What a traveler’s treasure! It is almost impossible not to find someplace to fall in love with in Italy. Even if you arrive in a grumpy mood, swearing to yourself that you
are going to have a lousy time, you will fail, because Italy just creeps into your mind, and you are soon overtaken by the “wonderfulness” of the place, the people, the culture, and the food.
We had been in Rome for nearly a week. It was the last Sunday of the month, time for us to depart and go north. I had purchased train tickets leaving the station around mid-afternoon,
and we had a few hours to spare. We decided to go to the Vatican.
Leaving our luggage at the hotel, we went outside and hailed a cab, instructing him to take us to the Sistine Chapel.
“On the last Sunday of the month! Are you crazy”, the cab driver blurted out? “Today is the last Sunday of the month. Today the Vatican is ‘No Charge’,
and everyone comes in free. It is an insane place to be on the last Sunday of the month”.
He must have grumbled that phrase, “last Sunday of the month”, at least a half dozen more times under his breath as we drove on. He did make it a point to say this in English,
just so there was no chance we would misunderstand his disapproval of what we were doing.
Approaching the entrance to the Sistine Chapel, we passed what had to be several thousand people already lined up waiting to enter. We pulled right up to the front. Fortunately, there
was a ramp and special access for the disabled, and we went right in.
Just inside was a foyer with a small room off to the side. In this room one could hire an official guide for a tour, and we were fortunate that there was a guide available. He was an
older gentleman, with a cane, sitting alone, reading the Sunday papers. He was so absorbed in the paper it was almost a shame to interrupt him, but I did anyway.
I asked, and he replied he was available for hire. He told us his hourly rate, and we agreed to engage him for the next few hours.
Leaving his paper on the table, he walked in front of us, leading the way through the throng of people crowded into the narrow passageways. When the crush of people became too great,
he would reach out with his cane and literally beat on the backs or heads of people in front of us, shouting, “Prego, PREGO! Let us pass”.
He took a series of shortcuts and back switches, up and down elevators clearly marked, “Not for Public Use”, arriving finally at the Sistine Chapel. He led us in, still beating
on heads, until we were in the middle of the room. Then he stopped. “Look up to the ceiling”, he commanded, “and see the work of the master”. And he proceeded to give us nothing
short of a doctoral dissertation explaining everything about the painting of the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.
He was utterly fantastic, and he left a deep impression on us. We sent him Christmas cards for a number of years until one year, his daughter wrote back and told us her father had passed
away...
From the ebag:
On Thu, 2 Mar 21:12:30 +1100, "Keryn "
said:
> Hi Nancy,
> I am confined to a wheelchair( I can walk a few steps
> with lots of support) , I am 35, and I enjoy extreme activeties. I am
> planning a trip to Italy for most of May, this year. I am going with
> MUm who is able bodied. Mum can manage a few stairs, So I
> generally get to see most things.
> What do you suggest and what should we avoid.
> From keryn
Hi Keryn- and thanks for writing.
From your letter, particularly as you cite "extreme activities," I'm a
bit uncertain as to what to advise you. With the right equipment, as you
see on our site, there is virtually nothing you can't accomplish if your
desire is strong enough. Thus, within reason, there is nothing for you
to especially avoid, with the exception of Pompeii and Heraculeum, which
are nearly impassable in a wheelchair.
With a conventional wheelchair,
you will have some difficulty getting around the Colosseum and getting
around the Forum and up the hills overlooking the center of ancient
Rome.
The countryside is beautiful along the Amalfi Coast, and Positano, though
difficult for the chair pusher because of the hills, should not be
missed if possible.
Venice is very difficult to get around, because all the bridges over the
canals are stair-step. It is worth the effort to get around the city,
but you must be prepared to be disappointed in terms of your limitations
from going wherever you might otherwise wish to go.
When we went to Venice a second time, we had a travel agent arrange a special water taxi for us. Seems they have a few boats with a stair-lifter inside them. We we thus able to go wherever we wanted to go, and had a much better
time than the first trip. We went everywhere!
In the larger cities, I would suggest you contact the concierge of one
of the swankest hotels in each city, via email, and ask them for help
finding a guide to assist you while in their city. Often, a good cab
driver who speaks passable English is enough. We offer a number of good
suggestions in our book, and you read or download it.
Hope this helps. We wish you a wonderful trip! Write back and let us
know what you did and what you enjoyed when you get back.
Best regards,
Nancy
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