I'm Back!

[tenax]

italy..wow..my wife would hate to hear that good on ya..and no..zero sympathy now

[CarlD]

We came into Naples but went to Pompei one day and Herculaneum the other.

We also went into Rome, Messina, Florence and Pisa (yes, the tower really leans). Here's a shot I took on Friday. You can see someone at the rail by the bells. If you are crazy and fearless you can climb to the VERY top above the bells. I got as far as the rail around the bells. The whole site is much more beautiful than we expected--or than it used to be, and they are nearly finished cleaning the tower so it's white, not dark soot. They've stabilized it so it's safe. The romanesque cathedral it's part of also leans, though not as dramatically. People don't realize this is a cathedral's bell tower--and the bells still ring. It was old when Galileo climbed it, and the chandelier in the cathedral is supposedly the one he saw swinging and timed to begin his investigations into the laws of Gravity.



It's a tough job, but someone's got to do it--visit all these amazing places!

[Simmons99]

Wow - how exciting! I am waiting until the kids are out of the house to do the Europe tour - it's much more afforable when you only have to pay for 2 vs. 4.

[CarlD]

Wow - how exciting! I am waiting until the kids are out of the house to do the Europe tour - it's much more afforable when you only have to pay for 2 vs. 4.

True, but they'll never forget climbing the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Coloseum, or the first time they saw Michaelangelo's David, the Sistine Chapel, The Pieta, or the Mona Lisa.

[waste]

As this is OTGI, here's a link to an 'article' on it by Cecil Adams (parts of it could also apply in Pool Construction...)
http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a4_002.html
The rest of the site and all his "Straight Dope" books are worth the investment in time or money (this guy's a hoot! & seems to know everything)