Italy is my favourite country. I have been several times visiting Florence, Rome, Pisa, Lake Garda, Sorrento and most recently Tuscany. I love everything about Italy, the food, wine, language, scenery, architecture...it really is a stunning place.
My most recent visit to Italy was in June last year, my step-father organised a holiday to celebrate my mum’s 60th birthday. Me, my soon to be husband, sister, brother in law, niece and step-brothers were all waiting to surprise her. She had no idea we would be there.
The farmhouse we stayed in was called Podere Le Manzinaie (http://www.lemanzinaie.it/) which is near to Montepulciano in Tuscany. It is a beautiful old farmhouse with lots of different apartments, so as a group it was good because we all had our own space. It is owned by a lovely Italian family, Marzia, Fiore and Alice who made us feel so welcome. They were in on the surprise too!
If you are planning a trip to Tuscany you should stay here, trust me, it is the best place and a good base to explore.
Tuscany is such a beautiful region of Italy and there is so much to see. We visited Siena, Pisa, Montepulciano, Cortona, Pienza, Montelcino and of course, ate lots of good food. The local pasta is called Picci pasta, which is like a thick spaghetti...very yummy!
I would love to learn Italian one day and live in Italy, surrounded by Cypress trees. Ciao Bella!
I found some beautiful Italian inspired artwork online at Etsy earlier, by Caterina Martinico (http://www.etsy.com/people/SoulArteEclectica?ref=ls_profile) who is actually in Santa Rosa, CA. I might have to visit...
Where is your favourite place in the world?
Same here. Love to learn the language and live there for once. :)
ReplyDeletePerfect!
DeleteYears ago, my son and I attended a soccer tournament near Naples. He had a coach who liked to take kids to tournaments in foreign countries to enrich their world. Italy certainly was interesting, but the refs were awful!
ReplyDeleteHis team beat the Polish National Champs at the Polish tournament. I didn't get to go on that trip.
http://joycelansky.blogspot.com
That sounds great that your son got to travel to so many different places. I have only been to Naples train station, on the way to sorrento. Italians are quite passionate about football.
DeleteWow1 Nice trip, and nice surprise for your mom. I love your pictures. I'd like to visit Italy and also Great Britain(England, Scotland, and Wales), and Ireland, but I don't have the money to travel so will probably never get to. It's still fun to think about it though.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by my blog.
Sunni
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It was great, and she had no idea we would be there. It was a lovely family holiday. That's a shame that you won't get to visit any of the places you want to go to. From the UK it is a lot cheaper to get to europe with cheap airlines. Keep playing the lottery!
DeleteI so love Italy! There are so many beautiful and fun parts of the country. I want to take a trip to visit every nook and cranny. :)
ReplyDelete#atozchallenge, Kristen's blog: kristenhead.blogspot.com
Yes me too, I still have Venice, Milan and lake como that I want to visit at least. :)
DeleteI loved Italy when we went there on a school trip, my favourite place is San Jose in Costa Rica, just love it.
ReplyDeleteI might check Costa Rica out, thanks for sharing!
DeleteI love Italy too, and someday I hope to go back and visit again. We went there as part of a tour group. You're so lucky you were able to explore the country on your own. Wonderful, wonderful pictures. Makes my heart ache for Italy.
ReplyDeleteI think exploring on your own is the best way, get a car and drive around and you always stumble across places you would never normally get to see. Driving in Italy is an experience of its own! The trains are great though too.
DeleteItaly entices with its ancient buildings and sunny days. However, I love the whole world--sunny or dull, rainy or dry, hot or cold.
ReplyDeleteFrancene.
A - Z Challenge
http://francene-wordstitcher.blogspot.co.uk/
The world is such a big place, i understand its hard to pick a favourite, so many places to see, so little time. :)
DeleteOf all the places I've visited, Copenhagen. It's such a modern city and yet it's home to the oldest monarchy in the world. There's so much history to see, great ice cream to eat and the Danes are great. I would love to visit the Mediterranean countries one day. I haven't been there yet, but I'm so looking forward to the day I can go.
ReplyDeleteCopenhagen sounds lovely, my kind of place. I've not really been to that part of the world, maybe one day...I recommend France, Greece and Italy when you get to visit the med, beautiful!
DeleteIs there time and money to do them all? So many places to see and experience. Italy is one where I would love to visit again, especially the cities that I did not visit before. Keep those great memories of Italy when you continue your job hunt to stay positive.
ReplyDeleteProbably not, but we can try and do as many as possible, life is way to short!
DeleteFor me, at this point in time, it's London. I've been twice in the past two months and am in love with the city. People hugely understimate the pull of history and the future coming together as one. If you add public transportation to that, the prize is so much better. I should probably also tell you that my boyfriend is in London for six months and we're apart. My heart is there as is my desire. Jennifer a.k.a. Urban Gypsy Girl
ReplyDeleteLondon is a cool place, probably too busy for me...too many tourists, too many people rushing around! I like things more relaxed. It's rubbish being apart from you boyfriend, six months will fly by!
DeleteHaving never been out of the country, my most favorite place is Yosemite. Right behind that is Yellowstone. However, I am going to Tennessee next month so I may have a new favorite.
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