The End of Our 9-Day Visit to Italy

Bob's on the train to Vienna on May 7 with the cookies and bottled water we bought at a bakery near the Riato Bridge in Venice. It was a delicious snack, albeit a not so healthy one, as we raced across Italy into Austria. This is the end of Part I of our trip. Part II begins with our adventures in Austria, a favorite country of ours.

Leaving Venice, Italy for Vienna, Austria

We hated to leave Venice on Sat., May 7, but had reserved seats for the long seven-hour trip to Vienna, Austria. This was the weird train trip where a rude Austrian woman claimed she had the tickets to our seats - and actually she did. But we were there first and weren't moving. It was interesting as she spoke no English and we spoke very little - ah, no -German. The conductor didn't care as there were plenty of open seats. A nice Austrian man sitting across from us explained in almost perfect English that they double book reserved seats all the time. This woman had been so loud and rude, though, it practically ruined the trip for Marti.

Alexandro, Our Gondolier

We had this wonderful gondolier named Alexandro. He gave us a tour of the back canals of Venice. We quietly glided by the homes of Cassanova and Marco Polo. It was so wonderful and Marti loved every minute of the hour-long ride. She wished it could have lasted all night long! Stephanie, do you see anything familiar?

The Rialto Bridge - Venice

We are on a Vaparetto for this shot of the Rialto Bridge. We did get off and walked across the bridge, looking at all the things for sale, but didn't buy anything. Once again, the crowds of people were everywhere.

St. Mark's Square Clouds - Venice

Bob captured an interesting shot of the clouds behind the columns on St. Mark's Square.

St Mark's Square - Venice

We spent each evening in St. Mark's Square. Not only was it a fantasy with the lights shimmering in reflective water on the ground, but there were three separate orchestras playing beautiful music. We would find a nice table, have a cappaccino and tiramisu, and take in our wonderful surroundings - we couldn't believe we were actually in Venice!

The Grand Canal - Venice, Italy

We sipped on warm cappuccino on the terrace of one of the hotels along the Grand Canal and watched the water taxis, gondolas, water postmen, and deliveries of fresh produce.

A Back Canal in Venice

Unbelieveably it was a little chilly in Venice when we first arrived. A guy from Ohio took this photo of us on one of the bridges over a quaint back canal.

Wonderful Venice, Italy

We arrived in Venice on a cloudy, rainy day, but it didn't deter from our love for Venice, almost from the moment we set foot on the Vaperetto. Our hotel was perfectly located just minutes from St. Mark's Square where we spent a lot of time. Bob took this wonderful shot of the Doge Palace tower, a beautiful building on the Square. (The Venetian in Las Vegas is a pretty good copy, but the real thing is much better!)

Tuscan Country

This is a beautiful shot of the Tuscan countryside from the top of San Gimignano.

San Gimignano - Tuscan Hill Country

Although Sienna was nice, there were too many people. Next on our tour was another Tuscan hill community behind walls called San Gimignano. Now this little village was enchanting. We both loved it instantly! We could imagine being there in a little hotel on the main piazza after the tour groups and school kids left - it would be heaven. The view from the top of the highest building overlooking the Tuscan countryside was breathtaking! Bob is standing at the top with some of the village's towers behind him.

Sienna - Tuscan Countryside

Here we are in Sienna in Tuscan country. We're on a tour, but the formalities are over and we're on our own in the Piazza Il Campo where we had a nice lunch. This place was swarming with people and lots of school kids in groups who were loud and obnoxious, but due to Bob's technical skills with digital imagery, all those people magically disappeared from these photos!

River Arno in Florence

We crossed the Ponte Vecchio each night and stood looking over the River Arno. So to recap: On Monday, May 2, we had breakfast in Rome, lunch in Pisa, and dinner at the Piazza Della Signoria in Florence with yet another gelato in our hand.

Bob Meets a "Royal Boar"

We saw sculptures of this bronze boar everywhere and Bob said if you rubbed its nose it was good luck, so of course we had to have a picture.

Beautiful Florence, Italy

This is a great shot of Florence from the hotel tower. Florence is a pretty city and we enjoyed our stay here. Our hotel suite was huge with three rooms just for us and its location couldn't have been more convenient. We visited the Academia and the Uffizzi Gallery, and even tried the gelato shop that Rick Steves suggested.

The Tower at the Hotel Torre Guelfa

The building that houses this hotel was an old palace with ancient winding steps leading to a two-tier tower overlooking Florence. The hotel put cafe tables on both tiers and served wine and canapes in the evening. In this photo, Marti is descending the steps that lead to the uppermost tower. The view from either tower was wonderful and we got some nice panamoramic photos of Florence from above. It was equally as beautiful at sunset, but also equally as crowded - we couldn't get a table.

Hotel Torre Guelfa in Florence

After seeing the Leaning Tower of Pisa, we caught the train to Florence. Our cab took us through the crowds to our hotel on a narrow street near the River Arno and the Uffizi Gallery. When we arrived the massive doors were closed and we didn't know how to get in. We finally pushed a button and the door opened. Then we were met by an iron gate. That was buzzed open for us too and we went up a tiny elevator to the 3rd floor to the reception desk.

The Leaning Tower of Pisa

This is the only photo we got of the Tower actually leaning. Somehow we managed to take several shots of the Tower NOT leaning. This one brings back memories because we had been walking from the train station for a long time and were sure we had gone the wrong direction. Then we turned a corner and casually looked over our shoulder and suddenly there it was just as it appears in this photograph. We were in shock - it was so close and so "leaning". It was great!

Train Trip From Rome to Pisa

On Mon., May 2 we were at the train station bright and early for our trip to Florence by way of Pisa. Trent and Amy had given us the book in the photo and Marti used the time on the train to catch up on the history behind much of what we saw in the Ancient City in Rome. It's a great book with overlays that show what the ruins looked like in their day and then what we saw. It was fascinating and made the Ancient City much more meaningful.