{weekend in tuscany}

{first stop, pisa!}

{il duomo}

{our lunch on the steps of the duomo}

{piazza vecchio and a view from ponte vecchio}

{mercato centrale}

{river at sunset}

{specialities of tuscany: zuppa di cipolla & homemade pasta}

{view from piazza michelangelo}

well hello there lovelies, and happy halloween! here in torino, it doesn't quite feel like the same holiday, so i am pining for home a bit today. how is your october wrapping up? it's beginning to feel a lot like winter here. the rain has been coming down all day, and the temperature has dropped to the low 40s. a little bit colder than what this so cal girl is accustomed to. 

now, i am back to share with you our recent trip to tuscany. a few weekends ago, elliot & i took a train south to explore pisa, florence, and lucca. 

our first stop landed us in the quaint town of pisa. we made a bee line for the tower, snapped a few pictures, and headed back to the train for florence. while pisa is a cute city, it is very small and has little draw other than the leaning tower.

florence was gorgeous. the architecture and views of the city were breathtaking. however, we were shocked to see how overly touristy the city was. over the course of our three day stay, we barely heard a word of italian. it was almost disappointing, because we were unable to use an ounce of our italian. every restaurant we passed by asked us to see their english menu (which you must be wary of, since they will sometimes raise the prices on the tourist menus).

aside from the initial shock, the rest of our stay was beautiful. on saturday, we climbed up to piazza michelangelo in order to see a birds eye view of florence. 

we explored mercato centrale as well , which is a large food market in the center of the city. after, we wandered outside to florence's infamous leather market. 

on sunday, elliot & i stopped in lucca on our way home. this tuscan hill town is still encircled by its original medieval wall. once inside the wall, we discovered the best antique market. every street was filled with vendors selling items from vintage tablecloths to antique furniture. it was a dream!

the trip was enjoyable, but we were glad to make it back to familiar torino on sunday evening. sometimes it gets a little tiring always being on the go!

this weekend, elliot & i will be making a return trip to.... you guessed it.. london! we will be in our favorite place in the world in less than 48 hours. and, to make it even better, my dear mom & dad will be there as well. can't wait!

keep a look out for a post from last weekend's adventure to barcelona. 

enjoy your week

xox