Epilogue: A Few Reflections

We made it home close to 1:00 AM. From the time we first woke up at 4:00 AM in Florence, flew to Frankfurt, then San Francisco and drove to Atascadero, we were awake close to 30 hours. The drive home from SFO was especially hard. Perhaps because it was dark, or that the excitement of the trip was waning, or because we were just plain exhausted. Anyway, we made it home safely, thanks to gallons of caffeine and a driver change. When we walked in the house, our cat, Coco, came downstairs to give us a proper welcome home. Our son, however, did not.

Over the past 30 years, travel has become a piece of who I am. I think it’s become part of my DNA. For me, travel comes in two forms: business travel, which I tolerate, and group and family travel, which I love. For most vacation travel, there are historic places, great vistas, or wonderful museums. If cycling, there are often challenging climbs and memorable descents But, these are just the facilitative experiences for what travel can really accomplish; a bonding of the human spirit.

When you travel with family and friends, you contribute to the development of a common experience. You’re in it together. You create memories that otherwise would not be possible. When you share travel with others, it develops a common experience that can be relived and retold by everyone involved.

I often think about past cycling travel experiences with friends. They become more than a collection of daily rides. They create collective memories, build relationships and strengthen the very fabric that makes us human. People often ask me why I enjoy putting together travel experiences for my family and friends. Now you know.


Destination Florence is over and Aimless Tours’ next trip is yet to be determined. But, one thing we do know; it won’t come soon enough.

Thank you for reading this blog. I hope you have enjoyed it. Look for my next travel blog in May 2015 when I host a trip for the Cal Poly Alumni Association, and in September 2015 when our cycling group travels to the French Alps.

Deadline: Frankfurt, Germany

Aimless Tours: Destination Florence is coming to a close. It’s our last day and Kathy and Joe, and Rosey and I are heading home. It been quite a trip and the memories will last a lifetime. But, like most days on this adventure, the way it’s unfolding is nothing like how we planned it.

Last night we celebrated at “our” local restaurant which was literally only a few feet from the door to our flat. Fortunately, it just happens to be one of the best in Florence – in our humble opinion. A local place where the police come in to take food out, and the real locals are seated behind the kitchen with the football game on a small screen TV.

The plan for the evening was to finish any remaining food and adult beverages still in the flat either before or after dinner. A bottle of Chanti Classico was discovered on the table, plus a large bottle of beer in the frig. As is the rule in our neighborhood in Atascadero, beer first, wine second. Rule observed. After dinner (and a second bottle of wine), another bottle of Chanti Classico was found near a suitcase. Perhaps someone intended to bring it back to the States. Oh well, it just makes your suitcase heavy. It was then time for canolli from Grilli Café and grappa from the super market. Grilli Café was founded in 1736. Quite a place…so Italian!

Kathy and Joe had a 7 AM departure and had arranged for a driver to take them to the airport at 4:45 AM. So at 4 AM we were all up trying to decide if it was just a late night or actually morning. They left the flat on time and headed to the airport in torrential rain. A weather hangover from the historic hail storm yesterday. About 45 minutes later I receive a text from Joe: "Air France on strike. Flight cancelled". Dang, we could have partied longer!

Rosey’s and my flight was not until 10 AM so we had arranged to go to the airport later in the morning. No problems getting there, but when checked-in, the agent at the counter said, “Mrs. Parks, you are going to San Francisco. Mr. Parks, you are going to Zurich?” It was definitely an “oh shit” moment. After a few minutes of discussion, the problem was uncovered. Our itinerary was Florence to Zurich on Swiss, Zurich to Frankfurt, on Lufthansa, and finally Frankfurt to San Francisco on United. But, the Florence to Zurich flight was overbooked and Swiss was making us an offer to bypass Zurich and fly directly to Frankfurt. Plus compensate for the “inconvenience.” Deal done. I’m writing this from the Lufthansa First Class lounge in Frankfurt. Oh ya, I’m loving this part of the “inconvenience”.

Back to Kathy and Joe. With the Air France strike, everything on Delta and the few remaining Air France flights were fully booked. They too were made an offer. Stay in Florence one more day, hotel and meals courtesy of Air France, and fly home tomorrow (Sunday). Deal done for them too. They are now staying in a hotel almost on the Ponte Vecchio in Florence. Plus, one less flight for them too.

We’re not home yet. But, we’re working on it in true Aimless Tours fashion.

Tomorrow’s Post – The Epilogue

Today was biblical and tomorrow we fly.

We started the day in the normal way. Coffee and toast with ricotta and honey. It was then last minute shopping and yet more church touring. The reason for the church touring is because Rosey will be back in Florence next July with the Vocal Arts Ensemble. They will be singing in a number of churches and we were tasked with scouting them out.

After about 300 church visits, we hopped into a small restaurant for Panini’s and a little wine. We were eating outside and then skies began to grow gray and then very dark. Within a few minutes, it became almost black. Street lights came on. The couple sitting next to us calmly said, “we think it’s time to go in.” We picked up our meals and hurried inside. Within 30 seconds, the wind began to howl and hail poured down. It became as dark as night, people on the streets were screaming (no kidding) and soon the streets were white with hail. Water began to rise and came right up to the door of the restaurant. The shutters were pulled closed and there was a sense of panic all around.

And yes, these are real photos from today. Remember it's September not January

After about 15 minutes, the wind calmed down and the skies began to brighten. But, the damage was done. The hail was inches deep and had to be shoveled away.

The flat? Lots of water came in. We mopped up. The suitcase sitting next to the window had minimum damage.

Tomorrow, I’ll post more about today and the conclusion of our trip. It’s now time to pack and prepare for a long day of travel.

Our little Aimless-Tours group experienced our own Great Race today. The goal was to travel from Florence to Lucca and spend a quiet, relaxing day in this ancient walled city. It all started very calmly about 8:30 AM. But before 1:00 PM we:

1) Walked through Florence to the train station, but missed the train because we could not find the little green machine to validate our tickets;

2) Took the next train to Lucca, which included a transfer in Pisa, but got on the wrong train in Pisa and ended up in Livorno on the coast: so we considered taking a cruise instead of going to Lucca;

3) Turned around and got back on a train and made it to Pisa. Next train to Lucca would be in 45 minutes, so walked across the street and had an espresso. Considered beer and wine but it was only 10:00 AM.

4) Boarded what we thought was the next train to Lucca but, 30 seconds before the train left the station, we realized we were on a train back to Florence.

5) Stayed on the same platform and a couple of minutes later the train for Lucca arrived.

6) We made it to Lucca at 1:00 PM. A nice lunch with Vino Rosso and everything was better.

This was a true Aimless-Tours adventure. Try to get to Lucca and we take you to Pisa. Try to get to Pisa and we take you to Livorno. Three hours later, we get you to Lucca.

The rest of the day was pretty normal. We caught the right train back to Florence. Went shopping for a little more wine, cured meats, and bread and made a great antipasti. Started searching for a place for dinner at 9:30 PM.

Since we’ve been at the flat, we’ve heard choral rehearsals and organ music but were unsure of the source. Tonight, we found out we have a concert hall adjacent to our flat! Mystery solved.

It’s now time for a grappa and bed.

Today will be a day to remember. Oh yes, there was one more church, Santa Croce and a little more wondering around Florence for starters. But, the real excitement came when we thought Joe was going to be hauled off to prison. And the funny thing was that we really didn’t do that much wrong.

It all started so simply. Our plan was to get out of Florence for the afternoon and head into the Tuscan hills. There is a little town, Fiesole, just outside the city. The great part is that it is perched on top of a good size hill so it has incredible views of Florence. It also must be a great climb because cyclists were going up and down all day. The best way to get there is by bus; the number seven from Piazza San Marco. So with all good intentions, we purchased our round trip bus tickets and got on the bus. We literally went to the next stop when a member of the Bus Polizi boarded and began to ask for tickets. We proudly showed our tickets and he said, “Oh, but this is not validated. How long have you been on the bus?” About 30 seconds, replied Joe as he pointed to the location where we got on. It was less than half a block away. Too bad, said the Bus Polizi, your fine is $50 Euros EACH. Not panicking, Joe tried to explain that we just purchased them and they should be good. “Oh, but argue with me and you are going to jail,” he replied. At this point, other riders were panicking, and trying to distance themselves from the crazy Americans who didn’t know to validate their tickets. Joe kept his cool and in the end, we only had to pay a single 50 Euro fee, simply for not punching our tickets into a machine on the bus. Lesson learned. Other than that, Fiesole is a nice, quiet respite from the hassle and bustle of Florence.

The day ended, however, on a much happier and festive note. When we sat down to dinner (at 9:30 PM), there was a large party of perhaps 14 people next to us. It was a birthday celebration for their 77 year old mother/grandmother. As happy birthday was sung, we joined in and clapped at the end along with the family. Apparently, they were quite touched by this and “adopted” us for the rest of the evening. Cake was shared, stories told, laughs frequent, and kisses exchanged at the end of the evening. The Italian government, or at least the transportation department, may not be so great, but the Italian people are wonderful.

Part One
It was museum day: the Galleria dell’Accademia in the morning and the Uffuzi after lunch. Sandwiched in between was the Church of Santa Maria Novella and more wanderings about Florence by our Aimless Tours group.

The Galleria dell’Accademia is home for Michelangelo’s David. While I had seen the “fake” David before in Piazza Signorelli on past trips, I had never experienced the majesty of seeing the real David in person. I now understand why he is viewed by millions every year. At over 17 feet tall, he is awe-inspiring.

The Uffizi houses perhaps the greatest collection of Renaissance art in the world. A former palace of the famed Medici family, the Uffizi offers museum goes an overwhelming experience in sculpture and painting.

While I enjoy art and the Renaissance is of particular interest, going through both the Accademia and the Uffizi can be an exhausting experience. I think it’s all that slow walking, stopping, starting, and trying to look like you know what you’re doing. So, for those of you who would rather spend a day in Florence shopping or doing other things, here is Skip’s The History of Western Art from a Cyclist’s Perspective.

The Egyptians - triangles;

The Greeks - columns;
The Romans - prettier columns;
The Middle(Dark) Ages - bad;
The early Renaissance - good;
The Renaissance - better;
The High Renaissance- best;
Michelangelo - naked men;
Botticelli - naked women;
Durer - folded hands;
Notti - big meals;
Donatelli - a teenage turtle;
Bellini - best served with good champagne;
Leonard de Vinci - drawings of naked men;
Caravaggio - men in pain.


Part Two
Over the last couple of days, we have learned a lot about the neighborhood. First, it’s very centrally located. We are only about a block from the Duomo and everything is only a few minutes away. Second, we found a great restaurant which is right next door: Zio Gigi. It’s complete with an opera singing owner, a smart ass waitress, and the best food we’ve had in Florence. So far we’ve experienced papparadelle with wild boar, pasta with porcini mushrooms, white beans with olive oil, and Florentine steaks done to perfection. Tonight’s dinner was topped off with a Vecchio Amaro del Capo (gratis) and then grappa. We are very happy campers.

BTW - Many pictures in on this blog are courtesy of Joe Marotta Photography. It helps to have a pro as part of Aimless Tours.

Today, I thought I was going to kill my family. Not on purpose of course, but just through the sheer process of making them hike up mountain to the Chiesa of Santa Margarita in Cortona. The walk started out in a pleasant fashion as we sauntered through the quiet streets and piazzas of Cortona. Then, as my cyclists friends have experienced, we took a right turn and faced “the wall.” But, this wall was of steps; hundreds and hundreds of them. At first they were made of flagstone, but soon they turned to cobbles, and finally to just gravel held up by rows of small stones. I kept calling back to my family, “we’re almost there”, but soon they lost hope and were praying for a miracle. Like thousands before us, just as we were about to give up, we rounded one more turn and there it stood. Prayers answered, we entered the Chiesa, saw Santa Margarita herself, and headed back down the mountain. A glass of wine and a few moments of rest and all was forgiven (I hope).

Our day began with a car and driver to take us first to Assisi and then Cortona. The Fiat I thought I reserved turned out to be a Mercedes Benz van and the driver was, well, a typical Italian motorist. Staying on the correct side of the road is only a suggestion. Going 130K/hour on the freeway, he would slam on the breaks when a slower car happened to be in the high speed lane. And you should have seen the pedestrians run as he accelerated toward them.

Quote for the day: I’m your driver. I’m here for you and anything you want to do all day – except for that (drive us to the top of Cortona to the Chiesa of Santa Margarita….which is why we had to walk.)

Aimless Tours has almost completed our first full day in Florence. Still to come is a small antipasti and Chianti at the flat and then dinner somewhere in the neighborhood. But, I’m ahead of myself.

The day began with a rude start. I awoke and realized it was 9:30 AM. After tossing and turning after a few hours sleep, I had ove slept. So I quickly jumped into the shower only to be further shocked by the lack of hot water. By prior arrangement, we had decided to go to church at 10:30. Not just any service, but at the Duomo, complete with Gregorian Chants and celebrated in Latin. Yes, Latin. It was a splendid sitting in the magnificent church. Often, my mind would wonder and I found myself reflecting on the fact that people have been sitting (or earlier standing) in the same place and participating in the same mass as I was for the last 500 years.

After the service, we were a bit hungry and in need of coffee. So we went on a stroll in search of food. As it happens to tourists, we were lured into a restaurant where we ran up a bill of 28 euros ($36.00). Our breakfast was three coffees and four croissants; welcome to Florence. It was then back to the flat for a change of clothes and Aimless Tours was off.

As Aimless Tours entered the Boboli Gardens we realized we were in heaven. What better place to wonder around without purpose or direction than a Renaissance garden. As one of our group observed, we were aimless and oblivious. We finally found our way out, walked across the Ponte Vecchio, watched what the rich people were buying and made our way home.

Short relaxation, and a lovely dinner tonight that we didn’t eat until 9:30 PM!

Tomorrow: Aimless Tours attempts to find its way to Cortona and Assisi

Discovering our new temporaty home

Post Five

Crossing an entire continent, the Atlantic ocean and a good chunk of Europe can be an exhausting experience. It can be physically tiring and mentally challenging.

Getting to Florence has been all of these things. It’s now 8:45 PM on Saturday in Florence. Rosey’s and my journey began at 3:15 AM on Friday. Since we last slept, we’ve had breakfast in San Francisco, lunch in Chicago, dinner over the Atlantic, breakfast again in Frankfurt, lunch in Florence and we just finished dinner. We are a bit tired.

On the positive side, all our flights were on time. Kathy and Joe made it to Florence on schedule and we found our flat after only getting lost three or four times. Some of the more interesting things we experienced so far include the family below us who has been playing loud “global” music since we got here, dragging our luggage from the train station through the throngs of tourists and the heart of Florence to the flat, the taxi driver who overcharged us by 8 euros, and the 34 steps from street level to the flat. Did I mention they are very old, steep and high stone steps.

The flat itself could take up an entire blog post or two. While ideally located, it also has some very strange oddities. These include the “second” bedroom being located about half way up the stairs to the flat from the courtyard as if pinned onto the side of the building, a great view of the cathedral’s dome (obstructed by a huge construction crane) from one bedroom as long as you lay in bed, an “open” floor plan including the main bedroom being located above the kitchen and accessed by a “flying” stairway, and an electric socket in a shower area of the second bathroom. Picture it, right across the wall from where the water hits. I think you get the general idea, but there will be more to come. (Including the fact that no one told us we had to turn on a small water heater to take a warm shower in the second bathroom.)

All and all, however, Aimless Tours is off to a good start. We’re getting to know our new temporary neighborhood and we’ve had two great meals. Our newest motto is "There is no problem too big or too small for us to ignore."

It’s lights out for now. Tomorrow is a day to relax and enjoy the city.

Post Four

Enough of the planning, packing and repacking, its time to go to Florence. Both Rosey and I had last minute things to do at work and at home, but with those done, we outta here. We’ll be heading to SFO later this afternoon and then fly out tomorrow (Friday) at 6:00 AM. If everything runs on time, we’ll arrive in Florence at 9:00 AM on Saturday. Once we leave Atascadero, we both agree that it’s officially vacation. Let the good times roll.

The other half of our Aimless Tours group, Kathy and Joe, will depart from Pittsburgh, PA on Friday and also arrive in Florence at 9:00 AM Saturday. Next is a taxi to the train station in Florence to store our luggage for the day and then we start to wonder; hopefully to a little café for a bit of lunch, a glass of wine and time to relax.

The luggage has to be stored at the train station because the flat's owner, Lapo, says there is no place to put it until we check-in at 3:00 PM. BTW - If you go to the AirBnB website and look up our flat, you'll see a picture of Lapo. Rosey and Kathy are hoping we'll be seeing him a lot in person. They have both been practicing their Italian just in case(kidding).

Unless the spirit or an adult beverage moves me later tonight, the next post isn’t planned until Saturday evening from Florence.

Ciao

Post Three: Fighting and Flying With United

As many of you know, I fly a lot. Between business and personal travel, I average over 100K miles a year on United alone. So with all this experience, you would think I would understand all the rules and be able to navigate the system. For the most part, I do. The exception comes when I try to book international travel using multiple airlines, and combining award travel with purchased tickets. This trip has been a learning experience.

On the surface, it would seem simple to arrange a trip from SFO to Florence and return. But, because I wanted to use award travel to book Rosey’s ticket, and purchase mine, it became complicated very fast. First, there were no “saver” business class award seats available for travel even though we started to search last October. Of course, there were standard award seats available for redeeming 150,000 miles each way. Total for the trip: 300,000 miles per ticket. Just as a point of reference, a round trip from SFO to NYC is about 5,000 miles. To earn enough miles for a standard business award round trip from SFO to Italy, you have to fly back and forth across the United States 60 times. That’s right, 60 round trips. That’s a lot of time with screaming babies, no food, cramped legs, rock hard seats and delayed flights.

One little perk for flying 100K a year with United, however, is that they give you lots of free drink tickets. The reason is probably so you will imbibe enough to forget that your seat cushion has not been replaced in 20 years. Thank heaven for these drink tickets. Rosey and I plan to use all of them while planted in our economy seats from San Francisco to Chicago to Frankfurt to Florence.

Lesson learned: As soon as you know the destination of any future trip, book your flights. And, even if your chosen airline doesn’t send you free drink tickets, drinks are only $7.00 on the plane. If you ask politely, the flight attendant will even serve you doubles!

Next Post: Heading to SFO for a 6:00 AM flight

Destination Florence: A Flat and a Driver

There is a saying that planning a trip is half the fun. Maybe talking about it is fun. Dealing with all the details can be troublesome at times. Like any trip, this one has presented its own set of challenges.

For the first time, I used a service called AirBnB to find a flat for the four of us. I was assuming that the BnB part stood for “bed and breakfast” and the Air part stood for; well I had no idea. I was wrong. It’s just a name. We’re on our own for breakfasts.

After weeks of searching the AirBnB web site, as many others, we finally decided on a flat in the heart of Florence. No suburbs for us. The flat’s name is “An Apartment with a View”. On close examination, we have discovered that the view is only from one bedroom. The question now is who gets that bedroom? Several options have been discussed including: first couple in the door, flipping a coin, or my favorite, a race to the top of the Duomo complete with suit cases. I’ll let you know how it turns out.

Also for the first time, we decided to hire a car and driver for a day trip to Assisi and Cortona rather than renting a car and driving ourselves or using a pre-arranged tour. I contacted several car services and after recovering from the shock of what they cost, chose a service. This experience was a little more difficult than I thought and the prices ranged from high to astronomical. I soon learned that I had to check for things like was it a car or van, air conditioning or not, distance they will travel, age of the vehicle, etc. Like many other things, it became an experience in compromises; luxury verses economy. But, it’s only for one day, so how bad can 1982 Fiat be? Oh, and the driver’s name – yap Tony.

Next Post – Fighting and Flying with United

In the Beginning

Post One

We are eight days out from the next exploration by Aimless Tours. This tour is “Destination Florence.” This has been an adventure in the making for almost a decade. Here’s a little background.

Almost ten years ago, my wife Rosey, her sister Kathy and her husband Joe, and I embarked on a remarkable tour of Rome and Venice. It was a magical week of sightseeing, experiencing great food and wine, and building memories for a lifetime.

After a few days in Rome which included all of the major sights and an unexpected Pope citing, we headed to Venice. Of course, it rained for the first few days. Not casual mists, but the early heavy autumn rains that blow down from the Swiss Alps and mix with the warm humidity of the Venetian Islands. These rains had several effects. First, it caused us to walk fast. No lingering between churches and cafes. Second, it caused us to get lost – a lot, especially after sunset. It was, after all, Venice.

One rainy evening trying to get back to the hotel after dinner, we became hopelessly lost. We were on narrow dark streets with no familiar sights around us. We had two choices: either panic, or embrace the fact that we were in one of the most beautiful cities in the world. It was at that point that “Aimless Tours” was born. We figured there was no better way to explore a city than get lost and find your way home. Wet and tired, yet happy and excited, we started to find our way back. Laughing as we wiped rain from our faces, our slogan was attached to the name of our new “tour company”, Aimless Tours: Come Get Lost With Us.

Up next – Finding a flat and a driver.