Grottaferrata

At the pizzeria

Rena, Joe, Muzio and Ilaria. We had dinner in this little pizzeria around the corner from their home....and it was gooood!!!
Cant thank this family enough for their hospitality....they are super nice people!!
Once we finished dinner, Muzio drove us back into Rome so we didn't have to take the subway.  A blessing because at that point...too much food, too much beer and a long day would have made for a loooong train ride back.

Frascati

Mmmmm.....pork!

Please excuse the chipmonk cheeks as I was struggling to finish my mouthful before this shot was taken.....Once we finished here...we made our way to another small town called Grottaferrata where Joes cousin Rina lives with her husband Muzio and their 16yr old daughter Ilaria.

Frascati

Porchetta

White wine

We were graciously served a terrific porchetta sandwich on fresh italian bread with a splash of white wine.
When Paolo isn't serving the wine, he performs marriage ceremonies at City Hall as the towns Justice of the Peace.

Frascati

Having a snack



 Joes cousin Rosanna and her husband Paolo own this little supermarket in a town called Frascati. Its a beautiful, historic place on a hill about 20 mins outside of Rome. We had an awesome view for Rome from here.

Arbatax, Sardinia

Today was another spectacular day....sunny and warm! We had to check out of our rooms today by 11am, but we spent the day around the pool soaking up as much sun as we could before we left for Rome and back home. The hotel was kind enough to provide us with a shower facility so we could clean up before hitting the road.
Yvonne was not looking forward to riding those treacherous, winding roads back to Cagliari...lucky for her we read the map correctly this time!! It seems that on our way here we either were given poor directions, misread the map or missed a turn or something?? It was a new 4 lane highway from start to finish...picturesque along the coast shaving at least 1 hr off the drive. DUH!!!
This is where it gets exciting.....stay with me.....our flight was leaving ....in our minds at least, at 22:50hrs. We got to the terminal early as I said, so we sat down for dinner and beers to pass the time. We pulled out the boarding passes and realized that we weren't on the same flight as Joe and Yvonne. Two flights each day to Rome ...06:30hrs and 22:50hrs......We had missed our 06:30hrs flight!!!!!  Accidently booked the wrong one.  We were required to purchase new tickets at a premium price....not good for morale!!!
nevertheless...we arrived at Rome and got to the hotel no probs after that....what a mess.

Golfo D'Orosei

Cliff walls

Police Marine Unit

Compare the size these walls and grottos to the boats in the pics....
The one on the left...there are divers entering an big cave only accessible through an underwater entrance...the tunnel is about 15m long and then you resurface inside the cave...ya...right...knock yourself out!

Golfo D'Orosei

Cliff walls

Cliff walls

There were miles of these cliffs along the coast, rising hundreds of feet up.
On the right you can see the erosion of the limestone from the large waves pounding on them. They had a tsunami several years a go that was about 30ft high, causing parts of the shoreline that wasn't solid limestone to be washed away. There is evidence of the size of that wave still today.

Golfo D'Orosei

battered and fried

Salvatore

our first-mate/cook/.....plumber (don't ask).
These fish actually tasted much better than they looked....although Yvonne was out from the get-go!!

Golfo D'Orosei

Lunch time



Lunch time

 We ate on board the Helios....pasta with shrimp, fresh battered fish...bowls of olives and jug after jug of red wine...mmmmm!!!
He anchored the boat in the shelter of one of the many fjords along the coast.

Golfo D'Orosei

To the beach

and back on board

We stopped at two different beaches for some R & R. On the left you see how we got on and off the beach...but the second time the sea became too rough to come in again. We were brought back on board with the zodiac and the help of a local water taxi.

Golfo D'Orosei





A close up!!



That's close!





We were already starting to pull back from the wall before Kim got there. Gives you an idea of the size of this cave aswell...we were basically inside.

Golfo D'Orosei

Captain Sergio



The shoreline





Because of the cliffs extending straight down beneath the water in most places, he could bring this big boat within inches of the cliff walls.

Golfo D'Orosei



Inside the grotto



On our way out

There was a small "window" (behind Joe) that allowed some light to penetrate. The dome-shaped ceiling was about 20ft or so in the center and the grotto itself measured about 60ft in diameter.

Golfo D'Orosei

The Entrance



From the inside

 We entered this grotto in a zodiac through this small entrance.  We had to duck down to clear the top in prder to pass through but it was huge on the inside.

Grotto Del Fico

Grotto Del Fico

Grotto Del Fico

Grotto Del Fico

Inside the grotto

Inside th grotto

As I mentioned...the pics aren't that great but you get the idea. Its massive....imagine...the first guys to discover this, explored using helmet lights and flashlights only.....creepy much??

Grotto Del Fico

Inside the Grotto

Inside the Grotto

Seriously...go to the link and view the pics...we weren't allowed flash photography so my pics are crappy. This place is huge....check it out.

Grotto Del Fico

Grotto Del Fico



The entrance

 It wasn't until 1963 that scientists actually entered the grotto and began their research. It was opened to the public in 2003. Visit the website to really appreciate the beauty of this thing.
http://www.grottadelfico.it/

The entrance

The entrance was covered originally, by a huge fig tree, but in 1985 it was knocked down and washed away during a big storm.