Geo: 43.7755, 11.2537Uneventful two-hour train ride to Florence on Thu; fast, smooth and clean. It was a 15 min walk from the station (with a brief navigational oops) to Elena and Valerio's apartment. They have a 140 sqm, second floor residence in central Florence, just minutes from the Duomo and museums, etc. We had dinner at home and later went out to a nearby bar that had live music.Fri we enjoyed long, guided tours of the Uffizi and Accademia Galleries and felt much more sophisticated after absorbing all that culture ;-) Dined out with Elena and Valerio at the nearby Trattoria Garga, enjoying tasty local fare. Apparently waiters have now come to expect Americans to tip them. Locals generally do not tip, but may leave €5 if they were particularly happy.... read more

Geo: 45.4343, 12.339Venice comprises 118 islands connected by 400 bridges. For ten centuries (until conquered by Napoleon) Venice was a republic with a figurehead Doge (Duke) elected by the Senate. Napoleon gave Venice to the Austrians and Venice then became part of the Unified Italy in 1866.We said farewell to our coach and water-taxied into the city. After lunch we toured the Doge's Palace then checked in to our hotel - the Gritti Palace on the Grand Canal, two 'blocks' from St Mark's square. In the evening we had an exclusive after-hours tour of St Mark's Basilica. It was pretty special. We were the only tourists in the church and they turned on the lights for us and our guides showed us around pretty much everywhere.... read more

Geo: 44.5336, 10.9241The traditional Modena method of making balsamic vinegar is surprisingly complex. In Antonio's great-grandfather's day the vinegar was mainly used as a medicinal tonic - a teaspoon after dinner. When a baby was born the family would lay down a set of six or seven graduated barrels: from 20 to 50 litres or so. After the harvest in Sep/Oct, the Trebbiano grapes would be pressed and the juice cooked (with no additives) at 85 deg for 12 hours. Then the reduced juice would be poured into the set of barrels. The barrels each have an opening covered with muslin to allow the juice to be oxidised into vinegar; a process taking more than six months. The warehouse is not insulated and the air temperature goes from -3 to 38 degrees, according to the season. ... read more

Geo: 45.4448, 10.9995Walking tour of Verona this morning. Super weather; clear skies with the temperature reaching 26 degrees. Then in the late afternoon a talk by the co-author of the book (then 2010 movie) "Letters to Juliet" and another tour dinner.The author Ceil Friedman described how each year thousands of love-torn Dear Dorothy letters addressed to Juliet are received by the Juliet Club, and how a dozen or so "secretaries" provide a hand-written reply to each letter containing encouragement and/or advice. It seems a bit hysterical to me.We dined at the "12 Apostles" restaurant. When they were doing a cellar refurbishment in 1987 they uncovered (8m below ground) a well-preserved Roman road and the foundations of two ancient buildings. At their own cost they excavated these structures and preserved the remains. An interesting inspection. Th... read more

Geo: 45.8906, 8.53064Had a laid-back day today. The weather was overcast and a little drizzly, but not cold. We boated over to a couple of islands to visit a palace and to have a great lunch. Afterwards I had a long, red wine-assisted nap, while Robyn went shopping. Strolled into the village for dinner - good pizza and Forst beer at the Taverna del Pappagallo with Lani and Jim from Hawaii/LA. Unfortunately the rain increased and we got wet feet on the walk back.... read more