Breakfast in Florence

Looking for an authentic, cheap breakfast in Florence?  Read through this post from EuroCheapo on some of the best places to find coffee and pastries.  Mmmmmm, my mouth is watering just thinking about it.

Florence:  Where to find a cheap (and sugary) breakfast.  

The Winter Time Blues

Is it just me, or does everybody get a little blue in January.  If I had it my way, we would skip January and February and move straight into March, where life is in bloom.  In January, Travis and I always get a little antsy for a new trip and we have a few on the brain.  Stay tuned.  But until then, enjoy this lovely Italian ocean scene to help get you out of a winter time funk. 

The Sweet Life

Il dolce far niente...

In Italian, this means the sweetness of doing nothing.  Such a beautiful phrase.  I love the idea that doing nothing is in fact doing something, and that it is considered beautiful by Italians.  This is what I love most about Italy, this phrase.  But alas, I am a teacher and my days of "doing nothing" (a.k.a summer) will be over as of Thursday.  So, these posts will be a little less frequent because I will be busy with my day job.  But, I am going to try my best to update as often as possible.  I still have stories to tell about  Italy as well as other cities I have visited so stay tuned!  But today, take some time to do nothing, and enjoy every second of it!

Italian Fashion

I love the way that Italian men dress.  It is so effortlessly put together and chic.  The men almost always have on nice leather shoes, slim slacks or a suit, a bright shirt and tie and the most important accessory of all, sunglasses.  With this outfit on, they will always hop onto their scooter or bike and zoom off, never sweating or getting dusty and dirty.  These photos below are a perfect representation of the quintessential Italian man. 

Courtesy of The Sartorialist

Taken by Travis at the Boboli Gardens in Florence

Not only do the men dress well, but so do their children.  I absolutely had to take pictures of these cute boys in front of the Duomo in Florence.  His brother right behind him is taking a picture of their parents in front of the church. 

Look at the jacket!  And that pose! 

And those aviators!  Classic Italian.  Clearly they start teaching their children early how to dress.  People watching is one of my favorite things to do on vacation and I highly recommend while in Italy to have a seat at a bar patio in the afternoon, drink a few beers, and watch the men (and women) on their way home from work.

The Leaning Tower of Pisa...It Really Leans That Much

Pisa is really only known for one thing nowadays, and that is the infamous "Leaning Tower of Pisa". 

It really is worth the visit because there is more to Pisa than just the "Leaning Tower".  If you are in the area and have an afternoon, I suggest visiting this Tuscan town.  We flew in and out of Pisa on our trip and in order to avoid stress we spent one night in Pisa before our flight back to Dallas.  I was happy that we were able to see the city, because it gave us a little more insight into Tuscany.

When we arrived in Pisa we immediately checked into our hotel which was steps to the Tower and the Baptistry.  After settling in, we ate lunch and a cute little place called La Buca that gave us a great view of the tower. 

See the tower?  Pretty cool, huh.  After lunch we visited the "Field of Miracles" or the big lawn with a big church and the famous "Leaning Tower".  It was actually really pretty, with multiple Renaissance style buildings similar to the famous Duomo in Florence.  It was also filled with people taking this type of picture. 

If you like to people watch, which Travis and I do, take some time and sit on the lawn and watch people take this picture.  It is hilarious.  The really funny part is that most of the people taking the picture spend tons of time adjusting the subject for the shot and they forget that they can move their camera much easier than the poser.  So, in all languages you hear the picture taker directing the subject to move "just a little to the left" and "down, down, down" and "over juuuust a bit".  Also, there are apparently multiple ways to take this picture.  There is the classic "holding up the tower" pose as seen above.  There is also the couple pose, where both people hold it up.  There is also the couple pose where one person pushes and the other holds it up.  The list goes on and on and it is really funny watching people adjust themselves into various poses.  Quite entertaining. 

After the 'tower' picture, we took a walk around the "Field of Miracles".  The church is beautiful on the inside and is worth a visit. 

It does cost, but for just the Church it is only a few euros.  You can pay to see every building but it is not really worth it.  You can also visit the top of the tower for 15 Euros.  I did NOT want to visit the top because it leans and is made of marble, which means that you could slip easily and fall to your death.  (I have a wild imagination and exaggerate, but it could happen).

A few fun facts about the "Leaning Tower of Pisa" courtesy of my favorite tour guide, Rick Steves.  The Tower was built by three different architects and was not finished for over two centuries.  When the first guy built it, they got about two levels up and everyone realized it was leaning.  So, they stopped construction for awhile.  Then, the next guy tried to fix it by building it towards the other direction.  It was still leaning.  Then, the third guy tried to fix it again with the belfry on top and that didn't work either.  In the 1800's, people tried to fix the lean by digging a hole on the opposite end.  This made it sink even more and it almost toppled to the ground.  Finally in the 1990's, they devised a plan to help it stay up.  It currently leans at a five degree angle and is being held up by a concrete and steel structure built underneath the structure.  Every single column has been replaced over the years.  It is kind of weird that Pisa has spent so much money on it but, it brings in almost all of the tourism to the city, so ultimately it is worth it. 

After visiting the "Field of Miracles" we took a walk through the city, which led us to a street market near the University.  This was great because it gave us some insight into how real people live and took us away from the cheesy tourism stuff. 

Explore and enjoy the city!  It is not very big, so it is hard to get lost and you can always find gelato nearby, which is a must. 

The Details: 
Where to Stay:  Hotel Francesco ($120/night)
How Long to Stay:  1 day/afternoon
How to Get There:  Take the train from Florence (It is about an hour)

Italian Toby

Travis and I have a dog named Toby.  He is three years old and is a mutt, most likely a pomeranian/spaniel mix.

Toby as a puppy. 

All grown up!

Toby is a very unique dog and has a strange and funny personality.  He is very cute when he sleeps because he curls up very small in corners of couches, gently resting his head on a pillow.  If Travis and I had the time and patience, he could win a few agility dog shows.  He also likes to rub his face on dead stuff.  Toby has given Travis and me quite a bit of joy over the last three years and we love him very much.  

While we were in Venice this past summer, we noticed the abundance of dogs.  They were everywhere and it made me miss Toby.  In Venice, we found a dog that we fondly named "Italian Toby", simply because he resembled our dog so much.  This was soon shortened to "Tttooby", which translates to Toby in an Italian accent.  Really put the emphasis on the "t" when you say it.  Try it.  It's pretty fun, isn't it?

Well, this dog looked like Toby and had kind of a Toby swagger.  He also acted the way we wish American Toby acted.  We noticed him while walking to La Salute Church, a church that seems to rise up out of the water, resting weightlessly like meringue on a pie. 

I highly suggest visiting this church on your trip to Venice.  It is magical, inside and out.  And just maybe you will meet Italian Toby.  We first spotted him hanging out in front of an art gallery and he trotted behind us all the way to the church.  Before we went inside the church, Travis and I decided to take a seat on the steps leading up to the church and relax.  Italian Toby decided to do the same.  He curled up next to me on a step and I proceeded to give him some good scratches.

He just lounged on the church steps and calmly watched the people pass by.  This is the way I wish American Toby acted.  He barks at everything that passes, never just lounging around others.  Just with me, American Toby sleeps all of the time.  He is sweet, but when people are around, he just can't seem to chill.  Italian Toby reminded us so much of American Toby and really made me homesick for the first time on the trip.  You can see why.

Quite the lounging view, huh?

 

 Doesn't he look like American Toby?  

 

This is the spot on my back porch where Toby lounges every day from 9:00 and 9:30 a.m.  Every day.  Like clockwork.  

If you have a dog at home, give him some scratches in honor of Italian Toby.  I know I will give American Toby a little bit of love too, even if he is a little onery.  Enjoy! 

Venice: A City of Windows

In the three cities we visited in Italy, there became a theme of what our eyes were being drawn to.  In Florence it was bicycles, in Monterosso it was doors, and in Venice it was windows.  Every window seemed to be aged perfectly with the most beautiful window box full of flowers.

 As the trip photographer, Travis was a kid in a candy store throughout Venice.  I think he took some pretty great photos, don't you think? (The last two were taken by yours truly with my iphone using the Hipstamatic App.  I took some SUPER cool photos with it!)

Getting Lost in Venice

Venice is undoubtedly one of the most photographed places in the world.  And for good reason.  I mean, around every bend is something worth remembering.  But, Venice can be a tricky destination for the traveler who is looking for something a little more....real.  It is the hard thing to explain about Venice, and those who have visited know exactly what I am talking about.  It is so iconic, that when you arrive, it can seem a little like Disney World or Vegas.  Nothing against Disney World or Vegas, but you expect to feel like Venice is a real city, with only a few visitors marveling at what it has to offer.

That, unfortunately, is the opposite of reality.  Venice is only home to about 60,000 people during the year but is home to thousands of visitors a day.  Fifty percent of the local economy is tourism (Steves 36).  The influx of visitors is due mostly to large cruise ships who drop off their patrons for the day, between the hours of ten and four.  This is when Venice is the most crowded, especially in the major touristy areas like San Marco Square and the Grand Canal.  And I hate to say it, but those cruise ship tourists are a different kind of European tourist.  They love to buy the kitchy souvenirs and they travel in large packs following guides holding sticks with flags or Micky Mouse ears.

I may sound like a huge brat right now, but come on!  You go to Venice to experience the romance and the beauty and the mystery.  And this.

And this:

And this:

Now, I am the first to say yes to tours.  They can be cheesy and sometimes boring, but they teach you tons about the place you are visiting.  And isn't that the goal of traveling, to learn about a place unlike your own home and experience the world?  But, in Venice, I would avoid the tour and explore the streets with your traveling partner (or partners), put on some good walking shoes, and bring a camera.

Venice is a relatively small city, and is easily walkable.  It is best experienced when you are lost.  Trust me, getting lost in Venice is an easy thing to do.  The streets twist and turn around canals and it is difficult to decipher what direction you are traveling.  Also, streets will just end in a square, or stop at the water.  But as my pal Rick Steves says, "keep reminding yourself, 'I'm on an island, and I can't get off'". 

So, explore the back alleys and the dark streets of Venice and imagine yourself in the 1500's during Carnivale.  Venice is safe and there is little crime, so walk around at night, talk to the locals, and enjoy the quiet parts of the city.  At night and early in the morning is the best part of the day in Venice.  It is where you get to see the locals setting up shop and gulping down early morning espressos and croissants.  At night, it is where you get to hear the bands in San Marco Square battling for the crowd and watch the older men playing card games.  So, by all means, visit Venice, but stay the night.  Don't visit for just one day, because there is so much to offer from the iconic destination.  It is well worth fighting the crowds and the cheesy souvenir shops to get glimpses of reality in the early morning and late evening.

 

The Details:
Where to Stay:  Stay at the Hotel Flora ($200-250/night if you are willing to spend a little extra.  I stayed here with my family a few years ago and it is in a great location and is tucked away in a small alley covered in ivy and flowers.  It also has a nice breakfast on a terrace full of potted plants and ivy.  This past summer, Travis and I stayed at a place called Hotel Ai Do Mori ($85-150/night).  It was a tiny room, but had an amazing location, just steps from San Marco Square.  Also, it was the best bathroom we had of the whole trip.  It was clean and perfect for our needs.
How Many Days:  2-4 days is best.  You get to see everything you want to see and still relax.
When to Go:  Summer is busy.  I have never been at this time, but I imagine it would be beautiful in spring or early fall.  And much less busy.
Cost:  Be expected to pay more for everything.  Remember, it is an island, so everything must be shipped in.  So, budget accordingly.  

Florence: The Ultimate Stair-Climber.

Florence is a city known for beauty and it proved nothing short of beautiful when Travis and I visited in early June.  It was our first stop on a three city tour of Italy and it was just as amazing as the last time I visited about four years earlier.  The first few days it rained, but that did not stop us from climbing up to the top of the Duomo and witnessing one of the best views of the city.

I am not one for heights, and the climb up the narrow stone steps was not my favorite thing in the world, but the view was well worth it.

This picture is from about half way up, and even here I could tell that this was going to be amazing.  I can't stress how narrow these steps were.  And how out of shape I felt while climbing these steps.  I like to think that I am somewhat healthy, I work out regularly and eat pretty well, but I was wheezing like an 80 year old by the twentieth step.  Sweat was forming on my forehead and my thighs were burning.  But, I soldiered on.

We finally reached the first landing, which gave us an interior view of the famous dome.  Again, heights are not my thing, and the only thing separating me from a hard, stone floor ten stories down was a thin, almost wafer-like plexi-glass wall.  But, I was able to see this. 

It is hard to tell from the first photo, but the painting is pretty graphic.  It depicts Heaven and Hell, and after viewing the sinful bunch on their way to this Hell, Travis and I decided it did not look like a fun place to end up.  The sickly sinners had looks of immense pain on their faces, and some were cut down the middle, displaying their guts.  Some were growing horns, some were melting into the fiery abyss, and others were being tortured.  I like to think that it was a pretty convincing deterrent for Renaissance church goers.  At this level, you get an up-close view of the dome, which was an interesting perspective.  There was still more to see, so we worked our way up.

At this point of the trip up to the top, the stairs have narrowed even more and you find yourself walking in the dome.  The stairs seemed to be cut out of the dome itself and you have to duck and twist yourself into some strange positions.  Also, people are traveling down, so you get very close to complete strangers.  I was hugging the stone wall, trying to have as much contact with something solid so as not to tumble down the stairs.  If you are a Germaphobe, keep in mind that millions of people have touched these walls, and all of their germs seems to making it onto my hands, forearms, calves, and anything else that could keep me stable.  Travis seemed to be just fine.

We finally made it to the top and at this point I am very sweaty.  See below.

But man, look at that view!  Pretty cool, huh!  This was as close to the fence that I would get.  I chose to stay as far away as possible.

The red tile roofs that stretched across the landscape seemed to never end.  There was a marching band playing in the square below.  I even was able to reprimand some French teenagers.  (I can't help it, the high school teacher never seems to disappear).  Without sounding cliche, it was magical.  

As you can see, it miraculously cleared up while we were on top of the Duomo, so we had a great view.  We marveled for some time, taking pictures that just couldn't seem to capture everything and reluctantly started our descent.  After the arduous climb up, my legs were a little shaky, and after a long wait for a middle school group to pass, we made it down.  The view was amazing, but the mid-morning gelato at our favorite shop Grom, completed the experience.

Travis has fragola y lemon (strawberry and lemon) and I have fragola y vaniglia (strawberry and vanilla).  I think mine was better.  You know a vanilla is good when you see the little flecks of vanilla bean in the ice cream.  We became gelato connoisseurs by the end of this trip, and I'll save my opinions of where to find the best gelato for another post.  In the end, I highly suggest a trip to the top of the Duomo!  It is a one of a kind experience that gives you incredible views of Florence.

Details:
When to visit:  Go in the morning.  There was absolutely no line.
Cost:  I think it was around 6 euros each.  Well worth it.  Also, if you don't want to stand in the long line for the Cathedral, you can see everything from the first landing.  
Clothing:  Be prepared to sweat.  And wear shoes that can withstand the steps.  I wore these throughout the trip and they served me well. 
When to go:  Do this first in your list of things to do!  It gives you a great view of the city and orients you to the destinations you want to visit in the following days. 
Directions to Grom from the Duomo (very necessary):  Duomo to Grom.

My favorite place in the world...for now.

I know...right?!  Pretty picturesque, I must say.  This is a town in the Cinque Terre, Italy called Riomaggiore.  And no, I did not steal this picture from the internet.  This was taken with my Sony camera.  That is how beautiful this place is.  Actually, in truth, the camera does not do a place like this justice, but I think this picture does a pretty swell job, don't you think?

The Cinque Terre translates to five lands, or five towns and is a collection of, you guessed it, five towns off the northwestern coast of Italy in a region called Liguria.  It is a newly discovered piece of Italian beauty and is filled with mostly American tourists and German hikers (who bring copious amounts of hiking gear including hiking sticks).  We purchased this book, Rick Steves' Italy:  2010, and I must say it was a wealth of handy information. Usually we stick to the classics, Frommer's and Fodor's, but the Cinque Terre doesn't have much written about it, and we needed some help.  So, we opted for "ole' Ricky boy" as he was affectionately referred to throughout the trip through Italy.

The main thing to do in the Cinque Terre is to hike the National Park that stretches across all five towns.   It takes between four and six hours to complete the entire hike that twists and turns up and down the mountains and throughout the towns.  I am not a hiker, so we opted to split up the hike into two trips.  The first hike was on day one and was between Monterosso and Vernazza and is considered the hardest.  It was most definitely difficult, but not impossible.  I am scared of heights and had a few scary visions of tumbling down the mountain into the rocky sea, but alas, I made it.  It was incredibly beautiful though and gave us amazing views of both towns and the beautiful sea.

After a hot and sweaty morning hiking we lounged on the beach in Monterosso in the afternoon.  There are two beaches in Monterosso, and we chose the one closest to our hotel.  We opted to pay the twenty euros for two chairs and an umbrella, which I thought was well worth it.  It was also very close to a bar, which made Travis very happy.

We did not stay in Riomaggiore, but rather in the biggest town called Monterosso.  Monterosso is more or less the "resort" town of the Cinque Terre as it has two beaches and is must closer to the water than Manarola or even Riomaggiore.  In Monterosso we stayed at Albergo Marina, a sweet little hotel owned by a husband and wife team.  It has a marina theme, hence the name, with nets and shells and little ocean touches all over.  The rooms were surprisingly big for European standards and had a nice bathroom and an excellent breakfast in the lemon garden on top of the hotel.  

Albergo Marina is smack dab in the middle of Old Town Monterosso, so it is within walking distance to everything, most importantly gelato shops and our favorite restaurant of the whole trip, Ciak.  Ohhhhh, Ciak.  It was so good.  Below is a fantastic picture of the chef.  We sampled the huge appetizer not really knowing what we were getting and in turn received over fifteen tiny plates of local goodies.  We discovered anchovies soaked in olive oil, stuffed mussels, deep fried anchovies, and other unidentified local specialties.  I felt very Bourdain-ish, sampling all that local fare.

We stayed in Monterosso for four nights and it was was the perfect amount of time.  It gave us time to go hiking and enjoy the beach and we were able to experience all the different restaurants in town.  Of course, Travis was contemplating buying a B&B and setting up shop by the end of the trip.  He reluctantly got on the plane back to Oklahoma and was in mourning for the next few weeks over his missed opportunity.  I highly suggest visiting this beautiful place in the world, because for now, it is my favorite.