Minerva Palace 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>

... for the main course and was given one plate of cheese and one plate of spinach...hilarious. I had a gigantic veil roast like nothing I had ever seen, and fortunately it was delicious. We finished the meal with a chocolate covered panna cota, coffee, and endless dessert wine for Kate. They kept filling her glass because one older fella was the only one that could drop the check and he either took a nap, or was quite busy. The ...

It was our first full day without rain!! What a wonderful way to see the Pantheon, Colosseum, and kiss Rome goodbye. And we even made it to breakfast today...that hasn't happened since London. :) Check out our pitcher of steamed milk! I'll take that over half and half any day. <br><br>After seeing the closed Pantheon at night, and it's beautiful yet stark outer image, we didn't know what to expect once we walked through its huge iron doors. I ...

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 ...

... be for most of the trip. To our excitement it was much nicer than the Grand Hotel Duomo in Pisa. Here we relaxed for a bit, and caught a Simpsons episode in Italian, and then went exploring the town. It was a quiet and beatiful city with lots of restaurants, cafes, and gelato shops. Finally, we ended the day with some wine and a excellent pasta dinner. Time to go to bed for an early morning departure to San Gimignano...

... as Galileo, Machiavelli and Rossini. Quite an outstanding group you must admit! Our next stop was the Cathedral--what an awesome structure. It's completely made of three colors of marble, pink, white and green, which stand for faith, hope and charity, quarried from the three regions of Tuscany. It's the third largest cathedral in the world, behind St. Paul's in Rome and Westminster in London. I can't begin to describe its size, and it ...

... there. She took pity and indicated for us to follow her. She took us to her car! She asked what time (I heard her say "ora") and I showed her. Her eyes got big and she seemed to go a little faster. This kind woman (still going on in Italian) took us to the correct station which we were no where near - it wasn't even on our map. Chris and I wondered where on earth we'd end up because we weren't sure that she understood the ...