Tuscany, Italy

Our cruise ship arrived at Athens in the morning, and we flew out to Florence, Italy that afternoon.  Between times, we hung out at the Aegean Airlines lounge (business class) where a banquet of food was served continuously in a relaxing atmosphere. We had been to Athens previously and visited its major attractions.  We didn't have time to explore Greece, and, to us, Athens is just another big city.  Arriving at Florence's comparatively small airport, it was easy to hop a tram to the downtown train station.  From there, it was only a few blocks walk to our accommodation.  Our B&B was not fancy, but it included all the essentials with a great location within walking distance of the entire city.

Our B&B:  Approaching the building, you first encounter a massive unadorned wooden door with a brass plate to the right.  You press the buzzer and are able to open the door.  Then you are presented with this scene.  Take the small elevator to the first floor (one floor up), go through another door, and you are now at the reception desk.

Palazzo Strozzi which we walked by every day on our way to downtown Florence (Italian= Firenze).

In case you were wondering where the tourists congregate.  Looks like they are aimlessly milling around.  Plenty of museums and beautiful churches.

The open marketplace held almost anything you might want to buy.  What was different about Florence were the small shops where craftsmen were creating attractive originals: clothing, jewelry, leatherwork, etc.  These were not 'knockoffs' but originals.

A statue of David (the original is indoors) as seen at night, located in one of the plazas.

Ponte Vecchio, one of the most famous landmarks in the entire city.

We retreated to a beautiful park, Giardino di Boboli, across Ponte Vecchio and overlooking the city.

We took the back way out of the park, planning on a different walking route back to our abode.

We stopped at a small eatery for lunch and ordered their specialty.  Not being able to read Italian, we didn't know what we had ordered until using Google translate.  You are looking at wine, bread, and tripe (intestines).  That was a first for us, but with the sauce on top it tasted okay; the texture was kind of squishy.

Of course, there were hordes of tourists, but at least the streets are wider, the attractions are more spread out, and movement within the city was easier.  If you like museums, you will love Florence.  We had been to Florence previously; this was a 'refresher' visit, worthwhile for a few days, and then we took the tram back to the airport to pick up our Audi A3 rental.  It was a new vehicle; less than ten miles on the odometer!  Dawn drives an Audi at home, so it was very familiar.  Next stop was the walled town of Lucca.

Looking out the window at our Lucca B&B.  It was quiet and we could keep the window open.

Lucca is not far from Pisa and Cinque Terre, but it is a worthy destination on its own, less crowded and less expensive.  Tourists, yes, but in manageable numbers, not suffocating hordes.  The city is completely 'walled', but the wall has been converted into an elevated pedestrian parkway for a relaxing stroll, much of it shaded by trees.  The central city has cobblestone lanes and pleasing architecture.  Our small B&B was a great choice: comfortable room, pretty garden outside our window, parking space for our Audi, fresh fruit with breakfast, and a location right outside one of the city gates.

Walking the 'Wall' surrounding Lucca.  Uncrowded now but well appreciated by locals' late afternoons and weekends.  Walking the entire circumference of the city wall is doable exercise.  

A typical inner street in Lucca.  Tourists, but not a zoo-like atmosphere.

A fountain we passed daily just inside the gate to the city.  One day as we approached this gate we heard huge roaring.  It was a lady's Harley Davison club get together. There must have been a hundred of these motorcycles ridden by women in full leathers revving up their bikes.

While staying at Lucca, we took a day trip to the hilltop village of Montecarlo.  It was a rainy day (not enough to spoil our plans) and there were few tourists besides ourselves.  Naturally, the village had a fortress, but almost all stores were located on a 2-3 block area of one street.  We had an interesting lunch there.  The chef (and owner) had lived all over our planet.  He had four daughters, each born in a different country.  His wife was from Kenya.  In the US he had worked in LA and Atlanta, and he was eager to use his English skills.  The meal was tasty.  One of his daughters, Luna, served the meal.  She was interesting to talk to, wants to travel more; we invited her to visit us.  We also had a conversation with another couple sitting nearby; they were from Sweden, had traveled extensively, and we were able to compare some of our experiences.

Looking west along the main street of Montecarlo.  Our restaurant was on the left.

Looking east on Montecarlo's main street.  The fortress is at the end of the street.

Another day we visited a large historic Villa only a short drive NE of Lucca.  There was an admission charge, but it was reasonable, used to maintain the extensive grounds.  The Villa was initially built for a daughter of Napoleon Bonaparte.  Pond, pool, chapel, tennis courts, stables, formal gardens: what have I left out?  This area includes a series of such estates, but we had time for only one exploration.

This building interior looks like it was built on a whim to entertain.  Figures of legends and supernatural creatures.

Extensive gardens and landscaped terraces.

A water feature and behind the high shrubbery are the main house, stable and shop areas.

Looking south toward the valley from the slopes of Castiglion Fiorentino.

Then, it was time to visit another destination, normally about a 2 1/2-to-3-hour drive, depending on route.  Our goal was Castiglion Fiorentino, another small hilltop village with ancient fortress and quaint medieval surroundings.  Tourists?  We met no foreign tourists there.  The village of Cortona, about 8 miles to the south is better known for tourism.  There are NO tourist-oriented stores in Castiglion Fiorentino.  Just consumer goods: hardware, clothing, shoes, fresh vegetables, pizza, and a few restaurants further down the hill. How authentic and unspoiled!

A crumbling section of the fortress wall.  Walk through the door you see (it needs to be unlocked) and then to the right is Suite San Michele where we were staying.

The fortress watch tower, once important for town defense, is now mainly used as a pigeon roost.

We stayed at Suite San Michele, a small B&B hosted by Sonia (the owner who speaks excellent English) and her very helpful staff who speak no English.  Her staff was eager to help us, but Google translate was essential.  Looking at their guestbook, almost all entries were in Italian.  For them, there was little need for English.  The village was on a steep rocky hill with a crumbling fortress at the crest of the hill.  Part of the fortress wall served as one wall of the B&B.  The B&B foundation (confirmed by archeological excavation) dates back 2700 years to Etruscan origins.  It is believed that the building began as a stable for horses, just outside one of the fortress gates.

To drive to our B&B at Castiglion Fiorentino, you must drive through this narrow opening, then turn right and keep going.  The 'street' wraps around the hill, twisting through parking areas, driveways, and a tunnel.  Does it look like a street to you?

Driving up from below, you approach from the lower left of the photo (where the cars are parked), then make a hard right (it may take two tries), then take a left to approach the steep hill.

Then you drive up the steep hill (toward the camera) and through the tunnel.

The tunnel is ahead.  Don't be distracted by the driveways off to the right.  A driveway may look wider than the actual street.  I learned this after walking the entire route to our B&B.  Without guidance, we left our car parked in a public lot lower on the hill and walked to it from the B&B.

Looking north from the fortress wall. 

Sonia has completely updated her B&B with new plumbing fixtures, electrical appliances, new door & windows, and a modern decor but with ancient cues such as that massive stone wall from the fortress.  Getting to her B&B is a different story.  We had GPS, but the signal became unreliable in the narrow streets, stone buildings, and steep contours.  What GPS said was a street, visually did not look wide enough for our Audi.  We ended up in the municipal plaza and called the B&B for help.  Sonia came in her vehicle and brought us to the B&B while one of her staff members moved our car to a free public parking lot farther down the hill.  That is really service.

Suite San Michele gets a "10" from Dawn and me.  But it was time to leave, drive to the Rome airport, turn in our car, find our next accommodation, and prepare for our ten-hour-long flight the next morning.  We found a nice restaurant within easy walking distance and had a satisfying outdoors dinner meal to celebrate a successful trip.  Next stop was Washington, DC, to visit our son's family. 

Two days after arriving back in Colorado, we awoke to this, and there is more coming in the next few days.  (We ended up getting 20+ inches of snow)