Michael joins us in Italy!!

Wednesday June 19, 2013 - Montepulciano
Our son Michael arrived Monday the 17^th and after a down day poolside under the Tuscan Sun we fired up the Saturn for a road trip to Montepulciano.  There are many wonderful, authentic medieval hill towns in Tuscany, but Montepulciano counts among my favorites because of its fun, friendly vibe – that and the fact that it is renown for its food and outstanding wines!!  It didn’t take Mike long to find one of the major town highlights.

The truth is, a stroll through the streets of Montepulciano is a traveling feast of wine tasting, cheese sampling, and savoring any number of delicious spreads on soft Tuscan bread.  Not to mention the taste testing of olive oil!  And as you wander from shop to shop you pass through some of the most beautiful medieval architecture imaginable.

That extends to the churches too.  The beautiful cathedral of St. Augustine was built in 1285 and renovated in the 15th century by Michelozzo.  Its doorway is capped with an elaborate carved portal featuring the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus flanked by St. John and St. Augustine.

Like other medieval Tuscan towns, Montepulciano preserves the treasure of its history and architecture by ensuring it is a “well lived in” town.  Its inhabitants are its caretakers, and the town shows that they go about their lives today just like they have for  hundreds of years.

Perched on a hilltop, Montepulciano is surrounded by beautiful countryside.  It overlooks a breathtaking array of vineyards and olive groves.

Suffice it to say, there are numerous great ristorantes to choose from and the selections for dinning are limited only by your own imagination.

Thursday June 20, 2013 - Florence

The next day Mike and I spent the morning browsing around Florence.  Our first stop was to Piazza Santa Croce to visit the Basilica di Santa Croce (Basilica of the Holy Cross).   Santa Croce was completed in 1385 and is the largest Franciscan church in the world. 

The highlight of our visit at Santa Croce was our guided tour up the four levels of scaffolding over the high alter to see the recently restored frescoes.  No pictures of the frescoes were allowed, but our English speaking tour guide did a great job of showing us the fine restoration work and gave us meaningful explanations of the stories behind the frescoes.   We were able to photo other frescoes down from the floor level.

And also Michelangelo’s tomb, which is one of many tombs and graves inside the church.

We left Santa Croce and cut through Piazza Signoria, right past the fountain of Neptune.

And paused on the Ponte Vecchio on our way to lunch.  For once the “Old Bridge” was not choked with masses of people, just the usual crowds. 

We had lunch on the Arno River at the aptly named Golden View Ristorante.  Its views of the Ponte Vecchio Bridge and the river are amazing, as is the food.  It’s the best seafood restaurant in Florence; both my swordfish and Mike’s mixed seafood pasta were excellent, ending our afternoon on a very high note!