Tuscany 2009

Two weekends ago, Kevin gave a presentation at a conference in Italy. I tagged along. We stayed in Florence, where Kevin renewed his love for "el Duomo," the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore.

In front of a nice view of Florence and its Duomo

View from Fiesole of Florence

From there we caught trains to Pisa and Lucca. Pisa was my favorite. I'm a sucker for the Leaning Tower, even if getting the perfect cheesy shots in front of it took forever. But the city is beautiful and historic in its own right, complete with its own smaller duomo, and I would have spent more time there if I could.

Pisa! What a dream!

Lucca was probably Kevin's favorite. It is a small charming town with treasures down random streets. The town is supposed to have the best food in Tuscany, and we went to one of the best restaurants for dinner. Kevin got the delicious rabbit ravioli and I got the Tuscan yellow pasta with mushrooms (yellow from extra eggs). His dish was better, or at least, I always think it is.

In front of the walls of Lucca

On day three we missed getting into the Boboli Gardens and lost our guidebook, so on a whim, we hopped on a bus to Fiesole, the town that sits just above Florence. The town has an amazing night view of the city, and some pretty fantastic restaurants too.

We went to the impressive Uffizi gallery and Boboli Gardens (again) before leaving on the fourth day. More about our trip here: http://eralontravels.blogspot.com/search/label/Tuscany.

Florence, Italy 2009

In October, Kevin gave a presentation at a conference in Tuscany, and I tagged along. We stayed in Florence, where Kevin renewed his love for "el Duomo," the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore. We walked around a lot, and went to the impressive Uffizi gallery and Boboli Gardens (again) before leaving on the last day.

In front of a nice view of Florence and its Duomo

You can glimpse the Duomo everywhere on the streets of Florence

Close up to the facade

Boboli Gardens on our last day

Lucca, Italy 2009

Lucca was probably Kevin's favorite. It is a small charming town with treasures down random streets. The town is supposed to have the best food in Tuscany, and we went to one of the best restaurants for dinner. Kevin got the delicious rabbit ravioli and I got the Tuscan yellow pasta with mushrooms (yellow from extra eggs). His dish was better, or at least, I always think it is.

The city walls in Lucca

Beautiful buildings

Small plazas

The town at sunset

Dessert at Ristorante Giglio

Pisa, Italy 2009

From there we caught trains to Pisa and Lucca. Pisa was my favorite. I'm a sucker for the Leaning Tower, even if getting the perfect cheesy shots in front of it took forever. But the city is beautiful and historic in its own right, complete with its own smaller duomo, and I would have spent more time there if I could.

In front of the Torre pendente di Pisa, a freestanding bell tower

Close-up of the tower and cherubs

The Duomo in the Cathedra Square (Piazza del Duomo)

Inside the Duomo

Florence, Italy 2009

Kevin gave a presentation at a conference in Tuscany, and I tagged along. We stayed in Florence, where Kevin renewed his love for "el Duomo," the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore. We walked around a lot and went to the impressive Uffizi gallery and Boboli Gardens (again) before leaving on the last day.

In front of a nice view of Florence and its Duomo

You can glimpse the Duomo everywhere on the streets of Florence

Close up to the facade

Boboli Gardens on our last day