Florence to Rome - Siena & Assisi (June 30th)

Sadly it was time to bid farewell to Florence this morning as we began the journey south to Italy's historic capital city, Rome

We had two important stops scheduled for today - the Tuscan city of Siena & the Umbrian hill-town of Assisi.

In Sienna we made a walking tour from our bus parking to the 'Campo' in the heart of the city, discovering the backstreets, seeing the huge San Domenico church & 'Duomo', & enjoying fantastic views of the city's preserved medieval skyline along the way.

We also saw preparations for the 'Palio', the historic horse race between the city's rival 'contrabass' or neighborhoods that will be taking place in just a couple of days around the main square.

There was free time for lunch & for shopping or sightseeing - including for some to climb one of the city's towers for spectacular views.  And of course there is always time for gelato!

Later in the day we also stopped in the picturesque hill-town of Assisi in neighboring Umbria.  Assisi is famous as the home town of St. Francis & is home to a beautiful basilica in his honor, its walls lined with priceless frescoes by artists including Giotto, Cimabue, & others.  We had time to visit the basilica, then to explore the village itself which is beautiful & spotlessly clean, built in the local pink & honey-colored stone.

Finally, at the end of a long day of traveling & sightseeing, we arrived in Rome.  We checked-in to our last hotel then walked to dinner nearby.

Tomorrow:  The Centro Storico & the Vatican!

The Cinque Terre (June 29th)

Our entire day today was dedicated to exploring the stretch of the Ligurian coastline known as the Cinque Terre - Five Lands.
This famed area, just over 20 miles in length, is home to the five villages of Monterosso, Vernazza, Cornelia, Manarola & Riomaggiore.  All were largely isolated from the outside world at one time & are thus preserved today as beautiful & charming fishing villages.

We began our day with a 2 hour bus ride to La Spezia, then took the train all the way to the northernmost village, Monterosso.  From there some intrepid travelers hiked almost 2 hours to the next village, Vernazza, whilst others rode the train along the coastal line.

There was plenty of free time in Vernazza for lunch & wandering,  before we regrouped & took a ferry along the coast to Manarola.

Another train ride, just 2 monists long, took us to the final village of Riomaggiore, where we had a group dinner of mixed fried seafood & grilled swordfish.
Another short train ride took us back to La Spezia where we met our bus for the 23 hour ride to Florence - arriving at our hotel around 9;30pm at the end of an excellent day.

Independent Cities of Tuscany - Lucca & Pisa (June 28th)

The Uffizi Gallery (June 27th)

We had a later start this morning, designed to allow for tired travelers to sleep in a little & recover & also to fit nicely with the opening time of this morning's venue - the Uffizi Gallery.
As it was, by the time we all met up at the gallery most of our intrepid travelers had risen early enough to ride the city bus to a nearby viewpoint, then walked downhill & into the city!

The Uffizi is home to the greatest collection of Florentine Renaissance paintings in the world.  But as such it can be overwhelming both in size & quality.  So we were joined again today by Ulrich to get the mot out of our visit.

Beginning with pre-Renaissance artworks, Ulrich helped us to understand not only the different techniques & artistic approaches that the Renaissance introduced, but also the different way of thinking & of approaching life that these methods embodied.

She's not happy...

The gallery also affords some of Florence's best views, especially over the River Arno, the Onte Vecchio, & the Vasari Corridor.

Planning their attack?

The rest of the day was free as usual, for free exploration of the city, before we met up again later for an excellent dinner at La Maremma restaurant & fantastic gelato at Vivoli!