Florence, Italy

Sadly, I have already forgotten many details about our stay in Florence. We did so much in such a short period of time that everything runs together in my memory. I will try to recover what I can, but forgive me if I don't remember the names of all the churches and museums.


Florence was the most aesthetically pleasing city I think I've ever seen. Even the most basic buildings were beautiful with their sun-bleached brick, sloping roofs and shuttered windows. Each turn down a narrow side street made me ooh and ahh. Poor Matt got tired of stopping for pictures, but I just couldn't help myself.


We made reservations in advance for the Uffizi Gallery and the Academia. I am glad we did this, but it made us feel very scheduled. I would have prefered to just wander the city and see things as we happened upon them, but we didn't have the luxury of doing that.





Basilica de Santa Croce:

Piazza della Republica:

The Bargello Palace:

The David:

El Duomo, Santa Maria del Fiore:

The golden doors of the Baptistry:

Inside the baptistry:

There were bikes everywhere:

For lunch, Matt and I discovered a tiny hole in the wall restaurant that served amazing paninis and pastas for ridiculously cheap prices. We were the only non-locals in the restaurant, which was quite a feat considered the city was filled to the brim with tourists. The food was delicious, but the restaurant itself was cramped and not the most relaxing place to take a break.

Later in the afternoon we indulged in gelatto while resting our feet and enjoying views of the Arno River.

The Ponte Vechhio:

Fountain of Neptune:

Instead of waiting in a long line to climb to the top of the Duomo, we decided to climb the bell tower instead. The views are about the same and the tickets are cheaper. The only down side is that the top is "caged" by bars which didn't obstruct our view, but it did hamper our photo opportunities. The climb to the top was quite a hike, and after our adventures in Stresa our (mostly my) feet were definitely in pain. I think the soles of my feet were bruised, which made all the walking and museum touring less enjoyable than it could have been.

Enjoying the breeze at the top of the bell tower:

Looking out over the Duomo:

The Ponte Vecchio at night.

After a long day of zipping through the city, Matt and I returned to our hotel for a shower before heading back out to enjoy the warm evening in Florence. We shared a lovely meal and a caraffe of wine at a fabulous restaurant near our hotel and then just strolled along the streets. It was nice to return to some of the places we'd been during the day and see them in the evening light. By this point, we had seen everything we wanted to see so we were able to just relax and savor the moment.

Florence was definitely one of the highlights of our trip to Italy. I would love to return someday when we have more time. We would probably try to go at an off-peak time to avoid the crowds. Next time, I'll skip out on some of the museums in favor of simply getting lost in the city.

Stresa, Italy

Matt's conference was held in Stresa, a small town on Lago Maggiore, just outside of Milan. We probably would not have chosen this destination had it not been for Matt's conference, but we were glad that we went. Once Matt was done with his conference, we spent some time island hopping and hiking in the pre-alps.

Here is Matt outside of the hotel where the conference was held:

Just blocks away from the conference was the ferry to the islands. This is a view of Stresa from the ferry. You can see the neighboring Swiss influence in the architecture.

We decided to go to two of the three islands. The first island we went to was Isola Bella, where the Borromeo Palace and gardens were housed. The palace and gardens were beautiful, although slightly over the top.

After taking our time exploring Isola Bella, we took the short trip to Isola Pescatore to have lunch. Isola Pescatore was even smaller than Isola Bella. We walked the entire circumference of the island in 10 minutes.

There were quite a few charming little restaurants to choose from. We eventually settled on a restaurant right on the water. The food wasn't anything fantastic, but the setting was worth every penny.

After visiting the islands, Matt and I took a cable car to the top of Mount Motaronne, the tallest peak in the area. Although the cable car was grossly overpriced, it was still worth the lift. The views at the top were awesome.

Instead of taking the cable car back down the mountain, we decided to hike. Our travel book described the hike as long and easy. Matt and love hiking and usually find that books and trail maps over-estimate the difficulty of most hikes. So when this hike was described as easy, we expected it to be. It wasn't. The trail was filled with large, unstable rocks, which made it really difficult to maintain our footing. It wasn't aerobically difficult, but our feet took a serious beating. After several hours of hiking, we decided to change our route and head back to the cable car to take it the rest of the way down the mountain.

This picture shows one of the few spots along the trail that was free of rocks.

On the narrow road back to the cable car, we passed through a tiny village. We heard what sounded like cowbells in the surrounding woods. I was delighted to see a small herd of mountain goats. The bells started to get louder, and I remember telling Matt, "They're excited to see us!" The bells got louder and louder and we suddenly realized the goats were running toward us. I didn't react very quickly to the danger, but as soon as I saw a goat with its head down and horns pointed our way, I realized it was time to get out of there. Matt grabbed my hand and we started to run as the goats chased us down the mountain. The goats got within a few feet of us and the only way to get away was to slide down a small cliff. Fortunately, the cliff was grassy and not rocky, but we still got a little scuffed up. The goats must have decided we weren't worth the effort because the stayed at the top of the cliff and just looked down at us. I'm not really sure what would have happened had we not escaped, but I'm pretty sure those goats would have kicked us off their mountain one way or another. Thankfully, we didn't have to find out.

Matt and I still think it's hilarious that our biggest danger traveling in Europe came in the form of a pack of goats.

Despite our adventure with the goats, we had a great time in Stresa. The islands were charming and the views of the lake and the alps were incredible.

Milan, Italy

I am way behind on posting pictures of our travels over the past year. Unfortunately, many of the details have already escaped my memory. I will try my best to recap the highlights of our most recent trips before the remaining memories disappear...

In June, 2008, Matt and I had the opportunity to travel to Europe together. Matt had a Biomedical Engineering conference in Italy, which was the main reason we were able to go. Thanks to Matt's conference, his flight and a portion of our hotel stays were covered by his grant. Using a travel voucher from a past flight hiccup, we were able to snag my flight for less than $200. We have been fortunate to plan many of our vacations on the heels of our work/school conferences. It has saved us so much money and opened the door to travels that we would not have otherwise been able to afford.

Matt's conference was held just outside of Milan, so we headed there first. We had heard that Milan was one of the least attractive cities in Italy so we had prepared ourselves for a gray, industrial city with little charm. Our expectations were low, so we were surprised by how much we enjoyed our time in Milan. Milan has a lot of great sights to see, including Il Duomo, the Sforza Castle, the Brera Art Museum, and many others.

It is true that Milan isn't as romantic as some of the other cities in Italy, but we had a great time nonetheless. Since there wasn't quite as much to see as there was in say, Florence, we felt less pressured to use every minute of our time and we were able to relax and just enjoy ourselves. Plus, Milan was FAR less crowded with tourists than some of the other cities we visited, so we didn't feel as claustrophobic there. It didn't hurt that we stayed in a nice hotel (thanks to Matt's travel grant) and had a relaxing place to retreat and recharge.

We stayed at the StarHotel Anderson right across the street from the central train station. The hotel was small, modern and chic. It was very clean and quiet, the bedding was luxurious, and the room was bigger than many European hotel rooms (although you can't tell from the picture.) An added bonus was the full European breakfast served every morning, which saved us time and money.

The most impressive sight to see in Milan was Il Duomo. We explored the interior and also climbed to the top and looked out over the city. The architecture was impressive and the views were breathtaking.

The Sforza Castle was worth the visit, but not very memorable. It was fun to walk around and see all of the different rooms filled with relics from Milan's past. I remember that it was pouring rain and I was very thankful for the shelter.

There was a dance group practicing the Brazilian Capoeira, which seemed a bit out of place, but it was so much fun to watch.

We also visited the Brera Art Museum, a small but impressive collection of works.

Afterwards, we stopped at a bar across the street for a drink and aperitivos. This was one of our best finds in Milan. I can't begin to describe the delicious, fresh and flavorful dishes that were served. I couldn't believe that all of it was basically free (as long as you order a drink.) When I lived in Spain, many bars offered free tapas, but they were nothing compared to the fantastic spread we encountered at Bar Brera.

In the evenings, we strolled along the winding neighborhood streets, looking for good restaurants. We often restaurant hopped and had a glass of wine in one place, an appetizer or entree in another, and dessert or coffee in another. It was a nice way to eat a leisurely meal and wind down from the days activities. We did end up in a tourist trap once and paid way too much for a below average meal. We learned our lesson and avoided all such places the rest of the trip.

One attraction that we did not get to see was The Last Supper. This was booked months before we ever got there. It would have been nice to see, but I wasn't that upset that we missed it.

Overall, we thoroughly enjoyed our time in Milan. It was a great starting point for the rest of our journey.