Since cars are not allowed in or around the central part of Firenzi the best way for us to go was to drive to a commuter town and take the train. So we got up and drove to the town of Empoli. It is definitely a commuter town as we …

This morning we got up early to head in to Pisa. We had tickets to climb the leaning tower at 9:00, so we had to get under way in good time. That meant getting up at 6:30 to be on the road in time to get to Pisa …

For our first full day in Tuscany we decided to check out some of the hill towns. We went to Volterra and San Giamanginino, two of the ancient Etruscan hill towns in Tuscany. The etruscans predated the Greeks and were equally as advanced in art and science. It is really …

Our goal was to leave Venice about 1:00pm. So, we got up, had our breakfast and headed over to visit the Doge's Palace.

After the palace we wandered back to our hotel and tried out one of the recommended restaurants. The pizzeria around the corner in the Piazza. Since …

In Venice you can get lost very easily, but not for long. There are signs everywhere point you toward to major landmarks, the Rialto Bridge and St. Mark's Square.

After a small breakfast in our hotel we set out to take the tour of the Grand Canal. From the St …

This was a long day of driving. First we went back down the mountain, and then we moved a ways to the east and went back up and over the mountain. The drive through the mountains was pretty. Lots of great long bridges and many many tunnels. The nicest tunnels …

This morning we were greeted by a perfectly blue sky, without a single cloud. We had two main choices for our main activity today: Take a gondola up to the highest point where we could see the mountains of Switzerland, France, and Italy, or take a train ride up the …

Breakfast this morning was continental style in the chateaux. Cereal, cheese, bread, tea, yogurt. It was good. We could have ordered some Saucisson or Jambon but we didn't. It was 14 euros each for breakfast. After breakfast I called Dwight on Skype to let him know we were on our …

This morning we left Paris for the Loire Valley. Our agenda includes two castles to visit (Chambord and Chenenceaux) and an overnight stay at the Chateau Malmont. Unlike Versailles, these castles are all considered to be pleasure palaces, not palaces of governance. They were designed as hunting lodges and entertainment …

The goals for today were... See Rodin's thinker in the Rodin gardin, visit the Musee D'Orsay, Visit the Versailles palace, and go up the Eiffel tower. When we left the apartment it was nice although a bit cool. We went to the marketplace again and got pain, gruyere fromage, jambon …