Medieval Tuscany, Italy Day Trip - Saturday, March 22nd, 2014

Today was one of my favorite days of the trip so far because of the sheer beauty that is Tuscany, Italy, and because of the picturesque and quaint little towns we got to explore. Here is a run down of what we did on Saturday:

* We boarded the SITA bus in Florence for Siena around 8:10 am. The bus was similar to a Greyhound-   type bus in the U.S.

* When we arrived in Siena we walked to the Piazza del Campo. Some chose to climb the bell tower above the Piazza for the amazing view of Tuscany at the top. We also had some free time to explore the town during the morning. 

* Visit to the Duomo of Siena / Santa Maria Assunta

* Lunch in Siena

* Boarded the bus to San Gimignano, a small Tuscan town that was about halfway back to Florence by bus. I LOVED this place! Both Sienna and San Gimignano looked to me like stage sets in a movie -  like stepping back in time to a completely different era and place.

* While in San Gimignano we toured the medieval center of town, saw the renaissance frescos at the Collegiata, some of us climbed the tower Torre Grosa, and most of the group did a bit of shopping. 

* Mr. Stromberg and Mr. Johnson (or as I call them for short, the misters) ordered traditional Italian pizzas for the group and brought them over to us still hot in the pizza boxes and we had a little pizza party on the front steps of the church in the town square. A really fun dinner!

* After pizza, we walked back to the bus stop and headed back to Florence for our last night there before we head to Rome for the final days of our trip. Several people in the group fell asleep on the bus ride back to Florence - we are all pretty tired from the long days on our feet that when we have quiet time to sit down, like on a bus or train, most tend to get a bit sleepy. A heads up to parents - your child will probably want to have a few long nights sleep next week when we get home!

* We again found some gelato on our walk back to the convent  - it's fun to try different flavors and combinations. We made it back to the convent and headed to bed... tired but happy from such an amazing day!

Here are some photos from the day:

Piazza del Campo in Siena. I sat at this cafe for a few minutes and had a cup of coffee while I used the cafe's wifi. Nice view!

Outside the Duomo of Siena / Santa Maria Assunta...

...and inside - beautiful! 

This is inside the library at the church. We have a nice library at Minnehaha, but it doesn't look like this! :)

Ceiling in the library - the vibrant colors and details were absolutely stunning.

Walking around San Gimignano - the picture below is what you see when you look out this door above. The landscape in Tuscany is very scenic and peaceful.

Looking out the window on the bus ride, Mr. Stromberg commented that the landscape in Tuscany looks similar to Northern California wine country. 

Hanging out on top of a small tower we climbed - a small tower with a big view.

This picture is very random and mainly meant for my little girls because they like braids... so I told Carrie we should take a picture of our braids because my girls would like to see them.  Miss you, Mckenna and Calla! 

Also, a cute story: several of the students have started calling me mom as a joke, mainly because I'm usually saying something like, "Does everyone have their passport?", "Don't forget to bring your water bottle with today!", "Did you sleep well last night?" Etc. They asked me jokingly if it's ok if they call me mom on the trip, and I answered jokingly, as long as they call me Mrs. Johnson when we get back to school.  Basically I think everyone misses their moms and dads and they want to feel a little parental comfort sometimes on the trip.  We are all excited to hug our families when we get back home on Wednesday! 

Stephanie, Isabel, Cole, Scott, and I climbed to the top of the Torre Grosa tower in San Gimignano.  Below are some pictures of the gorgeous view from the top of the tower. In the picture below you can see the long road through town leading out to the town gate. That road is lined with little shops and cafés - it's really fun to wander through those winding roads...

This faux nappers photo happened just before our pizza party. We've had long and full days, but we are seeing and learning so much!

I am posting this now on Sunday night from Rome, our final destination on our 2014 CFE journey. We made it here safely on the train this afternoon from Florence. Tomorrow (Monday) is a full day at the Vatican, and Tuesday will be devoted to ancient Rome. We leave early on Wednesday morning for the airport to come home. I don't know when I'll be able to post again before we leave, but I'll try if time and wifi access allows. Hope you have enjoyed following along with our adventures!  ~Mrs. Johnson