Seeing Italy for the First Time

Having spent many years vacationing close to home when the kids were younger, my wife and I finally began seeing Europe the past few summers. I wrote here of my first trip to Britain in 2023 and to France (my first time on the European continent) in 2025. Our youngest is studying in Rome this fall, so this made a good excuse to add Italy to the list. With our three kids (ages 20-29) and one significant other, we spent twelve days seeing Rome, the Vatican, Castel Gandolfo, Assisi, Florence, Pompeii, and Naples.

It appears that we were there at the same time that Brian Allen was visiting da Vinci’s The Last Supper in Milan. In one sense, this is a good time for Americans to see Italy, with the dollar very strong against the euro. On the other hand, many Italian businesses aren’t open in August. We were stuck buying snacks at a mini-mart for “dinner” when we arrived in Naples after dark because the only pizza place within walking distance had a sign that it was closed for a month. Worse, Italy was possibly the hottest place I have ever been, with the necessity to drink water continuously all day to stay on your feet seeing sights and to shower and change clothes as many times a day as possible. I think you could have forged the One Ring by setting it on the sidewalk for ten minutes.

About the Author

Dan McLaughlin

Dan McLaughlin is a senior writer at National Review Online and a fellow at National Review Institute.

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Having spent many years vacationing close to home when the kids were younger, my wife and I finally began seeing Europe the past few summers. I wrote here of my first trip to Britain in 2023 and to France (my first time on the European continent) in 2025. Our youngest is studying in Rome this fall, so this made a good excuse to add Italy to the list. With our three kids (ages 20-29) and one significant other, we spent twelve days seeing Rome, the Vatican, Castel Gandolfo, Assisi, Florence, Pompeii, and Naples.

It appears that we were there at the same time that Brian Allen was visiting da Vinci’s The Last Supper in Milan. In one sense, this is a good time for Americans to see Italy, with the dollar very strong against the euro. On the other hand, many Italian businesses aren’t open in August. We were stuck buying snacks at a mini-mart for “dinner” when we arrived in Naples after dark because the only pizza place within walking distance had a sign that it was closed for a month. Worse, Italy was possibly the hottest place I have ever been, with the necessity to drink water continuously all day to stay on your feet seeing sights and to shower and change clothes as many times a day as possible. I think you could have forged the One Ring by setting it on the sidewalk for ten minutes.