PO BOX Chianti Tuscany

This morning we started off in an hour long line for the Uffizi gallery here in Florence. The gallery is home to several italian artists I have not heard of but there are works by Bottecelli, Rafael, and Davinci. Most of the art has a jesus theme of him on the cross or as a child. Some paintings were of italian noble families.

After dodging rain drops we boarded a tour bus for the chianti region of tuscany. Italy has 20 regions and florence is located in tuscany. We stopped at castello ill palagio for wine tasting and tour. To say tuscany is beautiful is an understatement. It looks like what you see on tv. It is rolling hills of olive trees, grape farms, and cyprus trees. Our photos will not do it justice. The wines and olive oil were delicious and we will order some asap from the US supplier. Shipping charges from Italy are over $100! That does not include the cost of the wine/oil.

After the tour and wine tasting, we drove to Greve, a small town nearby. It is a small, quiet town that is not touristy but with lots of shops and flats above the store. We visited a butcher where I bought a package of italian salami to eat as a snack for the train ride on saturday.

Tomorrow we are riding the train to Rome. We've been told to expect a crowded, noisy city. We'll see but we are excited.

We have learned first hand the italian train service is not the best but we are hoping for an early start so we can arrive in Rome by early afternoon.

One interesting side note: I have had NO acid reflux eating the italian food and Michelle's acid reflux is a lot less here. We cannot say enough about the quality of food at mid-priced restaurants and the service. Italians are a very friendly people so far on our trip.

That is all from here.

Arrivederche!