Florence and Tuscany

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Florence:  Just as we felt that we were beginning to understand Italy, we arrived in Florence.  There is a completely different feeling in the Tuscany region of Italy. Yes, it too is rich with history and traditions, yet it has a peaceful appeal that makes all of us "non-Italians" feel less like tourists standing on the outside looking in and more like paisanos that are part of the fabric.  We felt very much at home.     Florence is certainly the home to some of the most renown artists and scientists of all time. (Michaelangelo, Galileo)  Its often called the "Heart of the Renaissance".   To see their works and visit their old haunts was a great adventure.      

 We started our stay in the heart of Florence for two nights in a hotel just 3 blocks from the greatest museums in all of Italy. (The Uffizi and the Academia)   We saw some of the most impressive works of art. (paintings and sculptures)  To the left in front of the Uffizi Museum we see  the " David" and also a reasonable facsimile.  You get  to decide which is which.??    The real David is the animated version to the left.  The statue is a replica of the original by Michaelangelo which was moved from this site and placed in the Academia Museum in the 1800's.  

Ok, one more thing about the David (statue.) One question that remains is at what moment did Michaelangelo capture David, before or after he threw the stone?  Not even an issue to our tour guide who said that David's holding the rock in his right hand.  But his facial expressions suggest (in the other David's opinion) that Golliath is dead. Hmmm.  Too late to go back now and uncurl that right hand. 

The most impressive and massive church to the left is not well represented in the photos.  It is referred to as "The Duomo" and it is located in Piazza Duomo in the heart of the old town.

Lisa in front of the Duomo.   She is wishing we would have arrived a few hours earlier to be able to tour inside.. Next trip Lisa. 

 We tried to find a club with dancing (salsa or ballroom, not picky) but the closest we came was joinng a parade in the streets steppin' to the rhythm of a percussion band. We had gelato nearly daily.  It was hot and we were on vacation!   

 

We enjoyed seeing some famous paintings in the Uffici, but of course we didn't take pictures  there.  Our enthusiasm for Michaelangelo, heightened by earlier visits to the Sistine Chapel and seeing the Pieta, continued upon seeing his Doni Tondo.  By the time we reached the gift shop we found and bought, "The Agony and the Ecstasy."  (Lisa's enjoying it, but haven't gotten to the Sistine Chapel yet so there must be agony to come.)  They have lots of great paintings there, but our tour guide told us that we have many fantastic art museums in the U.S., which is true. 

We got out of the city for our last 4 days in Italy.   We loved roaming  the hills of Galluzzo.  We rented a car and trusted our GPS to guide us to the old Villa "I Parigi" (B&B) on the south hills of Galluzzo.  We were so pleased with the accommodations and the peaceful setting.  We were surrounded by olive groves and grape vineyards.

Looking out a window at the I Parigi     

On the road to see the hills of valleys of Tuscany.  We spent an entire day driving the back roads winding down through the Chianti region between Florence and Siena.  There were villas on most hills and castles with ancient feudal histories to explore.  We bought bread, fruit, nuts,salami, cheese, olives etc and picniced along the way.   .      

Typical hillside along the way   

One of the villages    

Mountain view.  Notice the Scotch Broom.  It's everywhere!  At least it's plentiful in Poland and many other places as well.    

Perhaps the most impressive view was from the top of the Brolio Castle.  It is on a southern hill top and it looks over the southern region of the Chianti district towards Siena.         

You can't tell it from these pictures, but while we were driving along the gorgeous Italian hills David periodically belted out, "Don't Forget Sorrento," which he learned in choir in 7th grade!  I can still hear David singing--great memories!  Pam and Tom also sang a bunch of camp songs, and we'd join in when we could.  When Tom said it was my (Lisa's turn) to share a camp song the best I could come up with was that morbid song about O'Leary and O'Riley....vroommmm, vroommm, vroommm.  Well, my camp memories were more about s'mores and longing for warm showers.

The entrance to a Vineyard near Siena

David--I don't remember this picture!  I  must be  hiding from the sun!  I loved everything about our trip and I'm sure I was energetic the whole time!

Under a Tuscan Sun, we spent our last night in Italy.  We would love to come back again and visit and continue the adventure.  Maybe some year we can come back to Sorrento....

Beautiful Venice

VENICE   A rapid train ride from the Rome train station through the Italian country side brought us to the station in Venice.  We were happy to find conveniently located at the train station --a place for gelato! *

Much to our pleasure we exited the train terminal to find us on the Grand Canal of Venice. What a breathtaking site.  It was everything we had imagined from the movies and photos and more. Gondolas, water taxis and the public ferries were the only means of transportation.  Venezia is a magical place.

 Certainly, Venice is focused on tourism.  However, the active life of the many local residents comes through as you venture off the main drag and walk through the narrow alleys and streets.  A common gathering spot for locals and tourists alike is Piazza San Marcos seen here from the mouth of the Grand Canal.  We have a number of great photos of the churches and buildings in the center.  We just can't put them all on the blog.      

Venice is very photo friendly.  We have some wonderful pictures and they almost don't need commentary.  We had a wonderful time in Venice eating pizza or spaghetti, getting lost in the maze of buildings where we found oodles of glass, linen and other other shops to ooh and aah over.   The waterway to the left was taken from a little bridge just near our Bed and Breakfast.  

On our first evening we found ourselves at an old church (S. Salvatore) where we listened to a string orchestra concert.  Le Quattro Stagioni Di Vivaldi (Vivaldi's Four Seasons)  It was excellent.  Lisa has started playing her violin again since we moved to Poland and they were at least as good as she is. 

We did not limit our Venice area activities just to the canals and walkways of Venice.  Our second day in Venice found us on the move.  We took a ferry to some outer islands within the Laguna Veneta.  We first stopped on Murano Island which is mostly dedicated to glass manufacturing.  We watched master craftsmen blow glass.  The colorful display of their crafts was amazing and expensive.  We window shopped.  A very artsy community! 

From Murano we traveled further up the Laguna to the island of Burano (our favorite).  It was so picturesque with all the multi-colored homes and boats as seen on the photo above and the next few. We saw a few young artists and were reminded of our Lindsay and how she would love to have a sketch pad and a free afternoon here in Burano.  This is truly an artist's haven.  So much to see and appreciate with the colors, the culture and the architecture.  

Burano Port View.

Tom and Pam in one of Burano's sidewalk cafes. This is where they ditched us and we were left to our own devises.

This is a typical Venice Side street with the normal means of transportation. Foot traffic ofcourse gets you most anywhere you want to go. There are bridges like the one in the photo and the one from where the picture is taken. The only problem is that without a map you can get easily lost. (Voice of experience)

Colorful apartments on the Grand Canal.  


No image of Venezia is complete without the view of the famous Gondola.  Gondoliers in their stripped shirts and straw hats are present everywhere and just about anytime.


* Gelato really is fabulous, but maybe that's because it was Vacation Ice Cream! We found out that V.I.C. doesn't increase weight.  Coming back to Poland we had to do a taste comparison yesterday.  We tried two (ok, just Lisa, but they serve very small scoops in Poland:) places and it looks like Italy's gelato wins! This morning I'm sure the bathroom scale lied or After Vacation Ice Cream is more fattening!

David and Lisa's "Get Away Plan" or "The Italian Job"

ROME. We took a mid-morning flight from Warsaw to Rome. After checking into a Bed and Breakfast near Vatican City, we made our way, between rain showers, to meet up with our travel buddies--David's brother Tom and Pam. his fiance. We met at the courtyard in front of St Peters Basilica   (PiaS.Pietro)  We enjoyed a delicious dinner and scenic view of Vatican City while fine tuning David's "The Italian Job," itinerary. Even though we had several skype sessions and emails with Pam and Tom for planning, there were still details to discuss, like how we were going to see Rome the next day. Arriving a day and a half after Pam and Tom, Lisa realized there was much we would miss that they had already seen by the time we got there. (should've watched Roman Holiday for research beforehand)

Massimo, our Vatican tour-guide, was about 6'6". While other guides raised their hands holding flags, flowers or various items for tour-groups to follow, ours said in his very Italian accent, "I don'ta need a daisy or a suna flower." Pam must've quoted him  dozens of times during the trip--we got such a kick out his (and her) humor! Here in the Vatican Museum he poses. Which nose is more stately? His Italian or the Greek? Do you nose? 

 We spent our first full morning and early afternoon in the Vatican Cilty. We were very impressed with the artwork and architecture of all the facillities. The Sistine Chapel was much larger than we anticipated. We wish we had more to share on it and St Peter's Basilica. We were not able to take pictures. We learned a lot about the art froms used at the time. The frescos completed by Michelangelo were incredible. Lisa decided to read "The Agony and the Ecstasy" as it chronicles his life and struggles with the Pope and others to complete some of these great works.

We made it to the colleseum just in time to choose between waiting in line about 45-minutes for tickets or join a tour-group for 20 euros each to by-pass the lines. Ching, Ching. After a morning seeing the Vatican, Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica, we opted for another tour-group lead me, guide me, show me, tell me...anything but lines please. We zipped via metro subway from Vatican City to the Colosseum in 20 minutes. Not the way Pam and Tom suggested we tour, but hey we had to see Rome in a day! Plus we still haven't had a gelato!

David in the Coloseum

Inside the Colosseum was impressive.  The advanced engineering principles of the time were seen in much of the workmanship.  The structure would most likely be still in tact were it not for the systematic demolition that took place under the direction of several popes to salvage the stone and bricks for the building of the Vatican and other buildings in the city.  The demolition was stopped under the declartion that it should serve as a memorial to the Christians that were slain here.  Current data suggests that the stories of Christian's being fed to the lions is probably more fiction than fact.


Lisa in front of the Arch of Constantine.  No tour-guide here, just a quick picture and off to our third tour. 

Looking down from from one of the seven hills of Rome towards the remains of the Roman Forum.

                                                                                                      

We were so impressed with the all that we could see and learn from our third tour-group leader for the day.  Now as we review the pictures, a week and a half later, it may be best to google Roman Forum for factual information!  Note to self: next trip pack a tape recorder.

We loved the views, the tours, and thanks to pre-trip workouts our feet weren't sore yet.  Not bad for our first full day in Italy.  But we had to wait for Venice to taste gelato!