Medici Montecatini Terme

... on internet and then back to the bar for more wine and tapas.<br><br>Sun 15 <br>Did some chores... yes we have some, we are not totaly void of resposibility. Went to the supermarket to stock up on food and went to an Aire d'service to empty Theo (our Thescott cassette toilet). Enough of that and we were back in the walls checking out the Antiques Market and eating Gelati... YUM!!<br>

... s historical center. We began our one hour walk at the Duomo and finished at Ponte Vecchio. There were numerous sites in between providing details of Florence's political and social history. While the City itself was not as impressive as others we've visited on this trip, the sheer inspiration it provided for the rest of Europe to awaken from the Middle Ages made it well-worth a visit. Kate grabbed a delicious gelatto for the walk ...

... busy streets. [And side note, Rome traffic wasn't as bad as we thought it would be. NYC is much crazier, minus tiny, unmarked, cobblestone alleys.] GPS saved the day and we easily made it out of the city after we realized the device was in simulation mode and showing us the course we would eventually take, and not the course we were currently on. It was hysterical!! However, this "fake route" took us to an unbelievable overlook of Florence ...

Just realized those not on facebook haven't seen pictures from Pisa and Florence. No long recap of Anthony and I's weekend in Tuscany, for obvious reasons. Also note that "Anthony and Alison's Great Adventure" was like taking a knife.<br><br>Love you guys! :)<br>

Rented an apartment in a villa which was at the top of a mountain (like most villas in Tuscany), however, our journey to the top was not on a paved road which made for some challenging driving. The villa was really nice with its own pool and great view over the countryside. The owners also provided fabulous meals in their other ...

... can apparently hold about 40000 people, and the road circling the Piazza is filled with about 12 cm of dirt for the horses to run on. The ten horses from the ten burrows do three laps, and it takes about a minute and a half, but the event takes up about four days. The next race is being prepared for now and takes place on July 2nd (Celia?). Bleacher seats are about 250 Euro, and I don't even want to know how much it is to watch the race from a balcony. Just being in the center ...

... so they were all closed) and had some fabulous caffe y pastries at a local pasticceria. Our hotel is fantastic, there is a beautiful open staircase, frescos on the walls and ceilings, and the cutest little purse lamps. We met the other tourists in the tour group and had a delicious five-course meal of antipasti, cereal soup, spinach and cheese ...

I was on the otherside of the piazza when I noticed her there, and even though it had been two minutes since we last saw each other, to both of us, it felt like 5 years, 3 months, 22 hours, 38 minutes and 29 seconds. There was only one thing to do, so we ran to each other, falling into open arms, then came the kiss, longing, loving, tenderly on the lips, and afterwards, Lucinate, rested her head in the nape of my neck, and she felt like she was home. Then came the email It has ...

Now we're getting to the real stuff! We boarded our bus and left the hotel, first to an overlook where we were to have a scenic group photo taken. There was also a statue of David, we're seeing several in Florence. Florence is a lovely city and it is unbelievable that it is the home of so many famous citizens. More on them later. We then wound our way to the city center, where we were going to pick up a local guide. I think this is my ...

Florence - again, the churches are amazing, but try as we did, we couldn't find one with a Mass. We went in to several to pray. Most of the churches in Florence seemed to be set up for tourists to see the art. We spent several hours at the Uffizi Gallery (which has been operating as a museum for over 200 years). We saw works by Rembrant, da Vinci, Michelangelo, Rafael and Titian. After all this, we had the deer-in-the-headlights ...