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Trip to Italy: Tuscany | Part: IV Florence + Pisa
Florence, Italy
On the third day in Tuscany, we spent the whole day in Florence. We visited a leather factory, then had a guided tour by a local guide and had a ton of free time for eating and shopping! Florence is such a large lively city filled with so much history!
We started our day early to spend the whole day exploring this incredible city! First stop was a leather factory and shop! Then we had a bit of free time that we spent in a coffee shop of course! Fun fact: The Netflix show Medici: Masters of Florence gives such an interesting view into the lives of the Medici family and how Florence became what it is today! Then we began our guided tour of Florence! Loved the architecture in Florence!
It wasn't a good day for this bike...
This was Michelangelo's childhood home!
And that was our day in Florence!
Pisa, Italy
On the fourth day in Tuscany we spent a good chunk of the day traveling to Venice, but before arriving in Venice we stopped in Pisa, Italy! Seeing the Leaning Tower of Pisa was a sight to see! After taking too many photos, we walked around the adorable town and found Andrew a bakery that finally had some Cannolis! He had been looking for some the whole trip! I also got my favorite, a Lobster Tail Pastry and it was SO GOOD!!
Then we were off to Venice!!
See more from our trip to Italy by clicking the names of the cities below!
Trip to Italy | Part III: San Gimignano, Greve + Lucca
San Gimignano, Greve & Lucca
After traveling through Orvieto and Siena we continued to head north along the West Coast of Italy. Our next stops were: San Gimignano, the town of towers, Greve, for wine tasting and Lucca, for an amazing dinner! Every one of these cities had its own charm and incredible history. We witnessed some of the most breathtaking views during this part of our trip and I am so excited to share more from our trip to Italy!
San Gimignano, Italy
San Gimignano, also known as the "city of beautiful towers." At one point in time the town had 72 towers but now only 14 remain. The towers rise above Tuscany's Elsa Valley and make the town look like a medieval dreamscape.
The views from the edges of this town were amazing! Thanks again for these portraits, Alexa Sedge! Andrew climbed up the 177-foot Torre Grossa and captured these amazing views! He actually captured me in the photo below---I'm the white spec with the hat in the bottom right corner! ;) Then it was time for some amazing gelato! Coconut + dark chocolate. Colors of Tuscany--breathtaking.This walkway along the edge of the town gave an incredible panoramic view! We often forgot to grab food during our free time in every city... So as we would be running to get back to our meet up point in time, we would grab a quick slice of pizza! Cheese + Prosciutto. Delicious.
Greve, Italy
After visiting San Gimignano and its magnificent towers we made our way to Greve in Chianti for a tour of the Castello Vicchiomaggio winery! We learned how they craft and store their famous wine---The Chianti Classico. Afterward, we had a delicious wine tasting while overlooking a breathtaking panoramic view of Tuscany.
I really wanted to stop for a photo in that field of yellow flowers! This is where their wine is kept.Sneaking off for a second to get this shot was totally worth it! Then it was time for some VINO! Amazing wine! While everyone stayed inside sipping their wine, I immediately took mine outside for this view!! Then I dragged Andrew out for some portraits of course! Thank you for these shots, Ange Sedgwick!
Montecatini, Italy
We stayed in a lively town called Montecatini Terme for two nights while we explored the surrounding cities of Tuscany. Montecatini Terme is a more modern town established in the early 1900's. It is known for its Thermal Waters which have been known to help relieve arthritis, rheumatism, digestive problems, and a few other ailments.
We stayed at the Hotel Settentrionale Esplanade! It was a gorgeous hotel! Tuscany was filled with these extremely fragrant purple flowers! I want these here in Florida! And look at that rosemary!! If only my rosemary plant would grow like that! All ready for a yummy dinner!
Lucca, Italy
After a fun-filled day in San Gimignano, Greve and Montecatini, we headed to Lucca for a farm-to-table dinner at Fattoria il Poggio! We learned that, Lucca is actually the town that the movie Pinocchio was based on. It's a quaint little town filled with some gorgeous scenes!
Fattoria il Poggio is a Farmhouse in Montecarlo in the province of Lucca. The grounds are gorgeous! First, we had an informative tour of their vineyard. It was almost golden hour and the field seemed to glow! Needless to say, all I wanted to do is get some photos taken! Alexa Sedge offered to take some photos of us again! We were and still are so thankful for her willingness to document so many sweet moments in Italy! Then they showed us where they made their cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil! Their olive oil was so good that I brought some home! Then it was time for dinner! Four courses of deliciousness. I was so busy enjoying the food that I forgot to capture the other two! Tiramisu, my favorite!! We finished the night walking around Montecatini Terme! It is a very lively and beautiful town at night!
