After sleeping off the jet lag we we began our orientation of the city on Monday morning. A two-hour walk through the historic heart of Florence to the Arno River and back to the cathedral gave us a good basis for knowing how to get around on our own - at least to find our way back home! The central food market was a feast for the eyes! We had a cafeteria-style lunch at Leonardo's at a good price then headed for the station and our first trip by train to lovely Lucca. Eighty minutes later we were there enjoying a short walk on top of the walls that surround the city. We stopped by a few sights on our way to Piazza Anfiteatro where we had a nice dinner-al-fresco. It was quite nice to be in serene Lucca after a busy morning with all the other tourists in Florence. More later - ciao!
I HAVE SET UP A NEW PHOTOBLOG SITE FOR THE 2014 TOURS. YOU CAN STILL SEE PHOTOS FROM 2008 TO 2013 HERE. TO VIEW THE LATEST TOURS GO TO: WWW.INTUSCANYWITHPATRIZIA.BLOGSPOT.COM
We Have Arrived! - September 16
All the planes landed on time and all the luggage was collected at the airport by 2:30 pm. Our two couples arrived on the train from Rome right on time too. So everyone in the new group is here safe and sound! We checked into the apartments and had a brief rest before our first walk to the Piazza Duomo and back. Dinner was great at Nerone's, our neighborhood restaurant, and so was the gelato at Tullios! Everyone turned in early so we will be ready for tomorrow's adventure. Ciao! (that's "chow" in Americanese and it means both "hi" and "bye" in Italy.)