Onto Stresa

I had two excited kids who were looking forward to travelling from Florence to Milan on the new Frecciarossa 1000. Check out the Trenitalia Frecciarossa 1000 HERE  According to claims it is capable at travelling at 400kph but is still waiting for signalisation upgrades across the Italian lines to do this.

We arrived at Florence Santa Maria Novella station and nowadays they don't seem to tell you what platform it the train is leaving from until it is just about to leave. That way they can group you together and check your tickets before you get on the platform instead of on the train. 

We lashed out a bit and got seats in Business Class. If you book early enough you can actually get business class seats at the same price as standard seats. The train was nice and new and the carriage was roomy and quiet, but all this didn't help it get off on time. Grrr

Once we were underway the Tuscan countryside whizzed by at 300 kph. Every time Sebastian tried to get a photo of the speed over 300kph it would disappear off the screen like they wanted to keep it a secret how fast we were going. It was a remarkably smooth ride.

It would be fantastic if we had trains that travelled this fast in Australia. Imagine the growth of regional centres like Bendigo or even Shepparton if it was possible to get to Melbourne in under an hour. Anyway!!!!

We changed trains at Milan and headed to Stresa which is around 80kms north of Milan. It was great to travel along a train route I know reasonably well and as the train gets to Arona it runs along the shores of Lago Maggiore. Kylie and the kids enjoyed this part of this slow train. 

We arrived in Stresa and headed for the house we had rented for the week. We had rented an apartment on the lake which has sensational views from both bedrooms and the the lounge room. I'm looking forward to Stresa, I love coming to this area.

Florence

Our first morning at our hotel, Mia Cara, turned out to be a hit, especially with the kids.after having some great Italian breakfasts this one had the works. Sausages, scrambled eggs, fried rice, cates, poached eggs, cereal and all the Italian stuff that we had been having. But the kids loved the fact there were smarties.

We headed off to see Michelangelo's David. We lined up for about 90 minutes. The Accademia was how I remembered it, small. The kids did love David, but they couldn't care too much for the rest of it. Kylie thought the statue was good but wasn't sure it was worth the wait. 

We then went the wrong way on our walk up to Piazza Michelangelo, which was a good thing because it was going to be too long of a walk for the kids. We headed back to the hotel for some down time. After which we headed to a small nearby park. It had a small lake so the kids enjoyed running a few laps.

Today started with a big breaky again and then we caught a bus up to Piazza Michelangelo. There are some great views of Florence and we were pretty lucky it was reasonably quiet. We jumped on the bus again and went down to the Bomboli Gardens. These we quiet good and a lovely view from the Porcelain display Villa. Dan Brown goes into the History of the gardens a little in his book Inferno. We ended up in the Petit Palace, which is a pretty grand place. The locals had fun stirring Sebastian about the Juventus jersey he bought

We had dinner at a restaurant along our street and as it turned out the family next to us were from Melbourne. They live just around the corner from where Kylie used to live. On a whole Florence has been tough to enjoy with the kids as they aren't really into the artworks.

Stresa tomorrow, yay

Onto Firenze

I woke sore from yesterday's run but I wanted to find Bramasole, the villa that Frances Mayes bought and renovated, that lead to the book and movie, Under The Tuscan Sun. I found it and it is very easy to see why she fell in love with the villa and the view. 

We had our final breakfast and had a wander past our favourite sites before catching the but to Camucia and then the train to Firenze (Florence). I think the kids were over looking out the window and were happy to play the iPad. 

Our first destination after checking into our hotel was the Duomo. Along the way we found some markets. We got Milana into bargaining, but I must say the they weren't as much of a push over as I remembered. The kids found the vendors a bit off putting the way they tried to get you in to buy. We just told them that this is a good practice for Hong Kong in a few weeks.  The kids were wowed by the Duomo, but less enthusiastic about the crowds. It seemed a lot busier than Rome. We wandered past the Uffizi Gallery and the lines were huge. The river Arno awaited us next and of course the Ponte Vecchio. Whilst it is impressive, it wasn't as impressive as I remembered. The streets here seem much cleaner than in Rome and the crowds a lot more arty. It was nice to be able to wander around. Last time here I was rushed from leather factory to leather factory and saw hardly anything.

Cortona Day 4

I started my day with a run up to Torreone and the Medieval Castle at the top of Cortona, I took a turn down a road I had seen people running along earlier in the week and I am glad that I did. It was a beautiful loop and after running 4kms up hill it was nice to have a kilometre or two of flat ground. My legs will be sore tomorrow with a tough decent back to the town. 

As a family we took a walk down hill to the cemetery. It was a walled cemetery where the locals obviously because it was kept in excellent condition and many of the graves adorned with flowers. We continued down to the church of Santa Maria Nuova. There was a small tourist group doing yoga.

We had lunch overlooking the Valley. As I mentioned earlier it is a view you could never get sick of. The kids loved the little playground we found. We continued along passed the park and walked along a kilometre long avenue that was closed to cars. It was a beautiful and after running uphill this morning I wish I had of found it earlier, it would have saved my legs. We found the pool and tennis courts at the end of this avenue.

We finished the afternoon at the gelato store and ate it sitting on the steps. We had an interesting dinner. The host was very friendly but after the fact we didn't spend much on dinner he wasn't as friendly. It was nice but not as nice as the other night.

Cortona Day 2/3

The weather looked ominous as we woke after our first night in Cortona, the clouds loomed and we  had a few drops of rain. We headed out and wandered up the hill towards the church at the top of Cortona. Along the way we walked along a beautiful path just inside the town walls. It was lined with trees and had cobbles with a small stone path along the middle. When we arrived at the top there was a special service as the had lolly stalls and there were cars strung down the hill for a kilometre. 

We ate lunch on a look out and found a park for the kids to burn off some energy. We spent the rest of the day exploring the beautiful village with such fantastic views. Every time you get to the town walls you are greeted with panoramic views over Tuscany and Umbria. For dinner we found a sensational, friendly restaurant. The kids voted it the best meal of the holiday so far.

This morning I was woken with a complete white out. It was raining and you were lucky to see 20 metres ahead of you. Not good when you have a car hired for the day. I caught the bus down to Camucia and finally found the car rental place. The man there was, um, interesting to say the least! He was in for a chat (even though I just wanted to get going) and told me how good Australians were but didn't like Americans or Poms! So for the first time in 14 years I was faced with challenge of changing gears with my right hand. 

After picking up the family we headed to Castiglione Del Lago for a look around (and relive the old days). It was still as beautiful as I remembered it. We were fortunate enough that the rain had cleared and the sun was coming out. We grabbed a few pics before heading towards Montepulciano. Kylie loved the drive and got a few pictures as we went. Everywhere you looked there were stunning villas on top of hills and a lot of old farm barns ripe for the renovation- oh to have the money. 

We arrived in Montepulciano and parking was stressful. The car parks are so tiny, I had to let the family out before parking it as it was too hard to open the doors safely.  Montepulciano is similar to Cortona with a great view back to Castiglione Del Lago and Cortona. 

After a quick bite we headed in search of the white road with the cypress tress that features in many movies. I had researched it beforehand and with the help of Google Maps we found the exact spot to take the photo. Although it wasn't full sun it was pretty good, especially compared to what it had been in the morning. 

Driving home we decided to take the Autostrade, it's always entertaining. Despite the 110km limit they just fly along. The impressive thing is how accommodating they are, if someone is in the fast lane and a faster car comes along, they get out of the way pretty quickly. Along the way we saw one of the Italian's huge AutoGrill (service area). I remember visiting this one about 17 years ago as it straddles both 4 lanes of traffic, we had a bit of a laugh that day and stirred up a few of the local gypsies. I must say that being on the Autostrade was nice as the other roads were in atrocious conditions. Extremely dangerous and in need of repair.

We arrived home and headed straight for Gelateria Snoopy. The kids were looking forward to it after having a Gelato free day yesterday, although I might know one person who snuck out and broke the agreement. 

Goodbye Rome, Hello Cortona

It was sad leaving Rome after a great 5 nights. We headed to our usual breakfast haunt and were devastated to find it closed (Sat Morning), we went somewhere else but wasn't the same. Even sadder was that when we headed to the station it was open! 

We jumped on our train at Rome Termini, thank god I didn't have the bike, our platform was 1east, the further platform. It was beautify train ride with all the hilltop villages. The train was crowded and we were lucky to get a seat. Thankfully for Kylie lots of people got off at Orvieto as she wasn't enjoying travelling backwards. We originally planned for a day trip there but ran out of time

The ride up to Cortona was interesting with our Taxi driver telling us some of the history of the town and how it dates back to 600BC. We pulled up at our hotel, Hotel San Luca and the view was breathtaking. It looked down over the valley and mountains through to Lago Trasimeno. It's a little bit special for me as I had a win there back in 2002. Gee how time flies.

The town of Cortona is sensational and I couldn't help looking at the Real Estate agencies and dreaming. You could just walk for Hours through the maze of laneways and stairways. We sat on the steps in Piazza della Repubblica and ate lunch. Then a hive of activity started around us. We asked what was happening and all we could understand was that it was starting at 4pm. 

We returned then to find a fantastic ceremony, where representatives from different areas of the town marched in to drums carrying their flags. They then had flag throwing and blessed candles from each area. We considered ourself lucky to come across it and have front row viewing. 

It was a very special day. Oh the gelato at Gelateria Snoopy was delicious - thanks Taxi driver for the tip.

Trastevere

The day started at our usual breakfast haunt, it's a tight little bar right next to the Ottaviano Metro station. The girl there can speak English but she lets me speak my broken Italian.

We headed to Trastevere, which is an area of Rome on the river. It is full of tight lane ways with plenty of cafes and boutique shops. We passed a school which Kylie would have loved for to go in and visit. Obviously it was a tight little school with not much playground and some of the kids were playing in the laneway and that was the designated yard duty area for some of the teachers. We visited two spectacular churches.

Our kids needed some playtime themselves so we headed up the hill that I had ran up earlier in the day to give them some space to throw a ball around. On the way up we came across an almost abandoned alley way that had all these doors, almost like vaults. On each door was the painting telling the story of Jesus' crucifixion.  We also passed a beautiful fountain that I had photographed earlier on my run. Whilst there a bird pooed on Sebastian, this was the second time it has happened. The area at the top of the hill provided more great views of Rome. The kids enjoyed some freedom and ran around.

We ventured back down to explore the laneways further. They had a lot of buildings with vines growing down them and they looked fantastic.

Lunch beckoned and we headed back to a restaurant near our hotel. The kids eyes were bigger than their stomachs and they tried a pizza each. In the end I had to try to finish theirs (unsuccessfully I may say). The waiter gave Kylie and I a shot of Limone Liquor' to wash down lunch, sh%t it was strong.

After lunch the we decided to go on a tram ride around Rome, but the kids we a bit bored so we got off and caught the metro home to start organising for our trip to Cortona tomorrow.