This is an inadequate documentation of this trip - but I'll get around to a better explanation later.
Note: You can click on a thumbnail to see the bigger picture, and then click on that to see the biggest picture.
This was a business trip to hold the SWS Challenge in Montenegro.
Afterwards, I flew to Rome to meet up with Christine with whom I spent six days in the Alps in 2004. We hired a car and drove to Sorrento, stopping at the Montecasino Abbey along the way.
I was sick the first evening and day in Sorrento, so Christne toured herself and found a beach.
But the next day we toured Pompeii
Then spent the afternoon at Bikini Beach, where I magically recovered and swam out to the little artificial palm tree.
Then we drove down the Amalfi Coast and found a great hotel where we could spend the afternoon swimming in the sea. Then we went into Amalfi City for shopping and dinner.
We drove to Rome the next day and immediately walked over to the Colosseum, where we did that tour.
Later in that day, we also did a tour of the Palatinate and an impromtu walking tour of the city, starting with the Forum, found a great place for dinner, and then more walking late at night.
The next day, we did the Spanish Steps area and then Christine had to fly back to Münichen. I continued to tour.
In the morning of the last full day in Rome, I found the municipal WiFi hotspot in Plaza di Sienna, which is free but only accessible if you have an Italian cell phone to verify your identity, in case you are a terrorist. In the evening, I did a tour led by Elaine of the Circus Maximus, the Catacombs, and the Church of the Chains. Afterwards, I hung out with Elaine and the other ex-pats for many drinks and a fun dinner.
The next day, I sadly left Rome, spent the whole day traveling on what should have been a 2-hour trip, but then had a wonderful dinner and evening walk with my friend Carine in Paris.