Breathtaking Tuscany! lots of pics!!

finally, a new post. Cyd is really slacking.

So we've started to settle in after getting back from Tuscany, we actually had a great trip. We got to take Nana and Grumps along with us this time and it worked out very well. We flew in from Seville to Pisa, rented cars, and then drove from there to our own Tuscan villa in Buti, Italy. The place was fantastic. Four rooms, three bathrooms, very rustic and charming. Here is the farmhouse we stayed in and pictures of the village. We got to wake up to a view of vineyards and olive groves with mist coming down from the mountains. The location was great too, we never had more than an hour to drive to any of the major sites. Our first journey out the next day was to Lucca, Italy. It's a great walled city with a good medieval feels and narrow streets. Didn't get to do too much adult touring, but we were able to go into the cathedral. Check out Colby's meditation over a 14th century woman's tomb. While in Lucca, Colby found a hat like Micheal Jackson's. He has a weird fascination with MJ...He was singing MJ hits through the streets! From there we took a drive North for some scenery, here we stopped in a little village along the route. This is us on the Devils Bridge then we ended up in a village called Collodi, supposedly the setting for Pinocchio. There's a theme park there, (which we heard was very lame so we didn't go in), but we were able to pick up some Pinocchio merchandise. Then it was back to the house and a little dinner in "the Grotto" a restaurant in Buti. We actually had our best meals there, and ended up going three times, love the place. The next day we decided to make the big haul to Florence. It's a beautiful city, and Cyd and I had a great time when we went there without children, but it was a little to crowded and hot for us to to any major touring with the chidren. We were able to see the "david" reproduction in the Plaza de la Repubblica and get some Gelato. From there we made a jaunt over to San Gimignano, an old Italian village with great towers. We did some shopping and looking around, it's a beautiful place. Here is James on the top of one tower with a gorgeous view of the Tuscan countryside!Then it was back to the villa for some Cyd home cooked pasta. We did make it to Volterra so Cyd could say she went to the vampire village. They had *new moon* flavored gelato! So of course, Cyd had to have some! Again, great old feel to it. Here is Cyd in the Piazza De Volturi....no Vampire bites on this trip...poor Cyd. But, Grumps and I kissed a boar.
Then it was off to Pisa!
I think this might be the only picture of Jonah smiling! He is a little grumpy. To see the leaning tower!!! It was impressive! Much more than we expected. Cyd tried to take the corney *pushing the tower* pics of all of us. They came out pretty good. My back was sore afterward! The last day we took a break and went to Camp Darby. It's an American army base just outside of Pisa that has a pool. I know, we went all the way to Tuscany and ended up back at a military base, but the kids needed a touring time out and some pool action. All and all a great trip with not too much Palmer family disaster! Hope you all enjoyed the pics - next trips will be Cyd going home around the 18th of June, and James and I are going to go to Rome for some father and son bonding with Gladiators and Colosseum action. Stay tuned!