Kids Europe Italy Discovery Journal

Rating:
Summary: My kids loved it!
Review: This little book is turning into one of the highlights of our upcoming trip. In fact, us adults are reading it as much as the kids -- so that we can 'notice' the special sights and sounds of Italy!
My kids sort of got involved with assembling the journal; I finished it, of course. But they did note pages they will want to work on while we will travel and they ditched pages for places we aren't going. Some of the suggested activities are really illuminating, although simple, such as listening for distinctly Italian sounds like people singing while they work or smelling the aromas at different times of day.
I think this journal is like the mythical Junior Woodchuck Guidebook that Donald Duck's nephews used to solve so many problems. It has ideas on how to be a tourist without being bored. One very full page has dozens of ideas for kids to enjoy churches, things like sniffing incense (the author refers to it as medieval room deodorizer) and collecting saint cards like they would trading cards. We've gained some excellent ideas and specific information on how to tour, for example, by navigating from obelisk to obelisk and fountain to fountain. I think that will be fun. Keeping in mind that we had to print and assemble this ourselves (it didn't use up that much toner), we still found it a great buy.

Rating:
Summary: Italy without tears
Review: We just got back from a two-week vacation to Italy with our children, ages 8 and 10. The Italy Discovery Journal was a lifesaver and kept our children engaged and amused. In the past we tried to expose them to all the wonderful cultural aspects that my wife and I find so enjoyable when travelling abroad: the paintings, statues, monuments, the history and were disappointed to see our kids eyes glaze over with boredom. Our trip to Italy was made so much more enjoyable for the entire family since our children got to experience the culture from a kid's perspective. As parents, it helped us put into practice numerous useful suggestions to stop the tears and whining and helped our entire family understand and observe simple, everyday ways in which Italians live their lives. We're now planning a trip to the U.K. next year so am hoping that there will be "London Discovery Journal" by that time.

Rating:
Summary: Italy without tears
Review: We just got back from a two-week vacation to Italy with our children, ages 8 and 10. The Italy Discovery Journal was a lifesaver and kept our children engaged and amused. In the past we tried to expose them to all the wonderful cultural aspects that my wife and I find so enjoyable when travelling abroad: the paintings, statues, monuments, the history and were disappointed to see our kids eyes glaze over with boredom. Our trip to Italy was made so much more enjoyable for the entire family since our children got to experience the culture from a kid's perspective. As parents, it helped us put into practice numerous useful suggestions to stop the tears and whining and helped our entire family understand and observe simple, everyday ways in which Italians live their lives. We're now planning a trip to the U.K. next year so am hoping that there will be "London Discovery Journal" by that time.