Nov 16, 2012 - Beginning the "Heidi Tour"

We returned to Civiatechia, picked up our rental car, and headed north toward Switzerland. One aspect of our drive to Switzerland that I did not expect were the tunnels. We would end up going through more than 100 by the time we reached out Swiss destination ! Most were only about a few km, but one was 30km and one even had our exit in the middle of it! Another corkscrewed down (kinda like the exit at a parking garage!) We only spent the evening in Genoa, but we did take time to walk around the area of our hotel and eat at a little mom and...

Oct 20, 2012 - Along the Autostrada past Genoa

Saturday October 20 (continued) We headed to the A1 Autostrada and drove towards Florence, then passed Prato, Pistoia, Montecatini, Lucca and Viareggio. Then we followed the A12 along the coast, which is a wonderful drive -- tunnel after tunnel along the edge of the coast, hugging the coast at times and then inland through hills and across valleys. Finally we bypassed Genoa and on to the France-Italy border. It is quite a remarkable road. It took us four and a half hours to cover the 440 kilometres and it cost 40.20 Euros in motorway tolls....

Oct 20, 2012 - Leaving the villa to drive to Nice the quick way - Autostrada along the coast

Saturday October 20 It is hard to believe that we have been in the villa for two weeks; they have sped by. The young girl, who showed us around the villa on arrival, came by last night to do the mandatory check for the 'Tuscany Now' contract. We both signed off that no more money was needed to change hands (we did not use the pool as it was too cold, we did not use the phone as we had our own and we did not have anyone cook or shop for us which is an option). Laura also came to say goodbye last night, so we were free to leave at any time....

Oct 19, 2012 - Cinque Terre

Hi Everyone Sorry for the late entries, but some nights we've got back to our apartment and have been so tired that all we've wanted to do is go to bed! The 18th was our 37th wedding anniversary! What a great day we had. We set off early and took a tour of the Cinque Terre and it was just beautiful.There are five little villages along the rugged coastline of the Italian Riviera and is a protected world heritage sight, with the sea on one side and the steep hills on the other. We first went to the village of Manarola, then to Corniglia -...

Oct 18, 2012 - Cinque Terre

Today we are off to the area of Cinque Terre after a couple trains we arrive in La Spezia our home for the next 2 nights, a short walk around the town and a walk to a castle them out for some dinner it is off to bed. Oct 19th finds us on a train heading from La Spezia to the Manarola one of the five towns that make up the Cinque Terre a walk about the town and then on a small mini bus to the top of the mountain where we take off hiking through the vineyards on our way to Corniglia a very nice hike, the day is sunny and warm once we get to...

Oct 5, 2012 - in Levanto

We woke to a gray cloudy day and intermittent sprinkles. Enjoyed a lovely big and leisurely breakfast while visiting with our group members. Then I wrote in my journal on our little balcony while taking in the view of a roof garden and lovely tower nearby. We decided not to take the train to any of the 5 Cinque Terre villages but spend time this afternoon roaming around Levanto. Started by walking 2 blocks to the beach to see many folks enjoying the water and the sand. Lovely wide promenade for a few blocks along the water and past some...

Oct 4, 2012 - Cinque Terre

Our lunch stop was the scenic little village of Portovenere (Port of Venus) on the tip of a peninsula in the Ligurian Sea of the Mediterranean. We sat at al fresco across from the sea wall, under an umbrella, leisurely eating and watching the tourists stream by. Ivan ordered prawns to discover he had to shuck them (6 of them) himself but didn't mind as they were so delicious. I liked my Trophia al Pesto (local pasta dish). Not a lot of time left to get photos of this lovely town before boarding a passenger ferry for the trip north to and...

Sep 24, 2012 - The Cinque Terre Villages

Monday, September 24, 2012 We bought a round trip train ticket so we could do an overview of the 5 villages. We started with the northernmost, Monterosso. It was insane. Hundreds of German, French and English-speaking tourists thronged the streets. It looked like an "Occupy" movement. Because there is more flat land there and in Vernazza than in the 3 other villages, the tour groups flock to those two.. When we re-boarded the train to come back south, it was standing room only. We agreed that if the crowds got off at the next stop,...

Sep 23, 2012 - Arma di Taggia to the Cinque Terre

Sunday, September 23, 2012. Arma di Taggia to Riomaggiore in the Cinque Terre We dawdled along the coast road passing town after town of tall, shabby apartment blocks crowded together with little character. In short stretches between the towns, where the cliffs were too unfriendly to build on, the turquoise Mediterranean bays made the distant town look charming. We arbitrarily chose the town of Noli for a bite to eat before switching to the high speed toll roads in order to make our 5 PM rendezvous with our landlady in the Cinque...

Aug 23, 2012 - 5 Terre - Village People

And it's morning time. Yeah, didn't do that 8am swim and coffee action. Bed felt way much better. Checkout time was 1030am so I chilled until 1020am. Packed up again and vamoosed. Oh, wore the same green shirt from the day before. Why mess up a clean one when you are only going to sweat your butt the next day. I think it can walk. I'll wash it in Pisa with everything else. I did wear my swim shorts cuz at some point, I'm going swimming! The water is a lil chilly, but feels good when it's 95 degrees and Super Sunny. Well, didn't take long,...

Aug 22, 2012 - Rolled the Dice - Cinque Terre instead

Hello Italy!!  Well, On my way to the train station, plans changed. My Couch Surfing Host in Pisa suggested I bypass Genova and Cinque Terre would be much better. So, I went with it. On the train to Cinque Terre, i met a couple from Roma and Milan. We chatted a good 4 hours until they hopped off. It was good to speak again. After a 5-6hour train ride I arrived in Monterosso. The first of 5 lil beach towns that make up Cinque Terre, 5 Villages. Yeah, I didn't have a place to stay at it was around 7pm when I got off the train. First task,...

Jul 31, 2012 - Pisa & Cinque Terre

PISA: We arrived by train to Pisa, walked through the very pretty town, crossed the river and as we walked around the corner…there it was…. the Leaning Tower of Pisa. An AWE moment!! A magnificent sight! It really does lean way to the left!! It was so exciting to actually see this with our own eyes!! The Campanile (tower) is where all eyes are drawn. We needed to get tickets to climb up to the top. Time permitted us to wander around the most beautiful square, Campo Dei Miracoli. Forming the centre piece is the cathedral, the battistero,...