Saturday, June 9, 2007

Trip to Tuscany

We drove for about an hour outside of Rome before stopping at a rest area on the highway – Autogrill - to eat lunch. Autogrills are all over the place and are similar to many rest stops in the U.S. It has entrances on both sides of the highway and the actual building is stretched over the road. They had a decent variety with sandwiches, salad, hamburgers, pasta, fruit, and desserts. After about 45 minutes, we were all back on the bus for the three-and-a-half hour drive to Tuscany. After three straight days of beautiful weather (although it was hot), we drove through pockets of Rain along the way. The rain would last for about 20 minutes and then change back over to sun. So, more like being in Florida than in the Northeast U.S. The country is beautiful, contrasting between mountains, vineyards, and small villages that resemble medieval forts.

Since I have the time on the bus, I wanted to take the opportunity to talk a little more about our hotel in Rome. The hotel was a four-star hotel and most of us were roomed in triples. The typical set-up of the room was a sleeping area with two twin beds and then a living area with a pullout couch, TV and kitchenette. Both rooms also had balconies with a small table and chairs on the one off the living area. The bathrooms were typical, with a sink, toilet, and shower. Though it did also have a bidet in addition to the toilet. The tub was also extremely high. At 5’10”, I even had a large step to get into and out of the shower.

The elevators were also tiny and could hold a maximum of six people – with no luggage. During check-in and check-out the elevator was tight with 2 people. The most I rode with at one time was five and even that was tight. I think a lot of us took the stairs – we’ll see if this holds true as the trip goes on.

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