were up and had breakfast, then chilled out in our rooms until the noon checkout time. We took a cab to the train station, and the train was delayed 20 minutes (I didn't think that was supposed to happen in Italy), so we hung out in the First Class Lounge for a little while. We got on the train, and made it to Naples with no problems. Looking out the train windows at little communities and villages, I wondered if the residents worried every day about their own challenges, as I worry regularly about my challenges. Don't get me wrong, I am a very lucky man and I know it, I just have challenges, sometimes. Not nearly as many now as I have had in the past. Whatever! The hotel we are staying at is definitely not a budget hotel, but it is interesting that it costs a dime (10 cents in Euros) to use the elevator before 6PM. I cannot think of a single time that I have had to pay to use an elevator. We got checked in, and shortly after we went into the old part of the city, did some sight seeing, and had pizza. Back now at the hotel, and so we are going to meet tomorrow at 7AM for our next adventure. 

Volume 18 - Day 103/262, 2026 - Monday

This was certainly a busy day! I woke up this morning in Florence, had breakfast at the hotel, and took an Uber to the train station, and we left for Rome at about 9 o'clock. I think. We didn't waste any time once we got to Rome. We checked in to the hotel, and then took off to visit the following: The Vatican, Piazza Novona, Trevi Fountain, The Pantheon, Neptune's Fountain, The Roman Forum, the Colosseum, the Spanish Stairs, and the monument to Victor Emanuel. Victor Emanuel III was the King of Italy from 1900 until he abdictated in 1946. He was also the Emperor of Ethiopia from 1936 until 1941, and King of the Albanians from 1939 until 1943. He was a busy guy. I have hundreds of photos, so if you want to see them, make an appointment when I get back to Texas, and we can look together. Tomorrow will be much less hectic, we will meet in the lobby about 9, have breakfast, and take the train to Naples in the early afternoon. We will be in Naples for three nights, so maybe I will unpack, but probably not.

Volume 18 - Day 102/263, 2026 - Sunday

It has been a really long day today, and I am ready to crawl in to the bed and go to sleep. We left the hotel this morning at about 6:45 (I think), and walked to the train station which is where we caught the bus for our 12 hour tour. AND...it was almost exactly 12 hours! We went to Siena, had lunch at a winery (kind of the Walmart of wineries), then to San Gimignano (where we had what is known as the 'World's Most Famous Gelato' in 2024. It really was good. Then, we went to Pisa, and you know what we did there. After Pisa, we got back on the bus and headed back to Florence. We stopped for dinner after getting back to Florence, and got back to the hotel at about 9 o'clock. We will be up early again tomorrow, meeting in the lobby for breakfast and check-out at 7:15, catching the train to Rome at about 8:30, and then a busy day of seeing the sights and buying even more crap. Having a wonderful time, wish you all were here!

Volume 18 - Day 101/264, 2026 - Saturday

We got up this morning and had breakfast in the hotel, and then we walked around for a while. We met Holly and her sister Lisa for a few minutes, before we headed for the train to Firenze. If you're an Aggie, that is Italian for Florence. Lisa is teaching an art class in Venice, so that is pretty interesting. Oh, and Holly lives in Oregon, not in Washington state as I previously reported. The train to Florence was fun, I think it was about three hours, and I took a nap or two on the way. The sights from a train in Italy are very much the same as in the U.S., it just happens to be a different country. Small cities along the way, towns and villages where ordinary people live, I just enjoy it. We got to Florence around 4 or 4:30, checked in to the hotel, and then wandered around, bought crap, had dinner, and now back in the hotel for the evening. We are going on a 12 hour tour tomorrow, leaving at 7:30, to Pisa, Siena, and San Gimignano. We meet at the train station, so we will be leaving the hotel around 6:30 to get there on time. Good night! Oh yeah, I probably took about 250 photos today, so...

Volume 18 - Day 100/265, 2026 - Friday

Against considerable odds, we made it to Venice this morning at about noon. It was not as dramatic as I am making it sound, but before takeoff last night, the Captain reported that they had determined there was ice on the wings, and we needed to de-ice the plane. It was, according to my watch, 46 degrees Fahrenheit, so the probability of ice on the wings was relatively small. Whatever. I probably got more sleep overnight than I really think I did, but it was fitful at best. We landed, and all the new entry rules went into effect today, and all the systems were 'down,' so everything had to be done manually. That all took a while. We finally got through, got on a boat to the hotel, checked in, had about an hour of quiet time, and then we started sight seeing. We are only here overnight, we are taking a train to Florence tomorrow. On the plane, I met a very nice woman from Washington state, as I recall. You all know I am not much for details. But it was nice, she is here with her parents and sister, and hopefully we will meet up again. Paulina and I had dinner at the hotel, and now it is time to go to sleep. Venice is a beautiful place, and there will be lots of pictures to share later. I am attaching a photo of me and Paulina (my travel agent) on the Rialto Bridge. Good night.

Volume 18 - Day 99/266, 2026 - Thursday

It's days like this that I wish I were more technologically competent. Or maybe I just need to invent a pocket-sized IT guy. Right now, I am at JFK waiting for our (me and Paulina) flight to Venice. I was up at 4:30 this morning, Arjun picked us up a little before 8AM, we made it to the airport with no issues, got through TSA with no issues, and had some breakfast. My friend Terry joined us and sat with us for a while, and then we headed for JFK. Even though my phone says I have WIFI on the plane, I cannot figure out how to make it work, which is why I am doing this journal entery now, instead of doing it 'somewhere over the Atlantic' which is what I had meant to do. I am also TOTALLY aware that these are first world problems, and I will suffer through, since air travel is so much more practical than taking a boat to Europe. True dat! SO...we will get on the plane at about 9 o'clock Eastern Time, and get to Venice about noon tomorrow. To be honest, I really have no idea, but I will be in a plane, and whenever the plane lands, that will be fine with me. On the way in, I THINK we flew past Manhattan and Central Park. If the photo with this entry IS NOT Manhattan and Central Park, feel free to keep it to yourself, just leave it be. Otherwise, life is good, Val and Evan and Albert and Amber are taking care of the girls, and I will go places in the next couple of weeks that I have never been before. I always wanted to go to Austria!