Florence and where-ever.

[Cool Cat Phil]

Wow.... The Photo's of the snow in Switzerland looks amazing .

Switzerland is is pretty much a visual feast as far as the eye can see as you photos demonstrate this.

 

[NFF]

Was the train ride better than New Zealand's TranzAlpine ?

 

[JessicaTam]

Great trip report Jessica.
We did the Bernina Express in September. Travelling from Torino to Chur. Not much snow around then but spectacular scenery.
We had an 8 day First class Swiss pass so the Bernina Express only cost us the seat reservations.
Yes the food trolly was cute. Swiss alcohol prices were scary!

Bringing back lots of fabulous memories. Love the photos.

Thanks

Just one question re this really great trip report.

I don't understand the reference to 'second class'. What do you mean :?:

It is an area of the train that fits more people in as the seats are closer together. Whilst it is not an area I would usually frequent, I felt it was important as 'character building'. It is not important if you do not understand the concept.

Very much enjoying the TR Jess. I should be doing something else right now but this is much better

Cheers!

 

[JessicaTam]

Wonderful journey Jessica..
Please continue the postings & gorgeous photos when time avails

I paid €5 for 24 hours of internet in Florence but probably won't bother again. I will just hang off my iPad when the 3G speed is good enough.

Wow.... The Photo's of the snow in Switzerland looks amazing .

Switzerland is is pretty much a visual feast as far as the eye can see as you photos demonstrate this.

Whiplash from looking left and right was a distinct possibility.

Was the train ride better than New Zealand's TranzAlpine ?

I did the TranzAlpine in both directions on the one day, and was a bit over it by the end. I would happily have done this trip in the reverse straight away. But they were both spectacular - if that answers your question.

 

[Grogan]

Nice photos and trip report Jessica, they have bought back both good memories of my last trip to Europe and a need to book some European travel soon. Enjoy the rest of your trip.

 

[JessicaTam]

Milan

We checked in to an interesting apartment. We had a separate bedroom and a sofa-bed in the main room. The beds were comfortable and the apartment was spacious. The only trouble was the lack of contents in the cupboards, like a kettle - or cups for that matter. When we asked for more than the one cup that we had, the receptionist gave us a quizzical look as if to wonder why we would want cups. He eventually came up with two - one of which was badly chipped, so we used it as a scooper out of the saucepan we boiled the water in.

There was a supermarket and tram stop a short walk away, so it was convenient. If you are looking for a cheap stay in Milan and don’t expect much, then you won’t be disappointed.

At least we slept well.


Nice apartment, but the cupboard was bare

We were up early the next morning as we had a booking to view the Last Supper (DeVinci). We caught a taxi as we had not yet had the chance to learn the local transport system. The trip cost barely €10 so was not too bad. Our ticket advised us to be 30 minutes early for our 8:15 viewing so we were. Except that the ticket desk didn’t open until 8:10. We spent the time enjoying a coffee standing at the cafe-bar across the road.


Note that coffees are considerable cheaper if you drink them standing at the counter in France/Italy. €1 vs €2 for example.


The Last Supper was magnificent, and they have done a great job restoring it to some of its former glory. We spent the rest of the day looking around the Piazza Duomo, saving the Duomo for the next day as the weather was a bit overcast.



Want to buy a watch, anyone?


The Piazza Duomo


The Duomo

 

[JessicaTam]

Milan Day 2

After a sleep in we took the tram to the Duomo. It was quite disappointing to see how “touristical” (as our guide in Heidelberg liked to say) it had become since my visit a couple of years ago. If you wished to take photos inside, you had to pay €2 for a coloured wristband. Suffice to say I didn’t.

What we were happy to pay, though, was the fee to access the roof. Walking through the flying buttresses of this gothic cathedral is quite the experience. Once on the roof the sun was shining so there were plenty of photo opportunities. And of course to keep up with tradition, we sat on the roof in the sun and watched the world go by for a while.




The flying Buttroses, I mean buttresses


Nice spot for a cup of tea and a good lie down


Trying for the arty shot*


In case you missed the snow the last time

We finished our day by heading to the Centrale station. A very impressive piece of architecture. There was a considerable about of hoarding around the entrance last tine I was here, so it was good to see it opening up.


Milano Centrale

*no selfies were created in the writing of this trip report

 

[Princess Fiona]

Thoroughly enjoying the TR Jess. The apartment in Milan looked quite modern, how odd about the kitchen supplies. Guess everyone eats out ?
Keep up the pics and sunshine

 

[JessicaTam]

Florence

We allowed plenty of time to get to the train station from our accommodation, and made it with enough to spare to enjoy a coffee. The train from Milan to Florence seemed to travel in a dead straight line, as we passed though tunnel after tunnel. No speed records here, though, with our top speed about 250 kmh. We caught a cab to our accommodation where we were to stay for a week. On arrival our checkin had a slight hiccup. According to their records we were not due to arrive until the next day. So we made ourselves comfortable whilst they sorted it out.


Our ride from Milan to Florence on the left


The cabin, I mean carriage

In the end we were given the keys to ‘Boccaccio’ on the first floor, and shown upstairs. Goodness gracious me! As they needed to put us someone we have ended up in a three bedroom, two bathroom, 10 bed apartment with a terrace larger than any of our previous rooms.

Anyone want to come and stay?

A short walk to the local supermarket and we were well provisioned for the week.

 

[JessicaTam]

Lyn's room


My room


The spare room


Living/dining room


The terrace

 

[TomVexille]

Anyone want to come and stay?

I wish...​,,

 

[amaroo]

Looking forward to the Florence photos!

 

[drron]

Really liking the TR.
No sooner had you posted photos of the Duomo SBS had a program on it.
They must be hanginging on your every word.

 

[codash1099]

I did the climb to the roof of the Duomo. Should have known better at my age and state of fitness. Nearly killed me! Still, it was worth it.

Really looking forward to Florence, near the top of my Favourite Cities list.

 

[Major]

Looking at the clothing everyone is wearing in Milan it must have been freezing

 

[JessicaTam]

Looking forward to the Florence photos!

They're coming, OK!

Really liking the TR.
No sooner had you posted photos of the Duomo SBS had a program on it.
They must be hanginging on your every word.

Now to organise a sponsorship deal...

I did the climb to the roof of the Duomo. Should have known better at my age and state of fitness. Nearly killed me! Still, it was worth it.

Really looking forward to Florence, near the top of my Favourite Cities list.

We cheated and took the elevator

Looking at the clothing everyone is wearing in Milan it must have been freezing

It was a bit chilly. Florence is low/mid teens, so I am back to walking around in a t-shirt*. Much more comfortable.

*Those who know me will realise that it must have been cold for me to be wearing a jacket for the last fortnight.

 

[JessicaTam]

Florence

Today we spent the day wandering around looking at shops and down side streets - of which there are many.

We visited the Santa Maria Novella which is not far from the main train station (Firenze S.M.N. funnily enough). I am not a fan of taking photos inside churches so there aren't many for this (or any other) church in this report. The cost was €5 for adults and €3.50 seniors. It was consecrated in 1420 and there are a number of buildings within its walls. The Great Cloisters are used by the Carabinieri Officers School, and we were't able to enter them.

The main church holds some amazing artwork from the 14-15th centuries, and the frescoes and decoration are currently being restored - very painstakingly, I might add. There is a fresco by Massaccio which is one of the earliest examples of the use of perspective.


Santa Maria Novella

On the way out of the church compound we happened upon a chocolate fair. Two great marquees with chocolate in any form you could imagine. It took me a little while to leave this area.

The Duomo is a centrepiece of many Italian cities, and in Florence this is no exception. It is staggeringly beautiful from outside and in. There is a lot of restoration going on at the moment, so much of the facade is covered with scaffolding. I walked past it at night a few days later and it is well illuminated, and takes on a very dramatic air. The cost to enter the cathedral itself was free, however it is €5 for the basilica and the tower. We declined that, but had a good look in the cathedral.

The doors of the baptistry (Gates of Paradise) are partially obscured by scaffolding, so here is a photo taken from Wikipedia


"The Gates of Paradise" by Ghiberti (1425-1453)


The Duomo


The Campanile (on the left)


The main doors of the Duomo

 

[JessicaTam]

We walked along the Arno for a while. It was well up, and has been higher. There has been a lot of rain across Europe and the UK in the last few weeks. Walking is the way to get around Florence. Everything is fairly compact in the old part of town where we are staying. Traffic is excluded from much of this area, which makes navigating the narrow streets easier. Leather goods and perfumeries seem to be on every street corner, and some things were sorely tempting. Italian women must have small feet - the largest size I could find anywhere was 41.


The Arno running well - The Ponte Vecchio in the background


Gratuitous pastry shot


Gratuitous gelato shot

 

[JessicaTam]

Pisa

There are warning signs for pickpockets in many places. In Pisa they are apparently legal, and are denoted by the sign "Ticket Office".

We took the 8.50 train from Florence and were in Pisa an hour later. (€7.90) We had a few hours in Pisa, however I had to catch a plane from PSA at about 2pm so we walked straight to the tower, about 1.5 km away. The Leaning Tower of Pisa is certainly leaning - and it is surprisingly short. for €18 you could go in and climb to the top. No thanks. We paid €5 for entry to the Baptistry which included free entry to the cathedral. And that was €4.50 too much. There was not much to see in the baptistry, however the cathedral was worth a look. I thought we might have run short of time, but we probably spent long enough anyway. Pisa is now a tick in the box, but I won't be hurrying back.

We caught a cab back to the train station where I left Lyn to catch her train back to Florence. I was off to Pisa airport for my flight to LGW. The airport was a pleasant 20 minute walk away - I have never walked from the centre of a town to its airport before!


Tower - leaning


'It's behind you'! The cathedral


Make a donation and you too can light a candle - well, place an electric candle in a power socket.


PSA

 

[JessicaTam]

London

I got to the airport and headed through security. Passport control did not open until an hour before the flight, so I just had a bit of a wander. With easyJet, there is no airport presence as far as checkin is concerned. Good thing that online checkin opens 30 days (yes, days) before the flight. Are you reading this JQ?

Upstairs and through passport control and a bit of time to watch planes come and go. PSA shares with an army/airforce base, so there were some interesting planes taking off (sorry no photos). We had a walk across the tarmac and were inside our A320. I chose not to buy any of the extras when I booked (apart from being able to select my seat - 7D) and don't think I missed anything. 7E and F sweet talked the FA into moving them into row 1, so I had 3 seats to myself. The flight was about 95% full, so maybe they just KWIA.

A pleasant flight for much of it but as we approached LGW the turbulence kicked in. Much of England was having 100+ mph winds, so it was not unexpected. The landing was challenging but textbook. A round of applause from the pax once all three sets of landing gear were on the ground at the same time.

I got to passport control fairly quickly and was asked about my stay. "Just one night" I said. I explained I was meeting friends for dinner, and he asked if I lived in Italy - "No, Australia" which got an amused look. Passport stamped and I was off to the Hilton. I will cover that stay in the Hilton thread.


My ride


Squeezy Knees


So that's what the back of a plane looks like.


Just... Wow.

Next day I headed for LGW (about a 10 minute walk inside) and was quickly through security. The flight home was equally as pleasant where I caught the train from MXP into Milan, and then the train back to Florence.

Two very long days which explains why the next day (today) was very quiet with a sleep in.

We only have two more days in Florence, with the Uffizi and Galleria dell'Accademia to come...

(... and Australia has two medals. Yay!)