Tuscany: Florence Day 2

For our second day in Florence we visited the Palazzo Vecchio

We started the day visiting the Cathedral Museum in Florence. It has a good collection of renaissance sculpture. We were able to view many pieces by famous artists. Below are pictures of some interesting works of art.

Michelangelo – Pietà

reliefs of Luca della Robbia (1400-1482) – original marble

After as stop at the museum we went nearby to visit the Palazzo Vecchio. This palace/fortress had many uses throughout the years. Now it is available to tourists as a museum and a government building to the people Florence.

On the way to the Palazzo Vecchio we took a stop at the Piazza della Signoria to see Bartolommeo Bandinelli’s Hercules and Cacus

We also came across Benvenuto Cellini’s statue Perseus With the Head of Medusa

First noticeable is the famous tower of the palace.

Inside there are many interesting ceiling patterns.

Artwork inside the Hall of Lilies.

Hall of Maps

More interesting ceiling decor.

Artwork from the Sala dell’Udienza

Sala de la Audiencia de Francesco Salviati

Salone dei Cinquecento

View from the terrace.

There are many museums to see in Florence but these should remain in the must see.

Gaudí is Good

If you are not familiar with architect Antoni Gaudí then you are missing out. His work under the Modernisme is some of the most unique that you will ever see. The city of Barcelona is a showcase for his work.

Lampposts around Barcelona

Casa Batlló

La Pedrera (Casa Mila)
We were able to tour the inside of La Pedrera or Casa Mila, an apartment building in Barcelona.

One of the most impressive examples of Gaudi’s work is the still unfinished la Sagrada Família. There really is nothing else like it in the world. Unfortunately the only day we were able to see it, it was closed for some special event. One day I will return to see the inside and maybe it will be complete then.

We both got sick at the end of the trip (nasty stomach virus) so we never made it to Park Güell. I have many reasons to return to Barcelona sometime in the future.

Tuscan Towns : Cortona & Chiusi

During my last trip to Italy I was able to spend a few wonderful days in Tuscany. I shared a villa in Foiano della Chiana near Cortona with some girlfriends (and Carlos). We were required to rent a car to get from town to town to explore. We had to get one of the larger cars with trunk space due to the the requirements to hold luggage for 4 women (and 1 guy’s backpack). It proved challenging at first to try to maneuver the car around the roads but we soon got the hang of it. We made sure that enough of us got international driving permits so the driving was distributed among us and not one taking the brunt work of driving everywhere.
Trying to find our villa was very difficult. The directions were vague, and in kilometers (we are not used to the metric system). After a detour down a bumpy dirt road through someone’s farm (my friend swears we were supposed to turn down that road) we eventually find our villa. I wish I had taken more pictures, it really was a great and relaxing villa to return to after sightseeing all day.

Our first night this happens.

This guy is staying with us as well.

The villa contained 3 bedrooms and 2 full baths and a full working kitchen that we used a few nights to make our own dinners. The weather was perfect for open windows and outdoor dining. Out by the resort style pool was a magnificent view and rows of rosemary and lavender bushes in bloom. It really was blissful lounging by the pool, hearing the sounds of bees and nature in the background, and smelling lavender and rosemary while you are reading a book. I can’t think of too many better things in life….except maybe food. Food is kind of great too. I would say my only complaint was the washer that took took 2 hours to wash clothes. I didn’t mind hanging them to dry (I prefer more environmentally friendly) except we did have rain one day and all our wet clothes got more wet.
Exploring near by town of Cortona was fun.

Cortona

Chiusi

One of the day trips we took was to Chiusi. Chuisi has some of the best Etruscan tombs. Unfortunately I did not take any photos but I do have video that I will hopefully upload one day. During our visit to the city center we got to witness a day of games from the bell tower.

National Archaeological Museum

Rio de Janeiro

When we visited Rio in 2006 it was notorious for violent robberies. While traveling we usually wander around towns with ease. In Rio we decided to play it safe and do all our sightseeing with tour guides. The two memorable trips we took were to Rochina (a favela) and a day tour called a “Carioca Tour” around Rio.

Our day started with pickup from our hostel and we first stopped at the famous Christ the Redeemer statue. Yes it is as cool as it looks in photos and you can get some great views from up there.

We then stopped at a national park and got a glimpse of a nice little water fall.

Another highlight of the tour is that we got to see the famous Selaron tiles in Rio.

He happened to be working that day and we were able to snap a photo with him. We were supposed send him tiles from Florida to help with his art but we never did. It makes me sad to discover he died in January 2013.

Finally we went to Pão de Açúcar (Sugarloaf mountain) to watch the sunset.

At some point in the tour we stopped a beach. It was July and winter there. A few are playing sports but the beaches are pretty much a ghost town. However if I remember correctly it probably was at least in the 70’s Fahrenheit. Cariocas have low tolerance for cool weather.

We had a safe and memorable visit to Rio.
The hostel we stayed at was Rio Backpackers.

Mykonos

In May 2009 we celebrated our honeymoon in beautiful Greece. Our trip started in the beautiful white washed island of Mykonos. Mykonos (also called Hora) is known for not only its white buildings but also for its windmills and party like atmosphere. May is the off season so the island wasn’t packed with clubbers and it was a bit too cold to hang out at the beach. Despite the cold weather it was still a fun and relaxing vacation.

Our hotel San Marco was beautiful and relaxing. While we dined at the hotel they were filming there for a tv show. We never did look for that show. My only complaint is that the hotel was not in walking distance to the center of Mykonos and we relied on a hotel shuttle that had limited pickups, probably due to it being off season.

We received a bottle of wine upon arrival. I spent one evening with the wine while reading and watching the sunset.

Famous Windmills

Octopuses hanging to dry. We frequently saw fishermen tenderizing tentacles against rocks.

Our first Greece sunset…

One night after seeing squid on the menu we decided to order squid. I normally like squid but this squid was huge and a bit hard to eat. We ended up sharing this squid with the stray cats that were staring at us all night.