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We took Myra on a tour through Umbria, which is the region just to the east of Tuscany.  It’s just as beautiful as Tuscany and not quite as tourist laden, although it’s being discovered more and more.  Umbria is called the “Green Heart of Italy” because its landscape it...

After Florence, we drove back to Anghiari through the Chianti country.  We did the same trip with David and Edith last month, but it is completely different now.  The colors are different, more gold than green, the grapes are all gone – being made into wine that we will...

Our own personal Italian cooking instructor asked us back for a pizza making lesson.  I think this is because we showed such promise as pasta makers, she thought we were ready to branch out to other food groups.  Pizza is one of my favorite foods on earth and I...

Florence is about an hour and a half away from Anghiari, so it was easy to put that on our list of things to do with Myra.  We thought it would be good to have that be our first overnight trip because it’s easy to get to and it...

Everyone comes to Italy with a wish list of things they want to see and do, and Myra was no different.  Besides the wonderful art, medieval cities, Renaissance towns, ancient monuments, and incredible food, Myra wanted to see an Italian garden, take a pasta making lesson, and see an...

Our dear friend Myra has come for a visit.  This is her first time in Europe and we’re so happy to be able to share some of our experiences with her.  No matter how much you prepare or think you’re ready, the trip over here is just a killer. ...

After our extravagant trip to Switzerland, we are trying to be frugal and simple this week.  Our dear friend Myra is coming next week, so we want to be in top form for that as well. This week has been the perfect time to do this for two reasons:...

The train from Florence to Interlaken goes first to Milan, where you change trains, then through a few northern Italian towns, and into Switzerland; but you don’t even know when you’ve crossed the border (there are no, “Leaving Italy”, “Welcome to Switzerland” signs).  There are two more train changes...

One of us had a birthday this week and we decided that to celebrate we’d take a little trip.  With all of Europe at our disposal, it was tough to decide where to go.  Paris?  Provence?  Spain?  Austria?  Well, you get the dilemma .  Through a not so very...

The south has fried chicken.  Tuscany has ciaccia fritta.  It’s basically fried bread.  What’s not to love, right?  Ciaccia is a flatbread that is used for sandwiches with meat, cheese, veggies – whatever you want to stuff it with.  The ciaccia is sliced and stuffed, kind of like a...