Life is Beautiful in Tuscany

Ciao, buongiorno!

We have found a beautiful little piece of Tuscany. We're staying in part of a big old farm house, shown below, with amazing views all the way out to the hills around Florence, which is about an hours drive north west from here. The house is just outside of a small hill top village called San Pancrazio. I'd say about 100 people live there.

Below shows the back of the house, early evening, after a day out visiting one of the many beautiful towns in Tuscany.

An Easter egg hunt! This was taken that special morning just after they found their eggs, very happy. Love the way the Italians wrap their Easter eggs, a lot of flair. Those spiky looking shrubs you can see behind Connor are artichoke plants. We've spent time relaxing in this little part of the garden, on those deckchairs with a little sand pit for Soph and Connor. This house, La Fonte, as it's called, is just perfect for the kids, and well, for us too really.

Here we are one morning having coffee with the owners Barbara and Stephano. They live here with their kids, Barbara's parents, and her grandmother, four generations! As I write Jane and the kids are downstairs making bread with Barbara. They are so lovely, warm, and generous, we feel very fortunate to be staying here.

We visited Florence yesterday. It was one of those amazing, memorable trips that leaves you buzzing the next day. We had planned to catch a train, but after asking for parking directions at the train station from a helpful guy who spoke just a few words of English, we accidently missed a turn off, and so missed the train. So we drove instead, not easy considering the mayhem of Italian city driving. We made it!

Here are two of the incredible statues in Piazza della Signoria, just outside the Palazzo Vecchio. It shows Neptune and behind him Cosimo I De' Medici. The De' Medici family were a very wealthy, powerful family that funded so many of the buildings and so much of the art that we now see in Florence.

This photo below shows Connor and I in front of the Loggis dei Lanzi, where originally Cosimo I de' Medici's Swiss bodyguards were stationed. Behind us is Benvenuto Cellini's 1545 bronze sculpture of Perseus with the head of Medusa. With such dramatic statues around me I felt like had to do something at least a bit dramatic, hence the pose, and it keeps Connor amused.

We spent hours just walking the streets of Florence, enabling us to see the different faces of this grand city, from a peaceful tucked away playground to its many fancy shops, as shown below.

Barbara, who's family owns the house here, lived in Florence for many years before making the big move to the country. She recommended a little locals restaurant in the heart of Florence, wow, what a find, so authentic. It was one of those meals you never forget. Sophie took this photo below.

Our waiter, Migelli, or Mike as they called him there, was fantastic, unbelievable service, in a very casual, friendly way. Here are some of the tapas (one of them being chicken livers) and other Tuscan delicacies he recommended. The mains included a plate of cows tripe in a lovely tomato sauce, Jane and the kids weren't too keen on that one.

The photo below shows Mike with some of their wine collection. He was saying that its the oldest wine bar in Florence, that it was previously the house of a De' Medici Archbishop and the tomb of the De'Medici Archbishop was just above the room shown below, fascinating stuff. The walls of the room itself dated from the 12th century.

The small plaque shown here in the middle marks the underside of the De' Medici tomb.......

After dinner we drove up to Piazzale Michelangelo which overlooks the city, a perfect way to end the day. This was the jaw dropping view that lay before us........, the Cathedral di Santa Maria del Flore (the Duomo) on the right, and the Palazzo Vecchio on the left...

And the iconic Ponte Vecchio further up the river....

A couple of days ago we visited San Gimignano, a town strongly recommended to me by my brother who was fortunate enough to stay there for a week years ago with his wife, it was outstanding. Below shows Connor off to the side with Sophie further on in the green cardigan, gorgeous streets, with one of the famed towers in the distance...

Tim had talked about a place that sold the best ice cream in town. We saw this ice cream shop (below) with a line of about twenty people, and thought right, that's the one. The owner, Sergio, came up to us for a chat, we had to take a snap.....

San Gimignano is known for its medieval towers. There were originally 70 of them in the town. Powerful, wealthy families would build them as a sign of their might. Due to wars and reconstruction there is now only 14 towers left. The photo below shows the Salvucci Twin Towers. After a height limit was installed by the rulers of the day, this family decided to build two of them!

 

I had previously heard about these Twin Towers and was happy to find out you could climb one of them. This is the view from the top....

And below shows the view out the other side, showing the top of its twin. Interestingly the towers have been converted to stylish rental properties. As I climbed the many, many stairs, it was fascinating to see on one floor a tiny bedroom, the next a tiny kitchen, the next a tiny TV room and so on. You can see below the outside patio chairs and table for the tower house next door, what a view, I'd stay there for sure....

We visited Arezzo earlier this week, one of the larger towns in the area, very picturesque. Here is Sophie picking flowers with the cathedral bell tower in distance...

Arezzo has one of the most charming, gorgeous piazzas you will ever see, it's called "Piazza Grande". Here is Jane and I in the middle of it, so happy just to be there, in such magnificent surrounds.

That building you can see over my shoulder in the photo above, is the same one above the bike cart in the photo below, a scene from the movie "Life Is Beautiful". This film, if you remember, won a host of awards at the 1998 Academy Awards, including best actor by Roberto Benigni ( the guy on the left below). A lot of the movie was shot in Arezzo.

And speaking of town squares, below shows the Piazza del Campo in Siena, just as we entered it, Sophie and Connor hand in hand, wow, what an impressive sight....

In the back streets of Siena we came across this very cool little delicatessen that specialized in wild boar meat, people sipping red wine and nibbling some of the shop's delights just out the front. You can see a wild boar's head above the entrance.

Sophie's been watching me taking photos for quite a while now, so she decided she wanted one of her own, well, a pretend one. Here she is with the new purchase outside of Siena's main cathedral, the Duomo.

And here is a photo I took of the Cathedral's ceiling, the Italians really know how to do churches as you can see......

Here is another view of the magnificent Piazza del Campo with the Palazzo Pubblico (town hall) and the Torre (tower) del Magia, which I was lucky enough to climb that day. The view from up there over the surrounding countryside was spectacular.

It's in this square that the famous bareback horse race, the Palio di Siena, happens twice a year. I took this photo of a picture of the race which was hanging on a street wall nearby. I've thought to myself, we should come back one day and see this race, when the kids are older......

Here is Sophie and Connor, hand in hand again, enjoying a tree swing out the back of the house here....

In the same way Peter Mayle's "A Year in Provence" did so much for Provence, Frances Mayes' "Under The Tuscan Sun" has done a lot for Tuscany. Both great reads by the way. We were able to see her house just outside of a town called Cortona (the tourist office gives directions). There were about five workmen tending her garden, she's obviously doing very well.

Here is a view from one of Cortona's streets. That valley below you can see in the distance was where Hannibal successfully ambushed the Roman army in 217BC.

Cortona was an ancient Etruscan town. The Etruscans inhabited this area for many years before the Romans took over in the late 4th century BC.  This mysterious civilization produced some impressive art, such the one shown below, dated 430-400 BC .

On Easter Friday night we went to mass (mum would be so happy with me) which included a traditional march through the village, just as you would imagine, statues of Jesus and Mary being carried by the men, hymns being sung, a special experience that I had hoped for, being in Italy for Easter and all. You can just see the statue of Mary at the front of the crowd below.

That night a guy called Enzo (shown below with Connor and I a few days later) came up to us for a chat. He was so friendly, and basically wanted to show us around. The town here, San Pancrazio, has a very tragic story in its past. Just before the end of the war, in 1944, the Nazis assassinated all the men in the village, about fifty of them, including Enzo's brother, father and uncles. The main house (shown below) where they were all shot and which Enzo showed us through, is a permanent memorial to those men. The woman of San Pancrazio remarkably over the years brought the village back to life.

Below shows where we stayed in Pitelli, near Cinque Terre. Talk about convenience, we had a man with a fruit and veg truck sell his goods just out the front of where we stayed (shown below), the town butcher across the road, and a few houses down a playground . We were in the heart of this friendly village up in the hills. You can see our apartment just behind the silver car, more rustic then what we have been used to, an authentic, enjoyable experience.

Seeing the leaning tower of Pisa had been on the wish for a long, long time. Below was the view you see as you enter the gates, incredible.....

The Leaning Tower of Pisa is actually the bell tower for the Pisa Cathedral you can see above. Below shoes the base of it. Apparently, the original architect skipped town back in the 12th century, he knew he had done a bad job.....

Here is our attempt at a "holding up the Leaning Tower of Pisa" photo... It was fun watching people everywhere having a go at their own version of a "holding up the Leaning Tower of Pisa" photo, very entertaining.

Here is the ceiling of the Pisa Cathedral, remarkable. I didn't think I'd be taking photos of the inside of churches, but they're just so impressive as feats of art and engineering accomplished so long ago. Construction on this one started in 1064.

 

This nice family photo was taken at another of the gorgeous Cinque Terre villages, Manarola......  

The Italians love their strikes. There was the ferry strike at Lake Como. And here we are below stranded on one of the Cinque Terre train stations, Corniglia, due to some other industrial action. But what a place to be stranded! The couple behind Sophie didn't seem to mind either.

 

We finally caught a train back to Maranola to watch the sun set and this was the view  we were met with......

 

Now for the bad news, the Vegemite has run out! This is serious, I've been looking for substitutes with no luck, I'm going to try and not think about it.

Arrivederci for now and best wishes from

Jane, Sophie, Connor and me. 

 

Cinque Terre, Lake Como, and our one year overseas celebration in Venice

Ciao from Italy!

Yesterday morning I found myself flapping my arms and making chicken noises so the lady in the local grocery store could understand I was looking for where the eggs were. Hardly anyone speaks English here, it's great. We're in a hill top village called Pitelli just south of Cinque Terre on the north western coast of Italy. I took the picture below of Riomaggiore, one of the five villages of Cinque Terre, last Wednesday. I had seen pictures of it in magazines over the years and dreamt about visiting one day.

 

We've had a lovely time in Italy so far, spending four nights on the shores of Lake Como, four nights in Venice where we celebrated one year overseas, and we're now here in Pitelli for seven nights. The people have been so friendly, the food delicious, the roads manic, and the scenery breath taking. I'm becoming a big fan of Italy. Wednesday was a memorable day at Cinqa Terre. Below captures the important ice cream stop, ie. when you're travelling with a four and two year old, with the back drop being beautiful Riomaggiore. 

We then caught the train to Vernazza. After doing a lot of boating on Lake Como and Venice, the kids were sick of boats (classic, hey) so the train ride was a lot of fun for them, especially all the tunnels. Venazza was another stunning gem. Here we are during our little hike up the mountain behind the village.  Spring is in full swing so there's flowers everywhere, and the legendary lemons of this area are hanging ripe.

We found this cool little cafe along the track so stopped for some refreshments. Here is Soph and Connor admiring the view.

Towards the end of the day we found this nice beach at Vernazza accessible through a treacherous looking tunnel in the cliff. Below shows Soph enjoying the beach, and expanding here impressive rock collection. 

And here is Jane showing a lovely contentedness, with the kids playing happily on the beach and the sun glistening over the Mediterranean.

So yes, one whole year overseas, we made it! And what a place to celebrate, Venice! Venice is amazing, so much interesting history, so many gorgeous canals, and again the people are so friendly! I would go as far as to say Venice is one of the friendliest cities in the world. Locals were so willing to help us find our way around, and I tell you it's easy to get lost. We had to go for a gondola ride, something I've wanted to do for many, many years. Below was taken just after we headed off towards the Grand Canal..... 

Sophie and Connor were saying "ciao, ciao, ciao" to people as they cruised past us on ferries and other gondolas, very cute.....

And here we are at the other end of the gondola, you can't help but be romantic in Venice...

We stayed in the Jewish Quarter of Venice, very old and quiet, just perfect for us. In the middle of the photo below you can see Jane and the kids leaning out the window of our canal side apartment....

The best way to experience Venice is to walk around the place. It's a lot bigger than I thought and it really is a working city, not just a massive tourist magnet.  Below shows Soph and Connor walking past one of the many character filled canals...

 

And here is another charming canal I snapped whist wondering .... 

 

Venice has a real battle on its hands. Some of the buildings are sinking and the ocean is very slowly rising. Here I am with the kids standing in front of a building which looked to be long since evacuated due to it sinking on one side, the left, as you can see. You can also see the water almost lapping at our feet...

 

And the photo below shows a clock tower in the distance leaning very noticeably to the left.... 

 

 

This nice photo of us was taken on the edge of Piaza Saint Marco looking out towards one of the nearby islands..

 

There are these classic vintage wooden boats cruising around everywhere. They are the taxis of Venice, I want one!

Here is a photo of Connor and I taken from above the 11th century Saint Mark's Basilica. On the left is the Palace or the "Palazzo Ducale" which was where the government of Venice ruled. Venice was never conquered for 1,000 years, amazing (and very unusual in Europe), from around 800 AD when tribes escaping the northern Lombard barbarians settled on the once swampy area, right up until 1797 when Napoleon Bonaparte marched into the city.

The Palace is remarkable, the paintings on the walls and the ceilings were incredible. When travelling with kids its important to keep them amused. Here I am throwing Connor in the air just before we entered the Palace, he loves that one...

This photo below shows Sophie and Connor saying "Ciao, ciao" to a gondola man just out the front of our apartment. That was the evening we got all dressed up and went out to a nice restaurant to celebrate our one year overseas, we did it! I'm so proud of what we have been able to do, all the those great memories..

Marco Polo (1254 - 1324), the great Italian merchant traveler, was a Venetian. The photo below shows the entrance to the "Arsenale" where they once had a production line that could produce a ship a day, including probably, Marco's boat.....

Going back to our trip through over the Alps to Italy from France, we stayed in Briancon, which is about 10km west of the Italian border. Here are Jane and the kids looking out over Briancon from the impressive Vauban designed fort.

 

The route we took through the Alps was the same one the Romans and Hannibal, along with his war elephants, used around two thousand years ago. Below shows Black Betty just a few kilometres from the Italian border.  

And then we made our way across to beautiful Lake Como, the scenery there was amazing. We stayed in this really old, authentic little village, called Lezzeno, which is one of the many spread along the shores of the lake. Here is Soph and Connor just after we arrived at well known Bellagio which was about 10km further along.

From Bellagio, seen below in the background below, we could catch ferries around the lake. Two clear benefits of travelling around Italy this time of the year, one, spring is showing off all its colours and two, there's no crowds, as you can see .....

Here is Connor and I taking in the views as we ferried past Varenna, another gorgeous town on the shores of Lake Como...

Buzzing from our first ferry trip on the lake I asked this guy to take a photo as we neared our final stop at Bellagio.

Below shows us having dinner that night . We were very excited to be staying in our little flat in Lezzeno. See that window behind Connor...

That's the view out that same window during the day, not bad hey.....

This is Lezzeno as seen from a ferry we were on the day we visited Como, down one end of Lake Como. Our flat is close to the middle left of the photo, tucked in behind a big orange house you should be able to see.

And here is another photo of Lezzeno taken from a lot further back. This puts into perspective the grand scale of the snow capped mountains that surround Lake Como.

We managed to snap George Clooney's house. There it is in the middle of the photo. Apparently he has an egg throwing machine in his back yard which he uses against paparazzi that get a bit too close on their boats....

Connor is developing a habit, whilst he's on my shoulders, of grabbing my hair, pulling it, and yelling "giddy up". Oouch! Here we are in the classy streets of Como.

When travelling with two wee ones there are a lot of distractions and diversions, so we've needed a lot of patience. This photo shows a classic distraction, toys on sale, these particular toys where at a news stand in Como. We wouldn't change it for the world though.

 

The owner of our flat in Lezzeno allowed our kids to use his kids' swings which were nearby, what a bonus, and what a view!

 

The photo below shows our first restaurant meal in Italy, this one on the shores of Lake Como. The meal was excellent, that goes for the food and the service. It's going to be difficult to keep to my current weight.

Here is Soph and I just after I went for a dip in the lake. It was refreshing, to put it mildly. The pink cap is the one I use when swimming in the Bold and the Beautiful swimming club back home at Manly, Sydney.

This friendly Italian lady started chatting to us and she had a little dog who loved to play fetch the stick. Here is Connor having a go at throwing the stick..

And just to finish off, Sophie's preschool teacher back in Provence recently sent us some photos of her little birthday celebration during school hours, here is one of the photos....

As they say in Italy, "arrivederci",

best wishes to you from Jane, Sophie, Connor, and me