Finally got my photos from Europe processed and formatted into a photobook:

Momento Photobook (click the link and check it out)

Have a look at the little low resolution booklet animation. Somehow it has more appeal than the higher resolution images on the flickr set.

Anyway, I’m expecting a much better quality book than the disappointing effort I got back from DigitalMax.co.nz / Snapfish.  Mind you, it cost about 10 times as much.  Let’s wait and see what turns up.  E.T.A. is a couple of weeks out.

Decided to split the Rome stuff into three posts. This one is for some of the iconic landmarks.

Click any of the pics in this post to be taken to my flickr where you can access larger versions or view them on a map (most of ‘em are geotagged).

Pantheon, outside:

And in:

Trevi Fountain crowds:

And the fountain itself:

The Colosseum:

Monument to Vittorio Emanuele II:

Castel Sant’Angelo:

Decided to split the Rome stuff into three posts. This one is for some of the more random shots…

Click any of the pics in this post to be taken to my flickr where you can access larger versions or view them on a map (most of ‘em are geotagged).

They’re nuts over nutella in this neck of the woods:

Gelato topped with whipped cream from Old Bridge Gelateria, best in Italy. Gluttony is still a sin right? Good thing the Vatican is right next door, confess and I’m all clear…

Smooth Polizia:

Turning the corner:

Sant Eustachio il caffe

Hate to have this angel running me down:

And to finish, imagine this. You get up in the morning, you’re in a rush to model for a sculpture that is going to last for hundreds of years. You have time to put on your cape, but not your pants?

I’m lazy with the words, so hopefully the photos can do this historic city at least a little justice.

Click any of the pics in this post to be taken to my flickr where you can access larger versions or view them on a map (most of ‘em are geotagged).

Beautiful city and I kick it off with a littered street? And follow on with a washed out boring photo of one of the holiest Christian sites?

But then you command “Let there be light!”, and things look a little better:

Maderno’s façade of St. Peter’s Basilica with a few people who turned up to listen to the Pope have a chat.

Dragged along (slowly) by the crowds toward the Sistine Chapel:

The scenery along the way:

Access to the Sistine Chapel involved negotiating a rather tortuous path of corridors and detours. I lost count of how many times these signs seemed to suggest the main attraction was around the next corner…

Got there eventually of course, but cameras were forbidden and I didn’t want to get struck down, so no sneaky photos from me

The Amalfi coast – Positano, Furore, Amalfi… Bullet point summary (without bullet points) – Fuuun roads, fantastic food, lovely limoncello and of course the dramatic coastline.

Click any of the pics in this post to be taken to my flickr where you can access larger versions or view them on a map (most of ‘em are geotagged).

First up, a few of the different moods of the coast:

I googled up Holidays Fico d’India as a place to stay near Amalf, without being completely pinned in by tourists… The place completely blew me away, exceeded all expectations. I arrived late afternoon and Pino and the team were very welcoming. He offered me an espresso while he did the check in paperwork, and yeah, I’m a pushover for a good shot of espresso. The next morning I went for a drive and a walk and was admiring a collection of buildings perched on a cliff when I realised that one of them was Holidays Dico d’India… eek.

So on this walk I find some stairs leading down into the fiordo of Furore, acutely aware of the fact that I’m nursing a cold and that every step down is another I’m going to have to take on the way back up, with a bag full of camera gear. But the bottom is in sight (just) and I can’t resist.

721 vertical steps later and I’m at the bottom, and thankfully there was an open restaurant there where I can recharge before my ascent:

It wasn’t easy choosing a meal, and it didn’t help that the owner took me out the back and showed me the day’s fresh catch of seafood ready for preparation.  It all looked so good…

So if you’re ever stumbling past Furore, this is only two minutes from the road, unless you come at it from the angle I did   Ristorante Al Monazeno Website

Looking back at Restrante Al Monazeno and the hill I have to ascend in the back right:

(can you spot the chef?)

And a random scene from the bottom of the fiordo:

Holidays Fico d’India in Furore was the perfect place to explore the Amalfi Coast from. I really enjoyed my days hanging out on the coast:

Pisa, most people only go there to see the tower. That’s all I did

And of course you gotta get that photo of the 4 of you head-butting the tower…

OK, so I’ve thrashed the Florence Duomo in a whole blog post of its own (Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore), let’s try and cover off some of the other bits of Florence.

First up, David.  There’s a couple around Florence, then the original in the Galleria dell’Accademia.  Saw the ones around town and didn’t think much of them.  But for some reason, maybe the lighting, maybe the scale because it was inside, or maybe the fact it’s clean an unweathered, the original David caught me by surprise.  I was awestruck.  It really is one of those things that you need to be in the presence of to really appreciate.  No photos of the original, but here’s some of the Davids from around Florence.

Photos of course, do not do Michelangelo’s work justice. As you walk around the David he transforms from an incredibly powerful man into a meek and terrified young boy. The anticipation of the battle to come is captured in the marble, it’s truly amazing.

So that second photo was from Piazza di Michelangelo, which, I guess, at the core of it, is a bit of a glorified carpark. A couple of my Duomo photos in the previous post are from up there, and so is this one:

She’d run up the stairs (and it’s quite a climb), I walked. But in my defense I was lugging a backpack full of camera gear… What an amazing place to enjoy a sunset from.

Back down in the heart of the historic city there’s the street markets and all the stalls and activity:

And the Ponte Vehicco by day:

and night:

Ok, that’s enough for Florence, let’s head down to Amalfi for the next post.

Well, this post is pretty much a repeat of this one, except with the photos hosted on flickr so you can click through to the larger sizes.

The Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, often referred to by tourist locals (if that makes any sense) as the Duomo, is the cathedral church of Florence.  Neither my words nor photos will do it justice.  It’s an awe inspiring structure. Go see it.

First up, a couple of shots to show the Duomo’s place within Florence, and give some idea of scale.

A detail shot, showing some of the ornate marble work.

Then as the sun sets, the Duomo catches the last rays of light.

Then it gets just plain dark.

But the view on nightfall is still good.

When I saw you in Verona, you sat down I moved over…  Ok well, I didn’t see you in Verona, but the Elemeno P track just keeps dancing around my head (get a taste of that Kiwi music here).  I did sit down though, for dinner and a bit of the regional “Spritz”:

There’s a bit of a description of the beverage here.

Click any of the pics in this post to be taken to my flickr where you can access larger versions or view them on a map (they’re all geotagged).

Thanks to that rather popular play by Shakespeare, Verona is certainly a city of lovers, or at least tourists holding hands:

Shot on the Castelvecchio Bridge which takes you into the heart of old Verona.

View of Verona from Castelvecchio Bridge along the Adige:

As you wind your way around the little streets you may come across a nondescript house with a little balcony. The supposed house of Romeo:

As you survey the photos above, Verona may be starting to look like a quaint wee town. The reality of course is that it’s like any other well known European city – seething with tourists:

The markets were buzzing with activity, even as rain clouds threatened in the background.

Occasionally you could stumble down a quiet side street, but arterial routes were always just a few meters away:

And that concludes a quick summary of Verona.

Ooops! Nearly forgot… Getting between Merano and Verona requires a trip alongside Italy’s largest lake – Garda:

Oops, forgot to add words.