ABOUT MONICA: Monica has always loved to travel. Growing up in the Midwest Monica always looked forward to Family vacations and she was the 1st one in her family to have her bag packed and ready to go! She continued her love of travel through college and while working in the television industry as an Art Director for CNN and ABC, but her adventures really took off when she met her husband who was in International Sales. Their son got a big dose of his parents travel genes and was on his 1st airplane at 3 months old, had been to Hawaii 13 times by the time he was 9, and is now Majoring in Travel and Tourism at City College of San Francisco.
Monica is a Custom Itinerary Specialist who loves to find the travel deals as much as she loves to travel.
At City College San Francisco she has earned Certificates of Accomplishment in Travel and Tourism,
Destination Specialist, Travel and Tourism Management and Green and Sustainable Travel.
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Upcoming Blogs-
Vatican City and the Museums
Amalfi Coast
ROME - Breathtaking! Amazing! An ancient ruin around every corner-we traveled there June 2017
In Rome,we stayed at the Hotel dei Borgognoni - located on a quaint side street in the Historic District walking distance to Trevi Fountain, The Spanish Steps and the Metro station. We literally walked everywhere from our hotel, even to the Vatican, which was about 2 mi away. It is an outstanding older hotel with beautiful artwork, a garden court, located on a quiet side street away from the city noise. Down our street was a little bar, cafes, (which we were regulars at after a long day of touring) gift shops and a small grocery store. Below the sites of Rome!
Theater of Marcellus 13 BC -Temple of Apollo
This is the only ancient theater left in Rome. It was conceived by Julius Caesar and later built by Augustus in honor of Marcellus, son of his sister Octavia. Original structure held 20,000 spectators and was the model for the Colosseum.
Enormous elliptical 664 meters x 123 meters runs along the base of the Palatine Hill. Built in the time of the Etruscan Kings where religious rites and games in honor of the God Consus. Circus Maximus held 250,000 spectators and was used for Roman Chariot Races.
Castel Sant' Angelo 139 AD
What appears to be a fortified bastion was originally built
to hold the mortal remains of the Emperor Hadrian.
The Colosseum 80 AD
This immense amphitheater was begun by Vespasian in 72 AD and finished by his son Titus in 80 AD. It's true name is the Flavian Amphitheater, but commonly called the Colosseum connected with The Colossus of Nero.
It took 2000 slaves to run the stadium for one day's performances, 60 man run elevators lifted gladiators and animals to the stadium grounds. Gladiators were trained to fight to the death, while beasts such as lions, tigers and bears were imported to enhance the show.
The Games of the Gladiators cultivated the war-like spirit that made the Romans the Conquers of the World.
June 2013
Looking to Reconnect with Friends or Family? Try a tour of Ireland!
In todays fast paced world, it's hard to keep up with treasured friends and distant family- even with all the social media connections. I recently got together family and close friends that don't get a chance to see often for a guided tour of Ireland. We arranged flights from all over the country and met in Dublin where our tour started. We considered renting a car and driving but everyone wanted to relax, visit and hit the pubs so getting a driver who knew the country
was the way to go for this partying group.
July 2013
Cocktails on the roof top overlooking...Barcelona, Spain!
We needed a few days of warm weather after touring Ireland so we found Aer Lingus flights
for $100 pp from Dublin to Barcelona. On a recommendation from a fellow traveler in Spain
we stayed at the H10 Montcada, a locally owned Catalan Hotel. We always enjoy local hotels
but this hotel far exceeded our expectations. Even though our flight was late and we arrived at
midnight, the front desk staff welcomed us by popping open a bottle of Cava, the local champagne.
The hotel is centrally located in the Barri Gotic District walking distance to the 13th Century
Barcelona Cathedral and La Rambla, with a metro station across the street.
The jewel in the crown of this hotel is it's incredible staff and it's rooftop bar with live music
overlooking the city at night and the Mediterranean Sea.
PORTAL WORLD TRAVEL | 2609 OCEAN AVENUE | SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94132 | email:Monica@PortalWorldTravel.com | Copyright 2020 - Website by FlyingColoursDesign.com