On my first trip to Italy, I flew toRome on a Pan Am flight from Los Angeles. As we arrived by bus at the downtown train station, within a few minutes a young college student I was talking to on the plane and his friend were surrounded by gypsy kids making an attempt to pick their pockets....fortunately, they didn't get anywhere and that was the first and last potentially bad scene in Italy. The rest was wonderful. The food the art the people were all great.

I especially liked the smaller cities like Piza and Siena. Of course Rome and Florence are riddled with art and history, but the smaller places had a charm all their own...and with some very nice art, too. The countryside was so lush and beautiful...a photographers dream come true.