Thursday, I was proud of mom, she woke up early and got ready for the day! We went to the Boboli Gardens and then to the Palazzo Pitti – the palace where the Pitti family lived. The Boboli Gardens was their own “quaint” backyard. The Palazzo Pitti had many things, but we were only able to see what was called modern artwork that had been restored from the late 1800s to early 1900s. The rooms were fashioned in deep reds and light blues with heavy drapes hung on the windows. In my opinion, the most beautiful and unique characteristics about any building you walk into in Italy is the ceilings and frescoes that are carefully painted from so long ago. It’s always the first thing I look at when I walk in somewhere, whether there is a frescoe or not, the structures of the walls to the ceilings are something you’ll rarely see.
Before we left, we met a ninety-year-old man touring the Boboli Gardens! He was British and thought mom and me were the prettiest things on two legs that walked by. After he proceeded to pluck my hair that he loved and got up from his wheelchair and danced for us, he headed up the hill without his cane as it it was no effort. Very interesting man, I hope he has the time of his life. After a few hours of hiking and strolling around the museum, we were starving and found a place on the river called The Golden View. The food was delicious, but the view made it even better. We now have reservations here for my Grandmother and cousin Wanda for when we return to Florence on our tour.
Friday was not only the last day of school (thank goodness, let’s be honest school is still school whether in Italy or not) and my last day to be with Sabrina! We went to lunch in Fiesole where Mom could see the view of Florence. I was really glad Mom was able to meet Sabrina, I’m going to miss her. She has been a wonderful house mother and I’m really sad to be leaving her. I hope one day we can be reunited, OH WAIT! We are next week for dinner at her house when I swing back by Florence on the tour! But after that, I’m going to be even more sad because now it will be real. I will be officially leaving my semi-hometown for good. There are many memories that I’ve had with new and old friends that I will always cherish and I can now officially tell anyone I meet, “Yes, I have lived in three places in my lifetime (maybe even more at this point) Alabama, Virginia, and Italy. Oh you haven’t? That’s too bad
And one last day, since I haven’t written a blog in a while, I have to talk about my day yesterday. Today was a very special day, My Mom and I took what we thought was a full wine tour throughout Chianti, but ended up being more of a tour of a few Tuscan cities with one wine tasting stop on the way. However, although there was less vino, there was a lot more fun!
First stop, San Gimignano, a small town in the hills with buildings dating back to the 11th and 13th century. It is known to have some of the oldest medieval buildings in Italy. We had about an hour here where we walked around the small town. The market was open and the first thing I see when I walk in is a GIANT pig with a piece of bread (instead of an apple) stuck in it’s mouth, while a man was hacking away at it’s hiney. A brutal, yet hilarious site to see.
After San Gimignano, we the went to Siena where we had lunch and a short tour of the city. This city was divided into family clans that are represented by animals and insects, a few examples being: caterpillar, porcupines, unicorns and elephants. If there is a family member marrying a member of another animal icon, the families sign a prenuptial agreement to determine which clan their child will be in. Our tour guide was part of the elephant members, Roll Tide! Also, there were five popes from Siena. So, basically Siena was really cool and I am really glad I got to see it.
Our Bulgarian friends!
Our last stops were Pienza and Montepulciano. Pienza is where we had the wine tasting. The owner of the vineyard was a silly old man who only spoke Italian, but had a common way of flirting with the ladies. And I suggest if you ever do a wine tasting in Italy, or anywhere else in a foreign country, to send your bottles back. It’s a little pricey, but isn’t it worth to have it when you’re back at home, no longer in the beautiful Tuscan countryside?
Our last stop was Montepulciano at the tip-top of the hills where I saw two things. The first unforgettable image I was fortunate to see were the Tuscan hills that almost seem to roll on for miles and miles into the distance. Scenes from the Gladiator were filmed here. Also, remember the scene in New Moon (if you are a Twilight Saga fan like me) when Edward is stepping out into the crowd as he was about to reveal his true vampire identity to the world as he slowly unbuttoned his shirt to show his abnormally sparkling skin in the sunlight (in case you don’t know, vampires in Twilight have skin that sparkles in the sunlight)?! Yeah, I was there, where that scene was filmed in the center of the town Montepulciano. And by the way, there is no fountain; they built that for the dramatic effect of Bella running across it to save her vampire lover. Sorry, I’m a bit of a nerd. But, in short, this day was a really special day for us to experience because the Tuscan countryside is certainly like no countryside you would see in the southern hills of Alabama.
San Gimignano is where I had my meal of amazing bread and cheeseeeeeeeee.
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