The Italian Chef

Introduction

I will never forget my most recent vacation in Italy. Walking through the historic streets of Rome, Florence and Venice. Sitting in a café sipping an espresso or eating a gelato and watching the locals go about their daily routines. Driving the scenic roadways of Tuscany, the Amalfi Coast and Sicily. Eating the most amazing food, dishes like the rabbit in Tuscany, the Bucatini all? Amatricianna in Rome, the Pesce all? Aqua Pazza in Positano, the Sarde Becafico in Taormina, and way too many more meals to list.

Most of the time in my previous visits to Italy was spent in Sicily, where my family is from, but this most recent trip was much more ambitious. Since this was my wife Sandy's first trip to Italy, there was a lot to cover in little time. My own list of things to see had also grown over the years, so you could imagine how busy we where in that oh so short 16 days.

We flew directly into romantic Venice from New York, and after a couple of days, we took a water taxi to the mainland, picked up a rental car and proceeded to work our way down south to Florence, Rome, and the Almalfi Coast. When we finished our relaxing stay in Positano, we drove to the Naples airport and boarded a flight to Catania, Sicily. We picked up a new rental car after landing at the airport and drove to Taormina, the last stop on our trip. Although some people questioned our decision to rent a car and drive ourselves around Italy, it was definitely the right choice and I would recommend it to anybody planning a trip like ours.

It was a magical vacation, made even more magical by the fact that 2 weeks after we returned home; we discovered Sandy was pregnant with our son, Paolo. Made in Italy just like his father! It will probably be a while before we can go on another trip like that, so for now all we have are the memories, but what great memories they are.

italy travel

Introduction