The past two weeks have been wonderful! As soon as I arrived back from Spain and a week of break, my mother was in Florence waiting for me. Could I have asked for a better welcome? I was so glad to see her!! I booked her a hotel very close to my apartment, which worked out very nicely. Jenna was also with me, and my mom was almost as glad to see her as she was me. Jenna is actually still here and has used my apartment as home base during her 3 week tour of Italy with various friends.
Mom was here, we did all sorts of touristy stuff and even some things I had yet to do. The best though was probably our Vespa tour through Tuscany. Mom had no clue what a Vespa was before coming to Italy, so let me explain. A Vespa is a two-wheeled, vehicular form of transportation that many Italians drive, but they are also made for fun! Essentially, it’s a motor scooter. We departed from a ranch in the gorgeous Tuscan countryside and were not disappointed with what followed.
We saw incredible views, tasted delicious wines, ate a HUGE homemade meal, toured a few Tuscan towns, made friends with our tour guide, Lorenzo, and had a wonderful sunshiney day! My funniest memories of the day include my mother being called “Madam” as the guide insisted that she wear her helmet during our warm-up time on the Vespas. Not another person was asked to wear a helmet until we left the ranch, and I’m sure my mom was the only one with any experience driving a motorcycle type vehicle. I was the one who needed the helmet. The funniest moment of the day was probably Jenna’s near collision with a parked car. After stopping in Castellina, the first town, we all mount our Vespas feeling like pros. The first person goes, then the second, then the third and so-on. As my mother and I wait our turn we watch Jenna prepare to drive. She backs up quite nicely then VROOM! She wedges her Vespa in between a parked car and the curb. I will never forget the shocked looked on her face. It was one of those, “this didn’t just happen to me” moments. She freaks out asking the tour guide if he’s going to take her Vespa away. He helps her after assuring her he won’t take her Vespa away. It wasn’t that funny at the moment, but looking back, her reaction was priceless.Jenna left to meet other friends that week, so Mom and I had some Mom-and-daughter time. We did a little shopping and a lot of wining and dining. Wednesday Mom moved into my place for the remainder of the week, and we went to Viareggio for the day, which is a town on the coast. We expected a gorgeous day hanging out by the water, but as we walked to the water we saw sand blowing in the distance. As we approached the beach where men were playing soccer in speedos (typical Italian swimwear for men), sand attacked us. We snapped our pics and left the beach. Failed plans made for a great pizza lunch and quality strolling time. We made it back to Florence in time to climb the bell tower of the Duomo.
The stairwell was narrow, and Mom’s slight claustrophobia wasn’t okay with the passing people. However, the view was so worth it! Of course with our luck as soon as we made it up the 413 stairs, it started raining. But it didn’t last long, and God blessed us with a rainbow. The sun setting over the Tuscan countryside and the Florence skyline is an unexplainable sight. It’s absolutely breathtaking, and pictures don’t capture even half of the beauty.Thursday we chilled, and Mom treated my roommate Sarah and I to a fabulous dinner. Jillian, a friend of mine from home crashed on my couch for the night, so there were quite a few people in and out of my apartment. Mom and I spent her last day in town visiting the Boboli Gardens, which are famous gardens in the city that were formerly owned by the Medici family—the family solely responsible for making Florence what it is today. The gardens weren’t as colorful as expected, but the green was gorgeous. We strolled and simply enjoyed the beauty. It was so nice to spend time with my mom because we don’t ever get to do that, especially in the states where we are both going in a million different directions all the time.
Mom’s last night was a fun one. Jenna came back to Florence with Jenny and Anitra, two friends from the states. Mom and I made a delicious Italian meal for dinner, and since it was a Friday night in Florence, I only found it appropriate to take Mom out to see a little Italian nightlife. It was such a blast! I couldn’t have asked for a better week with Mom. I know she wanted to stay forever, and I’m glad she has an insight as to why I love Europe so much. Every place is so unique, and there’s always more to see.
Mom left Saturday of Easter weekend, and I was sad to see her go. Easter Sunday was quite a different experience in Florence than my regular traditions in the States. Italians don’t do Easter bunnies or Easter egg hunts. I was disappointed; however, they do have a few traditions of their own. They boil eggs, have the priest bless them, and eat them on Easter. They also have the coolest show called the Scoppio del Carro, or the Explosion of the Cart, which I attended after a Catholic mass in Italian. I am glad that I know the story of Christ’s resurrection and could go through what I thought he was saying in my head because I couldn’t understand a lick of the actual sermon. The Scoppio del Carro is an old tradition that dates back to the origins of Florence. Two white oxen pull a huge cart into the piazza in front of the Duomo and a (mechanical) dove flies from inside the church to the top of the cart. As the dove hits the cart, the explosion begins. I expected the cart to be blown to pieces, but instead it was like canyons exploding in the middle of a crowd for 20 minutes. There were fireworks and flames constantly. The cart is actually the original cart used and has been restored to handle this festivity every year. I was impressed with the explosions, but don’t know how in the world Italian law allows people to be that close to such a massive fireworks show. I’m not going to lie; I didn’t exactly feel all that safe, but it was cool nonetheless.
The following week was fairly uneventful. Jenny and Anitra left Tuesday, and I was sad to see them go, but I still had Jenna on my couch. I am glad that my roommates like my friends because it feels like we run a mini-hostel at times. I did some school work and caught up on other things that I needed to do before going to the coast for the weekend.
I will post about my latest travels soon! Love you all!
Ciao from Italia!
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