Monday July 4th, Travel to Florence

Monday July 4, 2011
After breakfast at the hotel - which we thought was included but they charged us 7 euros - we packed up and headed back to the train station.  



Wasn't as fun this time, because it was all uphill hauling our luggage.  I'm feeling wiped out today, and probably should not have selected the cappuccino to go with the light breakfast as it's making me jittery.  Found the same totally unhelpful clerk at the ticket window as yesterday, but managed to figure out our path to Firenze (Florence). I was happy to get on the train.

It was a different crowd at the station today.  More English spoken and people hauling luggage, vs the Italian weekenders that we saw yesterday.  Met a nice couple from Philadelphia who had also lived in Florence.  Got to talking about technology when they asked Lauren about her career, then enjoyed listening to her response to where is it all headed next.  She is so articulate and yet speaks simply for anyone to understand within a complex area, providing insight from the user standpoint of where the technical world is heading.  Made me proud, as she often does. :)

We zip along on the train, resting our bodies, enjoying the scenery and watching the people around us.  When we change trains, at the next stop a whole group of young local girls get on and share our seat area and others around us.  They are maybe 8 or 9 and all carrying dance bags alike.  Half have cell phones out and they take pictures of each other and chatter away in Italian.  They clearly do this on a regular basis and seem comfortable with their group train ride as the one chaperone looks on and monitors.

Next stop will be the central station in Florence then another walk on cobblestone to the apartment we rented.  Wishing I had traveled a little lighter, although we did better than a lot of the Americans I see dragging along big bags.  I look outside and see snow on the mountain range out a ways, a sharp contrast to the warmth of the local areas we are traveling in.

Guess that enough journaling for now.  Lauren has promised to help me set up a blog spot so I can publish this to friends. I may go back to the beginning and remove a few private thoughts, then give it a try.