Carry On Packing Thoughts

As we get closer to leaving (15 days!) I'm starting to think more seriously about packing.  There are some things that should be in everyone's carry on and then there are, of course, lots of optional items that you might like to have with you to make the flight more comfortable.

Must/Should-Have List  (includes things I would never put in checked luggage)
* Wallet (money, credit cards, ATM card)
* Passport
* Glasses (distance, reading, sun)
* Emergency contact information (relatives, insurance, etc.)
* Keys (home and car, just in case you and your luggage don't get home simultaneously)
* Medications
* Jewelry
* Personal electronics (Ipod/MP3 player, laptop, Kindle/Nook, etc.)
* Camera
* Cellphone

Other Items to Consider
* PJs, a change of clothing and essential person hygiene items (in case you and
   your checked luggage don't arrive together - unlikely, but it could happen)
* Reading material (or other things to entertain you in flight)
* Eye mask and/or ear plugs (or noise canceling headphones)
* Guidebook
* Note pad and pen
* Snack
* Addiction comforts (cigarettes, gum, sudoku, etc.)
* Water bottle (empty - you can use a water fountain after security to fill)
* Makeup
* Wet wipes or hand sanitizer
* Tissues
* Eye drops
* Back up batteries (for personal electronics, hearing aids, etc.)
* Painkillers (just in case ... aspirin, ibuprofen, etc.)
* Hand cream or other skin moisturizer
* Personal travel pillow and/or blanket

I'm starting to need a pretty big carry on for all this stuff!

Visiting the Blue Grotto

For those who would like to visit the Blue Grotto while we are on Capri, there are a couple of options to think about.

You can reach the grotto by boat from Marina Grande, or by bus or on foot from Anacapri.

We have a little more than three hours of free time in Anacapri, and a little over an hour in Capri, so either will work.  The main benefit of going from Anacapri is that you have more time and won't feel rushed; however, it will eat into your time for lunch (pun intended).  The benefit of going from Capri is that you will return from the grotto to Marina Grande, which is where we will get the boat back to Sorrento, so it will be convenient.

You can see the bus schedule from Anacapri on page two of this link; you'll see that there are several buses every hour in each direction.  From the parking lot where the bus drops you off you will walk down a flight of stairs to the waterfront dock and get a boat from there.  Of course, you'll need to climb back up the steps to return to Anacapri.  On foot from Anacapri to the Blue Grotto is a little over a mile (1.2 miles, to be precise).

From Capri you'll need to get down to Marina Grande, either by using the funicular, by bus, or by cab.  At Marina Grande you'll get a speed boat out to the entrance to the grotto, where you will transfer to the rowboats that go into the grotto.

It's getting closer!

Free Time Plans

Our trip offers a nice balance of programmed tours and activities as well as free time to explore on your own.  I'm a researcher and planner; I like to have a sense of what my options are but let the selection wait until I need to make a decision.

Here is an overview of our free time (note that the times are approximate):

Day	Location	Time (all approximate)
Sunday	Sorrento	4 hours (1 – 5 PM)
Monday	Amalfi	1.75 hours (11:45 AM – 1:30 PM)
	Ravello	1 hour (3 – 4 PM)
Tuesday	Naples	2 hours (3 – 5 PM)
Wednesday	Anacapri	3.25 hours (10:45 AM – 2 PM)
	Capri	1.25 hours (3 – 4:15 PM)
Thursday	Sorrento	All day
Friday	Rome	Evening
Saturday	Rome	All day

Remember that our free time on Sunday (in Sorrento), Monday (in Amalfi), and Wednesday (in Anacapri) is also time to eat lunch.

Here are some thoughts about possible ways to fill all that free time, besides eating and shopping:

Sorrento

* Cathedral (Duomo)

* Museum of Inlaid Wood (Museo Bottega della Tarsialigna)

* Decorative Art Museum (Museo Correale di Terranova)

* Hike up to Sant'Agata sui due Golfi

* Cloister of San Francesco (Chiostro di San Francesco)

 

 

Amalfi

* Cathedral (Duomo di Sant' Andrea) and cloister (Chiostro del Paradiso)

* Civic museum (Musco Civico)

* Paper museum (Museo della Carta)

* Waterfront

 

 

Ravello

* Duomo (San Pantaleone)

* Villa Rufolo (gardens)

* Belvedere Principessa di Piemonte

* Villa Cimbrone (gardens)

* San Giovanni del Toro

 

 

Naples

* Royal Palace (Palazzo Reale)

* Civic Museum (Castel Nuovo)

* San Carlo Opera House

* Santa Chiara church and cloisters

* Gesu Nuovo

* San Lorenzo Maggiore excavations

* San Gregorio Armeno

* Via San Gregorio presepi shops

* Cappella Sansevero (Veiled Christ)

* San Domenico Maggiore

* Cathedral (Duomo di San Gennaro)

* Pio Monte della Misericordia

* Archeology Museum (Museo Archeologico Nazionale)

* Spaccanapoli

* Underground Naples

* Capodimonte art museum (Museo e Gallerie Nazionali di Capodimonte)

* Catacombs of San Gennaro

* Monastery and museum of San Martino (Certosa & Museo Nazionale di San Martino)

* Villa Floridiana ceramics museum (Mueso Nazionale della Ceramica)

Sorrento Free Day (Thursday)
* Positano (we will not be able to stop there with the bus on Monday)
* Climb Vesuvio
* Revisit Pompei
* Herculeneum (Ercolano)
* Paestum
* Buffalo mozzarella factory
* Naples
* Vietri sul Mare

Rome Mass Transit

Rome has a vast and easy to use mass transit system and our hotel, the Quirinale, is ideally located to take advantage of it.

There is a bus stop directly in front of the hotel where a number of bus lines stop.

There is also a metro (subway) station at Piazza Repubblica, one and one half blocks from the hotel. 

The same tickets work for the metro, buses and trams in Rome.  The three tickets that would be useful for our short time in Rome are:

• BIT, good for 75 minutes, costs €1,00
• BIG, good for one day, costs €4,00
• BTI, good for three days, costs €11,00

So how do you use mass transit to get where you want to go?  Here are the easiest and most direct routes from our hotel to the key sites:

Colosseum/Roman Forum: #60 bus or metro (one stop on Line A to Termini, two stops on Line B), or 1.1 miles on foot.

Campidoglio/Capitoline Museums:  #70 bus, #64 bus, H bus, or 0.9 miles on foot.

Trevi Fountain:  #116T bus (doesn't run all the time), #85 bus from Piazza della Repubblica, metro from Piazza della Repubblica one stop on Line A to Barberini, or 0.5 miles on foot.

St. Peter's Basilica:  #40 bus or #64 bus, or 2.1 miles on foot.

Vatican Museums:  metro from Piazza Repubblica five stops, or 2.5 miles on foot.

Spanish Steps/Via Condotti:  metro from Piazza Repubblica two stops, or 0.9 miles on foot.

Piazza Navona:  #70 bus, #116T bus (doesn't run all the time), or 1.3 miles on foot.

Pantheon:  #40 bus, #64 bus, or 1.1 miles on foot.

Gesu:  #40 bus, #64 bus, or 1.0 miles on foot.

Campo de' Fiori:  #64 bus, #40 bus, or 1.4 miles on foot.

San Clemente:  #60 bus, or 1.1 miles on foot.

Castel Sant' Angelo:  #40 bus, or 1.8 miles on foot.

You can view and download the Rome metro map here.

Sorrento Sita Bus

SITA is a large bus company with operations in the Veneto, Tuscany, Basilicata, and Puglia in addition to Campania.  They are the primary provider of bus service along the Amalfi Coast (although the larger towns have local bus companies as well).

It's very easy to take the bus from close to our hotel down the Amalfi Coast.  From Sorrento to Positano takes under an hour, from Sorrento to Amalfi by bus takes about an hour and forty minutes.  If you want to go further down the coast, to Vietri sul Mare or Salerno, you would switch buses at Amalfi.

Tickets for the SITA buses are handled by UnicoCampania (see previous post).  The ticket between Sorrento and Amalfi is the E4, which costs €2,80 one way, or €8,40 for the day.

A ticket between Sorrento and Vietri sul Mare is the E5, which costs €3,30 one way and €9,90 for an all day ticket.

The timetable for buses between Sorrento, Positano and Amalfi can be found here.

There are also local buses in Sorrento, run by Circumvesuviana.  These buses are orange and are called "Arancioni".  Line A passes in front of our hotel and goes to Piazza Tasso in the center of town.

Sorrento Circumvesuviana Train

The Circumvesuviana is the regional railroad that serves the area around Vesuvio.  The Naples - Sorrento line goes between Porta Nolana station, on Corso Giuseppe Garibaldi in Naples and the Sorrento station, at Piazza Giovanni Battista de Curtis.  Along the way there are stops at Pompei and Ercolano, among other towns. 

It takes a little over an hour to travel by Circumvesuviana between Naples and Sorrento.  From Sorrento to Pompei by train takes a half hour and the train station is just steps from the Porta Marina entrance to the site.

The train runs primarily above ground, although the stations in Naples (Porta Nolana and Garibaldi) are below street level.  The inside of the train is more like an old subway car than a commuter train:

Pretty it is not, but it is easy and efficient.

Tickets for the Circumvesuviana, as well as most other public transit in the region, are produced by UnicoCampania, a consortium of several transit companies.  The price of the ticket depends on the distance traveled as well as time.

For example, if you are traveling only within the city of Sorrento the ticket you need is an E1.  The price of  an hourly E1 is €1,20, and all-day E1 is €3,60.

This is an E8 rather than an E1, but you get the idea

From Sorrento to Pompei requires an E3 ticket, which costs €2,10 for an hourly ticket or €6,30 for a daily ticket.

From Sorrento to Naples requires a U5 ticket, which costs €4,00 for one hour or €12,00 for the day.  For those who travel into Naples for the day, this ticket will also cover all public transit within the city of Naples.

All tickets absolutely MUST be validated.  You do this by stamping the ticket in a small machine, which is either in the car or, in the case of a train station, in the turnstile as you enter. 

With an all day ticket, you stamp it once (the first time you use public transit with the ticket) and then put it away.  You may be asked to produce it by one of the conductors; if you do not have a valid, stamped ticket on your person you will immediately be slapped with a significant fine.

You can read more about the Circumvesuviana and see the schedules on their web site here.

You can read more about UnicoCampania and the ticket fares here.

Sorrento Public Transit

Sorrento is an ideal location for those who are comfortable using mass transit.  

Piazza Giovanni Battista De Curtis in Sorrento is the transportation hub for the area, where you can get either a bus or the regional train, the Circumvesuvia.   The piazza is one mile from our hotel.

Check out the following posts for information on the bus lines and the Circumvesuviana train.

Marina Piccola, which is also one mile from our hotel, is the place to get ferries or jet boats.  The schedules for the boats are somewhat reduced during the non-summer months, but it is still possible to get from Sorrento to Capri, Naples, and down the Amalfi Coast (to the towns of Positano and Amalfi) by water.

Weather

What's the weather going to be like?

I put together a ten year history (2000 - 2010) for Sorrento and Rome for perspective but, like financial ads, I'm reminding you that past performance does not guarantee future results.

That said, the average daily high during the time of our trip (between October 16 - October 25 in the years 2000 - 2010) was 70º.  The average low for the same period was 54º.

The warmest day in the 100 days in my history data base was October 22, 2004, when it hit 80º in Rome.

The coolest night was October 23, 2007 when it got down to 37º in Rome.

It rained at some point on 14 days out of 100.  Four of the ten years had no rain at all during our travel time.  When it did rain it was more like a drizzle; the average rainfall for those 14 days was 0.09 inches.  The most rain on any one day was on October 21, 2005 in Sorrento when there was 0.24 inches.  The least rain was a tie; on both October 16, 2009 and October 20, 2006, Sorrento registered 0.01 inches of rain.

Here is the summary information from my table (ten years of data from 2000 - 2010):

			Daily			Hi/Low
			Average			Records
			H	L		H	L
Sorrento	16-Oct		70	54		77	48
	17-Oct		70	54		77	49
	18-Oct		69	53		77	43
	19-Oct		69	52		77	45
	20-Oct		70	53		78	46
	21-Oct		71	55		76	44
Rome	22-Oct		70	55		80	42
	23-Oct		71	54		78	37
	24-Oct		71	53		77	44
	25-Oct		71	52		78	41
	10 Year Average		70	54

What Can I Bring Home With Me?

U.S. Customs and Border Patrol has developed a brochure entitled Know Before You Go that goes over everything you didn't know you wanted to know about returning home after traveling abroad.

If you have any questions about what you can bring home, this booklet has the answers.  Click on the link above to download a PDF version of the brochure.

mmmm.....Gelato!

Gelato is something almost everyone tries when in Italy, even if only in pursuit of a scientific comparison between it and American ice cream.

Where to start? It would be much too easy to simply dig in and enjoy ... there's so much to know and to choose from!

There is mass produced gelato, like brands of ice cream we find in our grocer's freezer. Then there are different levels of "craft" gelato: homemade (produzione propria); made by the proprietor, but not necessarily right there (nostra produzione); and artisanal, or made by craftsmen (produzone artigianale).

You can get gelato in a cone (cono) or in a cup (coppa). You order and pay for it first, then show the barman your receipt and select your flavors. Just like ice cream shops at home, when you order you'll be asked how many scoops (gusti) you want and the price will be commensurate with the number you select.

The range of flavors can be dizzying. Of course there is basic Chocolate (Cioccolato), and then several variations on the theme of Chocolate (Bacio, Fondente, Nutella, etc.). There are vanilas, or creams, like Fior di Latte, Crema, and Zabaione. How about nuts: Pistacchio, Mandorla (Almond), Nocciola (Hazlenut).

There are fruit sorbets (sorbetti) made without milk in flavors like Fragola (Strawberry), Limone (Lemon), Mandarino (Mandarin Orange), and Pesca (Peach), to name just a few.

Then there are my favorites: Mente (Mint), Stracciatella (Chocolate Chip), and Tiramisu.

Every town will have a gelateria, exploring and tasting is all part of the fun.

Power to the People

If you are planning to bring electric devices on the trip to Italy, you will need at least a plug adapter, and possibly a power converter (sometimes called a transformer).

Italian electricity is 220 volts/50 hertz. United States power is 110 volts/60 hertz. In other words, there is twice as much voltage coming from an Italian electric socket vs. an American one, which can result in fried appliances. Be especially careful with anything that produces heat, like a hair dryer or a curling iron. (Note that our hotel provides a hair dryer in each room.)

To know if you need a power converter in order to use your appliance in Italy, look at the manufacturer's information panel on the devise itself. For example, my laptop AC adaptor says "Input 110 - 240 V ~ 50/60 Hz", so all I need for this is a plug adapter.

A typical wall outlet in Italy looks like this:

To plug into these outlets, you can use either a two prong or a three prong adapter plug, like these:

A power converter, or transformer, is necessary if the information on your appliance indicates that it requires 110v/60Hz.

Tipping

Tipping is always one of the most controversial travel topics. Customs and expectations vary by country and by person, so it's hard to know what to do.

In general, tipping in Italy is not as common nor as generous as it is in the United States. According to the Italian Tourism web site, at a restaurant "tips are not compulsory and in Italy there are no generally established rules, although it is common practice to leave a sum amounting to around 10% of the bill if you are satisfied with the service you have received." (Italian Tourism Official Website)

It is fairly common to leave a tip for the chambermaids in a hotel, particularly for a longer stay (more than one night). Our agency recommends one Euro per night, per person.

Since breakfast and dinner are included in our package, the agency also suggests a tip for waiters of one Euro per person, per meal.

For taxi drivers in Italy, it is common to simply round up to the next Euro or, if the fare is close to the next Euro, to tip one additional Euro.

Keep in mind that these are merely suggestions and what what you give, or if you tip at all, is entirely up to you.

International Driving Permit

If you think you might be driving a car while in Italy, you'll need an International Driving Permit.

The IDP simply translates the information on your U.S. state driving license into different languages, so non-English speakers can easily access the key information.

The simplest way to obtain one is through the American Automobile Association. Since there are only a few weeks now before our trip, you'll need to do this in person rather than by mail. You can download the form on the AAA web site here and bring it to your local AAA office.

Medications in Carry On Luggage

Just in case you and your checked luggage get separated from one another (an extremely unlikely event, but it could happen), you should always pack your medications in your carry on.

This morning I re-checked the Transportation Security Administration web site to confirm the regulations regarding prescription medications in carry on luggage.

As it turns out, medications do not need to be in their original packaging.  They do not even need to be labeled.  The following is copied directly from the TSA site (link provided below), but the highlighting is mine.

All medications in any form or type (for instance, pills, injectables, or homeopathic) and associated supplies (syringes, Sharps disposal container, pre-loaded syringes, jet injectors, pens, infusers, etc.) are allowed through the security checkpoint once they have been screened. Atropens, an auto-injection system that can help treat many emergency conditions (low heart rate, breathing problems, and excess saliva related to insecticide, nerve gas or mushroom poisoning) are also allowed.

We do not require that your medications be labeled.

Carbon dioxide (CO2) migraine inhalers and CO2 refills.

Medications in daily dosage containers are allowed through the checkpoint once they have been screened.

TSA Website link:  http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/specialneeds/editorial_1374.shtm#4

Calling to and from Italy

Calling Italy from the United States: To call an Italian telephone number from outside Italy, either from a landline or a mobile phone, you will need to first get an international line, by dialing 011. Next, add the international dialing code for Italy, which is 39 (sometimes you'll see this written as +39; the + is telling you that you need the international dialing code first), followed by the telephone number you require.

For example, to call our hotel in Sorrento from the U.S, you would dial:
011 39 081 878 45 22 

Calling the United States from Italy: To call home from Italy, you will need to add the international dialing code for the United States, which is 001 (sometimes written as +1), followed by the area code and telephone number you're calling.

Calling within Italy: To make calls within Italy, dial the number you require without adding the international country dialing code. To make calls from public telephones (which you can find on the street, in some bars, restaurants, etc and in shopping centres), you can use coins or phone cards, which can be purchased from tobacconists, news kiosks and telephone shops.

Parla Italiano?

Do you speak Italian?   Would you like to try?

On the Fodor's web site you can see and listen to 150 different words and phrases in Italian that are relevant for travelers.  There are six categories to choose from, including Greetings, Directions, Shopping, Numbers, Dining Out and Basic Phrases.  You just click on the phrase in Italian, and you can hear a native speaker pronounce it correctly.  It's easy, and it's free.  You can find it here:  Fodor's Italian Travel Phrases

Living Language provides free language booklet downloads on their web site, one of which can be found here: Living Language Italian Words and Phrases
Another good, and free, resource on the Living Language site is their essential words and phrases sheet.  It's a PDF file that you can download and print on one sheet of paper (double-sided).  You can find it here: Living Language Italian Pocket Guide

ATMs in Italy

An ATM machine in Italy is called a Bancomat and they are everywhere.

You'll see the symbol for a Bancomat, the sort-of backwards "E", everywhere, including in the baggage claim area of the airport in Rome.

Using an ATM in Italy to withdraw cash is similar to using one here at home.  Almost every one I've ever tried to use has an English language option; if you come upon one that does not, there will be another one nearby that does.

There are a couple of important differences to be aware of.  First, you can only withdraw money from your primary account (for most people this will be your checking account).  Second, Italian Bancomat keyboards will only have numbers, no letters, so if you only know your PIN by letters, start memorizing the numerical version now!

Don't be concerned if the first machine you try refuses you for some odd reason, I've had that happen on more than one occasion.  I just move on to another machine and get my cash.  It is a good idea to notify your bank before leaving home that you will be using your card to make withdrawals abroad, so at least your transaction won't be rejected for that reason.

Cell Phones

Cell phones are ubiquitous in Italy and have been for many years.  For those who need or want to have a cell phone for the trip, you have a few options.

The two most common are to use your current phone and pay international roaming rates through your current carrier and plan, or to rent a cell phone.

In order for a cell phone to work in Europe, it must use the correct frequency, or GSM (Global System for Mobile communications) band.   Many U.S. based phones are compatible, but not all.  For example, my AT&T phone works in Europe, but my cousin's Verizon phone does not.

You can contact your plan provider to determine if your phone will work, and what their fees are for international roaming.  Links for the major providers are:

AT&T

Verizon

Sprint

T-Mobile

Another option is to rent a cell phone just for the trip.  I have done this in the past, before I had a compatible phone.  They mailed me a phone that arrived just before I left on the trip.  Along with the phone came a prepaid mailer that I could use to send it back after I returned.  There are lots of companies that offer this service, if you google "rent european cell phone" you'll come up plenty.  I used Planetfone in the past, but I haven't looked into this or compared costs in several years, so I don't know what the going rates are today.

What Time Is It?

Italy is in the Central European Time (CET) Zone, which is one hour ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) and six hours ahead of us (Eastern Time Zone). Italy observes Daylight Savings Time, which will be in effect during our trip.

So when it's 8 AM in New Jersey, it's 2 PM in Italy.

More Money

The Euro has been the official currency of Italy since March, 2002.

There are paper banknotes in seven denominations: €5, €10, €20, €50, €100, €200, and €500. The physical size of the notes increases as the denomination increases, each denomination is a different color, and each depicts a specific architectural style:

€5 Gray Classical

€10 Red Romanesque

€20 Blue Gothic

€50 Orange Renaissance

€100 Green Baroque & Rococo

€200 Yellow/Brown Age of Iron & Glass

€500 Purple Modern 20th Century

You can see specimens of the paper notes here: Banca d'Italia Euro Notes

Coins come in eight denominations: 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 cents, €1 and €2. One side of each coin is common to all Euro coins, the other side is specific to the country that issued the coin (although all Euro coins can be used in all Euro countries).

The coins also vary in physical size, but they’re not as straightforward as the notes; the sizes don’t increase neatly commensurate with the value, the way the notes do.

You can see specimens of the front (common) sides of the coins here: Banca d'Italia Euro Coins

You can see specimens of the back (Italy specific) sides of the coins here: Banca d'Italia Euro Coins (Back)

There are dozens of web sites where you can see the latest currency rates; here's one that I find very easy to use: XE Currency Conversion

Money Money Money, Money

Some people got to have it

Hey, Hey, Hey - some people really need it

Hey, listen to me, y'all do thangs, do thangs, do thangs - bad thangs with it

Well, you wanna do thangs, do thangs, do thangs - good thangs with it - yeah

Un Huh, talkin' bout cash money, money

The O’Jays

The Euro has been the official currency in Italy since March, 2002 (more on the Euro in a later post). You will need some cash during the week for incidentals, tips, and/or purchases from vendors who don't take credit cards, etc.

There are several ways to obtain Euros:

• Purchase them from your bank or American Express before leaving home
• Change US currency for Euros at a currency exchange agency (at the airport in Newark, or in Italy)
• Exchange US currency for Euros at a bank in Italy (although this is becoming more difficult to do as many banks no longer provide this service)
• Use ATMs (called Bancomats in Italy) to withdraw Euros directly from your checking or savings account
• Use a credit card to get a cash advance from an ATM

This is one of the rare situations in life where the easiest option is also (usually) the least expensive: using an ATM in Italy to withdraw directly from your checking or savings account.

If your bank will sell you Euros without a fee, this may be less expensive. My bank charges a hefty fee for this service, so I don't bother.

There are several Bancomats in the international arrivals hall at the airport in Rome, for those who want to get cash immediately.

The Visa/Plus/Interlink network lists seven ATMs within one mile of our hotel in Sorrento; you can see the list and a map here.  This network includes most U.S. based bank cards, to be sure yours is included check for the symbol on the back of your card.

If you plan to use your ATM card while in Italy, it's a good idea to call your bank the week before the trip to let them know, so your card usage in Italy doesn't raise a fraud alert.

Alitalia Carry On Information

I was a little confused by the information on the Alitalia web site regarding carry on bags, so I called to verify what is allowed.

Each passenger may bring on one piece of hand luggage PLUS one "personal item". A purse, briefcase or laptop would qualify as a personal item and must fit under the seat in front of you.

Your carry on bag (or hand luggage) cannot weigh more than 17.6 lbs (8 kg). It also may not exceed the following dimensions: 13.8 inches (35 cm) by 21.7 inches (55 cm) by 9.8 inches (25 cm).

Alitalia Checked Luggage Policy

We can each check one bag with Alitalia at no charge. 
According to the Alitalia web site, the weight of our one piece of checked luggage must not exceed 50 lbs. (23 Kg) and the sum of its dimensions, length+height+depth, must not exceed 62 inches (158 cm).

In other words, a bag that is 28" tall, 18" wide and 10" deep would be fine (total of 56"), as long as it doesn't weigh more than 50 lbs. when full.

Packing

Packing is not one of my favorite things about travel, but it is a necessary evil. For this trip, we are each limited to one piece of checked luggage with a maximum weight of 50 lbs.

Weather and planned activites are important considerations, as is comfort.  Historical temperatures in Sorrento and Rome for the third week of October are in the high 60's during the day and the low to mid 50's at night.  It may be a little warmer some days and a little cooler some nights, but this is the typical range.

Comfortable shoes are a "must have" as we will be doing a fair amount of walking, some of it on uneven surfaces (especially at Pompei).

A bathing suit could come in handy ... the rooftop pool at our hotel in Sorrento will still be open, as will the hot tubs.

Jackets for gentlemen are not required at dinner at the hotel, but they would not be out of place either.  If you are planning to go out for a special dinner on Saturday night in Rome, finer restaurants in the capital will expect jackets. 

I've received lots of advice over the years, from exhaustive lists of everything I might think about bringing along, to instructions on how to travel with nothing more than a backpack for a month.

Neither of these options work for me.

However, here are some articles and web sites on the issue that may be of interest:

Notes by Chris Gray Faust, the former travel editor at USA TODAY

One Bag, a website with packing light tips

Slowtrav's exhaustive list of things you might think about taking

What have you learned along the way about packing?