(Editor’s note: This is the third in a three-part series about a former Era reporter’s trip to Europe.) 

After departing Munich, we headed to one of my favorite stops, the home of Beethoven, Mozart, Strauss and more, Innsbruck, Austria.

Upon arrival, we ascended via cable car to Nordkette, the top of Innsbruck, more than 9,000 feet above sea level in the Alps. The views? Simply stunning. Difficult to put into words. Once we arrived at the top of our peak from the cable car, it was up to each person to see just how far to hike. Some sections were not for the faint of heart, with a few missteps leading you to, well, somewhere far down. Not being too adventurous for that, I primarily stuck to the main trails to capture glorious views.

From a cable car in Innsbruck.

As we descended the mountain, the mix of weather took you from sun to clouds and sun again, emerging from the clouds back to the Innsbruck city center. Back in town, we took in various sites and landmarks. We spent the evening at Hotel Olympia, a former Winter

Olympics village converted to a hotel. More stunning 360-degree views to settle into for the night.

We departed Austria to head to our final country on our voyage, where we’d visit various cities — Italy. We arrived in a rainy Riva del Garde where we were to board a boat on Lake Garda, the largest lake in the nation, to take us to our next destination. But first we had lunch, and of course, we went to a pizza place, which was great.

Our boat cruise was sunny, breezy and scenic and eventually led us to Verona. We strolled the busy streets of Verona, taking in as many sites as we could and indulged in our first tastes of gelato before settling in for the night.

Our next day took us to the Venice region, which started with a cruise (yes, you take water taxis to get just about anywhere in Venice) to Murano to witness a glass blowing demonstration. It was remarkable to watch the artists make complex creations right in front of you. After some very careful and somewhat unsettling shopping in the glass shop — you break it, you buy it after all — we explored the island of Burano. We then headed back to Venice proper to see more of the historic sights, statues, fountains, cathedrals and canals. Tall walls, stone streets, so many bridges, and of course, the world-famous gondola ride.

It was hard to believe after Venice we were already down to our final two days. Okay, maybe not that difficult to believe after long days, early mornings, many miles on tour buses, a new hotel every other night, so many steps, and so much already in the rearview mirror, but it had been such a whirlwind that it was a bit difficult to process all that we had already seen and done. But we were in the homestretch, two last days in Rome and Vatican City.

We began our exploration of Rome at the Piazza Navona, and our small breakout group went to see the sights from there. We had a quick visit inside the famous Pantheon, saw Trevi Fountain, a quite strange crypt museum, various churches and a breeze-by of the Colosseum and ancient Roman ruins.

Our final full day was just that, full. We started early and ended late, as it should have been. We began with a visit to what was technically our eighth nation, Vatican City. We toured as much as we could in the Vatican, seeing that it’s not an easy ticket this year, being the Jubilee celebration. We, along with thousands of others at the same time, toured the art, the sculptures, the history, the Sistine Chapel, and the outside of St. Peter’s Basilica, including the Papal Balcony. No, Pope Leo wasn’t on the premises as he was at the summer residence.

After lunch at The Vatican, it was time to once again step into high gear to see as much as possible in the historic city. We were fortunate to tour both the Colosseum and the Roman Forum, with the ancient ruins being quite mesmerizing. It’s hard to put into words the history you were witnessing as you walked through.

Jim Pasinski at the Colosseum.

We rounded out Rome with the — as we found out — oddly named Spanish Steps, the public squares Piazza Colonna and Piazza di Pietra and more. Of course, our final meal in Rome was pizza, just because.

Looking back on our 15-day adventure, it still seems like a whirlwind. It’s a bit hard to comprehend the places we — all 74 of us — went, the things we saw, the food we enjoyed, or tolerated, and the nearly 14,700 miles we covered. I’m sure as time passes it will become more clear. For now, I’ll rely on the 1,000 photos I snapped and my travel partners to help reminisce. As I noted, I didn’t ever envision myself heading to Europe without a true personal or professional reason, but it was a rewarding experience that I wouldn’t change.

(Jim Pasinski is a former Era reporter and a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford. He resides in Pendleton, N.Y.)

On a water taxi in Venice.

Photo courtesy of Jim Pasinski