From Florence to Lucca

This morning we slept until 830, then I went to the duomo to climb 463 steps to the cupola, but there were already about 20 people in line, chatty and with fancy cameras, so I didn't think it would be possible to get up there and back in an hour, which was about the time I had before having to check out of the hotel and fetch the rent car.  Final Duomo photo:

 
And photo of the Florence hotel:

Visited San Lorenzo market and Jenae bought a few scarves, including one for me so I look more like a native, and stay a bit warmer during the cool evenings and mornings.

Walked about 20 minutes along narrow, crowded, and irregular sidewalks, dragging our carry-ons to the Hertz car rental place.  People were lined up outside, and one of them explained that it was an hour wait.  Now I had to decide if I wanted to explain that to Jenae or risk the wrath of all the people waiting, so I walked to front of the line and said "Gold Club?", and the answer was that I do not need to wait.  A lot of people gave me the stinkeye, but I did not have to tell Jenae we would need to wait - win!  We got a clunky boxy Fiat diesel thing, and I started driving.  I was nervous  for about 20 minutes, for two reasons: trying to find A11 autostrada out of Florence, and also being sure I did not enter the dreaded ZTL, which gets you a violation of more than $130 several weeks after your vacation, for entering a prohibited traffic zone.  Also, let me add that the painted stripes on Italian streets and freeways are really nothing more than a vague suggestion of where your vehicle should be in relation to other vehicles.  Faster and smaller vehicles really get their choice of position on the roadway, especially motorcycles and scooters, which frequently dart between lanes and pass you on whichever side is convenient.  It's quite lively.

Once we got on the freeway (autostrada), and with the help of the iPad and a GPS unit, we arrived in Lucca in an hour or so, and here the pace is much slower and relaxed.  It is an ancient walled city, very charming, with far fewer tourists, and an even more authentic Italian feel.

Gates through the city walls into Lucca.

Next three photos are our hotel in Lucca:

After checking into the hotel, walked to a nearby enoteca for local wine and appetizers, which consist mainly of things like bruschetta, meatballs, cheese, prosciutto, etc.

Behind Jenae, parked in front of the enoteca, was a cool bicycle:

Went for a walk along most of the 4 mile long, 500 year old wall that surrounds this city, then returned to hotel to make evening plans and get ready.  Some photos from the top of the wall:

  

Walked to old Church of San Giovanni for Puccini opera concert:

Front of church

Organ at rear of church

Wooden coffered ceiling in church

Dozens of baby heads around the top of the interior of the church

Then went to restaurant recommended by hotel for typical Italian late dinner, and that was best meal of the trip so far.  Finished dinner at 10:30 and walked 15 minutes across town back to our hotel.  Here's a photo for Nathan of my first course, which was so good I became entranced and forgot to take photo of even better second course:

Potato gnocchi

Now we sleep with the cool breeze of Tuscany drifting into the open windows of our room that overlook this charming ancient walled city.

Day 3: the Accademia Museum and the Oltrarno

Today we had blue skies for the first time, with no rain, and temperatures in the mid-70's.  Just a couple blocks from our hotel is the Duomo, which is especially beautiful on a day like today.  Covered in pink, white, and green marble, construction started in 1296 and took about 150 years to build.  It is one of the most recognizable sights of Italy, along with the tower of Pisa and the Colloseum.  The picture below is the church and the bell tower.

I climbed the 414 steps to the top of the bell tower 2 years ago, but not during this visit:

Then we went to the Accademia Museum to see Michelangelo's statue of David, other sculptures, paintings, altarpieces, and manuscripts, but photos are not permitted in most museums, so you'll just have to take my word that we were there, and there is some amazing art there.

After a break at the hotel, we went in search of a pizza place we visited 2 years ago, and along the way, entered a church during an organ recital.  Here's a photo, and you can hum your favorite organ music as you gaze upon the image:

Then we found Toto's Pizzeria, where we each had a slice of the mozzarella, tomato, and arugula pie,,and some water.  It was 3 euros per slice, about $4.

Then we headed to the Oltrarno, which is the other (south) side of the river, stopping for a few photos along the way at Piazza della Signoria, and large and lively square:

Dogs of all sizes and kinds are quite popular throughout Italy, and this puppy was very enthusiastic:

Then we crossed Ponte Vecchio, a bridge covered with tiny, historic gold jewelry shops.  This photo was taken while standing outside the front door, and you can see right through the shop's back windows to the next bridge down the river.

Something else tiny - this single seat car:

And,now we're wandering the much quieter streets of the Oltrarno, with a completely different character than the bustling streets just north of the river.

A couple shots of espresso for the afternoon boost:

And more wandering, this time looking into the workshop/store of a chandelier artisan:

This type of door and knocker is quite typical in this part of Florence:

More narrow streets and piazza, with some locals:

Basilica di Santo Spirito, completed in 1487:

Some other beautifully decorate building that we just happen to stroll by:

Part of Ponte Vecchio, being drawn by art students on a neighboring bridge:

Another odd shaped building watching over the maze of streets:

And a musician riding his green polka dotted bicycle with his guitar:

Here's a street musician taking a break while his dog does the sad eye for a coin from Jenae:

Finally, the colors of Italy outside a shop near our hotel:

Back at the hotel for the evening happy hour, we had some beverages  and snacks, and then Jenae and I got ready to go out for dinner.  Since it's our last evening in Florence, we went to a good restaurant for Bistecca Fiorentina, which is Italian for "one less cow".  Read and drool about that here:

http://www.emikodavies.com/blog/the-perfect-bistecca-fiorentina/

And that's all for today.  Tomorrow we pack up, drag our carry-ons over to the Hertz place, and see just how much fun it is for me to drive in Italy, and how much fun it is for Jenae to be in the same car.  (She opted not to do any driving, in response to my generous offer.)

Ciao!

Best European tourist punchline ever!

Tuesday was a day with lots of walking.  We started by looking for a yarn shoppe that Jenae found on the internet, but after wandering for 30 minutes, we gave up and headed back to our neighborhood, and then we happened to stumble upon it.  Next we went to the Telecom Mobile Italia store so I could but a SIM card for the iPad for Internet connectivity throughout Italy.

Then on to Santa Maria Novella, a historical pharmacia where traditional cosmetics, scents, and other potions are formulated, where Jenae found something that smelled pretty.  Then the rain returned, so we went to the indoor Mercado Centrale, to wander among the vendor stands and lunch booths:

For lunch, we returned to place we visited 2 years ago, which is now 104 years old, and we had a light lunch, followed by a brief nap at the hotel to compensate for a jet lagged induced 2:30 wake up during last night's sleep.

Then we continued walking, and caught this charming scene, not unusual in Italy, of a little girl singing while riding along with her Papi on the bicycle:

 And we trudged onward and uphill to San Minato al Monte, a monastery overlooking Florence, took some photos and listened to Gregorian chants by the monks:

That was quite a walk, and as the sun set, we strolled back towards the hotel, stopping at a couple of wine bars.  At the second one, we met a nice couple from Norway, and we discussed Italy, travel, barbecue, and cold weather.  During that conversation, the waiter came over and inquired if they were done with their dinner plates.  Without missing a beat, our new friend, Tommy Johansen, replied "No, I'm not Finnish, I'm Norwegian!".

We continued back to the hotel to get ready for dinner, with a phot of the river and some artsy thing on the side of a hotel:

Now it is midnight in Italy, 6 pm on the US east coast, and 5 pm in Austin.  Good night, friends.

Italy 2013 planning

Some of you might remember that Jenae and I went to Italy this same time of year two years ago.  Almost as soon as we arrived in Venice back then, we knew we wanted to return, so we started planning this trip early this year.  I watched airline prices for a few weeks, then bought the tickets in April.  In May and June we developed the itinerary, and then in June, we started making selections for lodging, based on price, internet reviews, and personal tastes.

We decided to focus on central Italy, mainly Tuscany and some of Umbria, since we so enjoyed Florence in 2011.  Another thing that is different this time is that we'll be renting a car when we leave Florence, to better get around Tuscany.  I prefer not to have to deal with a car on vacation, but it does allow much more flexibility and independence for this kind of vacation.  Jenae at first favored basing ourselves in one or two locations and branching out, but I argued in favor of more locations, for two reasons:

1) more morning and evening time in different places, because that is often very different than typical mid-day vacation experiences, and

2) allows more wine enjoyment without the worry of driving back to a home base after dinner with wine.

The itinerary that we eventually came up with is:

3 nights at a hotel 2 blocks from the Duomo in Florence

2 nights at a hotel in Lucca

1 night at a hotel in Volterra

3 nights at a Bed & Breakfast in Sienna

2 nights at a castle in Perugia

1 night at a Bed & Breakfast in Orvieto

The final night at a beachside hotel in Fregenne, not far from the Rome airport

Finally, as the time neared, I notified our two banks which serve our ATMs that we would be traveling, same for our Capitol One credit card (no foreign transaction fees), so that those should work while we're here.  We also bought some Euros (Italian currency) from one of Jenae's friends for the current exchange rate, saving some money in transaction  and ATM fees.  Traveler's checks are not nearly as popular or acceptable as they used to be, so these steps allow us to use credit cards and ATMs instead, which worked out very well for us back in 2011.

Day 1 report of 2013 Italy trip

My first blog entry for this trip.  We're now sitting on the high speed train in Rome, awaiting departure in a few minutes.  Right now it is a few minutes before noon, local time, and 5 am in Austin.  We'll arrive in florence in 90 minutes, and that will complete 19.5 hours of travel, via 2 planes and 2 trains, although that travel time includes almost 4 hours in Chicago between flights, and about 30 minutes waiting for trains here in Italy.

Everything has gone very smoothly, and although we slept a little on the flight, we're tired but we'll probably feel energized once we get to our hotel in florence and get freshened up.  There's rain in the forecast for Florence and there's also a very big bicycle road race event going on there today, so it should be interesting once we start strolling the cobblestone streets.  We'll likely start by seeking out a nearby enoteca, which is a wine bar where you can also get tasty snack food to go with wine, such as charcuterie, cheeses, bread, etc.  We've left today unscripted, knowing that we would be tired, and uncertain of actual arrival times, due to possible delays, getting lost, etc, but none of that happened, so that leaves more time for resting, strolling, and wine swilling.

(Now writing again later in the evening, before going to bed.)

The hotel in Florence was only about a 10 minute walk from the train station, but we we're pulling along a 22" carryon suitcase and carrying an umbrella in a pretty good rainfall.  We checked in at 2 pm and they gave us a free upgrade, so we have a comfortable a spacious room on the second floor overlooking a small courtyard.  The bed seems gigantic and is very comfortable.

We got freshened up after the journey and started out in search of wine and light food, and found a nice little place where shared a charcuterie and cheese plate.  That was also fun because at a nearby table was a group of old Italian men watching the bicycle races with a group of young German men, apparently here for the race.  Their lively conversation and attempts to communicate were fun and refreshing.

Then the sun came out, so we walked around some more, finally going back to the hotel for their happy hour, where we met other travelers staying here, several from the US.  Finally, to finish the day, we went out at 8pm for gelato, and at the gelateria we met an art professor from Toronto, along with a pretty student also from Toronto, with whom we shared a table and nice conversation.

I'll close with this picture of th inside of the elevator in our hotel.  Look closely and you'll see a button for "-1".