Happy Halloween

Italy :: Day 8 Home Again

Our last morning in Italy... I can't believe it! We had so much fun, saw so many great things, made so many new memories & had some amazing family time. All 5 of us. :)

Our driver picked us up in the morning from our hotel, and before heading out to the airport we dropped Tyler off at the hostel he was staying at for the night, before he heads out to Athens. This was so hard leaving him, in the middle of Rome, by himself (well, he did have a friend meeting him later that night at the hostel...but still :). I gave him a giant hug, with a tear in my eye. I knew he would be fine, but I missed him already.

At the airport in Rome, Drew needed his last gelato fix before leaving Italy. :)

Flying over the Swiss Alps.

Our last flight, leaving from Amsterdam.

Back to Minneapolis...home from an amazing week!!

Italy :: Day 7 Florence & back to Rome

This was the day we were leaving Florence and heading back to Rome. Our train didn't leave until noon, so we had the morning to do a few last minute things in Florence. Ty and Jake wanted to sleep in; so Pete, Drew and I headed out with our first stop being a money exchange store. This was the entire shop. :)

We headed to San Lorenzo market which is blocks and blocks of little shops selling leather goods, scarves, tapestries, souvenirs and more. Drew was looking for an Italia jacket.

I bought a few new scarves. :)

So many pretty things to look at.

Then we stopped for an expresso and cappuccino at a little cafe where you stand at the counter.

Off to the train station.

Back in Rome at the Termini Station.

Our second hotel in Rome was near the Vatican. This was a nice hotel, modern and clean with very small rooms and bathrooms. But we did have a little balcony.

Lunch around the corner from our hotel.

We then took the short walk over to the Vatican with hopes to climb the dome of St. Peter's Basilica, which we hadn't done the day we were here on our tour. Unfortunately, the line was closed but we enjoyed just walking around the square and taking in the sights again.

We went back to the hotel and rested a bit before heading out for our last dinner in Italy!!!

Sitting out on our tiny balcony. :)

On our way to dinner, we stopped at the Colosseum to see it lit up at night.

We finally arrived at our dinner spot, which was a restaurant our tour guide Giovanna had recommended.

Our menu was on on iPad! :)

One of the very best pastas I have ever eaten was this butter, sage ravioli!!! Mmmm!

I can't believe our trip is almost over! We have had so much fun and seen so many amazing things... but it went way too fast!!

Italy :: Day 6 Florence

This was the day we spent visiting a couple of the great museums in Florence which is known as a city for their great works of art. We started the day at Accademia which may be best known for Michelangelo's statue of David. Unfortunately, we were not able to get many pictures here because of photo restrictions.

After spending a couple of hours at Accademia taking in all the spectacular sculptures and paintings, we stopped for some lunch before our next museum visit. {I just love the little streets of Italy!}

Tyler had previously been to Florence with his school group and recommended to us a couple of places to eat for lunch. His choice was for kebobs.

Drew and I held out for the next stop which was an out of the way little panino shop.

It was all locals eating here-- so you know it is good! :)

And seriously, this panino was fabulous.... and huge!!!

Next, we were off the the Uffizi Gallery which houses works of some of the most famous Italian artists- Giotto, Botticelli, Michelangelo, Leonardo...

Another line to wait in. :)

What was so neat for Pete and I was to see how much the boys loved these museums! We followed them around as they shared with us so much of their knowledge of what they have learned in AP European History and what Tyler has learned from his art history classes here in Italy!

I love how much they appreciated seeing all of this in person and how they just took everything in, soaking in this experience!

View from one of the balcony areas.

We spent several hours at the Uffizi... and probably would have stayed longer if it wasn't closing time. Leaving the Uffizi, we had some great views walking along the Arno River, which divides the city of Florence.

This is Ponte Vecchio ("the old bridge") was built in 1345 and is lined with jewelry workshops and shops.

We made a stop at a sports shop to find Jake a football (soccer) jersey.

And then it was off to another gorgeous evening out for a dinner outside.

Then a chocolate dessert. :)

We are loving Italy!!!