Rick Steves'
About Us
Hello! We are Christina and Kim Ferraro. We are sisters who love to travel and spend time together. Each year as we get older, we have grown to realize just how difficult it is to get see each other and have quality sister and family time. Thankfully, we have wonderful parents, Bob and Karen, who passed on their love of learning, especially through travel, onto us. Traveling together has become an essential way that we stay connected even though we don't all live close to each other.
So, follow along as we take you through our Rick Steves' Best of Venice, Florence, and Rome 10 Day Tour (with a little sister-only trip to Spain beforehand)! Throughout our scrapbook, we will provide our itinerary, useful tips, pictures, and some of our favorite memories. Enjoy!
So, follow along as we take you through our Rick Steves' Best of Venice, Florence, and Rome 10 Day Tour (with a little sister-only trip to Spain beforehand)! Throughout our scrapbook, we will provide our itinerary, useful tips, pictures, and some of our favorite memories. Enjoy!
Meet the Ferraro Family!
Christina: I graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a double major in molecular biology and Spanish language. Currently, I am a graduate student living in Southern California. Though graduate school doesn't give me too much of a breather, I like to take what extra time I have and plan future travels. Encountering people from all over the world is a daily part of my work, and this aspect of my studies has really fostered my resolve to become a citizen of the world and do my best to understand as many cultures as I can. Particularly, I'd like to do this by eating and drinking my way through as many countries as possible!
Kim: I am a high school history teacher in the Chicagoland area. I graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a degree in history and secondary education. I am a self-proclaimed history buff and 'foodie.' Some of my passions and hobbies include studying current events, learning about world cultures (Studying abroad in Istanbul, Turkey is one of my favorite memories.), cheering on the Chicago Cubs, and cooking - but not as good as my sister and mom.
Karen: I am a consumer scientist and have worked in the food and non-food industries. My maternal grandparents were from Sicily. I hope in a future trip to able to visit the area of my grandparents' homeland. Having a food background and a mother that is a wonderful cook, I looked forward to experiencing the food of Italy first-hand. We have also been members of the Art Institute of Chicago for many years and enjoy seeing exhibits come in from around the world. To be able to see many of works of the Italian masters was also something I looked forward to. Getting an opportunity to experience the food, the culture and the arts in Italy made this a memorable trip.
Bob: I am a food scientist working in the Chicagoland area. Originally from New Jersey, my parents and grandparents came from a strong Italian background. Going to Italy to see where my family is originally from has been a lifelong dream and now made even more special that I've had the opportunity to share it with my girls. Some of my special talents include being able to sleep anywhere and still being able to embarrass my grown-up daughters. I am an avid sports fan and love cheering on my Rutgers Scarlet Knights, New York Mets, and Chicago Cubs (the Cubs grew on me thanks to my wife).
Christina: I graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a double major in molecular biology and Spanish language. Currently, I am a graduate student living in Southern California. Though graduate school doesn't give me too much of a breather, I like to take what extra time I have and plan future travels. Encountering people from all over the world is a daily part of my work, and this aspect of my studies has really fostered my resolve to become a citizen of the world and do my best to understand as many cultures as I can. Particularly, I'd like to do this by eating and drinking my way through as many countries as possible!
Kim: I am a high school history teacher in the Chicagoland area. I graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a degree in history and secondary education. I am a self-proclaimed history buff and 'foodie.' Some of my passions and hobbies include studying current events, learning about world cultures (Studying abroad in Istanbul, Turkey is one of my favorite memories.), cheering on the Chicago Cubs, and cooking - but not as good as my sister and mom.
Karen: I am a consumer scientist and have worked in the food and non-food industries. My maternal grandparents were from Sicily. I hope in a future trip to able to visit the area of my grandparents' homeland. Having a food background and a mother that is a wonderful cook, I looked forward to experiencing the food of Italy first-hand. We have also been members of the Art Institute of Chicago for many years and enjoy seeing exhibits come in from around the world. To be able to see many of works of the Italian masters was also something I looked forward to. Getting an opportunity to experience the food, the culture and the arts in Italy made this a memorable trip.
Bob: I am a food scientist working in the Chicagoland area. Originally from New Jersey, my parents and grandparents came from a strong Italian background. Going to Italy to see where my family is originally from has been a lifelong dream and now made even more special that I've had the opportunity to share it with my girls. Some of my special talents include being able to sleep anywhere and still being able to embarrass my grown-up daughters. I am an avid sports fan and love cheering on my Rutgers Scarlet Knights, New York Mets, and Chicago Cubs (the Cubs grew on me thanks to my wife).
Why Rick Steves?
Growing up, we had the pleasure of encountering Rick Steves' work pretty regularly and early on. We'd catch clips during history class of Rick taking us on all of his adventures in Europe and then spend the weekends watching Rick's show with our parents. On our weekly trip to the public library, the two of us would check out as many of Rick's travel guides and VHS tapes as we could carry. We then proceeded to imagine ourselves in all of the fantastic places he went to. Rick Steves' balance of meeting locals, explaining a city's historical background, and showing us the sights and sounds of a city helped shape how we now travel.
As cheesy as it may sound, it really wasn't even a conversation about why we chose a Rick Steves' tour. The balance of time with your tour group to free time was just perfect. For example, in each city, about half of the time was with our incredibly knowledgeable guide and local guides and the other half was on our own. So, that gave us plenty of flexibility. If we wanted to go check out a few shops during a free afternoon while our parents were at a restaurant, we had that ability. Also, we didn't have to book any of the museums or reservations. It took the ease and stress out of international travel. Additionally, the knowledge of our guides was unparalleled. One could read every page of Rick's portion of the Vatican in his book. But nothing compared to having Ludovica, our local guide, walk you through the Vatican when she's spent her life studying it and even completed her thesis on St. Peter's Basilica. Patricia, our tour guide, was extremely sweet and helpful. Furthermore, our mom loves to read reviews; she frequently read the reviews for the tour on Rick's website. It was all very positive and reaffirmed what we were looking for in a tour. Overall, when considering a trip or tour, weigh your options. For us, Rick Steves' tour was definitely the undisputed best choice.
Growing up, we had the pleasure of encountering Rick Steves' work pretty regularly and early on. We'd catch clips during history class of Rick taking us on all of his adventures in Europe and then spend the weekends watching Rick's show with our parents. On our weekly trip to the public library, the two of us would check out as many of Rick's travel guides and VHS tapes as we could carry. We then proceeded to imagine ourselves in all of the fantastic places he went to. Rick Steves' balance of meeting locals, explaining a city's historical background, and showing us the sights and sounds of a city helped shape how we now travel.
As cheesy as it may sound, it really wasn't even a conversation about why we chose a Rick Steves' tour. The balance of time with your tour group to free time was just perfect. For example, in each city, about half of the time was with our incredibly knowledgeable guide and local guides and the other half was on our own. So, that gave us plenty of flexibility. If we wanted to go check out a few shops during a free afternoon while our parents were at a restaurant, we had that ability. Also, we didn't have to book any of the museums or reservations. It took the ease and stress out of international travel. Additionally, the knowledge of our guides was unparalleled. One could read every page of Rick's portion of the Vatican in his book. But nothing compared to having Ludovica, our local guide, walk you through the Vatican when she's spent her life studying it and even completed her thesis on St. Peter's Basilica. Patricia, our tour guide, was extremely sweet and helpful. Furthermore, our mom loves to read reviews; she frequently read the reviews for the tour on Rick's website. It was all very positive and reaffirmed what we were looking for in a tour. Overall, when considering a trip or tour, weigh your options. For us, Rick Steves' tour was definitely the undisputed best choice.
Itinerary Overview
Spain - Sister Pre-trip (June 22-25)
Fly from Chicago (ORD) to San Sebastián (EAS), connect through Madrid
Fly direct to Barcelona (BCN) via Vueling Airlines, partner of Iberia
Fly direct to Venice Marco Polo (VCE) via Vueling Airlines
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