Madrid, Toledo, Venice, Cinque Terre, Lucca
Okay, I’m not really going to write about all of those (in detail) here, but that’s where we’ve been since we last posted. Here they are in a nutshell, though:
Madrid Busy metropolis of hard-core city-lovers (most of whom smoke), and quite the array of “ladies of the night”. That being said, the Prado Museum was absolutely amazing – we spent an exhausting 4 hours there, but saw arguably some of the greatest artwork of all time.
Toledo Rich in history and hills, this day trip from Madrid was a nice retreat from the city. As the former capitol of Spain, its fortress-style city walls still house 10% of the city’s population.
Venice This picturesque and charming city, though swarming with tourists, has a way of capturing the heart. Their public transportation system floats tourists and residents around town via an abundant system of canals. St. Mark’s Basilica was a gem, and our live demo of glass blowing proved to us that a glass lemon can, indeed, be quickly melted and shaped into a cat…crazy!!
Cinque Terre These five villages sit quietly along the Italian Riviera and serve as popular vacation spots for Italians. We racked up quite a few miles on the shoes with our hikes between the towns. Though sometimes a bit dangerous, they were worth the rewards of phenomenal views. Ordering anything but seafood in these towns is slightly criminal.
Lucca Ahh, the family homeland to the Ramacciottis. Our trip there today was slightly disappointing due to the fact that today is the Italian independence day, and city offices are closed. With hopes of looking up the family name, we’ll return via train sometime in the next couple days.
Florence We’re here!! This city is beautiful and is somewhat of an citywide sculpture exhibit. More to come, and hopefully we’ll expand these blurbs soon with pictures (we currently have over 1500).