Tag Archives: singing

Florence – Day 2

Well, after sweltering for the last couple of weeks, the tears from Heaven fell (still falling) on Florence.  I haven’t heard such anger in thunder for years …….OMG! By the way, this started about 5 a.m. It is now 6:30 a.m. and we go down for breakfast not knowing what we will be doing now. We were going to drive to Pisa, but????? Will let you know later.

We did, and the sun did. Hot, hot, hot….never mind that. we went to one of the most beautiful villages called San Gimignana. The best gelata in the World – yes it is. The owner came out and explained the process to us and then we all had 3 scoops of any flavour we wanted. Then we start the walk back to the bus…ha ha ha  the stores are now open and oh yeah, we did them proud again.

The ceramics, pictures and tablecloths are wonderful. So many stores, so little time. We finally make it back to the bus, loaded down, and we are now off to Pisa.

Wow, the architecture of the Church, Bapistry and Tower is unbelievable to see. Our special guide for the day, Roberto, is a very precious and funny guide with an Italian accent like no other. He believes humor makes the world go round and we couldn’t agree more.

It is now 4 p.m. and we have to be ready for dinner at 6:00 p.m. Ciao for now!

Note: The hawkers at the sights (hundred of them) sort of take away from the site itself.

Dinner tonight was at a Tuscan Hillside Restaurant called Mulinaccio. On the garden patio we enjoyed several appetizers, any kind of drink you wanted and then we went inside to a beautiful room just for the Insight Group. (what a group).

They started out with a grilled tomato and 3 cold cuts…..then it was ravioli with a walnut cream sauce, then penne with a tomato sauce, then came the roasted potatoes, chicken, sausage and a slice of roast pork. Then our driver, Franco, treated us all to Limoncello (yummy), then they bring out the hot lava cake for dessert and coffee. (No wonder holidays are loved by Weight Watchers).

We get into our bus and they play some songs by Neil Diamond, Dean Martin, Tom Jones, etc. and then our driver, Franco, tells us we will be leaving Italy tomorrow. (Everyone moans) and then, lo and behold, he sings for us. He has a really nice voice, sincerely meant and believe me, it is no wonder we all think this guy is so great. To show you just how attentive Bob is….he had a taxi take 3 of us into town, so we wouldn’t have to make the long walk up the ‘mountain’.

Hurray for Insight Tours.

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Tour Of Prague, Walking Tour

This morning, Don and I opted out of the walking tour. It was a  4 km walk, but because of me (I think) our guide was so thoughtful to order a bus for part of it. It still left 3 km of cobblestones up hills and down, so we will meet them at noon in the square for lunch and to see the Bohemian crystal.

Tonight we are going on one of the optional tours for a traditional Czech dinner and musicians in traditional costumes for entertainment. I will catch up later….

Okay! We took a taxi from our hotel to the Old Town Square. We went early enough so we could look at a few places and also get our bearings. We waited until the allotted time to meet the group and began our search. There were hundreds of people, some on their own, most in different tour groups.

I thought of turning on our little handset and, lo and behold, I heard our guide for the day, George. The astronomical clock (6oo years old) started chiming at noon and then we were told where to shop for the famous Bohemian Czech crystal. He did not lie. WOW…this shop must be a block long and a block wide. Crystal like you have never seen before and probably will never see again. And of course we did……

Then we went to a little restaurant called U Dvou Sester. Lucille and I had a Caesar Salad with chicken and bacon (ham) and Don ordered the goulash. It was quite tasty. The best thing here is that they serve pepsi and also 7-up with ice. No one uses ice here so that is a treat.

Back at the hotel at about 3:30 p.m. and we go for dinner at 7:00 p.m. We get to dress up a little so that will feel good.

As an aside….the Tour Directors of Insight do not have an easy job. They are responsible for 39 people, all the luggage, hotel rooms, times of arrival, departures, meals, optional tours, counting bodies constantly so as not to leave anyone behind. Constantly on the phone in one language or another. Bob speaks 5 languages himself.

Now our driver, Franco. He is Italian and boy, of boy, it shows. He can drive through, past and around walls, cars, buses and people and not lose a coat of paint. What a thrill to see how he manages this vehicle. He never gets lost in any city, country or roadway. He is worth everything to the passengers.

Just got back from our dinner at a traditional Czech restaurant. Let me tell you, they know how to party. The food was traditional but the entertainment was exquisite. Singing ,dancing and getting everyone to participate was so much fun. “There were 7 busloads of tourists in this restaurant from all over. They played a song to welcome each and every country represented and the evening went from there. What a blast….

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