Picture is in Florence at a lookout yesterday. This morning we went to the the medieval hilltop town of San Gimignano which was spectacular. We climbed 230 stairs to the to of a church tower and got a stunning view over the Tuscan landscape with wineries and olive groves. Tried the world famous gelato and did a little shopping. Also tried wild boar sausage- a specialty here. Then it was on to Sienna and Campo square where the Palio horse race is held every year. ...

Got to Tuscany today after spending the day in Florence. Too late to blog so cant write much now. Had good evening with some Australians at our Tuscan retreat including drinks by the pool and dinner. A fun bunch of people. Saw Michaelangelos statue of David today in the museum where it is housed in Florence. There is so much to take in here in Italy including the impressive churches and the narrow cobblestone streets lined with gelato shops and pizzarias. Ita...

today we went to see the vatican museums, climbed the Bramante staircase and toured the Sistine chapel. Then we went into St. Peter's Basilica and saw Michelangelo's Mary and Jesus sculpture. After lunch we toured the colosseum. Tonight we are going on a walking tour Of the Pantheon and the Trevi fountain.

Arrived in Rome! Pictures to come later. Gillian left the iPad on the plane so had to track it down through lost and found. That was a little scary but luckily we got it back. We went to a restaurant with the tour group this evening for a pizza dinner and some Italian entertainment. Lots of Canadians in our group and a few Australians and Americans. . Then went for a drive by some of the main sights including Vatican City/St. Peter's square, the colosseum and e...

After a very comfortable flight to Toronto we got on our longer flight to Munich and were crammed in the back of the plane with very little leg room or sleep but we survived and will be on our way to Rome in an hour! Hope to catch a few winks somewhere soon.......it's 2:00am Victoria time.