Driving in Italy (not for the faint of heart)

On our recent trip to Italy we picked up a rental car in Rome so we could drive to Florence. With our trusty little Fiat Panda we were able to explore half a dozen villages in Tuscany. It was lovely to have the freedom to explore on our own but, admittedly, at times it was quite terrifying! 

Apparently, the 130 km speed limit is merely a suggestion, and so are stop signs. Oh, and if you leave a few metres between your car and the one in front of you I guarantee someone will see it as an invitation to squeeze in. The driver needs nerves of steel and the passenger...well, let's just say that sometimes the best thing to do is to close your eyes and hope for the best.

I hope I haven't discouraged you too much about the driving experience in Italy. In any case, if you speak to my husband, Mr. Nerves of Steel, he'll tell you to go for it and have a blast. 

 Below are a few photos we took of some cool cars we saw on our trip.

Our little Fiat Panda. Still quite amazed that we got it back to the rental agency without getting a single scratch on it.

Doors of Tuscany

I'm not quite sure why I like old doors so much, but I always end up taking lots of pictures of them when I'm on vacation. As I mentioned in my previous post, I'll be adding on to our memory wall in the dining room with some of our photos of interesting doors in Tuscany. Here are the top contenders.  

My favourite is the dark green door with the yellow wall. That shade of Tuscan yellow is pretty much perfect. Does anyone else out there take pictures of doors when on vacation or is that just a weird thing that I do?

Venice

I was unprepared for the effect that Venice had on me. From my very first glimpse of the city I became enchanted with it. Sure, like everyone else I had seen countless photos of Venice, but there's something about being there that is completely overwhelming. I tried to understand why Venice had such an effect on me and I think it's a combination of the fact that there is water everywhere you look, the quality of the light is diffused and kind of dreamy and also, that there is simply no other city on the planet like this one.  

The Grand Canal

Everywhere you look, there is beauty...

...even the hanging laundry is beautiful. And, I loved seeing it as it was a reminder that there are still Venetians who live here.

Walking around in the very narrow streets of Venice is an adventure in itself. You simply have to expect to get lost several times, it's inevitable. Not too scary during the day but at night, that's another story. Yup, we got lost around midnight and could not find our way home, until we found someone who pointed us in the right direction. We had been going around in circles for nearly an hour. 

Looking through the windows of the Bridge of Sighs in the Doge's Palace. This would have been the prisoner's last view  of Venice before they were taken to be executed. Apparently, Casanova spent some time in the prisons of the Palace, but he managed to escape.

On our way to the island of Murano to see the glass-makers. It was fun to experience the canals of Venice in a boat. 

Many people asked me if I went on a gondola ride, and technically the answer is yes, as we hopped into a traghetto, which is the gondola used by Venetians to cross the Grand Canal.  We had fully intended on going for a ride in a gondola but when we got there we changed our minds. Mostly, it was a combination of the steep price (85 euros for 50 min) and the fact that the gondoliers seem completely uninterested in the entire exercise. We saw more than one gondolier talking away on their cell phone while they had a boatful of disappointed-looking  people.

 Frittura mista de pesce or mixed fried fish is a speciality in Venice. We had this, as well as fantastic pizza and prosecco on our last night in Italy. 

As you can tell, I fell under Venice's spell, unfortunately, many other people wanted to experience Venice at the same time as us. We were lucky enough to stay at a friend's apartment and I asked her how she felt about the throngs of tourists. She said that Venetians have mixed feelings about the tourists: on the one hand they need us to survive, as Venice's economy is intrinsically linked to tourism but on the other hand, sometimes, as she said: "you just want to get to where you're going without fighting your way through hordes of people." Oh well, I get what she's saying but I still intend to return to Venice someday.

Falling for Florence

I had a bit of a love affair with Florence. The stunning city is known for its art, in particular, the famous statue of David from Michelangelo. It is also a city for lovers of beauty. I took hundreds of photos during our two days in Florence because there was something stunning  everywhere I looked. Sigh, I miss Florence already!

A view of the Arno river and one of Florence's romantic bridges.

I'll never forget my first sight of the city, at night, in the rain.

 Sweets in the window of Scudieri. I did not try any of it but it was lovely to look at.

A glimpse of the Duomo. 

Michelangelo's famous David. I admit it, we only saw the reproduction as I had failed to plan ahead and reserve our time to see the original inside the Accademia. We just weren't up to waiting upwards of three hours in line to see it. Oh well, next time!


Our Italian adventure ends in Venice, which I will have you tour in my next post. See you soon!