Advertisement
Published: February 13th 2007
Edit Blog Post
The wonderful markets in Florence
If only Heidi had room in her bag...the leather goods and silk and cashmere scarves were so tempting! Ciao!
Florence One day here, which is not enough time for all this beautiful city has to offer. Stayed at the Hotel Pensione Feretti (highly recommend!) with the nicest staff, the biggest room to ourselves, and we even had our own shower IN THE ROOM. Such a pleasant surprise.
The day was cloudy and rainy so it wasn't the best weather for picture taking, but we hit the markets, by the Arno River and Ponte Vecchio Bridge, by the Uffitzi Gallery (which we opted to miss since the line was at least two hours long!), and the Duomo, one of Italy's most-loved big old cathedrals dating back to the 1300's. Beautiful artwork all over, but the best part was that it was actually free--a first in Italy! We went out for pizza and wine and ended up grabbing another carton of wine (that's right, a carton, and it tasted pretty damn good) for the room.
Early up the next morning to get in line at the Galleria Dell-Acadamia where we got to see Michaelangelo's, "David". In real life it is utterly amazing; he is HUGE, and the details in the sculpture are unbelievable. The smaller gallery had
The Ponte Vecchio
Oldest bridge (1345)over the Arno river in Florence. Long ago it housed workshops and butcher shops, but today it has some of the finest window shopping--gold and jewels. some other old works as well. Bummer no photos inside...
Tuscany We only had four days here, in two different towns, but for some reason the slower pace of life made us feel like it was at least a full week. We first went to Cecina, a small town on the coast to meet Heidi's friend, Gio. We spent the first night at his sister's home in the middle of a vineyard, Terriccio. Her husband manages the entire farm, the main products being wine and olive oil. It was gorgeous here.
The first evening Gio drove us to San Giminiano. Tuscany is just green rolling hills and trees, vineyards, olive groves, and now and then a town sits up high on cliffs. These towns date back to the medieval days when they had to defend themselves again enemies. S.G. originally had 72 towers, but only 13 remain today. We wandered all around as the sun went down, narrow cobblestone streets, and very few cars actually inside the city.
The next day we trained to Grosetto to finally go to Gio's hometown, Nomadelphia. It's a small community out of the city where everyone lives and
works all together for the good of the community. They are members of the Catholic faith, and they have chosen this lifestyle to raise their families, take in orphans, and just live a more simplistic lifestyle. We were welcomed by everyone, sitting down to big home-cooked meals and trying speak to them. Homemade wine, olive oil, and cheese, fresh veggies, and delicious pasta dishes...we both agreed that we gained a few pounds! Most of the adults didn't speak English very well so Gio was translating a lot! Nonetheless, the smiles and kisses on both cheeks were warm and inviting.
The first day we drove to Sienna, the famous medieval hill-town. No cars inside and the streets run up and down the hills. Beautiful cathedrals and old buildings, of course. The main plaza here is on a slant and everyone hangs out here, both locals and tourists. We got some geleto and sat with them all, then hike up to the top of the tower as the sun set. I just could not get over the stunning views, and we must have a few dozen photos.
Gio and his friend, Herbert, took us driving all around the countryside to
visit other towns one day. Again, really cool old villages sitting on the cliffs with spectactular views. Pitigliano, Sovana, and few more, plus a natural sulfur hot springs...too bad we didnt have the togs (bathing suits 😉 with us! Our last stop was Castiglione della Pescaia, more of a resort-like town on the sea. We climbed up the fortress hill for a view of the beach at sunset, eating our yummy gelatos as the sun disappeared in the distance.
One of Gio's sisters has five kids, all of whom we got to meet and play with. They practiced their English lessons with us. His parents are the most lovely people ever. They both speak some English, and they understood us most of the time. Wonderful to stay with locals and really get in the culture of the country. We always had to laugh at the loud conversations that would go on for hours after dinner each night--Dan agreed that I'm not THAT loud!!
Gio, please do thank your family again for their kind hospitality during our stay!
Advertisement
Tot: 0.106s; Tpl: 0.011s; cc: 14; qc: 62; dbt: 0.0545s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.2mb