Well saints be praised, literally! The Vatican is still one of the few places left that does not have an admission fee! With the exception of the private museums, you can explore the grounds and the interior free of charge. The two main entrances to Vatican City for tourists are the Vatican Museums, accessible from Viale Vaticano on the North side of the city state and St. Peter's Basilica, on the Southeast side of the city and accessible from Via della Conciliazione. While St. Peter's Basilica is open all day long, the Vatican Museum entrance closes at 3:30PM on weekdays and 12:20PM on Saturdays, so if your plans includes the museums, it behooves you to first visit the museums and then the church.

It's interesting to note that the Vatican is considered to be a separate country with its own postal system, which, by the way, is rumored to be more efficient than most postal systems.

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Sure, Florence and Rome are known as the fashion capitals of the world. One can easily buy an entire condo for the price of an outfit in one of Italy's exclusive boutiques. However, if you're like me, and you don't play the high fashion game, there are some great buys to be found at independent stalls and small shops along the side streets.

In Florence, I found some beautiful paisley scarves and shawls. In tourist centers, they go for about five euros, but in the less populated areas, they cost four euros. For me, they're a tax write off. At my job as a Breckenridge tour guide, I sometimes wear a paisley shawl; the type that was worn over the coats of the upper class women of Victorian society. In Rome, I found a beautiful bracelet for five Euros. The photo above shows a store in Rome that has some great bargains.

Photo by Kelly Bell Flikr

The photo above shows a cat in the Roman Colosseum. We went there today for a very specific reason- we were more interested in seeing the stray cats than the Colosseum itself. Yesterday, enroute from Florence to Rome, we received a devastating phone call. Apparently, while we were away, our cat Willow crossed over the rainbow bridge.

Our greyhound Giselle was at "camp" at the Dog House in Breckenridge. Two of the girls who worked there were visiting and checking up on our cats, Blackcomb and Willow. On Friday, one of the girls walked in and discovered that Willow had breathed her last breath. Although they are a dog boarding place, they brought Blackcomb to the Dog House to stay with Giselle. If you ever need boarding in Breckenridge, these folks go the extra mile.

So this is why we wanted to see the cats of the Colosseum. But sadly, they are no longer there. Perhaps the city got rid of them. Who knows? On a lighter note, we spent a lovely day in Rome, considering the circumstances. We found a wonderful restaurant on one of the side streets near Piazza Navona. It's called Rust, and it's located on Via Del Teatro Place, 34/35. Thirty four Euros got us an appetizer, an entree, a bottle of mineral water and a bottle of wine. It's far less frenetic than the restaurants right on Piazza Navona, and the food was delicious!

No, this is not a museum. This just happens to be our hotel room in Florence, where we have a free night, courtesy of my husband's Starwood Rewards Points!


According to the hotel website:

The Grand Hotel was originally home to the noble Guintini family. In the second half of the 18th Century, Florence undertook a citywide renovation, at which time the former palace was converted into a hotel. Overlooking the Arno River, and located just steps away from iconic landmarks like the Uffizi Gallery and Academia, the Grand Hotel is emblematic of the city's rich history reflecting the crucial stages of social and architectural development in the Tuscan capital.

I am truly living in a dream! Ironically, nearby dining is not too expensive. We had lunch at a wonderful little restaurant near the hotel. Bacchus serves a prix fix lunch menu which includes antipasto, a main entree and a pitcher of mineral water for 10 euro. Not cheap but not bad!

Yesterday evening, we said goodbye to Paris and hopped an overnight train to Florence. The photo below shows me at the train station, sitting next to a guy wearing a Red Sox hat. My husband thought that this was pretty funny. He was raised in Boston, and both of us lived there for nine years. Wherever we go, South America, Europe, etc., we see people who are part of the Red Sox Nation.

Now about those overnight trains: While it's debatable, overnight train travel is a form of budget travel. Arguably, you can find an airfare that's cheaper than the $300 some odd dollars we paid for a private sleeper car. However, if you fly, you have to pay to get to and from the airport, as well as for an overnight hotel. Besides, overnight train travel is fun, in a sick sort of way. My husband claimed the bottom bunk, so I had to deal with the excitement of wondering whether I was going to fall off the top. Obviously, I lived to tell the tale! If you don't mind the company of strangers, prices for a non-private compartment are a bit cheaper. For information, check out the Rail Europe website.

Here's the thing about Versailles. Admission is expensive, it's navigation ins complicated and, if the metro is not running efficiently, getting there can be a nightmare. For example, today, when we went to transfer for the RER train to Versailles, the entrance to the train was roped off. There were no signs saying that the line that goes there was out of service, and no one to tell us what was going on. And yes, I do speak a bit of French, so if an announcement was made, I would have known about it.

We exited the station and spoke to an agent, who told us that the C line to Versailles was having electrical problems, and we would have to take a different train to a different stop. Too bad we had already wasted the price of two tickets. Oh well.

Needless to say, this former "home" of Louis XV and Louis XVI is elaborate, elegant and impressive. However the experience is currently being destroyed by a ridiculous modern exhibit by Jeff Koons. Somehow, statues of Michael Jackson, balloon bunnies and other silly objects don't do well in the chambers of a king. Unfortunately, many people don't seem to think so, because the crowds are unbearable.

Guide's tip: There's no charge to simply walk through the grounds. If you're on a tight budget, that may be your best option. Here's a picture of my camping it up in the Hall of Mirrors.