Florence, Italy

Florence was really fun! We toured the Uffizi museum which had lots of nice pieces and some from really famous artists (like Da Vinci). Otherwise we just wandered the streets, shopped for amazing leather goods, and ate a lot of yummy food!

 The Staue of David

 These were just really cool statues down some random street

In Europe, there isn't much salad dressing or dip options-instead you combine olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. The customer always does the combining and it is actually pretty good.

 This was supposedly "fried sliced zuchini" but was actually just sliced in a heap. And I'm not sure if it was cucumber or zuchini, but it was good/interesting anyway!

 This meal was to-die-for deliscious! Mark got scrumptious lasagna and I got cheesy gnocchi, it was seriously possibly the best meal I have had since being in Europe! It was like when I first discovered chicken marsala =) 

This was the restaraunt

On our way to the Uffizi with the group for a tour. Unfortunately, there are no pictures in the museum. The Uffizi is a collection of artwork that was owned by a singal wealthy Italian family. It is considered to be one of the first museums.

 There is one area that pictures are allowed (of the river), so I took a couple inside that area for an idea of what the building was like.

 This was one of many random fruit markets along the streets. I stopped and got some dried fruit and nuts for lunch. This may sound odd, but is now just a part of my routine. Dried fruits and nuts are very common in Europe so far and are typically cheap, healthy and tastey.

For some reason, I didn't take any pictures of the leather districts! Which is sad because they were amazing! I will admit that I got 2 leather jackets, but I have never owned one in my life and they say Florence is the leather capital of the world. One I got from a leather maker who does shows for Donald Trump, and clients of tons of famous people! Sandra Bullock, Elizabeth Taylor, famous war generals for some examples. Anyway, they were so friendly and gave us some of their family-produced wine with my jacket. My next post will be the last from that trip-Venice!

The Leaning Tower of Pisa!

We stopped at the leaning tower of Pisa on our way to Florence. It was pretty fun! I loved the drive actually, the Italian countryside was exactly what I have always pictured. Rolling fields and hills, vineyards, old villas, ruins of a castle every 20m. It was beautiful. As for the tower-it was pretty cool to go there, but the reality is that the builders did a crappy job so the building is slowly falling down/sinking and will someday collapse all together. I wonder how popular this spot would be if it wasn't mid-fall. It's a funny thought if you think about it.

 This is our bus

 Tomorrow I will post Florence! Hasta la vista mis amigos!

The Last of Rome

Here are the last of the Rome pictures. The first few are of the end of the Vatican and the rest of from just wandering the streets enjoying the city.

 In Italy, I think I had pizza for lunch every day! It is scumptious and pretty cheap =)

 And after pizza typically comes some gelati =)

 This is the pope's castle-if he is ever in danger, he goes here.

 Pretty/funky dresses!

 One of the best parts of ITaly and Europe in general so far is the details in everything. Every doorway is huge with giant knockers that make them look like a fortress, fountains and statues are on every other street, and there are random decorations like the one above everywhere you look. It makes the United States seem so young-just like everything in Europe!

 This couple was adorable! We bought something there and got chatting with them for a while. They have helped out tons of celebrities and are friends with random ones-like Chuck Noris! And the guy was so proud of his coin collection, he got them all out and showed us. Their shop was right beside the Trevi Fountain, and it was just such a lovely little meetcute.