Monday, November 4, 2013

t u s c a n y and more | italy

we totally did it. we booked a full-out tour to see siena, tuscany and pisa. it was the whole package tourist deal: the bus, the lunch, the headphones and the extra-smart tour guide…and we L O V E D every minute of it. i booked what was called The Best of Tuscany Tour through Walkabout Florence. in three words - totally worth it! the tour covered a lot of ground, we didn't have to plan a thing, we actually got to hear what we were looking at and the bus was comfy. husband acted like an "a" student and always managed to keep us at the front of the group. he made friends with the tour guide and made sure to ask him as many questions as time allowed - gotta love him for that!
the Piazza del Campo
a picture of the crowds during the Palio di Siena or simply II Palio - which is a horse race held twice a year in Siena. 
Duomo di Siena
the brilliantly preserved frescoes in the Piccolomini Library ceiling inside the cathedral. 
this was one of our favorite cathedrals, inside. the dark blue and gold was stunning. 
sculpture of Saint Paul by the young Michelangelo.
headed to Il Vecchio Maneggio for lunch
the majority of our lunch came directly from the farm: the olive oil, honey and of course, the wine. the pasta
 was also hand-made and if i remember correctly, the meat sauce the the cured meats were also from the farm - but
 i would not trust me a hundred percent on that bit of information…(!)
i could of stayed there all day grazing at the food. 
San Gimignano - a small medieval town in the province of Siena, Tuscany. most importantly, it is the home 
to Gelateria del Dondoli: Gelato World Champion and Gelateria dell' Olmo: The Best Ice Cream in the World - 
we tried both, naturally.
the l e a n i n g  tower of p i s a. as many pictures as i've seen of it and heard from people that 
traveled there - i was still so surprised at how much it was actually leaning
i wish we stayed longer to people watch in this area...
the Battistero di San Giovanni - the largest baptistry in italy. husband of course belted a few notes 
next to the "no talking sign."
the best part after a long day of touring and walking…getting on the bus and not worrying how to get back. 



other posts about italy:
cinque terre | part I | part II | part III

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