Heading to Italy for a Bit - Off Season Trip for Me

  • By: Administrator
  • Category: BYU Sports

  • Monday, May 21, 2007 at 8:12 pm

Well, as you can see my blog hasn’t gotten much activity lately. I wish I could say that things were going to get better, but the fact is that you probably won’t see many posts from me for the next 2-3 weeks. I’m going to Italy with my wife. I will give you a little look at where we’re headed in Italy.

Rome
We’ll be flying into Rome arriving about 10 AM. We’ll spend most the afternoon going around Rome. I think that Trevi Fountains, and the spanish steps are tops on my list of places to see in Rome. I also love going to St. Peter’s and watching the painters.

Napoli
After touring Rome we’ll hope on a train and head down to my friend’s place in Napoli. She is the sweetest lady. She said she’d have dinner waiting for us and a key to her house so we can just come and go as we please.

The next morning we’ll be touring some of Italy and I definitely have to hit Piazza Garibaldi to get me a suit and some other Sunday clothes for church. I was also told that there will be a baptism Saturday night. This happened last time I went to Napoli (truthfully Pozzuoli). It’s so much fun, because I get a chance to see a bunch of the members all at once. The next morning I’m sure we’ll enjoy church in probably the most beautiful chapel I’ve ever seen. Well, at least the view from the chapel is the best.

Amalfi
Monday we’ve got a nice hotel lined up in the beautiful town of Amalfi. We’ll probably check in to our hotel as early as possible and then head up for a little hike to the waterfalls just above Amalfi where they use to make paper. It’s an incredible hike that feels like you’ve gone into a completely different world. Got to love Valle Dei Mullini.

Positano
After spending the night in Amalfi, we’ll be taking an early morning “chicken bus” up to my favorite place in Italia:Sentiero degli Dei (Trail of the Gods). It’s about a 4 and a half hour hike. At the end of the hike there are 1000 steps to reach the beautiful city of Positano below. We’ve got a hotel lined up in Positano which will be a certainly welcome relief.

Napoli - Pompeii and Vesuvius
The next morning we haven’t decided exactly what we’ll do, but we’re considering heading to Pompeii since it’s in the area. However, if we’re too tired we might head back to Napoli and go to Pompeii later. I would love to take the boat from Positano back to Napoli. The boat is a lot of fun and a nice soothing ride.

Venice
After spending a couple days with friends in Napoli, we’ll be heading for a romantic weekend in Venice. I can’t say anything about Venice. It’s absolutely the most unique place I’ve ever been. It’s Romantic. It’s incredible and I can’t wait to stroll the streets with my wife. Not to mention a nice gondola ride.

Bologna
I’ll be meeting a friend of mine in Bologna. We’ll be attending church in Bologna which should be interesting since we’ve never been there. I’d rather go to church somewhere else, but I really want to see my friend Maria Rosaria so we’ll do what we have to do. Sunday after church my friend will pick us up and after eating some of her mother’s fine fine Italian cooking we’ll be heading to Florence.

Florence
We haven’t decided how many days we should spend in Florence. We’ll stay at least a day and up to 4 days. I must admit that my wife and I aren’t that into art and so I’m not sure how long we’ll want to stay in Florence. I think we’re probably going to want to head back to Napoli to spend more time with friends.

Well, that’s the general round up of our trip through Italy. Most things are subject to change, but it doesn’t really matter. No matter where we go or what we do we have nothing to worry about, because the best part of Italy is….

THE FOOD!!

Hopefully I’ll be able to at least blog a little from Italy, but if I can’t then we’ll see you after our trip.

John Beck to Miami Dolphins - I Couldn’t Have Dreamed Any Better

There has been a ton of controversy over the Miami Dolphins not picking Brady Quinn and picking Beck. I must admit that I personally couldn’t have been happier. If you ask me my football teams I say BYU Cougars and Miami Dolphins (in that order). Therefore, I was incredibly happy to see Miami pick up John Beck with the #40 overall pick.

I found the following story about how much the Dolphins wanted to get Beck quite entertaining.

But when Cleveland traded for Quinn on Saturday, that’s when Mueller began to worry about getting Beck. Actually, one team worried him: Detroit. Drafting seven spots before the Dolphins, Mueller knew Detroit wanted a quarterback.

Hoping to see if Detroit had contacted Beck, Mueller text-messaged him: “Are you OK?”

“My wife wants a tan, and I’m wearing flip-flops,” Beck wrote back.

Mueller began talking with Chicago (31st pick) and Oakland (33rd pick) to trade up. He offered a switch of picks for the Dolphins’ 40th overall pick and combinations that involved third- or fourth-round picks. He thought he had a deal. Then he didn’t. Then came word Detroit had traded to the 43rd spot.

“I felt better after that,” Mueller said.

The best part is that the Dolphins absolutely need someone like John Beck to take care of the quarterback position. I’m excited to see what Beck can do in Miami.