On Monday, going from Rome to Florence, we got to ride one of Trenitalia's high-speed Frecciarossa trains. While these can apparently hit 300km/h, the highest we saw was 244km/h — still pretty cool, and a much faster (1 hour 20 minutes), more pleasant and cheaper way to get there than flying or driving.
Not as fast as some trains, but I guess we can wait for Japan for that!
Favourite Attraction(s) A: Warner Brothers Studio Tour. Underground Naples. GRIMMWELT. Universal Studios Hollywood. B: Warner Brothers Studio Tour and Pompeii. F: Universal Studios. The Gunpowder Plot. Warner Brothers Studio Tour. J: The Gunpowder Plot. Warner Brothers Studio Tour. Universal Studios. Least Favourite Attraction A: Cat cafe ($142.77 for
Best Toilets Japan in general (heated seats/ toilet slippers/ amusing signs/ lots of interesting buttons to explore). And the fantastic public toilets outside Vanha Kauppahalli in Helsinki. Worst Toilets England (so often hard to find/ poorly maintained/ filthy). And the stomach-turning state of the toilet in a restaurant we ate
Cleanest Streets Japan. Dirtiest Streets Rome. Favourite Park Villa Borghese in Rome. Best Snow Ishiuchi, Japan. Nicest Weather France and Italy in October and November. Most Inconvenient Rain Florence. Favourite Snow-Related Memory A: Driving around Ishiuchi. B: Clearing a metre of snow off the car in Japan. F: Skiing. J:
Best Train System Italy for overland travel (Japan’s Shinkansen were also good but more expensive). Singapore for underground travel. Worst Bus System ROME. Favourite Non-Train/Bus Mode of Transport A: Biking in France. B: Trams in Helsinki. F: Car. J: Plane. Favourite Public Transport Moment A: Reading Harry Potter