We arrived at 12 noon after a not too comfy ride on Vueling. We had an 11 pm flight; later than we have ever flown internationally. The seats had very limited leg room and my plan to drink 2 glasses of wine and benadryl didnt work. I got up no less than 5 times, stretching and walking. Poor Rich and the man behind me.

Once we got to Barcelona airport ( which is all glass and gorgeous) we found our way to the Barcelona Airport Hotel shuttle. We missed round 1 so waited an hour, which made us a bit rushed. We tossed the bags in the room which was ready early (yay) and then took a taxi to meet Laura, our withlocals tour guide, downtown Barcelona on the main tourist road. We hadn’t eaten ( one Vueling tip is now you need to preorder food on the plane through a service called Level) so grabbed a snickers and nuts at a convenient store.

Laura took us around the Old City, showing us a building designed by Gaudi, a huge and beautiful street market where we sampled manchengo and salami, and explored numerous piazzas. We saw street performers and watched people sip coffee and drink wine. Laura treated us to churros con chocolat- a very popular dessert here. We would like to come back and explore the streets and alleys that are filled with stone and brick. We walked by Hotel Neri, a charming hotel tucked in the old city where we would like to stay next time we are in Barcelona.

We were tired and had to get up early the next morning to catch a 7 am flight to Rome, so we grabbed a quick drink and pincha at a little restaurant. Pincha is the Spanish version of dim sum, where I walked around the bar and chose little nibbles. At the end they counted my toothpicks to cash me out. Rich, not as open to eating food which looked great but he wasn’t sure what it was, ordered tapas ( ham and cheese croquttes) off the menu. It was fun, however we think we didn’t sample the best of what Barcelona has to offer.

We taxied back to the hotel and got two glasses of local wine at the bar. I asked the bartender for 2 glasses of something local. 5 euro for 2! And no tipping in Barcelona; that is reserved for excellent service or fine dining.

Palermo, Italy

It has been a wonderful, long day. We got up at 4:20 and missed the hotel shuttle. We ended up taking a taxi to the airport; the Barcelona airport was crowded and confusing. Next time, we need to remember to get our boarding pass early if possible, \240and in Barcelona be more assertive than in the US.

Our flight to Rome was easy and we met Tina and Steve in Rome. We flew to Palermo together, arriving at 2:30.

Palermo is a charming, old city. Arriving on Sunday, not too much was open. We had lupper at a restaurant near our hotel- The Hotel Porta Felice. The hotel has large, comfortable rooms and a beautiful rooftop terrace wher we spent the evening.

An alley near The Hotel Porta Felice

We started the day with a lovely breakfast on the rooftop complete with 2 cappuccino. Caffeinated, we set out to find a few spots I had researched in the guide book.

First stop was to a little alley with shops. Unfortunately,there was not much open. Tina found an adorable handmade purse at one of the few open shops. We walked around St. Anthony piazza where there was a beautiful focacceria and restaurant. We walked a bit further to Caffe Stagnitta, the oldest coffee roaster in Sicily. Steve tried their espresso plain, Tina and I opted for coffee specials, and Rich had a gelato frappe. We tried to go to a “ secret” bakery with treats made from recipes passed down from nuns, but the area was closed for an event.

Cappuccino Freddo and Cocktail Caffe

We are spending day two in Cefalu. We spent time enjoying our view of the Tyrrhenian Sea, walking around the cobblestone, windy streets of Cefalu, and sampling delicious food and wine.

Map of Cefalu

Today we drove 3 hours along the coast to Mt. Etna. Most of the roads were either tunnels or bridges, which was fairly stressful. We stopped at an autogas for cappucino and snacks, and arrived a bit before 1 at \240the meeting point for our lunch and tour.

We met at Montata Grande, a winery and outdoor shop offering tastings of products, spirits and wine. They had some delicious nut creams that would make excellent cookie fillings. Unfortunaty they don’t ship to the US.

We have been trying as many Sicilian specialties as we can find. At lunch we had fried zucchini blossoms and fried chickpea squares, both excellent, along with a bottle of wine from Mt Etna.

Tasting local spirits

We had a lovely day in \240Taormina. We woke up at our airbnb to a gorgeous view of the Ionian Sea.

Due to some travel changes, we all set off together at 8:30. \240Our train was 60 min late, but arrived! There is an air traffic controller strike and trains are busy today.

A very interesting part of our travel is that our train went onto the ferry. Once we got to the mainland, the additional carraiges were attached to the train. It was an unusual experience; this is the last train/ferry service in \240Europe.

The train mostly hugged the coast, so we were able to enjoy the ocean as we traveled. There is limited information on the train, and very few staff to ask questions so next time I would be sure to plan better.

We arrived in Salerno around 5 pm and took a taxi to the hotel. There is no Uber it seems; all taxis at taxi stands. We arrived at Villa Poseidon Boutique Hotel. It is a bit worn, but charming with a helpful front desk staff. There is a sauna in the room and an ocean view.

The garden path here was beautiful; you can walk downhill through the gardens to the public escalator into the old town. There are all kinds of fruit trees and flowers on the way. It is a bit seedy at the bottom, but walk a few blocks and it perks up.

We had apertivo at a local neighborhood bar, Bar G. Verdi, which was fun.

For our last day we decided to take the ferry to Amalfi. It is as beautiful as the pictures!

Ferry leaving from Salerno

Travel day from Salerno-Rome

We are taking the high speed train, riding business class. Wide leather seats, coffee, leg room- it is comfy, affordable and efficient! This is in contrast to the first class experience Friday with Tina and Steve, where there was no business class. Spend the little extra for business class!

Then we fly Vueling:

Rome- Barcelona

Barcelona- Boston

One last cheese plate and wine and we are off!