I couldn't of done a backpacking trip around Europe and not spent a heap of time in Italy! This has been my first time to Italy and it has been such a memorable experience. So much so, that I have accumulated a little collection of ticket stubs and maps, as keepsakes of this beautiful journey.
Here is the link to my previous post on Rome.
https://steemit.com/travel/@haylienonearth/sightseeing-in-rome-the-pope-pizza-and-i-can-t-think-of-anything-else-with-a-p
I also have one on Pompeii!
https://steemit.com/travel/@haylienonearth/pompeii-and-herculaneum-discovering-roman-life-in-naples-italy-79-ad
Our first stop on our italian inventory, was lake Como. George Clooney lives there! I didn't see George unfortunately, but we did take some beautiful photos. We took a boat over to bellagio and Villa del Balbianello. It was worth doing the guided tour here as it has a great insight into the famous explorer who once lived their. Scenes from star wars and James bond have been filmed here and it's not hard to see why. It's got that Hollywood glamour about it.
A day trip to lake Como gives you more than enough to time to see everything. The ferry systems are frequent and efficient so it's easy enough to hop on and hop off whichever islands take your fancy. They are all very similar with great places to eat, high end shopping and stunning views of the lake. You can swim in the lake, but only in the designated areas!
We left lake Como and headed to our second stop on our Italian leg, which was Venice. The most unique city I've ever been lucky enough to visit! It is a meandering maze of canals. We got lost on many occasions. But that is exactly what you should do! If you've read my previous posts, you'll know this is our approach to sightseeing! In Venice, it's the only way to see it properly! Just start walking down a street and zigzag through until you find something cool!
We always found our way back to our accommodation, eventually! Mind you, we were eaten alive by bed bugs and mosquitos in our accommodation so I'm glad that we didn't spend too much time in it! Apparently this is common in Venice in summer though, being so close to the water, the humidity and all that! Most guest houses and hotels go to great lengths to prevent infestations like this, ours did not! Check the reviews on TripAdvisor before booking to avoid getting absolutely shredded, like we did! Probably a bit too much information, but it can make you miserable on any trip, so do your research or invest in a good bug repellant!
Accommodation and food is fairly priced, very similar to London prices I would say. But most of the things to see and photograph are free. Unless you are a shopping addict, then your trip could get expensive. Luckily, I'm not a girly girl so I skip that part of major cities! But I know for a lot of girls, shopping is a big deal! We also skipped the gondola ride, one reason being that it was around €50 (on a budget that's a big no) and also because we agreed that we would both feel awkward in one! I think I might of said 'especially if the guy starts singing amore, I would die.’ I'm quite a shy person, so that would be my worst nightmare.
Venice is romantic. No,It absolutely OOZES romance. (Trust me when I tell you that you will see more PDA than pizzerias in Italy!)
One place that we did pay for is the San Marco
Campanile tower. Which is next to the basilica of San Marco. At the price of €5. It is great fun to sit in the square there and listen to the live classical music being played regularly from the restaurants. Drinking coffee, people watching and laughing as tourists stupidly take pictures with pigeons on their heads, is fun at any time of the day!
We got there at opening time early in the morning, as the queues were colossal throughout the entire day. I heard that from 2018 you will need to book weeks in advance for a timeslot. It's so worth it though. These are the views from the top of the tower. It gives you a good indication on how large and built up Venice is!
A very cool, quirky thing that we happened to just stumble upon. Was the illy art exhibition at the Venice Biennale. It's a place for all you hipsters out their! The artwork is incredibly creative and is super modern. It is themed around an art contest that a coffee company did a few years ago. Sounds strange, but aren't most modern art galleries accentric!? I particularly loved this display of chairs, it made me feel like I was in a scene from Alice in wonderland, or in space, or I was high….those kind of vibes!! There are quite a few artsy places like this, dotted around Venice, this is because of the art students who live within the city. This particular one is only a small exhibit, but it is definitely worth checking out! It's free entry and it wasn't crowded at all went well went as it's a little tucked away!
Here is some photos that I took simply walking around the canals.
Overall, if you are looking for a place which is unlike no other, then Venice is for you! It is suitable for all ages and tastes and you get some pretty cheap deals on flights and accommodation. Especially if you book out of summer season!
FLORENCE
Another cheap weekend getaway destination, popular with many Brits, is Florence which is the capital of the Tuscany region, Italy!
It has a very hipster vibe to it, as their are many art galleries, coffee joints and vintage shops. This is where the cool university students hang out!
I found the fashion to be ON POINT here!
Another thing which is on point, is the food! Especially this place...
You CANNOT visit Florence and not try a sandwich from All’Antico Vinaio. All sandwiches on the menu cost €5 but they are HUGE! I had a 'Boss’ sandwich, which is tuscan ham, local cheese and truffle cream. Sandwiched between homemade thick sliced bread. It was outstanding. Sandwiches are my life. After trying one of those bad boys, any sandwich I eat from now on will be a BLANDWICH in comparison. If you don't believe me, check out their TripAdvisor reviews. It's actually a very funny read. Many people saying it was a life changing experience to sample one and that they went back to get one for dinner. Expect to queue anywhere up to thirty minutes at peak time, maybe more. But it is so so worth it. Trust me!
In Florence we have mostly walked around, as everything is within walking distance, you can easily see it all in one day. A bus ticket one way is €1.20, extremely cheap for a city! We stayed out of the centre, at a cheaper airBnB and got a return bus ticket each day. This worked out so much cheaper than staying central. Plus our accommodation was awesome. They gave us gifts on arrival and breakfast, drinks and snacks were included everyday! Which saved us even more money!
A beautiful photo spot is the Florence cathedral.
I recommend walking across the bridge to the old town. Walk up the steep stairs, to the very top. There is such a good view of the whole city. You can see the old town wall from here. It has such a drastic change from the city on the left side, to green Tuscan rolling hills on the other.
Other than that, If you mix a little sightseeing, eat some good local food and check out a gallery or museum, I would say that you are doing florence correctly!
PISA
No Florence trip would've been complete without a day trip to Pisa. To see the leaning tower of Pisa of course! One of the seven wonders of the world! We traveled to Pisa from Florence central station, for €8.50pp. The bus prices were around the same price, some were cheaper by one euro. But the train was fastest, so we opted for that instead! We got off the train at the stop before Pisa centrale station, which is The Pisa Rossore station. The later is closest to the tower.
To be honest, you dont really need much time, if you just want to see the tower, like we did. We saw it and were done in an hour.
I couldn't bring myself to do the classic Pisa tourist photo, you know the ones, pretending to push the tower poses! It's rather funny to just stand and watch people making those poses!
We opted to spend time in the city of Lucca which is a short, cheap train ride from Pisa centrale station. From there we also went to see the devil's bridge in Ponte Della Maddelena. Which is a medieval, obscurely built bridge. The bridge straddles a river and is surrounded by lush forest and distant mountain views. The town itself is full of Italian character and is very quiet and peaceful.
Lucca is an old medieval city. It was lovely to spend a day their. The old town wall is still in tact and surrounds the city centre, which is filled with shops, cafes and restaurants. It's less filled with tourists and it has a more 'locals' feel too it. If you are planning a trip to see the tower of Pisa, I would definitely recommend stopping in Lucca to make a day out of it!
Well, that's a few more stops crossed off of our list. It is nearing the end of our stint in Italy! Our next move could possibly be Cinque Terre and then its onto greece. We haven't quite figured the logistics out yet! But when we have, I shall post about where we are and what we have been up to! The adventure continues…..
Peace out
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