Day 1: I departed from Sembach at six thirty Valentines evening for an overnight travel to Italy.

Day 2:  I took an early morning brake for breakfast at a small truck stop.  Soon thereafter I arrived in Pisa where I visited the world-famous Leaning Tower of Pisa and Piazza dei Miracoli.  Just before noon I proceeded to Florence, the birthplace of the Renaissance.  Here I took a walking tour through the famous Bronze Doors of the Baptistery, the Duomo Giotto´s Campanile and home of Michelangelo's David, the Accademia.  From there I visited a local leather and gold factory and showrooms.  The remainder of the afternoon was spent shopping and trying the local delicacies.  Late evening I traveled to Rome and stayed at the Palace Hotel.

Day 3: After breakfast at the hotel I explored the eternal city of Rome, starting with a guided tour of the Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel and St. Peter´s, the extraordinary Papal art collection, Michelangelo´s frescoes and Raphael´s Madonnas.  From there I continued touring via horse drawn carriage to the Coliseum, Forum Romanum, Circus Maximus, Trevi Fountain and a few which I can no longer name.  Later that evening I attended a dinner catered to Americans.  Entertainment was provided by a pianist and two local opera legends.  After several courses and many more bottles of both red and white wine from the local vineyard came desert and the final presentation.  This was perhaps the most moving experience of the trip.  Italians in full Roman dress marched across the stage singing, the leader waiving a U.S. flag at full staff while others carried in huge trays of flaming blueberry and raspberry tarts in the pattern of a U.S. flag.  It was quite a show, I guess you had to be there!

Day 4:  After breakfast and an early checkout I departed for a full-day excursion with local guide to Pompeii, Sorrento and Capri. First I visited Pompeii, buried by the Vesuvian eruption of A.D. 79 and painstakingly brought back to light during two centuries. Next up was a spectacular costal drive to the resort of Sorrento where I shopped for local artisan goods (i.e. inlaid wood ceramics etc.).  Later, I embarked on a tour of the magical island of Capri and then on to Naples.  Where I walked to the Maschio Angioino Castle (Castel Nuovo) and then on to Piazza Plebiscito, the biggest square in the city, bounded by the magnificent Royal Palace and the neo-classic church of San Francesco di Paola.  I stopped for ice cream in the renowned Café' Gambrinus, one of the oldest, most famous and most patronized cafés of Naples.  Later that evening on the overnight trip to Venice I stopped for a fantastic three course dinner and red wine at an old Monastery that had been completely bombed out in WWII.  It has since been renovated for exhibit as a national landmark.

Day 5:  Just before dawn I stopped at a roadside cafe for breakfast.  Shortly thereafter I made an early morning arrival in Venice where I boarded a ferry to the island of Capri (Piazza San Marco).  From here I took a walking tour to the Basilica of San Marco, the Campanile, the Bridge of Sighs and the Murano glass factory where they demonstrated glass blowing and opened up the showroom to visitors.  I spent the remainder of the afternoon shopping for souvenirs and eating before heading to Switzerland.  I stopped and ate in a restaurant near the basin of the Swiss Alps.  From here I made the journey back to Germany.

Day 6:  Just after midnight I arrived at the pickup point in Sembach.