La Loggia Castelnuovo Berardenga

... so Katy, Steve and I waked around for a bit before hand. I showed them where Academia was so they could see the David (since I had seen it for free in August, I decided I wasn’t going to pay this time) and I hung out and walked around a bit. It felt nice to be in a city that I had been to before because I knew my general way around. Actually, I have to give myself props, I don’t think we used a map but maybe once the entire time we were ...

Happy Thanksgiving!

I spent the morning taking an Italian exam!!! The afternoon was a little more fun, touring Palazzo Pitti with my Art History class.

It was a little strange spending it without everyone but my school put together a little gathering for us. A group of us dined on a typical American Thanksgiving at a local restaurant. We were served Butternut Squash soup with bread, Turkey ...

... life time on this trip already!
Climbed the tower in the main piazza, saw an enormously large pizza and had wild boar sausages for lunch which were a bit gamey but nice.
Went for drinks at Lochness bar and ended up drinking long islands as there wasn't much in the way of wine or beer there.

Hi Everyone!

After an exhausting weekend in Brussels, I was in for yet another treat with cooking classes in Florence. Organized by my school, a group of us met with a chef for some lessons.

We were taught how to prepare typical Tuscan cuisine including Ribollita and Stuffed zucchini-flowers.

Everything was delicious & I look forward to trying these recipes at home!

I'll update you soon,

Siara

... shop in town. At 1:30 it was closed so we continue into town to check out some shops and a few of the sights around town.

On the way we found the piazza Campo and the tower there. We also saw a few churches. We stumbled upon a photo shop that had a replacement battery for my camera. After additional exploration we made it back to the bike shop. We went inside to find an old shop with not allot of merchandise. We were looking for a water bottle for Kathie and a souvenir ...

Many more discoveries from your favorite (me) halfway across the world in the Mediterranian... 1. 3 inch yellow polkadot peeptoed heels should never, under any circumstances, be used as dancing shoes! A bunch of us BCC students went dancing last night, and I made the poor decision to wear my beautiful yellow shoes....on the cobbled streets of Florence.....to a club a half an hour away from my apartment....you can ...

... to the top of the dome you actually climb stairs that are inbetween the inner and outer dome shells. The roof top view was amazing. You can see the tree covered hills on the outside of the city and all the marvellous old buildings of Florence. One thing seems to be constant everywhere we have been so far - a lot of the major buildings are under repair. Just our luck, these things have been standing for hundreds of years and they decide to fix them when we ...

... different, I purchased a fiery red bag, boxy, but slightly slouchy, with silver hardware including a chunky heart and key at the front; side pockets also, a square base and a big flap pocket concealing the main zipper. Not the cream one I was looking for but just divine. I'm writing this horrendously after the event and can honestly say I've used it most days and it's drawn plenty of comments. Guilt galore over that leather though... shall try to be angelic ...

Under the Tuscan Sun - everyday

After 27 years, my return to Florence was a familiar one. Few buildings have changed, none actually. Santa Maria Novella Church that was covered in scaffolding then was still cover in scaffolding. Scooters and other crazy drivers abounded. It wouldn't be Florence without this.

Upon our return from Rome, we had a car rental to pick up to get to our villa, perhaps my first apprehension with our travel ...

... day we went to the Bargello Museum which housed a large collection of Renaissance sculpture. The experience was great; no lines, no fighting other tourists for a view, and, of course, the amazing sculptures. The Bargello was home to Donatello´s David and St George, and several works by Cellini, Giovanni and Michelangelo. We were a little late for our train that afternoon, but managed to catch the next service to Pisa.