Villa Monteoriolo Tuscany

... mind up that I was going to wait until I got back, but I didn’t want to wait any longer. So Katy and I weaved our way through the booths looking at purses and going back to look at purses and being positive that I was getting the right one. I had seen several I liked in Venice, and I found them again when I got here, but nothing was sticking out (except, of course, a purse that was WAY too expensive). So I kept looking. FINALLY I saw one that I ...

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 ...

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

... we watched a red and orange sunset from the terrace and slept quite well. The bbq last night was great -chicken, pork, ribs and tuscan sausage. We ate on a 200 yr old table and realised that everyone was Australian (with the exception of Whitney). We will keep our eye out for similar hostels during our travels I think - cheap, relaxing and away from the bustling cities. For the next week we now run the gauntlet along the coast to Barcelona!

... 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 ...

... on some kind of council or something in the EU. She said that the passage of the Lisbon Treaty (which will modify the EU, and be somewhat like their Constitution) all comes down to the referendum in Ireland, and whether it is approved. I found this very interesting because when Alina and I were in Dublin, we saw tons of propoganda for and against the Treaty, right on top of each other. I am very interested in the results of that ...

... for its gold-plated doors, which feature the gates of paradise. Each Italian city features a Duomo, known as the religous center of that city. Next she led us through the cobble stone streets of Florence to Piazza della Signoria where saw a repicla of the David statue as well as many other important works of early Roman sculputre. Then we were on ...

... Museo Acadameia to see the ORIGINAL DAVID!  If you know my love of sculptures you know how moved I was by this piece!  Then I said goodbye to Drew and headed to the station too try and make my way to the town where my favorite wine is produced.  Montepulciano....................  My time is almost up in the internet cafe so I will save that entry for tomorrow maybe.  PS I fly to London in the morning! Love, Neil

... day, we did that. It was tiring but well worth it. So far the people have been extremely nice to us, the Italians. The food is cheap and tasty. Really cheap after switzerland. Soon we will be leaving for Florence where we have booked a tent and cots. Looking forward to a shower too. Itās been five days now. And after the salt water we look and smell like New York bums. The ice cream is amazing. We had three helpings yesterday.

... So, Italy's been amazing, but there is just so much to see it is extremely exhausting. It's hard to believe, but I feel like there is still so much I have missed. Tomorrow I head for Venice and then it's up to Germany to meet my parents. I can't tell you how exited I am to not share a bathroom with 30 other people and to not have to eat crackers for lunch. And I'm excited to see my parents of course.