After Florence we made our way to Orvieto, the old city on a hill where my sister had spent this last semester studying art and the Italian renaissance. We stayed in a cute apartment/bed & breakfast where we had great views of the surrounding Umbrian countryside: olive groves, vineyards, you get the picture. It was fun to walk down the city streets with Annemarie and meet some of the people she had come to know over the course of 4 months. We couldn't go far without running into an Italian lady she had met at the gym, saying ciao to the waitress from the pizzeria, or catching up with the shopkeeper who sits outside her store working on her handiwork (and who of course knows all there is to know about everyone in Orvieto).
Final stop: Rome. Sadly, Annemarie had to leave to go back to California our first day in Rome, so that left Mom, Dad & I to wander the streets without our "practically native" guide. The Vatican, St. Peter's Basilica, the Spanish steps, the Colosseum were all part of our itinerary. And don't forget the gelato shop just 2 blocks away from where we were staying! We carved ourselves out a bit more downtime while in Rome for things like playing Settlers, Shanghai, and Chinese Bridge. Then it was back to our respective countries...sad to see the time come to an end, but thankful for the ease of international communication that we enjoy.
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