baciami

...and we made it! here we are in the tuscan countryside, on day three of our trip. I know you are all quite familiar with those postcards and calendars of Italian vineyards and brick farmhouses...yeah, now picture me and mama sitting right in there, and that's exactly what we're doing right now. it's unbelievable. but I can't say it was all peaches and cream to get to this point. after a plane ride that seemed endless; navigating to Florence in a rental car with a gps that didn't work; driving through streets that were prohibited for driving; and climbing five flights of stairs to our b&b, all while being awake for over 36 hours, we were more than thrilled to be at our first destination in the heart of florence. we spent a day and a half walking through the city, stopping for a picture of this building and that alleyway. and of course, with mama around, you can count on us browsing through shops. I did my share of stopping for gelato (Grom is a must) mingling in the fruit stands, and keeping an eye out for dinner spots. and, boy, did we do well! some mentionable highlights: Mama being charmed by the Italian at the formaggeria while he distracted me with some aged parmigiano reggiano.i just thought to myself as he kissed mama on the cheek, geez, would you like some cheese with that ham? Leather jackets...yep, we got them! Keeping up with tradition...I got myself a haircut. Waking up to breakfast at our door, and savoring it with the duomo right outside the window. Perfect. After a good night's sleep and breakfast, we got back on the road to our next destination, San Gimignano. Driving in the countryside was far easier than fighting the rush in the city. Our b&b is in the center of a medieval town, snug in the hillside of Tuscan countryside. Breathtaking. We will be here for the next five days, just taking it all in. It's only our third day, and we already feel like we've been here for three weeks...but in the greatest way possible. We just finished breakfast in the garden of the main farmhouse, and later we plan to explore the village. Unfortunately, I'm not ale to post photos (maybe because I'm using the iPad?) but I will try to keep you posted through writing instead. When we get back to the states, you can count on a post dedicated to photos only! Until we meet again, ciao.