Hello to our friends and family back home! Natalie here, your faithful tour rep!
It is Day 3 today and it already feels like we've been here for a week. There seems to be no limit to the sun, food and wine. The group is getting along amazingly well and our days have been wonderful all round. Yesterday afternoon we arrived in Rome (our flight was 50 minutes early! When does that ever happen??) boarded our bus and travelled to the beautiful region of Umbria for a stop at a winery called Decugnano dei Barbi (http://www.decugnanodeibarbi.com/) we were greeted by our our first fashionable Italian guide, Anna Rita, and were given a tour of the grounds (ancient etruscan caves and all). There was a bit of a hill involved in the tour and we had just about everything we would need waiting for us - 3 samples of wine, and the best antipasti from the region. After our feast and wine tasting, participants bought wine (or Spumante) and we boarded our bus and carried on our way to Florence. We drove directly to our restaurant (arriving at 9:45pm) and had a late, delicious meal in typical Italian fashion. We dined at Trattoria Tiberio (http://www.trattoriatiberio.it/) and had a lot (a lot) of food. Following the meal, some of us retreated to our rooms while others decided to walk to the Duomo for a late night (1:00am) tour of the piazza for the first siting of the magnificent basilica. It was an awesome, awesome first day.
This morning we were given a tour by our second fashionable Italian guide, Gianna, and the participants were given a tour of all the famous sites that Florence has to offer. The participants broke for lunch and some of us regrouped at 2pm in the courtyard and ventured out to the Italian market, starting at a favourite purse shop of mine, Massimo Leather (http://www.massimoleather.it), the ladies shopped and shopped while the men waited and waited. From Massimo's we continued on to Roberto's where we did a bit more shopping. From the leather market we continued back to the hotel and some of us marched up to Piazzale Michelangelo for one of the most spectacular views, overlooking all of Florence. Some of us enjoyed an extra cold and refreshing Italian beer (Peroni Nastro Azzurro - also sold at the LCBO) before returning to the hotel to meet up with the group before dinner. We walked to La Dantesca, an amazing pizzeria in Florence (http://www.ladantesca.it), and enjoyed a variety of pizza's as well as their house wine. After dinner we broke into groups and some of us returned to the hotel, while others continued their night at various locations.
Tomorrow morning 19 of us are going to Venice for the day, if tomorrow is as amazing as yesterday and today have been, I think we'll be a bunch of very happy campers.
Sending everyone back home my love and kind wishes,
Natalie
Enjoy some pictures of the winery from yesterday!
It is Day 3 today and it already feels like we've been here for a week. There seems to be no limit to the sun, food and wine. The group is getting along amazingly well and our days have been wonderful all round. Yesterday afternoon we arrived in Rome (our flight was 50 minutes early! When does that ever happen??) boarded our bus and travelled to the beautiful region of Umbria for a stop at a winery called Decugnano dei Barbi (http://www.decugnanodeibarbi.com/) we were greeted by our our first fashionable Italian guide, Anna Rita, and were given a tour of the grounds (ancient etruscan caves and all). There was a bit of a hill involved in the tour and we had just about everything we would need waiting for us - 3 samples of wine, and the best antipasti from the region. After our feast and wine tasting, participants bought wine (or Spumante) and we boarded our bus and carried on our way to Florence. We drove directly to our restaurant (arriving at 9:45pm) and had a late, delicious meal in typical Italian fashion. We dined at Trattoria Tiberio (http://www.trattoriatiberio.it/) and had a lot (a lot) of food. Following the meal, some of us retreated to our rooms while others decided to walk to the Duomo for a late night (1:00am) tour of the piazza for the first siting of the magnificent basilica. It was an awesome, awesome first day.
This morning we were given a tour by our second fashionable Italian guide, Gianna, and the participants were given a tour of all the famous sites that Florence has to offer. The participants broke for lunch and some of us regrouped at 2pm in the courtyard and ventured out to the Italian market, starting at a favourite purse shop of mine, Massimo Leather (http://www.massimoleather.it), the ladies shopped and shopped while the men waited and waited. From Massimo's we continued on to Roberto's where we did a bit more shopping. From the leather market we continued back to the hotel and some of us marched up to Piazzale Michelangelo for one of the most spectacular views, overlooking all of Florence. Some of us enjoyed an extra cold and refreshing Italian beer (Peroni Nastro Azzurro - also sold at the LCBO) before returning to the hotel to meet up with the group before dinner. We walked to La Dantesca, an amazing pizzeria in Florence (http://www.ladantesca.it), and enjoyed a variety of pizza's as well as their house wine. After dinner we broke into groups and some of us returned to the hotel, while others continued their night at various locations.
Tomorrow morning 19 of us are going to Venice for the day, if tomorrow is as amazing as yesterday and today have been, I think we'll be a bunch of very happy campers.
Sending everyone back home my love and kind wishes,
Natalie
Enjoy some pictures of the winery from yesterday!
this is the before picture of our food table...
This is the after picture of our food table :-)
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