Bocelli was made for fireworks.

Hey all. We're writing from a sweatshop-like internet point in a very hot Milan at the moment. Our butts are sweating just from sitting here. Net access in the past few days hasn't been too prevalent, or cheap, so most of our web time has been spent sending British Airways new contact information with which to track us down. A brief update regarding that, then onto 'some fun stuff we've been doing out here'.

The Hopeful News I wrote about five days ago has, sadly, turned a bit less hopeful. It is now Sunday and we're in Milan for one night. Pam & Chad head home tomorrow and we'll be off to Augsburg, Germany. Our bags weren't waiting for us at our hotel when we checked in this afternoon. So we still don't really have any clear idea of when or where we'll be reunited with out stuff. One silver lining is that we have been slated for a class upgrade on our return flights to Canada (subject to availability, of course). So we'll see if that works out. The best news is that we're still smiling and laughing a lot, despite the periodic rant against terrorist plots in general, and British Airways in particular.

OK, so what have we been up to?

One of our favorite evenings in Genova was when our host Andrea drove us up a very steep, windy road to the top of the seaside village of Arenzano, where, lo and behold, there was this GORgeous view and a really popular pizzeria (as evidenced by scads of little Fiats, Smart cars and motorcycles jammed into the tiny parking lot). We had lovely food and drinks, and then drove down to the seaside, where we found gelato (which we've been having at least once a day here in Italy) and walked along the Mediterranean.

In Rome, as mentioned in a previous post, we saw quite a bit of stuff in a relatively short period of time. On our last night, we thought, 'Hey, let's find a hip area of Rome we haven't discovered yet.' So the aforementioned Frommer's Rome guide told us about an area where 'Rome's night life is at it's festive best. In summer, cafes spill out into the streets, and there's live jazz, jam sessions, shops,...the street is blocked off from 8:30pm to 2am... (etc, etc)'. Well, we found our way there without too much trouble (the bus system in Rome is cheap, but it's a bit of a chore to figure it out. We did pretty well, though, if we do say so ourselves). But we decidedly did NOT find a hip, happening night spot. We found graffitti-laden walls, dark alleys, abandoned shops, and cats.

Thanks, Frommer's.

OK, on one corner there were a few cafes open, so we decided to stay there and enjoy a meal. Interesting that it ended up being probably our best dining experience in Rome. Tons of good traditional Italian fare for a reasonable price, and a server that looked like Jean Reno (not that Chad or I cared about that). His English was pretty good, so we asked him about it. Jean Reno said, 'I had a girlfriend from San Diego once.' A few minutes later he said, 'I also had one from London.' Gotta love those Italian studs.

On to Venice...
We weren't prepared for the challenge of navigating one's way on foot in Venice. (Did I mention our Rick Steves books were in our luggage?) But, equipped with a little Venice map someone gave us while in the Cinque Terre, we did OK (Editorial comment from Terri: 'Well, Nelson did ok. Thank goodness for my patient husband.') The highlight of our time -- besides gelato and a good restaurant we stumbled across -- hands down, was last evening. Upon arrival on Friday, we were told that this was a pretty big festival weekend in Venice, second only to Carnivale. We had no idea. 'There will be fireworks on Saturday, with lots of people and music and dancing.' COOL, we thought. What a way to (nearly) end our time in Italy, and the leg of the journey in which we are with our good friends Pam & Chad.

So we showed up about two hours before the fireworks were scheduled to start, and the crowds had already begun to amass and sit down to claim their firework-watching territory. There were a TON of people there. Wish we could show you pictures. Around 11:30pm, the music started and they finally began. Here are a few tunes we remember from the soundtrack:

- Richard Strauss, Thus Spake Zarathustra (you all know this one, whether you recognize the title or not...Google it!)
- Celine Dion & Andrea Bocelli, Prayer (oh my goodness, I almost wept while this one played...all those people from all over the world, together spellbound by color and light bursting in the sky...unbelievable...words cannot describe...)
- U2 & Mary J. Blige, One (this version of this song has never sounded better)
- Jerry Lee Lewis, Great Balls of Fire (for obvious reasons)
- Stuff from GREASE: Greased Lightning, Summer Nights

Well, for a solid half hour they captured the attention of thousands. It was probably the most memorable -- if not the best -- fireworks show we've ever seen. What an experience.

I guess that covers things for now. Maybe in Germany we'll be able to upload some pictures, so keep watching and reading (and commenting...we love comments...)!

Ciao!