Bongiorno!

I’d love to tell you that I could write the rest of this post in Italian, but, unfortunately, my four to five word italian vocabulary prevents me from doing so.  I do love to listen to the Italians speak though.  The language has a beautiful lilting quality that I find incredibly expressive, and, listening to it,  I can understand why the italian culture has a reputation for being incredibly romantic. 

Our stay in Italy began in Milan at the house of Claudio Luzzetti, a friend of Zevi’s Mom.  It was so much fun to have the opportunity to stay with a native of the country that we were visiting, as most of the people we have met so far on this trip have been fellow travellers and, while that has been very rewarding and enjoyable, it’s not quite the same as getting travel advice from someone who has spent his whole life in the area.  Claudio cooked us some incredible meals, including an amazing artichoke risotto that I am determined to try to make when I get home, although it may involve smuggling some Italian artichokes back with me, and regaled us with stories of his own travels, which have been fairly extensive from the sounds of it.  His tales of Japan made me want to take a side trip there from Italy!  Claudio’s hospitality was incredible, and we are very grateful that he allowed us to invade his home for two days.  Milan itself was a little underwhelming, as shopping at the many designer boutiques that fill the centre of the city didn’t quite fit into our budget. 

After Milan we arrived in Florence, or Firenze; I like the Italian name so much better!  Our hostel was a very small one, which made it wonderfully charming and almost felt like we were staying at someone’s home once again.  The owner of the hostel, Lorenzo, cooked us breakfast and wonderful dinners every day, and bid farewell to me with a hug more suggestive of someone I had known for a year rather than a few short days.  One of the highlights of FIrenze was seeing the David, Michaelangelo’s breathtaking marble masterpiece.  It held our gaze for minutes on end; and I hardly wanted to leave the gallery with the knowledge that I would no longer be able to look upon David’s exquisitely carved figure.  It alone was more than worth the 10 € we spent to get into the gallery.  The leaning tower of Pisa was another fun stop. 

Today and yesterday have been spent in the beautiful small town of Siena, where we viewed what was, in my mind, the most incredible building we have seen so far, the Siena duomo.  I’m running out of internet time, so I don’t have time to explain it in detail, but suffice it to say that I was frozen in shock and awe when I stepped inside the door.  Absolutely marvelous!

Tomorrow we will go to Rome!  We’re both pretty excited about that. 

Thanks for all of your comments.  We’re thinking about all of you back home, as always.

Love heather