Montepulciano!

Early wake up call this morning. Re-packing our bags with all our new stuff and dirty clothes has become a feat. I still haven't expanded my luggage yet which I'm hoping is a good thing.

Quick breakfast and last walk down a few streets in Firenze to board our bus this morning. On the bus now to Rome, stopping in Assisi.

Stephania totally just made a Twilight reference as we drive the highway. We're passing near Montepulciano where New Moon was filmed last year and she pointed it out. Love her. Saw signs for both Volterra and now Montepulciano. Passed too quickly for pics. Oh well. But pretty awesome! We also just passed the area where "Under the Tuscan Sun" was written. And now we're passing the largest lake in the region can't remember the name. Stephania sounds better saying it than I ever will.

Sometime between now and when we leave I am taking a video of both Stephania and Gianluca speaking. I don't ever want to forget their lovely voices and Italian accents.

That's all for now. We are all napping.

P.S. Has anyone gotten any of my postcards yet?

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

San Gimignano... place of dreams.

I fell in love with San Gimignano, Tuscany tonight. What a special night. About half our combined tour group signed up for the optional trip out here and those who didn't go missed the most amazing evening. This has been my favorite night since we've been here.

The first thing that made it special was that both Gianluca and Stephania came. We haven't really been with the both of them together since the tour started. Jill and I have this insane obsession with wishing Stephania and Gianluca would hook up. They are both so beautiful and smart and Italian and perfect. We take creepster pitures of them and I think they are starting to catch on.

Gianluca was right. San Gimignano beats the town center of Florence by far, at least for me. San Gimignano is quiter and more quaint and the scenery is just straight out of a movie. In fact, Stephania told pointed out a spot that all shots of Tuscany in so many famous movies were.

I thought we were JUST going wine tasting but Gianluca and Stephania took us to a few spots for panoramic views of the Tuscan hills (absolutely no words) and then we had an hour and a half or so for shopping and to go to the World Champion (literaly, no joke - they won awards) gelato shop in the world.

I bought a few cute gifts, we took lots of pics, and I had gelato #6? Loosing count. But it was Tiramisu! Delicioso!

Afterwards we boarded the bus again and headed to the winery for our tasting. On the way Stephania had us singing, it was so much fun. When we got there, we had a few minutes to hang out in the garden (straight up out of The Godfather) and then headed into a beautiful outside patio for the wine tasting. The host was Pierre Luigi, the funniest Italian man I have met so far. The way he taught us to taste wine was hilarious. For instance, when you go to smell the wine out of the glass you have to lower it to your "pee pee area" - LMAO! He was so entertaining and wonderful. They served us 6 different wines and oil and vinegar. Everything tasted amazing. They also gave us bread, salami, cheese, chips, and Luigi's grandma's lasagna which was by far the most delicious lasagna I have tasted in my 25 years of existance.

Luigi came around and added biscotti flavored olive oil on top of the lasagna and OMG it was amazing. There was meat on top of the lasagna and I said to JIll, "what is on top of this?" and as she stuffed her face she said "I don't know and I don't care!"

We were able to order anything we wanted to get shipped back home. I ordered some things but I will not say! Presents for mom and dad. ;)

We just got back to our hotel in Florence. Everyone is super tired from the wine. 6am wake up call to pack the bus and head to Rome! Stop in Assisi on the way. Assisi on a Sunday should be fantastic.

Love to everyone reading. Ciao!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Firenze!

Made our way to Florence yesterday. It was a long day on the bus, but I was pleasantly surprised. Our driver, Mimo, gave us a smooth ride. Literally every person passed out the entire bus ride. We stopped halfway through the ride to spend the afternoon in Verona. I was expecting Verona to be a little country village, cobblestones and nothing more. Boy was I wrong. Verona is amazing! There are main streets full of upscale stores, the roads are made of marble! There were several flea markets and an amazing food market going on. We're talking fresh meats, fruits, pastries, rice balls (which we ate like apples for lunch) and pretty much every other amazing Italian food you could think of.

We made our way to "Juliet's Balcony" (which is not real, but the amount of tourists would make you think otherwise). The coolest part is right before you get to the balcony there is a tunnel wallpapered in love notes that people have left. Just hundreds and hundreds of post-its and papers with notes. Its a sight to see. So romantic!

The balcony is underwhelming, but we did the touristy thing of taking a picture next to the Juliet statue while groping her boob. Supposed to give you luck in love.

Afterwards we just walked around and then enjoyed the afternoon sitting on the steps of the opera house, with the Roman Arena in front of us. We've really been blessed with amazing weather. Sunny and warm everyday, no humidity.

Bussed it onward to Firenze (Florence for you non-locals). Tons of traffic, but again we were all passed out. The most amazing part is as you get closer to Firenze, the landscape completely changes. Tuscan hills and greenery, little village homes, winding water. We got the most breathtaking shots out of the bus window!

We literally had 5 minutes to walk to the hotel, throw our bags in an elevator the size of a small closet, run upstairs and then make it back down for dinner. We walked through the town to the restaurant only to come our right smack in front of the Duomo. Italy is like this. You are walking around these tiny streets and then all of a sudden the most amazing historical sight is right in front of you. As if it's just another building.

Dinner was at a cute restaurant with the group. Chez and I had to sit with a group from Pittsburgh because there was no room, but it was good to sit and talk with new people. One of them just graduated in Interior Design so Chez and her hit it off.

Afterwards the group split up but tall dark handsome tour guide Gianluca was going to "the best gelato place in Florence" so we followed him. We learned a little about his life on the way. He's from Parma, never been to the states (insane!), does other tours in Ireland and France and is single. LOL! He was asking us about New Jersey. When we told him it was the home of Bruce Springstein he got so excited. He loves Bruce.

Gelato #6? Rum!

Went back to the hotel and passed out. This trip is exhausting! Breakfast at the Florence hotel was like jail food compared to the Venice hotel. Just cereal and bread. Can't complain though because after breakfast we headed to see the David. The David is just unreal. You walk into this little shabby looking building only to be greeted with his presence. He's so beautiful. No pictures unfortunately (not allowed) but I bought a 1 euro postcard. Again, stupid American mistake. They were selling them for mere cents outside the museum.

After that we had free time and Chez, Jill and Mary being art nerds wanted to go to the Medici museum. Our tour guide Stephania rec'ed the museum so we went. The chapel inside is breathtakingly huge. So amazing.

After that we ate paninis outside the Ponte Vecchio and did some shopping on the bridge and had a cappacino. We didn't get to go into the Ufitzi (spelling?). It was not included in our tour and the line to get in was incredibly long. But we then had a 1.5 hour walking tour with an amazing guide named Nicolo who was soooo learned in Florentine art history. Chez was in love with him. He took us through the Ufitzi area outside and then into the Duomo and the chapel. We were glad we were able to take pics inside. You feel so small in these big structures!

After that we went to a leathermaking shop. The girl who works there was funny, she had a tough sense of humor. She talked about how to make leather and how to tell if leather is real. Gianluca, one of our guides was able to secure us all a 10% discount in their shop. We all got gifts!

In the bus now on the way to an optional excursion for wine tasting and lasagna for the evening in San Jimignano (spelling?). Gianluca said people rave that this section of Tuscany is more beautiful than Florence.

We'll be the judge!

*my phone may have posted this twice, once unfinished and once finished... Oh well... I'm surprised my blackberry is being this nice to me for this trip!*
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Firenze!

Made our way to Florence yesterday. It was a long day on the bus, but I was pleasantly surprised. Our driver, Mimo, gave us a smooth ride. Literally every person passed out the entire bus ride. We stopped halfway through the ride to spend the afternoon in Verona. I was expecting Verona to be a little country village, cobblestones and nothing more. Boy was I wrong. Verona is amazing! There are main streets full of upscale stores, the roads are made of marble! There were several flea markets and an amazing food market going on. We're talking fresh meats, fruits, pastries, rice balls (which we ate like apples for lunch) and pretty much every other amazing Italian food you could think of.

We made our way to "Juliet's Balcony" (which is not real, but the amount of tourists would make you think otherwise). The coolest part is right before you get to the balcony there is a tunnel wallpapered in love notes that people have left. Just hundreds and hundreds of post-its and papers with notes. Its a sight to see. So romantic!

The balcony is underwhelming, but we did the touristy thing of taking a picture next to the Juliet statue while groping her boob. Supposed to give you luck in love.

Afterwards we just walked around and then enjoyed the afternoon sitting on the steps of the opera house, with the Roman Arena in front of us. We've really been blessed with amazing weather. Sunny and warm everyday, no humidity.

Bussed it onward to Firenze (Florence for you non-locals). Tons of traffic, but again we were all passed out. The most amazing part is as you get closer to Firenze, the landscape completely changes. Tuscan hills and greenery, little village homes, winding water. We got the most breathtaking shots out of the bus window!

We literally had 5 minutes to walk to the hotel, throw our bags in an elevator the size of a small closet, run upstairs and then make it back down for dinner. We walked through the town to the restaurant only to come our right smack in front of the Duomo. Italy is like this. You are walking around these tiny streets and then all of a sudden the most amazing historical sight is right in front of you. As if it's just another building.

Dinner was at a cute restaurant with the group. Chez and I had to sit with a group from Pittsburgh because there was no room, but it was good to sit and talk with new people. One of them just graduated in Interior Design so Chez and her hit it off.

Afterwards the group split up but tall dark handsome tour guide Gianluca was going to "the best gelato place in Florence" so we followed him. We learned a little about his life on the way. He's from Parma, never been to the states (insane!), does other tours in Ireland and France and is single. LOL! He was asking us about New Jersey. When we told him it was the home of Bruce Springstein he got so excited. He loves Bruce.

Gelato #6? Rum!

Went back to the hotel and passed out. This trip is exhausting! Breakfast at the Florence hotel was like jail food compared tr
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Off to Florence!

*We've now arrived in Florence and had our first night here already. But this post from this morning never went through... so sending it now*

Good morning!

We are finishing up breakfast right now. Last night after we got back from Venice we relaxed a bit then headed to Lido for dinner. We found this cute restaurant... wait... Every restaurant is cute but this one was awesome. It was outside with a little canopy and an Italian guy singing and a fountain. We ate pizza for an appetizer (yes, how great is that?), Jill had ravioli, Chez had gnocchi, Mary had noodle pie and I had spaghetti bologonese. We also got a caraf of rose wine which was probably one of the best wines I ever had. We laughed and shared our food and got swindled by a vendor who came to our table and gave us roses and then asked for 2 Euro from each of us.

We must have dumb gullible American girls written on our foreheads. Good thing we laughed about it the rest of the night.

Gelato count:

5) Dolci Stella ("Sweet Star" which was bright blue in color with star sprinkles and tasted like funfetti/cotton candy)

Leaving Venice now. The routine of the morning has turned into literally stuffing our faces. Everyone else eats a bowl of cereal or one croissant. Jill, Mary, Chez and I eat 2 hard boiled eggs, Italian donuts, yogurt, fruit, meat & cheese. We tear it up!

About to board the bus to Florence. Stopping in Verona on the way! Ciao!

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Alora!

Alora (guessing you spell it that way) is an Italian interjection that our guide Stephania taught us yesterday. Since then we've been saying it all the time. It means literally nothing and it's something you say when you don't have anything to say. Like Americans say "sooo..." or "ummm...".

This very second I am sitting on the steps in St. Mark's Square with an Italian band playing next to us. The square is packed! It's sunny and hot and just perfecto!

Today was a long day of sightseeing. We keep saying we can't believe this is only really day one! We have done and seen so much. Today we toured St. Mark's, the Doge's Palace, St. Mark's Basilica, the Museo Correr, shopped on the Rialto Bridge, took a gondola ride around the Grand Canal (where our gondola driver was singing his own little tune of "Bella bella bella mozzarellaaa!"), saw a glass blowing demo at Murano, strolled through the smallest of streets around Venice eating gondola shaped pizza.... now Jill is in the middle of St. Mark's feeding pigeons! One just perched on her shoulder!

Francesca cried in the middle of St. Mark's today. LOL! We took a picture in front of the palace and then she looked at it on the screen, said it was so beautiful and broke down crying. Everyone was like "OMG, what's wrong?!?!" and she got all embarrassed and giggled it off. She is so cute. But that just shows you how overwhelming this place is.

Mom and dad, you can stop worrying now. She only cried for a minute. ;)

We have a 5:15 boat ride back to Lido. We had the option of staying in the square but apparently it gets expensive and super touristy. So, we are opting to go back to the main street in Lido where we were yesterday for the night.

I took about 300 pictures so far. Everything is just so picture-worthy. You just can't believe what you are looking at.

Jill started collecting photos of every good looking Italian man we've seen. Seriously, Jersey guids got NOTHING on these guys.

Off the enjoy the last half hour we have in the square. We are having a blast.

Alora.

P.S. Gelato update:

4) Yogurt flavored
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Oops?

Every single girl except one was late for our first scheduled group dinner. It was set for 8pm. Our room phone rang at 8:25pm and it was Stephania saying we were late. We freaked out only to run out the door with all the other girls who were late, too. This time change and the fact that we haven't slept since Monday night is messing with us all! We all looked like zombies at dinner.

We had a straight up 4 course Italian dinner. Antipasto, macaroni, meat and potatoes and my third gelato of the day! Which luckily was not a repeat flavor!

3) Half vanilla/half chocolate

Gianluca, our tall, dark and handsome male tour guide talked to us about all the extrra excursions we can go on. We want to do them all! Tomorrow's optional is a gondola ride... Duuuh, gotta do it. The others include busing around Rome at night (my favorite!!), wine tasting in San-Something (Gianluca says it so fast and effortlessly, I couldn't tell you the city name right now), tour of the catacombs and a Tarantella music show after dinner one night! I really hope everyone decides to do them. They all cost extra money and we can only go if 20+ people sign up. Don't be cheap, peeps! When in Rome!

Now Francesca and I are going to lay out our clothes for tomorrow and hopefully get some REAL rest, not on Lufthansa. Jill and Mary just came by to call their parents. Time to call it a day!

Goodnight, Venezia.
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry