ok, so I realize I havent posted in forever, but I havent even seen a computer since Monday...so here is the update: finished exams on May 10th, and then we all had to pack and clean the apartment for a few days, and it took that long. Dad and Kay got to Rome on the 14th, and for the next few days we saw the Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, Vatican, Colosseum, Forum, etc etc. That was the first time I went to the Vatican Museum and saw the Sistine Chapel. It was rather impressive, but the guards kept yelling at people to be quiet, so the ambience wasnt great. They also have this amazing collection of ancient Egyptian stuff. Some people resent the fact that these mummies (yes, real mummies!) and tombs arent in Egypt, but it was fine by me that they were in Rome. So if youre hanging around the Vatican for the day, definitely hit up the museums, but get there early...as in 1.5 hours before opening because the line is looooong.
On Thursday we caught the train to Cinque Terre, which is in Liguria on the northwest-ish coast. Cinque Terre means Five Lands, and it's just five little towns along the coast connected by hiking trails (and a train). We stayed in Vernazza (google image search that one; it's a pretty sweet view). Unfortunately, I got some kind of a cold the day before leaving Rome, so the first day in Vernazza I was not up to par. 13 hours of sleep later, though, I was up and ready to hike. We did the first part of the trail from Vernazza to the town just south, Corniglia, to get a picture; that one was a bit rough, so we took the train after that to the town furthest south, Riomaggiore, and walked from there north to Corniglia. The walkway was kind of cut into cliffs, so on the left hand side all you saw was the Mediterranean. Amazing is a vast understatement. We also met these Sicilian twin brothers who have a restaurant in Vernazza. They told us all about what they make, etc etc, and showed us where Rick Steves (the European tour guide-extraordinaire) mentioned them in one of his books. Their place wasnt on the water, but the food made up for it.
This morning, we hopped a train to Venice and just arrived. So...I'm gonna check out some gondoliers.