October 20, 2018, RJ and I had the opportunity to go on a once in a lifetime trip with his family to Italy. We were so thrilled that we were able to go with them on this beautiful trip - it was something that we had talked about doing together for a while and the fact that our dream was able to come true is something special.
We flew out of DTW in the afternoon which I totally recommend to anyone who is traveling to Europe. It was great to be able to sleep on the plane and wake up in Italy and ready to explore!
We rented a van so that we were able to travel to the smaller towns around the property we were staying at, which ended up being super handy because we used the van almost everyday to travel to several different towns during our stay in Tuscany (we were in Tuscany for 4 days). Speaking of the van, let me just note, Italian driving is SO different from driving in the US. There are no street lights in Tuscany, they have multiple round-about's and other ways of yielding - SO you need to be aware of your surroundings at ALL TIMES if you plan to drive yourself. Or hire a driver (which we did twice).
Day 1:
WE HAVE LANDED, Yahoo! After getting our van we headed to the house that we stayed at which was in Tuscany. Our house was great...something out of a movie. The house originally was a home for the farmers who lived on the property and part of what is now the house use to be the barn where the stored the hay. It was completely breathtaking the architecture that went into building the home...not to mention, I loved how much of the home was original!
Once we unpacked a bit and relaxed, we headed up to the "club house" if you will, for some drinks and dinner. We ate at a restaurant located on property which was home of one of the oldest pizza ovens!
We were also blessed with an amazing view of Tuscany and quite a lovely sunset.
Day 2:
Today we traveled to one of the towns near our property, San Gimignano. This town was one of my favorites. All of the restaurants have outdoor sitting areas which I absolutely adore; Italians love their fresh air! It was amazing to see all the people sitting and enjoying one anthers company with an espresso drink in hand. (These little cafes are nothing like Starbucks!)
Pro Tip: Head to town early so that you can avoid the tour buses which came to the town around 1:00. Once those buses unload the streets get crowded.
Leoncini is where I bought my ceramic dishes from. They are hand painted by artists in town - love, love, love. These pieces are a little more expensive, but completely worth it. As you can tell from the photo, there is a wide selection of colors, patterns and a variety of different dishes. Even better, they wrap and ship your selections for you! They arrived with good timing and shorty after we had gotten home. None of the pieces were broken (which is always a bonus).
San Gimignano is called the "City of Towers" this is because for every new tower that was built meant that a new family was in power at the time. When you were that new family in power the obvious thing was to build yourself a tower that was bigger and better than the previous tower. We got to climb one of the towers which housed a bell (most of them did actually) and got an amazing view of the entire city.
**Disclaimer - it was so windy up there that I was nervous that my camera was going to zip right out of my hands...so, try not to wear any loose articles like sunglasses on the top of your head, or a hat because it might go flying!
Of course, like every good mid day treat we got some gelato from a famous shop in town, Gelateria Dondoli.
RJ's gelato trick - when you are looking for some of the good stuff (and let me tell you, there really is a difference between real gelato and the fake stuff). The fake, or not so great gelato piles up in huge mountains, the good or real gelato looks like it is already melting and watery.
Day 2. Cont:
Today we also traveled to Volterra. This city was also a smaller city which sat high enough up that on a clear day and 0 clouds (which we did not have) you can see the Mediterranean! We had a tour guide for this city, one of the tour guides that the Holloway's have been on tours with before. She is American speaking and quite amazing. Her rich love and abundant knowledge of the city was inspiring. She spoke about how the city protected itself from invasion, multiple times might I add, and how they were able to survive as a community.
(I would go more into detail but I am scared I would get some of the info wrong, and of course, it is better hearing it with your own ears for the first time)
Finally to end our night we had another one of the Holloway's dear friends from their time in Italy come to the house and cook us home made pizza! Her name was Sophie and she brought with her fresh vegetables from her own garden, made her own dough with simple organic ingredients and gave us a little lessons of our own on how to make the dough so that we could make it at home once we returned!
She made us about 7 different pizzas - let me tell you - they were all equally amazing as the next.
Day 3:
Florence!!!!! This is the one town I was looking forward to more than anything, mostly because this is where RJ studied abroad for 6 weeks and I couldn't wait for him to show me where he spent his time. It was such a special place to him and for us to be able to get back there and for him to be able to show me around meant the world to both of us.
We had another tour guide, we found that having someone who knows the city well is the best way to go. Not to mention, this was another friend of the Holloway's. She was also English speaking which was very helpful.
(Keep in mind, we are doing private tours so it is only the 4 of us that are walking with her as she takes us around the city).
We did a ton of walking today - a ton - it was good because we were eating a ton! We did all of the usual things, the statue of David (which was really architecturally amazing to see because the actual statue is HUGE and you wonder how the heck it is standing).
**Disclaimer - you need a ticket into the museum to see the statue of David, and Katherine recommended to buy your tickets in advance. There are separate lines for tickets that have a time stamp on them. This is the way to go because you can avoid standing in the long lines and show up during your time. It also helps when you are with a tour guide because typically they have a better chance of getting you inside opposed to if you were on your own**
We also saw the famous boar with his gold stout which you are supposed to rub for good luck - the Ponte Vecchio which is seen often for the amazing colors that cover the bridge and of course the beautiful sunsets that almost capture everyone's attention almost every night.
Of course we had lunch and did a ton of shopping. I got most of my gifts from Florence only because I know how amazing all the stuff is because the Holloway's have brought me home things from previous trips. I bought all my leather here! Leather in Florence is great. We shopped at Medichi. They are great people who own the shops, in fact, one store was completely ran by an entire family. Father, 2 sons, and mother, it was awesome. The leather is great quality and is durable (I have had a bag for 3 years and it is still in as good of condition as when I got it).
Day 4:
Another beautiful day in Italy! Today we did a tour of one of the wineries that is still a bit off the radar, Querceto Di Castellina. It is an amazing vineyard and the owners were second to none. We were greeted by the owner with a glass of wine (mind you it was 10:00 am) and began our tour shortly after toasting.
The winery was absolutely beautiful - the cellars were awesome and the wine was truly good. RJ and I ended up bringing home 2 bottles. (We have still yet to try them)
We then headed to a small town, and by small I mean population of 37 small, Volpaia. Here we had lunch at 1 of the 2 restaurants in the town - Castello Di Volpaia. Owner, Paula, greeted us at our outside table with a huge smile and a warm hug for each. Paula is a dear friend of our tour guide Kathrine's and was more than welcome to have us for lunch. All of her food is made fresh to order (which mostly all of the food in Italy is to be honest) and the wine was local wine straight from their winery to bottle to our table - So fun!
Day 5:
Today was our down day - we had nothing planned except for a cooking class with Sophie back at the house. A few of us took advantage of the slow day and hung out at the pool that was at our house. The rest of us headed into some more smaller towns near the house. I have to say, I loved these smaller towns - so authentic - and so beautifully rich with history.
For our cooking class we made homemade raviolis, rabbit, a ton of different appetizers, and biscotti.
Day 6 & 7:
Rome! Both of these days we spent in Rome. We stayed at Hotel 47 which is a perfect location in the city. We were walking distance from everything - granted - all we did was walk anyways.
As soon as we got to Rome we headed right to a quick lunch (pasta for the 5th time) and straight to the Vatican City to meet our last tour guide! For those who do not know this, the Vatican is its own country. This is where the Pope lives! Pretty nifty if you ask me.
If I had to choose a favorite thing I did this trip I have to say that it was going to the Vatican City and going into St. Peters Basilica. This is something truly special to me and my faith and it was such a blessing to be able to see the stunning church first hand. I am still in awe of the beauty, history, and overall calming presence about the Vatican City.
Tonight for before dinner drinks we hung out on an amazing rooftop bar overlooking the city of Rome. This was one of my favorite views of the trip (aside from the sheer beauty of the Tuscany hills and vineyards).
On our last day in Rome we did a few more tours. We saw the Colosseum, the Ancient City, the Spanish Steps and the Trevi Fountain! We also had lunch just the 2 of us at this completely random place near the hotel - we walked inside out of sheer luck and had some of the best food the whole trip. I still remember how great the Gnocchi was. I mean we seriously were the only tourists in this place...we loved it! (They also had an unreal pistachio cannoli - yum).
Italy was a dream come true! I highly recommend taking a trip over there if you have the time to do so - you will not be disappointed!
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