Then and Now

In the quest to travel to as many places/countries as is possible (although I feel I have been getting "lapped" by my sister and am probably behind at this point), I have not really been one to "repeat" countries (or cities). Italy/Rome is about the first occurrence.

However, despite all that Laura and I did and saw back on our Euro tour in 2003, this trip is much different! Being here does bring back a lot of memories from that time in my life, and has reminded me think of differences between "then" and "now."

It has been really wonderful being here with Kelvin, who had never before been to Europe. Seeing him enjoy Rome, surely one of the most fabulous cities on earth, and the country of Italy as a whole, is well worth the "repeat" trip and, in a city this large, there are always new things to see and explore. Rome is definitely worth at least a trip a decade! And I am so thankful to have a husband to travel with!

Then: I was a single girl, just done with college, headed to med school in the fall
Now: I have finished residency, started my first "real job" as a doctor, and am married with a Catholic husband who loves visiting all the churches of Rome!



Then: Laura and I traveled by Eurorail passes including taking many overnight trains, hauling our stuff everywhere (my Godfather John joked, however, that, as we didn't have those real backpacks, we couldn't really say we backpacked, but rather "rolled" across Europe)
Now: We stay put and do side-trips, but still meet train challenges (see previous post on Pisa)

Then: We traveled for almost a month, I think, and hit Venice and Rome (along with Copenhagen (Denmark), Hamburg and Munich (Germany), Salzburg (Austria, and my #1 city on earth!), Prague (Czech Republic), Bergen and Oslo (Norway), and Stockholm (Sweden). (I can't remember if we did Amsterdam [Netherlands] and Belgium [Bruges, Brussels] together or if I was by myself later in the summer. Laura, do you recall?)

Now: We are here in Italy for a week and have been to Florence, Cinqueterre, Siena, Pisa, and Rome; I hope I always have a traveling companion now!

Then: We stayed in hostels
Now: Private baths and hot water are a must!

Then: We occasionally stopped in on internet cafes to communicate with family from home, and wrote in journals
Now: Wi-fi is everywhere (including hotels), which allows me to blog instead

Then: I mostly read guidebooks (and was partial to Lonely Planet);
Now: We have books for Kindle! (and I appreciate Rick Steves' guides for Europe... I found a 50c steal of a 2007 Rome guide [still fairly current] at the Eureka Friends of the Library book sale earlier this year!)

Then: We still used "regular" film and had to ration our photos (or risk paying $$$ for replacement film in Europe!)
Now: I can't even remember life without a digital camera

Then: We were aghast at paying for water in restaurants, and usually did not order drinks at all but drank our own water, in order to save $$ (prompting strange looks from the waiters/waitresses)
Now: We pretty much have wine with every meal (which is about the same price as water) but still refuse to order water

(lunch)


(dinner)- note the Asian "spaghetti" (chow mein or "noodles" is listed as spaghetti on menus here!) that we found in Florence


Then: I admit that I was a bit of an energizer bunny, wanting to explore every minute of the day, should it be my one "chance" to see the place

Now: Although I was tempted to try to do a 6-hour round-trip "day trip" to Naples/Pompeii (which Kelvin immediately vetoed and which I then agreed was a bit crazy), I am generally a more relaxed traveler, realizing that I forget about more than 50% of the things I see and do (so why rush around trying to squeeze in a million things) and appreciate sleep/naps/downtime (I have read 2 library books and am currently on book two of the Hunger Games trilogy).

However, some things never change...
- I still like to walk everywhere (or ride the trains/buses); glad that Kelvin is ok with this!
- I still hate to pay for bottled water and usually either drink tap water, or get it from the supermarket
- Gelato is still the best food in the world (we have tried flavors of pink grapefruit, lemon, pear, coconut, mint (MY FAVORITE, anywhere), mandarin, peach, yogurt, cream of caramel, coffee, and a few I'm probably forgetting)

2003 (then)


2012 (now)


Here's to the past, present, and future (which, I'm sure, will also include gelato!)!