The last couple of days

Last night was dinner at the Piazza Navona, which is a gathering of trendy ristorantes not too far from our hotel. Some of our group had to meet, while the rest of us spread out and enjoyed the cool evening.

Okay, Jennifer, if you haven't been paying attention, start listening.
We ate at Tre Scalini, which was listed in our tour guide as having one of the top 10 treats in Rome, a desert called Tartufo Tre Scalini. Essentially, a truffle with chocolate ice cream covered with dark chocolate shavings and whipped cream with a piece of fudge and a cherry in the middle.

Goes well with cappucino. Yum.

This morning we departed bright and early for the Vatican and St. Peter's Basilica. Our group was a little smaller, with some doing their own thing and others resting tired legs, so we grabbed a couple of taxis to head for our destination.

We had two taxis, and the first one went away while we waiting on our others. Our driver picked us up and then proceeded to drive in circles while explaining in Italian why it was necessary to go five miles out of the way to get us to something two miles from the hotel.

So, thirty minutes and several Euro later, we arrived at the Vatican and took our place in line. Jim said we were fortunate to have our place for our hour-long wait; he had seen lines much longer than the one we were in that took three to four hours to get inside.

Our plan was to cruise through the museums on the way to the Sistene Chapel. We finally made it inside and began winding our way through the Vatican.

The frescoes inside are mind-boggling. The way they are painted is done with such detail and attention to shading that they appear to be three dimensional. The map room was the most elaborate of the rooms we saw; it seemed to be the length of a football field. The ceiling was covered with a fresco that was elaborate and amazing in detail.

From there we continued through rooms with tapestries, a musuem of modern religious artwork and a whole lot of stairs until we finally reached the Sistene Chapel.

I have to admit, it was nothing like I could have ever imagined.

For one, the paintings on the ceiling are much more elaborate than I would have imagined. I actually had to search a bit to find the painting on the ceiling depicting God giving life to Adam; it was that elaborate. And, Jim said he read somewhere that the space between the fingers is actually six to eight feet.

I would love to show you photos. However, the entire time I kept hearing one of the guards shouting, "Silenz . . . no peekchures . . . "

So, no peekchures. At least not of the Sistene Chapel.

After seeing that, we took a lunch break before heading for St. Peter's. It is deemed the largest church in the world, and I believe it. Even bigger than that Pentecostal church in North Little Rock, I joked.

There are burial places for the popes within the basilica, and if I remember correctly, about 40,000 can attend mass inside of the facility. There are several smaller chapels inside the church as well.

However, the domes were the big draw for me.

The main duomo is slightly smaller than the Pantheon, but is more elaborately decorated in my opinion. They acutally allow you to go up into the dome, but facing 300-plus steps after an elevator ride did not seem too appealing to me.

We did gawk at from the floor, though.

One of Michelangelo's sculptures is on display at the basilica, although behind glass after it was attacked by a man with a hammer in 1972. He claimed he was Jesus Christ.

Hmmmm . . . .

Walking around some more, we were amazed at all of the memorials in honor of the popes. Seeing the different styles of memorials for each one was quite interesting; they spanned several years as well as different art styles, from Baroque to Medieval and Renaissance.

They were all beautiful and impressive.

My friend Tony asked me to take a photo of something "Catholicy" for him, so this was my attempt:

Many of the domes have openings that allow shafts of light to pour into the chapel. It was like a gift from God. Pretty cool.

Tonight we're having a farewell dinner to top off a great trip to an incredible land. I may not have time to post more until we're home and rested, so I hope this has been an enjoyable read for you guys. However, there's no way I could do it justice with my words and photos. There's so much here I have left out; you really have to come over and see it for yourself.

Ciao!

So, what makes them so smart?

Okay, so I'm fascinated with cars. Always have been.

And I know, in the U.S., we like our cars bigger, better, faster.

But, these little cars are everywhere underfoot in Italy.

The Smart car seems to be an answer to some of the crowding on the streets of Europe, and they are everywhere here. Little more than a two-seat car with a motor somewhere on it, they come in all sorts of flavors.

I've seen them painted up in festive colors and understated ones. They are driven by all ages, sexes and socioeconomic groups.

They seem to be pretty easy to parallel park, too.

Actually, cars over here seem to be skewed toward small. Mostly hatchbacks, it's been refreshing for me to see a lack of gas-guzzling monster SUVs piloted by cell phone operators intent on doing anything but driving.

Okay, actually, there's lots of cell phone calls while driving that take part here. Which makes it even more amazing to watch people pilot them between other (really close) cars, cyclists and pedestrians. Lanes are optional here; if there's real estate in your lane available, you take it, and possibly gesture while you're doing it.

And for those of you thinking that exotic sportscars rule the road here, forget it. At least in the city. I've seen one Ferrari since I've been here.

However, I have been lusting over the amount of Ducatis in traffic 'round here . . .

Rome in the morning

This morning's tour took us to the Roman Forum, the Colliseum and the Pantheon, as well as seeing several sites by bus.

The first stop on the tour was the Capitoline Hill, which is now a museum. It is perched on one of the seven hills that ancient Rome was built atop, and is quite beautiful. A pair of statues greet you on either side, and I swore that one of them was text messaging someone.

After a quick group photo, we were around this fine structure and made our way to the ruins of the Roman Forum. It was very impressive. As we rounded the building, ancient columns could be seen, and we eventually made our way to a spot overlooking the area. Our tour guide, Flavio, was adept at pointing out where the ancient temples and buildings were, as well as the history behind the area.





We walked through the Arch of Septimus Severus (much grander than any Arch of Triumph in France, according to Flavio) and marveled at the the amount of history we were walking through. Flavio pointed out the stones that we were stepping on were the original Roman road leading to the forum. Amazing.

We kept on, eventually making our way past the Temple of Ceasar, the ruins of the temple of the vestal virgins and many other sites until we worked our way down into the level of the Colliseum. It was as large as many stadiums we know in our current world, but much grander at the same time.

It was funny to see men dressed up as gladiators posing with tourists for photos - for a mere 5 Euro. What a bargain!

Lots of tourists surrounded the place, and we were given 15 minutes before boarding the bus to head for the Pantheon. It was fun to circle the place to see people inside doing walking tours which we declined. Not enough time.

Even on our drive to the Pantheon, Flavio was able to point out numerous basilicas and ruins that were a part of the Roman landscape. This seems to be the coolest part about this city; everywhere you look, there's something beautiful and historic to see.

Rome in a day

From Florence to Rome by first class train is the way to go. If they actually post the time.

Jim, our tour guide, has done a great job in taking care of the travel details, getting cabs to take us the train station this morning as well as handling getting the tickets. First class this time around, which meant we weren't packed into our seats and 6'2" sardines.

It was nice. Except they didn't post our gate until about five minutes after the train was supposed to leave.

Fortunately, the train was a little bit behind.

The countryside of Italy is so enticing. I really want to return on a motorcycle (which may be interesting when I try to ride it across the Atlantic) and explore the small towns across the country. So many quaint little villages that probably have many, many stories to tell.

We made it to Rome in about two hours, which meant we arrived early afternoon. Once we settled into our rooms, we decided to grab taxis to the Hard Rock Cafe for lunch, and then walking to the Spanish Steps and the Trevi Fountain before returning home.

The lunch was enjoyable - the first hamburger I've had in a couple of weeks, which is quite an accomplishment for this carnivore. Purchased some souvenirs (Brent, I have some picks for you) and then headed out for the Spanish Steps.

One problem - left the hot rod camera at the hotel.

New batteries for Crystal's point and shoot, and we're back in bidness.

Rome has quite a different vibe. A population of 4-5 million (which I incorrectly stated was the population of Florence earlier, which is not so: Florence is about 400,000 strong) creates a lot more hustle and bustle. It was very busy, to say the least.

We walked for a good long ways before we reached the Spanish Steps, which were named after the consulate which is nearby. Quite a hike, and then a bit of a jaunt down for some photos.

We went to the fountain at the foot of the steps, thinking incorrectly that this was the Trevi Fountain where Crystal was supposed to throw some coins over her shoulder for her mom. Being the dutiful daughter, she did.

And then, we found out we were in the wrong place. Begin the hike again.

It took a couple of wrong turns, but we finally reached the fountain, which was magnificent. Large marble statues grace the fountain, which is huge and attracts quite a few tourists as well.

The legend goes that if you throw three coins over your shoulder into the fountain you will return to Rome. At least according to Frank Sinatra.

So, Crystal did it for her mother. Does that mean she will return to Rome, or her mother?

And, so began the hike back to the hotel.

A few of us were walking wounded. Patsy's ankles were giving her trouble, Jan has been having knee problems and Crystal was running out of energy.

It was a long walk back, but a chance to check out the scenery.

Although I've not been able to figure out what buildings I'm seeing, I'm shooting tons of photos of the amazing architecture.

We spent a great evening in the suite inherited by Mary Kay and Dianne. A balcony overlooking Rome (Hey, I can see the Vatican from here!) was a great way to wind down a long and busy day.

Apparently, Rome is pretty spread out and we're going to be doing quite a bit of walking over the next couple of days. The Vatican, the Colliseum and several other amazing sites are on the agenda before it's all said and done.

Two days and counting.

Day trippin'

Woke up this morning hoping to do some daybreak shots of a basilica across the Arno that I noticed when jogging a few days ago. The early morning sun illuminated it, and even cast its reflection in the still waters.

But, the front desk said rain when I asked for a forecast the previous day.

Maybe I'll sleep late, I thought.

The alarm went off bright and early, and I checked through the slats of the shutters and the light looked pretty even. Overcast, I thought, and headed back to sleep.

When I finally woke up around 7:30, I took another peek. Hey, that's a shaft of sunlight!

Great. Slept right through the good light.

Got dressed quickly and hurried up the river, but it just wasn't right. Took a few shots, but it just wasn't there.

Oh, well. We got ready and roamed the city anyway, with the goal of the day a bus trip to Pisa.

The previous tour by bus was the fateful rainy day trip. It really didn't allow for much walking around, and what little we did was pretty soggy.

So I was leery of the trip to Pisa.

We enjoyed revisiting many of the sites that we've enjoyed the past few days, sitting among centuries-old sculptures and watching the many flavors of people float past. Had a nice lunch and made our way to the meeting point for our trip to Pisa.

We all met, headed for the bus station just like the schedule said. Only, the bus left five minutes before we got there.

What?

Turns out our tour was at 2, not 2:30.

Great. What are we going to do now?

Well, the train station is a block away from the bus station. Round trip to Pisa is about 10 Euro if you go second class.

Andiamo! If I actually spelled that right . . .

We hopped a train that took us to Pisa, and actually took a slightly different route than the trip to Cinque Terre. We passed small towns that looked so peaceful and inviting, that I had to find them on the map I purchased today. I want to remember where they were for a future trip . . .

In about an hour we arrived in Pisa. We found a map and set out on foot for the Leaning Tower and basilica.

It was an impressive scene. Thousands of people trying to hold up the tower - or at least be photographed pretending they were. It was pretty neat to see the architecture and lounge around in the shade of the basilica.

The grounds were nicley manicured, and we watched the polizia aggressively blow their whistles to encourage people to stay off the grass. A few of us made out way to the baptistry, which is separate from the duomo and according to travel guru Rick Steves offers a much more impressive view of the area.

We bought our tickets, and off we went. Not before I photographed a priest on a bike, though.

Inside the baptistry was breathtaking. The cupola had to have been 10 to 15 stories tall at its highest point. A confining staircase wound through the wall to lead you to the second level, giving a great view of the duomo with the tower sticking its head out from behind the basilica.

While we were admiring the view, we heard what sounded like several monks chanting. We went to the upper railing to find them, but only found a tour guide chanting a single note.

Apparently, the cupola creates echoes that add several "voices" - not to mention octaves - to a single person's voice. It was incredible as she gave a short performance.

The city of Pisa was not large and didn't have as many attractions, but we enjoyed winding our way through it nonetheless. Having enjoyed the duomo and tower, we headed back to the train station but got called into a trattoria by a waiter trying to drum up business.

It worked.

We had a great meal, with pizza, seafood and even some more wild boar for me. I was happy.

On the train ride back, we decided this was much, much better than the bus tour. We got to go at our own leisure, took our time, had a great meal and enjoyed each other's company.

We should do this more often.

Cinque Terre

For some reason, the name of this national park kept reminding me of a fraternity brother's habit of saying "Tierra Del Fuego!"

Actually, judging by the beauty of this trip, I may know why it kept coming to mind. The views we had today can probably be topped only by the island near Antarctica.

The day started out overcast and dull, with the added bonus of a two-hour train ride out to an Italian national park named Cinque Terre. The name means "Five Lands," and the park's main attraction is a trail with a length of eight miles that links five coastal villages along the Ligurian Sea.

The trip was suggested by Jen, a graduate student with the study abroad program. She and Danielle, the director of the study abroad program, had made the trip a few weeks ago and thought it would be fun.

Our train ride took us to Riamaggiore was socked in by fog at times, which limited the views on our way. Before entering the station, we went through a fairly long tunnel, and at the end we were greeted with a sweeping panoramic of the Ligurian.

The small town marked the beginning of the first trail, Via Del Amore, or the Trail of Love. It was a one-mile hike to the next city, Manarola, which we walked fairly easily though.

The towns themselves seem carved out of the steep faces of the mountains that plunge into the sea. Centuries old storefronts and villas overlook the rocky shoreline, providing a sense of tranquility.

Even though we were hot, sweaty and hiking.

The next leg of the trip was a two-mile hike to Corniglia. At that point, we decided it would be prudent to catch a train, since the other trails began to get increasingly diffuclt. In fact, the two miles to Corniglia were some of the toughest walking we've done since we've been here.

It was amazing to see not only houses but gardens perched on the side of the hill. Jim pointed out a "tractor," which consisted of a seat with a motor that was used on a rail to lug the farmer and his goods up and down the sheer sides of his vineyards.

After waiting for about an hour, the train arrived and we rode to Vernazza, where the decided we would take our lunch.

Wow.

Walking down into the city was like being taken back in time. Even though it was a popular tourist destination, the little village seemed to have not changed over time. There were numerous ristorantes to choose from, and the two of us chose the Ristorante Belforte.

The restaurant had a beautiful view from the point of the city, although several others were noted even higher up the side of the sheer cliffs, Nonetheless, our view was breathtaking, and included a sea gull that perched on the railing behind Crystal waiting for a handout.

Eventually, one of the cooks did bring it out a plate of anchovies. He seemed pleased.

I think the seafood was grabbed out of the sea, and the menu boasted of vegetables taken from local gardens. It was great.

We hung around the city while our group reassembled and I took the opportunity to snap a few shots of residents watching the tourists take over their tiny town. It was a beautiful place.

Our last stop on the ride was the beach resort town of Monterossa. This was the icing on the cake.

A beautiful sandy beach which eventually blended back into the rocky shoreline we were accustomed to, this tiny town seemed like the Italian answer to Eureka Springs. You went from your train immediately to the beach, walking along it until you reached a tunnel that took you back under the tracks and through a hillside to reach the center of the city.

The city itself was tiny, dotted with shops and ristorantes as well as two ancient churches, one of which was undergoing renovation. I did my duty by leaving a Euro in the donation box as instructed.

Crystal and I roamed the backstreets, marvelling at the structures and the people of the city. We stopped for gelato and sat at the municipal building listening to some older men discuss something.

It could have been anything, really. The soccer game that the young men in the bar were loudly celebrating when goals were scored, the nagging of their wives, the direction in which the sun rose this morning, anything. But their expressiveness and gesturing was a treat to behold.

We roamed the city some more before catching the 6 p.m. train back to Riamaggiore, in order to catch the 6:45 train back to Florence. En route, we passed through Pisa, which will be our trip tomorrow afternoon.

I really doubt it can match today, though. I'm ready to open a photo shop in Vernazza, personally.

Ciao for now!

Finding a gold mine

Today may have been Crystal's favorite day in Florence.

We had nothing on the agenda, and while I had planned on getting up early to once again view the sunrise, we slept in until around 9:30 and hit the streets around 11. We found a great pastry shop down the street where I had a chocolate filled bigne and the best caffe' americano I've had since I was here. I'll be back.

Our main destination was the Ponte Vecchio bridge, which is an old structure that houses tons of small jewelry shops spanning the Arno River. Crystal just wanted to see it if nothing else.

She was fascinated by the shops, and spent a good bit of time window shopping. It was fun to see the view from the shops, which was a straight shot right down the Arno.

And, yes, she did make some purchases on the bridge. I may be going shopping for a leather jacket now . . .

After that, we made our way to the Palazzo Pitti, which was a large palace built by the Medici family when one of them contracted tuberculosis and wanted to move out of Florence. Behind it is the Giardino di Boboly, or the Boboly Gardens. I would not want to be their gardener; the place is huge.

It involved some pretty steep hikes, but once we reached the top of the garden the view of the city was very impressive. The Duomo is very prominent, and seeing the houses and buildings stacked on top of one another is very picturesque.

We only saw part of the garden. It is so huge that we did not see all of it. It was a hot day and we began to get tuckered out, facing a pretty long trip back to the hotel.

We wound around some side streets to reach our hotel, stopping at several shops along the way that sold produce, olive oil, books, ceramics, leather goods, and many other things. It's amazing to wind through the centuries-old streets. They have seen foot traffic, horses and wagons, and now have to put up with fast-moving taxis and scooters on those same cobblestone streets.

It's truly a beautiful city.

At one point in the day, Crystal mentioned she would like to see one of the churches in the city. The lines to get into the Duomo (and everything else) tend to be long, so I really hadn't held out much hope.

However, on our way back to the hotel, I saw a door leading into a chapel. I grabbed Crystal and we ducked inside and were instantly amazed.

The Ognissanti chapel was huge and beautiful, ornately decorated with paintings of the Crucifixion, the Virgin Mary, and the saints. Two frescoes that were rescued from the flood of 1966 are also displayed. It was amazing.

We got to see our church. One that we had passed numerous times on our way to and from the hotel.

You gotta keep your head up.

"Why Scandicci?"

On Friday night, we were treated to a performance by the UCA choir in a church in the small town of Scandicci. I say small town, since it's the size of Conway in population, but after being in Florence, with a populus of about 5 million, it seems like a quaint little village.

The choir, of course, sounded great. The San Luca Vingone Church was the venue, and I had envisioned a centuries-old, ornate building that was dark and beautiful. Instead, I was greeted with a church that was a beautiful Italian design that was anything but old.

At least the acoustics were what we expected.

The choir did a mixture of Italian songs and American spirituals and sounded beautiful. Dr. John Irwin does a great job with the choir, and the Italian audience was very receptive.

However, it wasn't without a few snags.

For one, we called for three cabs, and two showed very quickly and whisked most of our party away. However, the third one was slow in arriving, and when he did arrive, he did not know where the church was.

He apparently was related to the bus driver shuttling the choir, because they got lost, too.

This after dinner ran long for the group, and a tour guide had to sprint back two miles to retrieve a lost passport of one of the students.

Oh, well. The show must go on, and it did.

After the performance, the choir got on the bus and the church members dispersed to their homes. Three women of the church waited with us while the cabs made their way to us.

After the first cab took half of our group, we struck up a conversation with the women, asking about the town and talking about the places the choir had traveled.

At that point, noting the students sang in Milan and Rome, one of the women asked, "Why Scandicci? Why not Florence?"

We also asked if they had traveled to America. They smiled and said no, with one woman clasping her hands as if in prayer, and said, "Oh, one day."

Which was ironic I though. I had dreamed of one day traveling abroad to see countries such as hers. Why would she want to see America?

Not to put down my homeland, mind you. But to be surrounded by centuries of art, history and tradition, what can be appealing about the land of McDonald's and SUVs?

You really begin to see on a trip like this that while our world seems to shrink every day, it's still a big ol' goofy world to be explored. I envy those with the resources to do it regularly.

However, I still should take the time to learn my backyard better before globetrotting on a regular basis.

To market, to market

I finally got my lazy butt out of bed to run along the Arno River. Holy cow, it was beautiful.

The sun was just rising, highlighting a chapel across the river which was reflected in the water. With the streets free of tourists, Italian shop keepers were busily readying for their day, sweeping, primping, giving the American weird looks as he plodded by.

No photos while running. One morning will be dedicated to rising early just for photos.

We went to the San Lorenzo market, which was pretty fun. Leather goods everywhere, Italian scarves and ties, all manner of souvenirs. And, everyone was expected to haggle.

I photographed a merchant surrounded by his wares, which were purses of all shapes and sizes. He was a proud man, but was very gracious in accomodating me. He even gave me his card to send him a photo. And, should I ever need any leather goods . . .

I actually had to stay busy today, photographing the apartments where the students live for some publicity for the study abroad program. Hey, if the company's sending me, better do my best to earn my keep, right?

Tonight, we are going to an outlying city to hear the UCA choir peform. Something about hearing their voices in a church that dates back hundreds of years is guaranteed to bring goose bumps. They sounds great.

Scooterista!

Yeah, I'm kinda in two-wheeled heaven.

I've been watching these people and their scooters, and I'm telling you, it's a different environment.

For one is their riding style. Most where open-faced helmets, and I'm presuming it's to allow you the ability to smoke.

Or talk on the cell phone.

Or both.

I actually saw a guy today talking on a cell phone with one hand and adjusting his helmet with the other. The only thing missing was the cigarette.

It's actually really interesting to see all walks of life on the scooters. Young, old, male, female, professional businessmen in suits, and the guy I saw today carrying a string trimmer on his.

It makes me miss my motorcycle somewhat, although you see probably five scooters for every one motorcycle in town.

Their manner of driving - splitting lanes, cutting into empty spaces between cars, going down wrong way streets - is daunting, but the ease with which they do it makes me envious as well.

I wonder if I could take a spin on one, just to see what it's like?

Crystal says no.

The whirlwind that is Florence

Man, it seems like we haven't stopped since we hit this city.

Yesterday was pretty jam-packed, with a couple of tours filling our day. In the morning, we visited the Palazzo di Cerchi, the study abroad facility that UCA shares with Kent State. A few blocks from the Duomo, a huge basillica that pretty much is used to establish where you are the in city, the centuries-old building once housed the Cerchi family who were a part of the Tuscan aristocracy. (I hope I got that right)

An interesting mix of wooden beams that are hundreds of years old and wireless Internet should make for a pretty interesting study environment.

We accompanied a group of students study under Dr. Charles Bane on a tour of Dante's house as well as a church where his muse is entombed. Pretty awesome to think that a student studying Dante could actually see where he lived . . .

We had lunch in the Piazza Dell Signoria, which faces the Palazzo Vecchio, another home for a prominent Italian family. The afternoon was taken with a bus and walking tour of Florence, which included a drive up to a summer community overlooking Florence. What an amazing view. Too bad we could get off the bus for photos . . .

We came back down into the city, making our way on foot to the Piazza Di Santa Croce, where another beautiful chapel is located. That's when the first rumbling of thunder occurred.

Oddly enough, the rain began when the guide was showing us a spot on a building where the Arno River reached during a flood in 1966.

We ran to the Loggia Del Lanzi, where several of the sculptures are in place, when it REALLY began to rain. Another quick run to the Ufizzi Gallery, where the tour was to end, and it REALLY, REALLY began to rain.

I mean blowing sideways.

Then it hailed.

We got soaked.

Nothing like viewing the works of Titian, Rembrandt and da Vinci (yes, they had a few of the works he actually painted) while dripping on the marble floor.

When the rain finally stopped, we slogged our way back to the hotel, changed clothes and made a mad dash (well, taxi ride, which is a mad dash in itself) for a reception at the school. We were treated to a performance by the UCA choir and some reminiscing by Patsy Minton Newton, who was a Fullbright Scholar and UCA graduate who visited Italy in 1953.

Despite having snacks at the reception, several of us were still hungry and made our way back to the Piazza Della Signoria before continuing to the Piazza Della Repubblica for a meal at yet another great open-air ristorante.

However, not before I took advantage of the rain clouds parting in the early evening hours to take some photos of a replica of Michelangelo's "David" which is in front of the Palazza Vecchio. It's amazing to view the copy; I hope we can find time to visit the real thing, which is housed in the Galleria Dell'Accademia in another part of the city.

At the end of dinner, a long procession came through the plaza from what must have been a huge Catholic church. Hundreds of churchgoers carrying candles marched through the square, in addition to many priests, nuns and altar boys as the Doxology played on speakers throughout the plaza. It was really an interesting site to see, and yet nobody could explain why is was going on! I asked the nearby polizia what it was, and all I got was "processzione," while another officer explained loudly, "Cat-o-leeka."

I guess that's just what you do in Florence.

Settling in

Another nice hotel stay in a beautiful Italian town.

The Hotel Executive is a block away from the Arno River, and a 10 minute walk from the Ponte Vecchio Bridge, a bustling place with merchants selling all types of Italian knock-offs. Get caught with one of those, and you get busted along with the person selling the stuff.

Ouch.

I'm planning to get up early and jog in the morning along the river, or in a nearby park, provided I can actually get out of bed as it's nearing midnight as I'm posting this. It's a great hotel, and even features a guest bed in a small room just off the main quarters.

Too bad one of you can't be with us, eh? We thought it would have been the perfect place for our daughter Katie to sleep. Sorry, sweetie. We wish you were sleeping in there. You would love seeing all of the sights - or, more importantly, visiting all the designer shops we've passed along the way.

Best Italian meal evar!

Or, at least that we've had so far.

Typical Italian meals last from two to four hours. It is served in several courses over that time, starting with an apetizer (antipasto), a couple of main courses, desert, coffee, etc.

Tonight's meal was at the ristorante Buca Mario in downtown Florence. We took a bit of a stroll beforehand, winding over the Ponte Vecchio Bridge and through the San Lorenzo Market, viewing life-sized replicas of David, sculptures of famous Italian artists and inventors, and eventually wandering backstreets until we found the restaurant where our reservations were.

We were taken downstairs in the restaurant, which wound around through wine cellars until we found our places. The meal was incredible, to say the least.

Beginning with plates of Tuscan meat cuts and mixed cannape, a local favorite was one of the main courses. Florence is know for its wild boar, and ours was served on fettuccine. It was followed by thin slices of t-bone steak with rocket salad and pine seed roast potatoes.

But, the tiramisu topped the evening off. I think Jennifer will understand when I say this was a little chocolate slice of heaven on a plate. Rich, creamy, I would have fought anybody sitting at the table for a second plate.

Fortunately, I was stuffed enough that I didn't have to do that.

Everyone had a great time, laughing and sharing tales from our travels thus far, although the ride here was not mentioned, just walking back to the hotel reinforced the need to keep your head on a swivel constantly in this city.