In May 2007, I traveled to Italy on my own. I was 31 years old and hadn’t traveled overseas. I was in the religion cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses so up until that point my life was quite sheltered. It was the first time I had been overseas, and it was the first time I was away from their influence.
I organised a two-week tour through Insight Vacations. After the tour I would decide where to go for the following two weeks. Along the way, I had my Windows 6.1 phone with its flip-out keyboard… the following posts were the log of that trip.
The cult influenced my worldview. This holiday was a chance to visit a place I always wanted to see and briefly live outside their narrow view. I didn’t get out for another two years but looking back, this was a turning point in my life… which is why I keep the diary live.
- Nervous & Excited in Canberra (5/12/2007)
- Still nervous… 3 sleeps to go… (5/13/2007)
- 7 Hours to go! (5/15/2007)
- Zombified in Sydney. (5/16/2007)
- English breakfast in Rome… (5/17/2007)
- Il Roma! (5/17/2007)
- First coffee… (5/17/2007)
- Language isn’t so bad… (5/17/2007)
- Ah, to be in Rome! (5/18/2007)
- “Sure, I’ll buy it” (5/18/2007)
- The Tour: First night… (5/19/2007)
- Rome, the Eternal City (5/20/2007)
- Siena, Pisa & Marble (5/22/2007)
- SMS’s aren’t arriving… I think. (5/23/2007)
- Cinque Terre & Florence (5/26/2007)
- Michaelangelo’s David & the City of Florence (5/30/2007)
- Ravenna & Venice (5/31/2007)
- Queen of the Adriatic (6/2/2007)
- On the road to Cortina… (6/4/2007)
- Austria & the VPN Mystery (6/4/2007)
- Juliet’s Breast & Lago Maggiore (6/7/2007)
- Palazzo Borromeo & Lunch in Switzerland (6/8/2007)
- Italy’s Public Transport System (6/9/2007)
- Public Tranport… My impressions… (6/9/2007)
- Blogging… A New Strategy. (6/11/2007)
- Rome & the Colosseum at Night (6/11/2007)
- The Roman Forum and Oceans (6/11/2007)
- Relaxing Day then the Arrival of Joe (6/11/2007)
- Luggage is a Luxury (6/18/2007)
- Sydney, Where all Good Luggage goes… (6/20/2007)
- Does Luggage Feel Jet Lag? (6/21/2007)
- No bed it better than your own… (6/27/2007)