My Dream Vacation

ITALY

by Clarissa McMillan

Why Italy? I have always been swept away by the beauty and culture of Italy and have wanted to visit since I was a little girl.

I want to see all the art museums,

admire all of the gothic and medieval style architecture and experience the

renaissance atmosphere of Italy first hand.

ITALY

Latitude: 43° 49' 59“ Longitude: 11° 19' 59"

Information About Italy

• Climate: Highly diverse. Inland areas tend to have a continental climate, whereas, along the coast, the climate is the stereotypical Mediterranean climate – “Land of the Sun”

• Terrain: Mostly rugged and mountainous, with some plains and coastal lowlands; many waterways and rivers; very green

• Currency: The Euro 1€ = $1.33 US dollars

Information About Italy• Food:

- Traditional Italian cuisine consists of potatoes, tomatoes, bell peppers, maize, cheese and wine, coffee and espresso are also now an important part of cultural Italian cuisine

• Points of Interest &Historical sites:- Many famous art museums, galleries and

collections, churches, palaces, and historical locations such as, the coliseum, Rome Forum, leaning tower of Pisa, and the Grand Canal.

- And much, much more…

Italy, Here I Come!!!• Leave from Philadelphia International Airport on

Friday May, 8th at 6:40pm.≈ Arrive in Florence, Italy at 12:10pm on Saturday May 9th via the Florence Vespucci Airport

• Leave Florence, Italy on Saturday May 16th at 7:20am

≈Arrive back home at 3:15pm the same day, Saturday May 16th

Itinerary: Day 1

Saturday May 9th

1:00pm – Hotel car picks me up from

airport

1:20pm – Arrive at Bernini Palace Hotel, check in and get settled.

4:00pm – Enjoy an early dinner at the hotel’s rooftop restaurant

5:30pm – Walk across the street to explore the Badia Church

and the Palazzo Gondi - where da Vinci created the Mona

Lisa

6:30pm – Enjoy a walk along the Arno River and the Boboli Garden

8:00pm – Return to hotel room, get in hot tub, then go to

bed.

Itinerary: Day 28:00am – Breakfast at the hotel9:00am – Arrive via rental bike at the Palazzo del

Bargello – “Palace of People”11:00am – Arrive via bike at the PalazzoVecchio – “Old

Palace” - Enjoy Gothic architecture, visit the gallery of statues, Piazza della Signoria and Michelangelo’s “David”1:00pm – Eat at the “Bonca Toscana” 2:30pm – Arrive at the Grotta Giusti

Natural Spa Resort and spend the next 4 hours relaxing in heaven

7:00pm – Arrive at hotel via TAXI, eat a late dinner – room service- and go to bed!

Itinerary: Day 38:00am – Breakfast at hotel9:00am – Arrive via taxi at the Uffizi Gallery

- visit many of the 48 rooms within the Uffizi Museum of Art - visit the Collection of Prints and Drawings in the Uffizi Palace

1:00pm – Stop for lunch within the Uffizi Palace 2:00pm – Collection of Prints and Drawings3:00pm – The Vasari Corridor – famous collection of artists’

self portraits - Pitti Palace - Costume Gallery - Museum of Modern Art - Boboli Gardens walk-through

6:30pm – Take taxi to city centre – Piazza della Republica - Enjoy dinner and nightlife at “Universale”

10:00pm – Return back at hotel for a shower and sleep

Itinerary: Day 48:00am – Breakfast at hotel9:oo0am – Arrive at Mercado della Cascine – huge market place in

Tuscany - Grab lunch while I’m there

12:30pm – Arrive in Pisa, Italy- Visit the : Leaning Tower of Pisa – Sante Maria Fiore or the

Duomo - Bascilla di San Lorenzo – Palace of Michelangelo- Will get chance to walk around and sightsee many palaces,

churches, galleries, museums, castles, courtyards and a lot of beautiful architecture and scenery as well as hundreds of local shops

5:30pm – Stop for dinner at “Restaurante Del Pisa” 6:30pm – continue sight-seeing southward towards the Arno River

- Take a gondola ride down the Arno river eastward towards my hotel, passing under the Uffizi Corridor and the PonteVecchio - bridge famous for its amazing Gothic architecture

9:00pm – Return to the hotel, take shower and go to bed

Itinerary: Day 59:00am – Breakfast at a local café10:00am – Arrive at Florence’s shopping district - Via

Tornabuoni, Piazza Strozzi, and Santa Maria Novella - Armani, Bulgari, Dolce & Gabbana, Gucci,

Prada, Bologna, Marco Candido1:30 pm –Walk to the Fregene Beach and spend afternoon

on the beach in the sun5:00pm - Arrive back at the hotel and have dinner before

checking out6:45pm – Get on a train to Rome, Italy!10:00pm – Hotel car picks me up from train station and

brings me to the Bernini Palace Rome

Itinerary: Day 68:00am – Breakfast at hotel9:15am – Begin my tour of Rome’s historic center

- Coliseum - Amphitheatre - a masterpiece of Roman architecture.

- Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, the Roman Forum, Baths of Caracalla, Trajan's Market and the Catacombs of Rome.

- St. Peter's Church, The Sistine Chapel, Santa Maria Maggiore church, The Vatican City and all its museums, The

Capitoline Museum, Galleria Borghese and the Spanish Steps4:15pm – Have dinner right outside Vatican City6:00pm – Catch the bus to the Porta Partese flea market9:30pm – Return to hotel via taxi and go to bed.

Itinerary: Day 75:30am – Rise and shine! Got to check out and be

at the airport by 6:30am!

7:20am – My plane leaves Italy and is headed for home

3:15pm – I finally arrive back home to the United States and then begin my 90 minute drive home.

I officially really, really miss Italy. I want

to go back.

Dream Vacation Spreadsheet

HOTEL AIRFARE TAXI/TRAIN MEALS SIGHTSEEING$0.00

$500.00

$1,000.00

$1,500.00

$2,000.00

$2,500.00

Dream Vacation Costs

Travel Expenses

HOTEL AIRFARE TAXI/TRAIN MEALS SIGHTSEEING TOTAL$2,148.32 $574.10 $400.00 $600.00 $1,000.00 $4,722.42

CreditsWebsites Used:

• www.expedia.com• www.baglionihotels.com• www.google.com• www.polomuseale.firenze.it/english/• www.uffizi.com• www.infoplease.com/atlas/latitude-longitude.html

Pictures:• www.upload.wikimedia.org• www.freefoto.com• www.about.com• www.picturesofplaces.com• www.media-2.web.britannica.com• www.greathotelsitaly.com• www.romeitalytours.com