3.28.2010

umbrella update.

A quick overview (aka umbrella) of some of our recent frolicking around and beyond Florence:
  • Caleb and I attended the once-a-month flea market near Piazza Ambrogio; we found gemstones, scarves and smurfs.
  • Visited and brought books to the Paperback Exchange (store credit!); boys found a funny-fact book called 'The Book of Lists.' I couldn't resist a book I have been eying for 4 months: Maxine Clark's Italian Kitchen.
  • Saturday March 27 we blitzed Florence, visiting: History of Science Museum (Galileo's instruments), San Marco Museum (key for those who read Agony & Ecstasy re: Michelangelo. Has Savonarola's cell and garb, Ghirlandaio's Last Supper fresco and amazing frescoes by Fra Angelico), and The Baptistry--think gold plated domed ceiling.
  •  Attended Saturday night mass at the Duomo (Sat at 5pm is one time a week there is mass in English).
  • Dinner at a fave new restaurant: Bella Donna. Met new friends (owner and boyfriend)!
  • Janelle took a quick road trip to cook with friend Erika in her Tuscan agriturismo; read about it on my food blog talk of tomatoes. Fantastic food, new recipes, great photos all over the countryside!
  •  Last weekend we visited: San Miniato (known for November white-truffle festival), Collodi (famous for Pinocchio Park and Garzoni Garden), Empoli for math tournament (you have to love: story problems in Italian...), Museum of the Duomo in Florence (underrated and one of our fave museums).
  •  Visited Montecatini Terme and Montecatini Alto; the Terme were closed but we got a glimpse, and the city of Montecatini Alto was really quaint and clean---we had a nice little hike around the city and an early dinner.
  •  Had boys walk boxes home one day, and I walked a bike box across all of Florence another day. We are packing bikes to return home with our house guests.
  • We are busy making big plans for our cousins to visit! We will be visiting Cinque Terre, Venice, doing a token loop in the Chianti region, putting our toes in hot springs, blowing through Lucca, perhaps seeing a cheese factory in Parma and if we are lucky: see fireworks come out of a chariot by Florence's Duomo on Easter day.

2 comments:

  1. You leave me breathless - this is all so amazing! So much to see and do! (I especially loved reading 'story problems in Italian'! Yikes!)

    Now I'm off to catch up on "Talk of Tomaotes".

    Again, thank you for sharing this with the rest of us.

    Barb

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous30.3.10

    The days are fairly flying by - and you will miss all this frolicking! We have lived through your experiences, and have been inspired and entertained. We love you. O & O

    ReplyDelete

we love hearing feedback!

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails