Italy is an amazing country, there is no surprise that it is top on many travelers’ wish list. It offers something for everyone, from the history, food, wine, scenery, museums, shopping, and the relaxed, happy atmosphere. With a week of vacation, we followed an itinerary that let us spend time in three must-see areas of Italy, each one completely different from the next. We started in Rome, traveled by train to Florence, exploring the Tuscan countryside, and then had a few days in Venice to finish our tour. Touring Italy with friends from the US is one of our top travel highlights of 2022.
We booked our train tickets from Rome to Florence, and Florence to Venice, on Italia Rail. Train travel through Italy is easy and relaxing, from booking through arrival. The route from Rome to Florence takes just under 2 hours, and from Florence to Venice is just over 2 hours. Bring a sandwich and wine on the train, sit back, and enjoy the ride.
Quick Sights of Rome
Our friends flew into Rome and explored the Amalfi Coast and the Vatican over a few days before we arrived. We quickly caught up to their relaxed vacation mode. We were so happy to see friends from home, and these are the first friends from the US to come visit us.
With 24 hours in Rome, we started right away to see the sights. At least, we saw sights in between wonderful, relaxing, delicious meals. It is funny to sit at a café table in a narrow street while cars go by just inches from the diners. We visited the Pantheon, the Spanish Steps, and Trevi Fountain, wandering through squares and markets, admiring fountains and statues. The best statue is the brooding, hooded Giordano Bruno in Campo de’ Fiori, in the place where he was executed. While we were wandering, we had the excitement of seeing a street fight break out between a bicyclist and a driver. Bike and car were abandoned, and whatever road rule had been broken was passionately and loudly discussed with pushing and shoving on the street. Probably a show put on for the tourists.😜
Tours in Tuscany
While based in Florence, we went on a most unique tour in the countryside of Tuscany. We all loved this tour of a family-run organic olive grove, passed down for generations. At Podere Cavozzoli, sustainable farming techniques produce quality organic olive oil rich in polyphenols. The tour includes a walk through the olive grove in a stunningly beautiful Tuscany setting of rolling hills, and row after row of olive trees. The owners are passionate about their work to produce the best olive oil. The tasting after the tour was an education on how to taste and determine quality olive oils, and demonstrated the excellent quality produced here. We highly recommend this tour, and the olive oils.
Another great tour was riding Vespas through Tuscany. We all survived the adventure, and got to see stunning landscapes from side roads. After a tour of the wine cellars, we enjoyed a traditional Italian family-style lunch with wine at a vineyard.
Fabulous Florence
Florence is a wonderful city, full of art and architecture, history, shopping, and of course the wonderful Italian food that we had throughout the country. Besides sleeping through an earthquake one night, and finding that our Airbnb apartment was 72 stairs up, we really enjoyed this special city.
We visited the Duomo, the fourth-largest Cathedral in Europe. Also the Uffizi Gallery, a wonderful art museum, and Galleria dell’Accademia, which holds Michelangelo’s David. With perfect weather, we gathered some supplies and had a picnic dinner of charcuterie and wine in a park setting one evening. When the sun set, we had magnificent nighttime views over Florence from Piazzale Michelangelo.
Sometimes in Italy you will find your breakfast to be a tiny coffee and a small piece of pizza. Or coffee and a croissant. But at Caffe Concerto Paszkowski, on the Piazza della Repubblica in Florence, we were so happy to find a hearty breakfast with avocado toast and eggs, even pancakes.
Bomb Squad in Venice
Next, we were on to Venice, one of our favorite cities. It is picture-perfect, with quaint, winding, narrow streets, small bridges, and colorful buildings all reflecting in the canal waters. We enjoyed even more views of Venice on a gondola ride, and ate lovely pasta meals followed by cannoli desserts. One day, we took a water taxi to Murano Island and enjoyed a private tour of amazing glass chandeliers. Murano also offers great shopping, and we ate a leisurely lunch beside a canal, with boats passing by.
On our last night in Venice, we wound our way through a narrow street from dinner back to our Airbnb. We were stopped at a bridge and told we couldn’t cross, it was closed. We turned around, but only went a few steps before a huge bang rang out, ricocheting off the stone walls all around us.
Looking around, we were waved to come back, the bridge was open now. The bomb squad had found an abandoned backpack, and blew it up.
At that point, we ducked into Inishark Irish Pub to have a pint and settle the nerves.
We saw a street fight in Rome, experienced an earthquake in Florence, and heard the bomb squad in action in Venice. Most of all, we enjoyed wonderful sights, foods, and experiences on a relaxing tour of Italy in the company of wonderful friends.
Salute!
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