by Jeff Drake | Nov 19, 2017 | Travel
It seems silly now to repeat the refrain about how much I love Italy, but I can’t seem to help it. I really do… love Italy, that is. I could find reasons not to love Italy, if I looked hard …
by Jeff Drake | Nov 19, 2017 | Travel
Our last full-day in Sestri Levante! Thanks to the advice of our hotel manager, Santos, we adjusted our plans today to take a boat ride from the southernmost Cinque Terre town, Riomaggiore, to Portovenere. This spot is only reachable from …
by Jeff Drake | Nov 19, 2017 | Travel
Just a tidbit… We’ve managed to dodge a couple of bullets during our journey so far! First, like Italy-rookies (ugh), we forgot to validate our train tickets before boarding the train in Sestri Levante! Validating is required for any non-reservation...
by Jeff Drake | Nov 19, 2017 | Travel
Today we visited Florence, Italy. For Lisa and I this was a “revisit”, as we were here in 2009. At that time, Florence threw me for a loop. It was my own fault, as I had serious misperceptions as to …
by Jeff Drake | Nov 19, 2017 | Uncategorized
I realize I have been remiss in daily postings. I’m new at this, so there is a bit of a learning curve. I am finding that a daily schedule that begins at breakfast and last till bedtime makes it difficult …
by Jeff Drake | Nov 19, 2017 | Uncategorized
We arrived in San Gimignano yesterday (10-5). It was my first experience driving since we were last in Italy (2009) and I got rear-ended by a teenager on a motorcycle. No problems this time! Getting around was easy, for the …
by Jeff Drake | Nov 18, 2017 | Uncategorized
This will be the last post I’ll make about our recent trip to Italy, unless someone has a specific related topic they would like me to cover. If not, I’m going to move on to some other topics I’ve been …
by Jeff Drake | Oct 29, 2017 | Uncategorized
Post-trip Reflections and Lessons Learned Wow, time is flying! We’ve been home two weeks already! Lisa and I managed to pick up head colds prior to the end of our trip, which, when combined with some rather tedious and tiring...
by Jeff Drake | Sep 28, 2017 | 2017 Switzerland
Wow, my wife and I haven’t taken a foreign trip in… months! LOL! Somehow, our last trip, Cuba, seems so distant, but it was actually just last March. Given the current situation with Cuba and Hurricane Irma, we’re grateful we …
by Jeff Drake | Sep 27, 2017 | 2017 Switzerland
We will be traveling to Switzerland and Italy for a period of three weeks. We will spend one week based in Wengen, Switzerland. This is a beautiful, tucked away town high in the Swiss alps. Here we will have fairly …
by Jeff Drake | Sep 26, 2017 | 2017 Switzerland
Woo hoo! Only 10 days to go! I am starting to feel like the clock is spinning faster and faster! Today Lisa and I nailed the train schedules (finally, yes!) and I even purchased a couple of tickets for all …
by Jeff Drake | Sep 25, 2017 | 2017 Switzerland
Lisa has been extremely busy gathering last minute details that need to be captured in our group travel document (will be shared soon with Mike and Denise). I try to provide as much support as I can, which primarily is …
by Jeff Drake | Sep 25, 2017 | 2017 Switzerland
Wow, busy times! Lisa is appreciating more and more the benefits of having someone else handle all the itinerary details. Personally, I think Lisa missed her calling. She is so meticulous! She’d have made a great travel agent. One of …
by Jeff Drake | Sep 25, 2017 | 2017 Switzerland
It’s time. We leave tomorrow morning. We feel very much in sync with our traveling partners, Mike and Denise and are looking forward to seeing them again in the Zurich airport train station. We were fortunate and got good seating …
by Jeff Drake | Sep 25, 2017 | 2017 Switzerland
We’re outta here! Mike and Denise have made it to the airport and are boarding as I write this. We’re just doing some last minute checks, taking care of the cats (who are NOT happy about us leaving again – …
by Jeff Drake | Sep 25, 2017 | 2017 Switzerland
Well, we made it! The Delta plane ride to Zurich went without a hitch. We decided after that we will always choose the “comfort plus” seats for the extra room. Catching the train in Zurich was a bit of a …
by Jeff Drake | Sep 24, 2017 | 2017 Switzerland
[We have been so busy, I haven’t had time or energy to write much. Well, I’m writing, just unable to finish it and post it.] Today, our first full-day in Wengen, Switzerland, was an adventure and included hiking… lots of …
by Jeff Drake | Sep 24, 2017 | 2017 Switzerland
Sunday, for us, was a day of rest! We thought we would treat ourselves to a quiet day in town and check the place out. Lisa and I had one of those enjoyable travel “discovery moments”, when you decide to …
by Jeff Drake | Sep 24, 2017 | 2017 Switzerland
I Left My Heart in Lauderbrunnen Valley Yep, I know, I skipped Monday, the 25th. I’ll cover it in a future post. Right now, I just want to capture today before I forget it. What a wonderful day! Our plan …
by Jeff Drake | Sep 24, 2017 | 2017 Switzerland
It’s hard to believe we’re packing up to go already, but we are! It’s been a great visit! I now can see why my friend, Mike, fell in love with this place. If you’re going to Switzerland, be sure to …
