viva la Italy!

After running around the cities of Milano and Venice we traveled to Tuscany to spend 3 days just south of Siena. The rolling mountain tops and farms spread as far as your eyes could see. We checked out some local restuarants and were treated like kings. The food was great! We also took day trips to Pisa and Cinque Terra. Pisa was really small so we banged out some pictures and headed for the west coast of Cinque Terra. There are five cities wrapping around the Mountain coast that can be hiked or by train. Adam and I went to stunning Monterosso and hiked to Vernazza which took over 1.5 hours of climbing steps and sweating perfusely. But we were treated to a nice sandy beach when we arrived. Not having our swim suits with us didn't stop us from diving into the cool waters and relaxing. The only downside to this day trip was the travel back to the villa, it took 3.5 hours of winding roads at night. It totally sucked but it was well worth it. The next day we traveled to a Castle in Montigionni and to Volterra (site of Twilight 3 movie). Volterra was on top of a giant mountain and we could literally see for miles. We hiked thru the city and marvelled at the ancient ruins. Even though the pics won't be able to capture a fraction of the beauty of Tuscany, I will post some anyways Roma here we come!

Day 3 started with renting 3 cars and driving to Venice. 2 of the cars, mine included, got lost but only temporarily. The other car didn't miss the exit but liked to slam on the breaks in the middle of the freeway and swerve across 3 lanes almost killing everyone Venis is unbelievable with all the little shops and alley ways criss crossing like a giant maze. We pounded more delicious food and beer and soaked in some great rays. It was about 85 degrees today and gorgeous. We will do a little shopping tomorrow before we start on stretch 2 of the Amazing race. We decided to stop trying follow each other and make a race out of it. I took a bunch of sweet pics today so check them out.

Our second day in Milan went a lot smoother than the first, we only got lost half as much and we finally taught Tony how to enter his subway pass into the machine We started out with a wonderful breakfast at the hotel and then traveled back to Duomo to tour the cathedral. It was sooooo amazing, the sculptures and art work were then craziest things I have ever seen. It took 400+ years to build this monster and it was the coolest thing I have ever set my eyes on. Later that afternoon, we toured another church that was home to the painting of the Last Supper. Divincci is a pimp, and the painting takes your breathe away. I tried to steal a pic with my camera but the security guard was all over me. We also toured the Opera house museum which is home to most prestigious Opera house in the World (opened 1778). I had chills going into one of the private boxes to view the theater. We once again crushed some italian cuisine and are coming to realize how expansive italian food is. Thankfully we will be in Tuscany soon where we will be able to cook our own meals, but first is a stop in Venice where we head tomorrow morning. Before dinner we slipped in a trip to the Monestary where there was blocks and blocks of giant scultures and tombs. Unfortunately we only had about 15 minutes to check it out before they closed. We could of literally spent half the day there marveling at its beauty. Posted some pics of Day 2, even though no photograph could ever do justice to what we have seen.

After spending numerous hours jumping on planes and drinking beer we have arrived in Milan, Italy. I am posting some pics of our plane trip and first day of exploring Milan. So far we have walked a strip of shops and filled our faces with as much food as possible. tonight for dinner we traveled on the subway to Duomo and were amazed with the historic buildings and churches. Every building in this city is beautiful and reaks with history. We ate some amazing food and even caught part of a free concert.