VENICE

We took Trenitalia from Rome to Mestre station. It's about 5 hrs 30 minutes for 530 km.  Economy class - four of us (it's Euro 67). From Mestre, we took another train to Santa Lucia, we paid only Euro 5 as it's very close!!  But we has to spend Euro 28 to reach our apartment in Rialto! Dang.

Finally, we're reach our apartment in Rialto! It's on the 2nd floor, open space one bedroom mix with living room.  One queen bed for us and one sofa bed for my kids.  The location is quite in the centre if you are walking around to San Marco.  The owner is a nice young couple, but I don't like it when she asked another addition Euro 20 for cleaning up after we check out! That's never happen before every time we stays in the apartment! However, they're still okay as they gave us welcome "tea coffee and bread for breakfast" and they're waiting for us patiently.

I love to see an old building with different colour. It's unique and has a character. Sometimes, I was wondering what's the inside of this apartment!

Drying clothes in front of their apartment is remind me how to dry the clothes in my homeland. It's very colourful and very cool but at the same time it's very efficient.

I am not a fan of blue but when I see this view and I captured it, I do really fall in love with blue at that moment.  I can see why people are coming to this city as it's so beautiful.

to be continue

Spring in ITALY

My second time to visit Rome. It's already end of April but the weather still juggling  between rain and shine as the weather forecast tell you!.  Raining is almost everyday but it doesn't mean that I have to stay inside all the time! NO WAY!!!

4 years ago,  I was travelling with my best friends, all of us gals and pretty (hohoho).  We decided to walk and taking a bus tour so it's easy for us to hip and hop from one place to the others. But this time,  I am going with my family : my hubby and my two boys. Basically I got three bodyguards and they're really want to explore wherever we're going, not taking an easy way or  a bus tour but we are commuting like locals, using the metro ( the underground train or subway). 

Smells like in New York subway when we're entering the station, except here everything written in Italy, some in english.  There is police inside the station!.  Never see this in Toronto or Paris or Underground in London.  Just realized why after inside the train and there are beggars, a lot of them kids with mother and baby.  This is the first time I saw this scene in the subway! I see this a lot in my country, Indonesia, especially on the traffic light. There are a lot of beggars with babies to make money.  They're jumping from one train to the others, as if she is out of the station she'll have to pay another euro 1. 50 for 100 minutes.  

Anyway,  If I go with my gals, we definitely stay in hotel to be safe and easy for us. Not when am travelling with my family, we are usually stay in apartment for a lot of purposes. First of all, it's a good deal compare to hotel.  Second, it's very convenience for the boys, felt like moving from our house to different house. In the morning, they're eating cereal and scrambled eggs like every other morning, in the afternoon since we're exploring the city - so we're usually eat out and we're having dinner in the apartment as I am cooking as usual.  

We're trying to rent an apartment that is very strategic and close to the train station.  As  we're planning to travel by a train.  Train terminal in Rome is not bad at all, you can get everything you need included grocery! Don't ask me how busy this train station. As this station is the point from the airport to the city, and even from city of Rome to other city in Italy, and it's all connected to underground train.    

Also, if you're in a rush, to get a good deal of breakfast (croissant and tea or coffee) or a slice of pizza is affordable and everywhere you can see.  However, this second time around, I got enough of Rome! Grazie!

to be continue ....