Fam Trip to Italy

Departing San Diego, California for Rome, Italy.

Pompeii, the most famous archaeological site in Italy, is located just 25km away from Naples . The excavations are visited by millions of visitors every year and offer one of the most important pieces of evidence of the past in the whole world. Life in this rich and prosperous city was dramatically and brusquely interrupted in 79 C.E. when Vesuvius erupted and totally buried it. The city and its inhabitants were wiped out in moments. A visit to the excavations gives you a pretty good idea of what life must have been like here two thousand years ago. A must visit for history lovers.

As the city's skyline symbol, the legendary Duomo is famous above all for its dome: Filippo Brunelleschi's Renaissance masterpiece, completed in 1436, created a double dome shell so that the dome is entirely self-supporting. It still stands as the largest masonry dome in the world, containing over 4,000,000 bricks! Climb to the top (all 463 steps) to get an unforgettable panoramic view of the city, which has changed little in the past 500 years. Construction started in 1296 on the site of the Roman basilica of Santa Reparata, of which there are still visible remains with a design by the great Florentine architect, Arnolfo di Cambio. The existing neo-Gothic facade was added in the 19th century by Emilio De Fabris. Covering a massive 3,600 square meters, the frescoes inside the dome depict the Last Judgment, painted by Giorgio Vasari and Federico Zuccari. If you can stand the throngs of people and get a good spot early, come on Easter Sunday for the Scoppio del carro (Explosion of the Cart) where a oxen-drawn cart stuffed with fireworks comes from Prato to the center of the city and ignited.

Some legends say that the Ponte dei Sospiri was called the Bridge of Sighs because it was a rendezvous for lovers; however, the truth tells a much sadder tale. The bridge, in fact was built to convey magistrates to the courts and prisoners to their fates. However, the Baroque bridge, designed by Antonio Contino, still has a very romantic air to it, and remains an important historical landmark in Venice today.

For a long time this was the only way to cross the Canal Grande. There was a bridge here at the end of the 12th Century, but the current one, designed by Antonio da Ponte, was built 1554-1591. There are now lots of shops on the bridge selling all kinds of souvenirs and curiosities. Fresh fruit, vegetable and fish markets line the streets in the bustling neighborhood. A second bridge was built in 1854, this bridge is still an important historical landmark and always a bright spot for tourists.