Day 15 + 16 – train to Florence, Italian living (??) and the David

After sleeping in, and repacking (some) of my bag I took a taxi into the heart of Roma, to Roma Termini. It was crazy! The taxi driver warned me to watch my bag inside the termini, and pointed to all my bags (all 3 of them – damn shopping!) saying “Attentione” and then pointing back at Roma Termini. At least I was warned….

I entered the Termini and tried to determine which platform my train would be departing from. It was a nightmare! The first departure information board I spotted and read indicated I would depart from platform 5. So off I set to platform 5, through the hundreds of people moving throughout the terminal with roller bags, or backpacks, on their own, or in large groups. Everyone was going in every direction, and mostly seeming to have no idea which platform they were meant to be on… I held tight over my bags and pulled my suitcase (which seemed to also have been consuming large quantities of pizza, pasta and gelato as it had put on about 5 kilos) through the terminal and finally found platform 5. The train was already waiting, however the doors were closed. I ignored the young man who asked if I was going to Florence, as I had been warned about the men that would help you with getting your bags onto the train and then demand large amounts of money for their trouble. I walked all the way down the platform to carriage 4 where my ticket had indicated I would be sitting…. The doors were still shut and there were very few people on the platform despite there being only 10 minutes until the departure time… something was not right. I walked all the way back to the end of the platform and discovered that my departure platform had changed (eeek!) to platform 8, thankfully, not too far away. I quickly trundled my way over to my new platform, having a new appreciation for pack-horses, and down the where carriage 4 should be- there was currently no train, but many more people waiting to board, and men asking if I was heading to Florence. They were interesting to watch as they guarded their territory along the platform, even though they seemed to be all working together. The train pulled into the station 10 minutes after its scheduled departure (obviously it’s on Italian time!) and I boarded the train expecting to find an area for suitcases (like when I caught the train in Switzerland or Germany), however this was not the case. The only area provided was at the other end of the carriage (oops) and above the seating! Eeek! Thankfully an English tourist across the aisle from me helped get my suitcase into (and out of, in Florence) the small space above my seat! The train ride was lovely, watching the sunflower fields and stunning villas fly past while we floated along the train line. No pictures as I was holding one of the shopping bags from Florence, and I caught up on a few Z's missed during the tour :)

After about an hour and a half the train glided into Santa Maria Novella Termini in Florence and about 20 minutes later I arrived outside the apartment that would be home for the next seven nights, Ponte Vecchio La Costa 1 (booked through CIT holidays – Relais Ponte Vecchio). It was up a massive hill, and I was very grateful to have caught a taxi so I didn’t have to pull my suitcase up the cobblestone street! Elena, the lady from the company that owned the apartment, provided the key and a small tour of the apartment…It was not what I was expecting (to put it nicely). Unlike the advertised ‘newly renovated, comfortable apartment’, this place was old and shabby (not in the least bit chic) and had multiple holes in the walls, including one that had been fixed with clear glass on either side so it created a nice looking hole into the foyer, from the middle of the apartment! Awesome. As Mum and I are staying in the apartment we had had Flight Centre confirm twin beds and air-conditioning (it is hot here!!) about 2 months ago. However, this apartment had a double bed, and when asked whether the couch was a fold out Elena said that it was, but it had not been made up or anything as they had “assumed we would sleep in the same bed”. WHAT? Look lady, I don’t know how things go here in Italy but we Aussies prefer our own beds! I said I would try sleeping on the couch, unfolded and she left it at that, not suggesting anything else to solve the situation. She suggested rather than walking up the street we use the stairs that would lead us onto the parallel road. Her other bit of advice, “don’t use both air conditioners and another electrical appliance as the power will probably go out”…. Great! She showed mum how to turn the power to the apartment back on out in the foyer (thanks) and left us to ‘enjoy our stay’. Sure. We soon discovered that the fridge didn’t seal, which would make keeping food cold interesting and that the ‘comfortable couch’ was NOT quite so comfy as there was a giant pole sticking up at the back. There was no Wi-Fi, nor any English speaking channels, and yes I know, I’m in Italy and so shouldn’t be watching TV all the time, but it's sometimes nice to simply relax before bed and be able to actually understand what it is the TV presenter is saying (Not to mention to see if anyone had decided to join the party and push K.Rudd out of the top job... who knows in Australian politics?). Not only were the channels not in English, I don’t even think they were normal TV channels! They seemed to all be channel 31, or really bad quality shopping channels.

At this point, I left, and went wandering through Florence, trying to escape the hell that was our apartment. I wandered along the glittering Ponte Vecchio with its multiple jewellery shops. The windows of the shops all sparkle with gold and diamonds creating a beautiful walk over to the ancient city. I wandered in and out of the many shops in the streets of Florence and up to the Duomo, where I watched the herds of tourists arriving, listening to their tour guide, taking a picture of this magnificent structure, and then leaving in their herd onto the next attraction. Around 5:30pm I wandered back up to the apartment (literally! There were like 100 steps to get up to the street level and then up the road, and then up the flights of stairs to the front door!). Thankfully mum had done our washing, hung it up and so we headed out for some dinner. It was then bed time and I settled in on the couch to read my book…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Day 16.

After a sleepless night (hey at least I got to read quite a bit of my book) due to watching the slight crack in the door, and freaking out over the holes in the walls and wandering if some axe-wielding murderer was watching us from the other side, it was time to get up and head to the famous Accademia, most known for housing the David. Prior to our departure in the morning Mum contacted the Flight centre to organise other accommodation, with very little help provided. She then tried contacting Elena, discussing how this was not the apartment we booked (our was meant to have a bath, which ours didn’t, which was a dead give away!). She simply said it was. Mum asked if their other apartment had double beds, it did, but no air-conditioning. What? She basically said there wasn’t anything she could do….

We met the tour group and our fantastic English tour guide outside the Accademia at 8:30am. The guide was very knowledgeable and quite funny calling us all poppets and cursing at the tourists complaining about waiting in the every growing line running outside the gallery and down the road. “I’ve been waiting for 30 minutes and the line hasn’t moved” I heard one guy tell the guard at the door. “Yes” was his reply. “Well, why is this line moving then? It’s not fair!”. “This is the tour group entrance, and your line should move every 25-30minutes as we let a few people in”.

I was glad we had booked with a group, as we simply lined up and waited for about 5 minutes, while the guide gave us a brief history of the gallery and then we were in! Fantastic! The alrt collection in the Accademia was amazing, and it showed an interesting evolution through the different ages, based on how the figures were portrayed and he colours and backgrounds used. It was fascinating to listen to the guide discuss the history of the art and how it depended on the religion and ruler at the time as to the colours and images used.

We wandered through the various rooms, finally making our way to the corridor which led to the amazing David. Leading up to the David there were four large, unfinished sculptures also by Michelangelo. These were created by him while he was waiting for his marble slabs to be dragged down from the mountains. It is unclear why he didn’t finish them, however they do provided a glimpse into the sheer size of the blocks of marble he used to sculpt his masterpieces. Our guide told us how they used to get the slabs out of the mountainside in ancient times, as of course they couldn’t just call up their local marble guy and get him to blast or carve out a large block. Instead Michelangelo himself would travel to the mountain and pick a site where he felt the marble was good. Theyy would then drive long metal rods into the mountain where the marble to be collected was located, strengthening the block so it didn’t break when pulled out. They then put large wooden wedges around the section to be removed, and filled the gaps made with water so the wood would expand and crack the marble apart. Ropes would then secured the marble to a higher point on the mountain, so they didn’t just roll down the hill and break, and more ropes would be connected to the slab so that horses further down could pull it out of the side of the mountain, and down the side. Workers would put large wooden poles in front of the marble so it could gently move down the mountain side without damage. They were then either shipped via horse and cart or boat to where they would be used. It was fascinating! These four unfinished statues still had the metal rods sticking out of them!

We then moved down to the most famous masterpiece in the academia – the David. I was shocked at how tall this rand statue is! It’s huge! Unfortunately you are not allowed to take any photos in the academia and so I can’t show you the David, however I’m sure you’ve seen images before! But just think, people (even tall ones) only come up to the base of the statue! It’s magnificent! It was also fun to watch the guards yelling and walking up to people saying “NO PHOTO! NO PHOTO!” over the light hum of the rest of the crowd admiring the David. The cat and mouse game between the guards and the public who would sneakily try to get a photo of the masterpiece was hilarious!

After finishing the tour of the academia, and exiting out through the shop, we headed back to Sante Croce to the brilliant gelataria for a salad for lunch, and their free Wi-Fi! Using this free Wi-Fi, and in the airconditioned comfort of this fantastic restaurant we found one of the last remaining hotels available for the next 6 nights and booked in! Not wanting to waste anymore time we headed straight back to the apartment and packed everything and moved out! It did take us two trips, but we got everything out and were welcomed into the luxury (compared to the apartment) of our new hotel, Gallery Hotel Art. What a fantastic establishment! Located a 1 minute walked from the Ponte Vecchio, and away from the crowds, this hotel provides a lovely spot to base our Florentine holiday from! By the time had moved everything and tried to contact Elena to return the key (she was suspiciously not answering any of her phones) it was already 5pm and we were exhausted! I don’t remember anything after moving our stuff and lying on the bed for what was meant to be 5 minutes until I woke up the next morning…. Oooops!

Day 14 - Florence, Sienna, Sheraton...

Last day of the tour today. Although it has been fabulous and I have really enjoyed it, I have to admit, I am ready to have a bit more of my own time, without being in the group, to explore and experience Italian life!

We were all on the bus at ten to eight, ready to travel down to Rome, via Sienna. Prior to our departure from Florence, Michele drove us up to the best look out over Florence, Piazzale Michelangelo for a final "Arrivederci Firenze" and photo opp. What a view, with the cathedral's dome shining in the early morning sun, surrounded by the many tiled rooftops. Just like a postcard!

 

We had another beautiful drive through Tuscany with its many fields of bright, yellow sunflowers and stunning mountain ranges. The countryside is also dotted with beautiful villas and stone houses, as well as the mountain top, walled villages from medieval history. Absolutely breathtaking!

 

We stopped in Sienna, to have a wander through this cute Medieval city and to see the town centre where the Palio is run. As it is close to the final Palio, many of the small areas of the city had their flags (with the colours and animals of their area's rider) in the old holders under their windows. It was a fantastic to walk into the city, down the cobblestoned streets lined with tall buildings with the rectangle window shutters, and the various area flags blowing gently in the summer breeze. It felt like we had taken a step back in time. The city centre was amazing! I was shocked by its sheer size, and its sloping sides. The fact that they run the Palio around here, and squeeze in sooo many people into the middle is amazing! We had about 40 minutes to wander around the city, and to buy the famous local food - Panforte. I bought the traditional fruit one, as well as a chocolate, a walnut and a cinnamon one....you have to taste them all to seriously judge which one is best :)

 

We then headed to a hidden treasure in the Tuscan countryside - Serre dei Rapovano, a beautiful hilltop castle and surrounding houses that have been transformed into a luxury hotel. The pool is to die for! Unfortunately (and fortunately), we were only here for lunch. The owner of this amazing property, Salvatorre, discussed how he made our lunch, and how he used the local produce to get the best flavours. I had a fabulous eggplant parma and pineapple cake, surrounded by stunning views of the Tuscan countryside and the hilltop pool. A fantastic lunch for the final day!


 

After our fantastic lunch, we got as back onto the bus, and travelled for another hour down to where our amazing journey had began, Roma. Arriving at the Sheraton around 4:30pm, we had about an hour to relax and freshen up before we headed into the city centre, to Via Venneto, to a posh restaurant for our final dinner as a group. I had a fantastic night just chatting and reliving some of the best parts of our trip with fellow travellers. It was a great night, and a wonderful end to the trip. When we got back to the hotel I farewelled everyone (as they were all off to the airport early tomorrow morning, whereas I would be sleeping in [yay!!!!] before getting the train back to Florence). Now it's time to go up to my room and get a good nights sleep before the next chapter of my adventure begins!!! Ciao!

 
 

 
 

 
 

Day 13 - Shopping, Shopping and more shopping!

Today was a great day! It started off with a sleep in! Yes, it’s true! I actually got to sleep past 6:30am on my holiday! Luckily I have a tour booked to see the Uffizi and Accademia galleries when I return to Florence next week, which meant I could skip the optional extra to go to the Accademia with everyone else. It was bliss! Just relaxing in the morning and going down to breakfast at my leisure, without having to worry about what time I had to be where and whether my bags were out.

 

At 9:30am the few people who had opted to stay behind met Chris in the lobby and he walked us up to the Duomo to meet the rest of the group for the Florence walking tour. The Duomo is amazing to see! A stunning mix of pink, white and green marble with intricate panels of bronze and gold depicting stories of the past decorate the outside walls of the basilica and the baptistery.

We walked with our local guide past the Duomo and into Piazza Vecchio which is an outdoor museum, with amazing statues outside the Florence house of government (Pilazzo Vecchio- a stunning castle structure that houses the Room of 500.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From here we went past the Uffizi gallery, and its growing line, to the river to take a photo of the beautiful Ponte Vecchio. It was stunning, with the tiny block shops perched all across the edges, being held on by large metal struts underneath it. After pictures, we cruised back past the Uffizi gallery and over to Piazza Santa Croce where we met Chris who shouted us all a gelato from an amazing Gelateria just to the left of the Sante Croce. Omg, it was to die for! Nut crème is now my favourite!

 

We then went to a gold store, and had a short demonstration and introduction to products they sold…. Seriously, who needs a demonstration on how to shop?? Oh, the damage I could do to my cards in this shop! There were just walls and cabinets full of glittering gold jewellery, in white, yellow and rose gold. They showed us this amazing technique that they have used to give the look of diamonds sparkling, without actually having diamonds! They had some beautiful pieces that I would love to buy! Perhaps when I’m back in Florence next week! From here we went to the Peruzzi leather factory where we had another demonstration (Seriously, I am happy to show people how to shop!) and we were left to shop and have the rest of the day as free time. Dangerous! The leather factory was three floors of leathery heaven!!!! A whole floor of shoes (didn’t buy any but was certainly tempted), a whole floor of bags (may have bought some) and then the lower floor has more handbags (bought some), belts (nope), jackets (nope) and various other leather goods…. Happy days. Hey, I did say at the start that I would be buying leather while here, and that it would be my big purchase… and I haven’t bought lots of crapola… why am I justifying this to you? Anyway…

So after spending about 1.5 hours in this store buying a few things that I just HAD TO HAVE right now and putting a couple of things aside to purchase when back in Florence, I exited the leather factory with more things to pack (somewhere) and a lighter wallet. I had lunch in the same place we had our gelato earlier. It was fantastic! I ate a delicious chicken salad that was fresh and flavourful, full of colour. I recovered from the shopping coma by indulging in another (small) gelato (nut crème you are my hero! It’s like smooth creamy hazelnut icecream with blobs of nutella chocolate all through it. As you eat it you have these bursts of chocolatey heaven in between creamy nuttiness… drool!)– BLISS! From here I returned to the gold shop and did a bit more browsing in preparation for my return next week, and then walked slowly along the cobblestone streets (lined with yet more shops!) back to the hotel. By the time I got back to the hotel it was almost 5pm! Talk about shop til you drop!

I decided to cool off in the hotel pool, before heading up to the roof top bar for a pre-dinner drink. At 8pm (starting to get on Italian food time!) I met some people from the tour downstairs and we headed out to a small trattoria nearby. The food was fantastic, and again, fresh and flavourful, and the company was great! Another fantastic end to another fabulous day! Off to bed now, ready for our last touring day tomorrow. Buono Notte!

Day 12- Travelling to Florence and the hole that is Pisa

Sleep in??? What is this?? Me no understand! (Another early morning.... slightly delirious from lack of sleep, too much food - food baby stomach growing - and too much wine...)

Today we headed to Pisa, prior to arriving in Florence (lovely Florence!). Our bus trip in the morning took us back into the tunnels in the mountains and south, following the coast of Italy. It was very pretty countryside with mountains to the left and sunflower fields to the right. Stunning. Our travel director, Chris, continued to discuss the history of the area, and point out important towns and landmarks. Although the countryside was full of beauty, there were some sad sights along the way, including a reminder of mans inhumanity to man with huge fortresses built in medieval times to protect the cities, and the old WWI German hideouts that are scattered across the countryside. We also saw the mountains (or what’s left of them) where Carrara marble is cut out. The beautiful mountain landscape has been completely destroyed, leaving white scars across the mountainsides. Along the side of the road are the shipping areas, where large blocks of marble are waiting to be shipped across the globe. Although the marble produced in this area is beautiful, it was so sad to see these large blocks simply sitting there, and the scarred mountains behind them, where the blocks once sat. Chris discussed how you never used to be able to see the mountains that we were seeing as a larger mountain obscured them, but this has long been lost to the marble trade. It was devastating to see. Just something to contemplate next time you wish to get a Carrara marble bathtub or bench top…

 

 

After a couple of hours in the bus we arrived in the town of Pisa, to see the great Leaning Tower of Pisa. Unfortunately, to get to see the tower we had to go through the onslaught of people trying to sell you CRAPOLA (including mini leaning towers, and “Rolex” watches – sure they are!), not to mention the herds of tourists. Hav eto say it was the low point of cultural tourism! After walking past the truly authentic Italian souvenirs (carved wooden bongo drums and tribal masks- the Italians must be descended from Africans!??!) we finally got to see the tower. It is really beautiful to see, and amazing that it is still standing! It certainly is  great engineering, despite the obvious curve. The church and baptistery next to the tower is also lovely, and altogether they look like iced wedding cake toppers. Lovely! As long as you don’t look to the left at the stalls selling yet more crapola! We walked back towards where the bus had dropped us and stopped into a small café to grab lunch and watch the craziness of the tourist trade go by. The food was ok, much like a lot of the food we have eaten so far, except the Pirate dinner last night! Very thick, and slightly stale focaccia with proscuito and limp lettuce…. Not exactly what I thought Italian food would be like! Oh well, thankfully I will be doing a cooking class in Florence where I can eat true Italian!

Thankfully, after about an hour we all climbed back on the bus and skedaddle out of there!  We travelled again south, following the coast into Florence. This lovely city was a welcomed relief, with clean streets and nice people, compared with the craziness of Pisa. After getting our room key (hotel = Croce di Malta) and checking out the room (small but functional!), we went down to the lobby to meet Chris who took us to an old Farmacia (pharmacy) that was hidden behind a boring door and down a small passage. When you walked through the door you could smell an amazing perfume wafting from the end of the corridor. At the end of the corridor there were three large rooms, beautifully decorated with dark timber, ornate ceiling roses and stained glass windows. If you didn't know it was there, you would walk straight past this fascinating and beautiful shop. The first room was full of perfumes and cosmetics (moisturisers, make up, oils etc) which released heady scents, filling the room with a fantastic aroma of florals and woody musks, while the other two rooms had herbal teas and things for your home (soaps, scents etc). Everything in this shop is handmade from natural ingredients (no additives!), using traditional techniques that have been used here since the first monks started the trade. It was lovely just walking around looking and smelling all the beautiful products! I bought some perfume (Angels of Florence) and a moisturiser that is citrusy and relaxing. Fantastic and a true local find! J

After a few minutes to freshen up in our rooms (with our new smelly stuff), everyone boarded our Trafalgar bus and travelled out of Florence to a farmhouse in the countryside of Lucca, Il Poggio. It was here that we had a fantastic Tuscan dinner (soooo much food!) in a cantina surrounded by the large barrels of wine made on the property. Our host, Elena, a crazy lady passionate about her home town of Lucca, (heaven help you if you were from Pisa!) discussed the wine and food selected for us for the meal this evening. It was lovely and I had an amazing spelt soup, which I found in their recipe book (which I bought, both the English AND Italian- I guess it’s one way to learn Italian, right?!). The food was fantastic with matching wines made on the premises and we finished the night off by watching people dance to the dj in the garden. Another fantastic night to end a busy day! On the way back to the hotel Michele (our driver) pumped up the disco music and even though we were all exhausted we jammed to the classics – YMCA, mambo No.5 etc. It’s off to bed with me before my face hits the key board and I enter a food/wine/grappa/exhaustion coma.... Ciao! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Day 11 - Private Villas and Pirates Ahoy!

Another EARLY MORNING!

We were up and out straight after breakfast, down to our private boat to get across to Isola Bella and the Palace of the Borromeo family. Isola Bella is a stunning island in the middle of Lake Maggiore, with amazing terraced gardens, a huge palace and albino peacocks (!!!) wandering around like they own the place.


















The palace was absolutely breathtaking. We were shown through approximately 25 rooms of the palace (there are around 125 more that are still closed to the public as the family still uses the palace for their summer home (!!!! WHAT!)) and t grottos below. Unfortunately, we were not allowed to take photos of the actual palace, but we were allowed to take photos of the views from the windows looking out at the lake and the surrounding mountains and gardens (I’ve included some of them). The rooms were amazing, with ornate (but beautiful) decorations and furniture. This palace has some amazing history, including being where Napoleon stayed during summers and where a treaty was signed during WWII. They still have the document, framed and hanging on the wall. The grottos were used prior to air conditioning, as they are below the main house, closer to the water level so the breeze blows into the small rooms covered with white, grey and black coral and rocks stuck onto the walls to create amazing mosaics depicting seascapes and legends of the sea. It was amazing how much cooler it was down there! At least 10 degrees, and with a beautiful breeze coming straight off the water. It was here that our guide told us (if we could keep a secret) that we could take some pictures (below). From the grottos we went out into the landscaped gardens that surrounded the palace. Garden in Italy, unlike at home or traditional English gardens, are not all about the flowers. They’re about layering of different greens and the sculptures places strategically within the gardens. This garden was amazing, with seven terraced layers in the middle, with the top one providing an amazing 360 view of Lake Maggiore. Nice sun deck if I do say so!

 

 

 We had approximately an hour of free time to roam the gardens and take pictures (I took way too many!!) of the lake and surrounding mountains, after which we boarded our private boat and headed back to the mainland for our next tour. Upon arrival we boarded the bus and travelled to Lake Como, the playground for the (Very) rich and famous! This lake was formed by glacial movement, carving out the long shape in the mountains. It is here that we took a boat ride around the lake to do a bit of real estate shopping (I wish!). The villas (only labelled a villa if it has at least two wet docs, the your boats, gardens surrounding it and enough room for you servants… picky, picky!) that surround this stunning lake are owned by the worlds who’s who in high society, from royalty to movie stars and everything in between, as long as they have a spare 20 million to buy their summer house.

It was so hot on the boat! I was very over being on it and looking at these expensive houses after about 15 minutes of our 40 minute trip! The temperature was insane, reaching about 43 degrees with no air!!! Yuck!

Once we finished the tour there was some free time for lunch and shopping. After a quick lunch of pasta with meat sauce (yummo!), I headed to the silk outlets and did some retail therapy to cool down! It was interesting to note that most of the silk, although styled in Italy, were made outside of the EU! I was horrified to watch all these tourists buying silk scarves that they thought were made in Italy, that were actually made who knows wear! I only bought a couple of scrunchies (made in Italy) and some flat, beachy shoes… yay! I met up with the rest of the group and we travelled back to calm, and quiet Lake Maggiore. We had a couple of hours to freshen up and hit the pool (it was fantastic, set on the side of the lake!) before we took a private boat, captained by Pierre, to Isola de Mardre (Mother Island) in Lake Maggiore for our Be my Guest dinner. We ate at La Piratera, with our chef, Lucca, creating a fantastic menu (very full!) of seafood and beef, with an absolutely fabulous tiramisu for dessert while the sun set over the surrounding mountains. It was soo light, and fluffy, with a light coffee flavour. It was to die for!
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The dinner was fantastic! Great end to a fantastic day!

Day 10 - On the road again....

Early start, once again! I can’t wait to get to Florence where I can sleep in!!!!!! Still, we are seeing soo much!

We left the hotel on the Lido by taxi boat around 8:00am to meet Michele with the bus over at the main land. As we left there was a large cruise ship coming into Venice, with hundreds of people standing out on the decks. It was incredible to watch this magnificent ship come into Venice, with all the taxi boats crazily speeding around it, and it trying to navigate the waters. 

 

They must have had a fantastic view of Venice from the high balconies, with all the canals and soft coloured buildings! Chris explained that unlike many other cities in Europe, Venice still looks very similar to how it did originally! This is because very little has been changed and it has now become very hard to change anything! Thank god! It is such a wonderful island city, with its hundreds of alleyways and bridges, it would be a shame to change it!

We boarded our trusty Trafalgar bus and were off, slightly later than expected and slightly sad to be leaving this fascinating place, towards Verona. It  is believed that is was  in Verona that Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet (or Juliet and Romeo in Italian) was set. Verona is a beautiful little town full of boutique shops and gorgeous buildings. Of course I went and had a look at Juliet’s balcony and the hundreds of padlocks attached to the gates around the small courtyard below the balcony, just like every other tourist within 20 km.

 

I also looked along the walls where women had put hundreds of letters to Juliet, just like in the movie “Letters to Juliet”. I was astonished to learn, and see the offices, of the ladies that actually reply to all the letters! All of them! I thought it was absolutely moving that these women reply to all these letters by hand! The courtyard was wall to wall bodies, with people taking pictures, couples kissing and other people just watching the chaos go on around them (that was me). After about 40 minutes in Verona we all got back on the bus and travelled on to our next destination, the stylish city of Milano.

When we arrived in Milano we were greeted by our fabulous local guide, Martina. Just as Chris described, she was like a mother duck herding all of us ducklings around this fascinating town for a couple of hours. She was fantastic, calling on people from the group to play certain characters in the History of Milano so she could convey the complicated to-ing and fro-ing of the dukes ruling this city. She was full of knowledge and passion for Milano. She took us through the castle and the adjoining museum, which included Michelangelo’s final sculpture! You could actually see the marks where he was chiselling the marble to change it from one sculpture to a new masterpiece. Unfortunately, he died before finishing.

We went to the La Scala (through the torrential rain! It was like QLD in the wet season!)! What an amazing place! The small museum of the La Scala was full of portraits of famous opera singers and composers, and old instruments and scores donated to the museum. We were lucky enough to be able to watch the Italian Ballet Company rehearsing swan lake from some of the tiny boxes. When Milano was under Austrian control, the people of Milano asked the Empress of Austria if they could build this beautiful opera house. She said that they could, but that she would not provide any money to help with the construction. Therefore, the rich families in Milano provided money so that the government could build this theatre, and in return they had their own boxes. These boxes are not like the boxes you get in Australia for the ballet or the football! These were tiny, velvet lined boxes with only enough room for four or five people to stand and watch out of the window. You would not be able to sit and watch the ballet as the window was too high! It must have been very uncomfortable to stand for the entire ballet! Anyway, it was absolutely amazing to stand in this famous theatre and watch the ballet company rehearse! Fantastic!

 

We made our way over to the main museum of Milano, still in the pouring rain! Unfortunately, due to the down poor the museum and galleries had flooded, and were closed for the rest of the day! So back into the rain we went, and over to the stunning Galleria. The Galleria is a shopping mall that is open at all four entrances/exits with very ornate decorations throughout! Not to mention the fabulous high end shops and cafes! Check out the pictures, as words just don’t do it justice!

We had about 50 minutes of free time and sat to enjoy a coffee and tiramisu to avoid the rain in the galleria, while Milano locals shopped for fashion around us. I have to say, the Italians have got hospitality service down to a fine art. Not once have I had to wait for water, wine or anything else, and they are happy to try to cater for everyone, as long as you ask with a smile.

We met up with the group and got back on the bus and we were off to our final stop today, Lake Maggiore. It was lovely driving up through the Italian mountains and then down into the lake district. It was difficult to get a good picture as we had to go through so many tunnels cut into the sides of the mountains. Chris our tour director explained that ‘unfortunately’ we had been bumped out of our hotel, because a large group of doctors had booked in for a conference….. so we had been bumped up to a 5 star hotel down the road, right on the lake side. It was a very plain building outside, however when you went inside it was very ornate, with stained glass lights and brightly coloured carpets. It felt like I had just stepped into a casino! We had a few minutes to freshen up (after a huge day of touring!) and enjoy our view over the lake. It was stunning (check out the pic!). At about 8pm we went down to the hotel restaurant for dinner with the group. The dining room also looked out over the lake, providing a fantastic backdrop for dinner. It was great watching a huge storm roll over the lake, and then the lightning start. One minute we could see the palace island in the middle of the lake and the lights from the town on the other side, the next minute you couldn’t see anything. A very thick layer of fog/cloud had moved across the lake, bringing with it fierce winds, rain and lightning.

Dinner was lovely, and after a BIG day touring I was ready for bed, and crashed at about 9:30pm.

Lake Como tomorrow!