Oh Italy what an amazing country. I loved every place we went to there and I want to go back and explore the cities and towns we missed. Our first stop in Italy was Pisa. We all rushed out to get our typical tourist shots...
We then drove another 1.5 hours and got to Florence. We stayed at a fantastic campsite there with a huge pool area (it was super hot in Italy!). We had group dinner provided at the restaurant at the campsite...pizza and pasta YUM.
I loved Florence, it is a beautiful city. We went on a walking tour in the morning run by a local Italian guide which included the statue of David replica (the real one is inside a museum and you need to wait half a day in line to see it!). We ended the walking tour at a leather works place (Florence is well known for its leather). At Leonardo's leather shop they also make jewellery and I got one of my favourite purchases of my trip...a puzzle ring! It is 4 rings designed to link together in a knot and if you take it off your finger it all falls apart and is really difficult to get back together (like a puzzle). The origin behind it was men would give them to their wives if they needed to travel to know if they had been unfaithful- if she took her ring off she wouldn't be able to put it back together. I'm trying my hardest not to let mine fall apart...only because they are really hard to re-do!
That night I had Florentine Steak for dinner. It is a huge steak cooked rare and you can choose how big you want it. It was absolutely delicious.
After Florence we were off to Rome! I knew there were ruins in Rome but I was actually quite shocked at how many there were. Its like the Italians just never got around to doing anything and left it all untouched...for thousands of years! We went on a walking tour when we got there and saw the main site including the Spanish Steps, The Pantheon, Trevi Fountain (threw some coins) and the ruins where Julius Caesar was stabbed. Had delicious pizza and gelato for lunch. Our walking tour ended at the Colosseum which was amazing. We didn't go in the first day but decided to come back the next day to look inside properly.
That night was probably the best night partying of the whole trip. TOGA PARTY! It was so fun getting dressed up and trying to create a toga out of a single white sheet. The bar sold buckets of cocktails which were very easy to drink. Such a good night!!
The next day we went to the Roman Ruins and the Colosseum. I loved seeing the Colosseum. Such crazy history there. It was just amazing to be there and to be able to walk through it.
After the Colosseum we wandered to Piazza Navona where they were selling heaps of paintings. Ruth got one from there then we headed back to the campsite for a top deck dinner.
The following morning we went to the Vatican. Went on a tour which lasted about 3 hours. Vatican City is the smallest country in the world and we stood at a point where you could see from one end
of the country to the other. Went inside the Sistine Chapel and saw Michelangelo's amazing artwork on the roof. The rest of the Vatican was also full of incredible paintings too.
The tour ended at St Peters Basilica and we saw the popes balcony then went inside. Bought some rosary beads and bracelets for my mum, my sister and I. On the way out of the Vatican a group of us got incredibly lost which is quite ironic...getting lost in the smallest country in the world!
Venice was our last stop in Italy. I loved Venice! The canals were beautiful and the whole city had such character. The streets were full of cute little shops selling venetian masks. We were taken to a Mirano glass blowing demonstration which was incredible...they made a glass horse before our eyes. I bought a crystal necklace from their store and also got some crystal earrings for mum. After that we went to a lace demonstration at the last lace school in Venice. Made me appreciate how difficult it is to make lace! We then went on a gondola ride through the canals! There was 6 of us in each gondola and it was a 30 min ride. Our gondola driver was a bit of a grump.
Had lunch and bought some mask souvenirs. Just as we were getting some Gelato a storm suddenly came in and it started hailing! It was so random cos it was a really hot sunny day earlier on.
That night at the campsite bar we had a Venetian Mask party and we all wore our new masks. It was a lot of fun, another great night out with the group.
No comments:
Post a Comment