Overview: The Heart of Italy - 9 Day Tour
I found myself and my heart again while on The Heart of Italy - 9 Day Tour. Italy as a whole has been a dream of mine for some time. And Tuscany had been at the heart of it all. The picturesque rolling hills, the earthy, rustic food and splendid wines of the region have beckoned to me for many years. I've read about it and watched movies about it so I had built up this image in my mind of how it would be. This tour delivered it all!
Florence, Europe's Cultural Capital
I arrived by train into Florence only 2 hours before our first group meeting with our Rick Steves' tour guide Martin. I had been on my side trip to the regions of Veneto and Emilia-Romagna. Florence was so chic. Renaissance culture and trend-setting fashion was in the air. To paraphrase the saying, this year’s fashion trend was last year’s trend in Florence. In the 1400's while other Europeans were still conforming to the old standard, Florentines were taking a new perspective on democracy, architecture, literature, and also began expressing the artful form of the human body through paint and sculpture. Florence was the center of change.
Cinque Terre: Paradise Found
In Florence we boarded our comfortable motor coach for the first time and drove to Levanto where we hopped on a train and escaped to the Italian Riviera and the five villages of the Cinque Terre. We stayed in Monterosso al Mare. We were split between two hotels; Hotel Pasquale at the lower part of the village near the water, and Villa Steno on the hillside with commanding views of the village below and the Liguarian Sea. I was lucky enough to be assigned to the Villa Steno. Although it meant hiking up and down a couple hundred stairs each time I went out I wasn't complaining.The views were worth every step!
Lucca and the Tuscan Hill Town of Volterra
Lucca is a little known destination to American tourists and the birthplace of composer Giacomo Puccini. Lucca is a sleepy little town that is surrounded by a centuries old wall. There are few cars that enter the towns center, which makes it perfect for pedestrians and bicycles. We spent a leisurely afternoon in Lucca exploring the Romanesque churches including the beautiful San Giovanni Church. After a tour through town with a local guide we walked through the grand Piazza dell' Anfiteatro. Our free time is filled with lunch and a relaxing 2-mile bike ride around the top of the city wall. By popular demand, we took an unplanned side trip to Pisa to see its leaning tower.
We drove trough the rich farmland of the area and continued upward to the Hill Town of Volterra. Over 2,000 years old, Volterra was once a very important Etruscan city. Volterra has Etruscan, Roman, and medieval history. That is quite alot of history in one small hill town. It is a charming, and welcoming village with wonderful food and wine, and beautiful alabaster artistry.
We drove trough the rich farmland of the area and continued upward to the Hill Town of Volterra. Over 2,000 years old, Volterra was once a very important Etruscan city. Volterra has Etruscan, Roman, and medieval history. That is quite alot of history in one small hill town. It is a charming, and welcoming village with wonderful food and wine, and beautiful alabaster artistry.
Ancient Rome and Vatican City
Our 9 day journey through the heart of, and my month-long trek, throughout Italy comes to an end where it all began for me. The Eternal City. The crescendo of this trip were the sites within Vatican City: The Vatican Museum, The Sistine Chapel, St. Peter's Basilica and also of Ancient Rome: The Colosseum, The Roman Forum and The Pantheon to name just a few.
It will be hard to leave and go back home. However, I tossed a coin over my shoulder into The Trevi Fountain. Legend has it, by doing so, I will return.
It will be hard to leave and go back home. However, I tossed a coin over my shoulder into The Trevi Fountain. Legend has it, by doing so, I will return.