Coming to the end.....

We are now sitting in our hotel room close to the Malpensa Airport for our flight home tomorrow.  This truly has been such a great experience.  Even though the two of us have been living in tight quarters for the last two weeks - just today on the drive here, we were reflecting that we never - not even once got on each others nerves!  I believe that is because we both needed this trip to rejuvinate ourselves and our souls!  That has happened for both of us.

Mollie's last blog covered Rome and Venice - both were wonderful experiences.  I wanted to add my repeated feelings about Venice.  Every time I leave this city I tell myself "I probably won't be back"  and yet everytime I go there I am amazed at how much I love it.  I tried to explain to Mollie what it is like to wake up in Venice with the sounds of the city coming to life.  It is just something that I have never experienced anywhere else - the church bells, the boats, the people all create a song or melody that is just simply Venice.  There is an energy in the city that gives me energy.

It was a bit different in Piaza San Marco - which is where all of the pidgeons are, as they have outlawed the feeding of the birds and they are leaving the square.  While it is fun to watch people react to the birds - I must say that I didn't mind not fighting them for our lunch!

Today the weather finally caught up with us.  We had planned to have a very relaxing day by the pool and then spa treatments in the afternoon.  When we woke up - we were in the middle of a rainstorm that was clearly not leaving anytime soon, so I threw an option to Mollie.  Skip the spa treatments and go to Verona, which you may recognize as the home of Romeo and Juliet.  I have driven past Verona three times and have always wanted to stop, but never had time.  This was our time!  We located the tomb of Juliet, which was oddly hauntingly peaceful.  We were also able to find her family home and yes - that famous balcony!  Aside from all of the hubbub of the two lovers, Verona is a lovely little city that I would definatley put on my list of places to stay and discover more fully.

I was a little disappointed that we could not see the countryside on our drive to Malpensa literally because of the rain.  I actually felt compelled to slow down to about 80 and stay in the slow lane on the autostrada!  We had entered into the Toscana region again briefly on the way to the airport, which remains my favorite of all of Italy.  As we were driving from Rome to Montegrotto Terme several days ago I once again felt myself being torn from this area that I love.  Italy is not home to me, but there is definately a part of my heart here, and I tend to get a bit weepy, knowing that it will be several years before I am back.  The good news with that is I always look forward to the planning and the new discovery of places.  I have been so lucky to have made this trip with different loved ones in my life and I know that I will continue to do that as this lovely country is a place to be shared with people - especially those you love.

As I have done with each trip I have made ,I have journaled the experience and once again - I will close with the ten things that I have learned on this journey....

1.Before anything else – remember to thank you parents – if they have provided you with a great travel partner in a sibling!


2. Laughing with my sister in a double bed is a much better workout that anything I could do at the gym.

3. Gelato is to be used at least once daily…for medicinal purposes only.

4.  Maps in general should be used as a guide – not a direction.

5. U-turns on the road and in life can be costly.

6. Lemoncillo should never be mistaken for lemonaid

7. Retracing the steps taken with others can be a good thing.

8. Tears shared with a sister are always good, no matter what.

9. While you can fall in love with faraway places, it is never as deep as the love you have waiting at home.

10. Embrace the curves in the road. Like life – they can be scary, but around the corner – there is always another beautiful view...

And with that Dear Readers...we say goodby to Bella Italia, with fondness and the certainty that there will be another journey...

The Worcester Sisters