Florence 2024 - Day 1

Tuesday, 02 July 2024 – Day 1

Petra has to torture the children for another week and we are finally going back to Italy! Hurrah! This time Lisa is driving and she is doing an excellent job. In Villach we make a quick stop at the BP petrol station and after a snack Lisa drives across the border and through the toll booth to the first rest stop.

“Un caffè, per favore! Grace!"

We continue with little traffic (apart from the congested traffic outside Venice) to our stopover destination Bologna, or rather to the western district of Borgo Panigale , because we have booked a Ducati factory tour and a visit to the museum. Very informative and the factory tour in particular is highly recommended.

Over the mountain from Bologna to Firenze, the well-known game - it is the home track of the Tifosi and the atmosphere is accordingly hot. We drive around Florence on the autostrada until we turn off to the east and approach our destination: Fiesole . The road sign saying snow chains are compulsory surprises me, but the road up is really steep and often very narrow, so you have to stop again and again and, if necessary, reverse to pass each other.

We arrived at the Fattoria di Maiano just in time for check-in before 7. Our apartment is just right for the two of us: in the middle is a kitchen-dining-living room, the north wing is for Lisa and the south wing is for me, each with 2 beds, air conditioning and shower/toilet. In front of the house is a terrace with a view to the east over the greenery. Wonderful!

Time for dinner: there are two good restaurants nearby, so make a reservation now: Cucina Pietraforte . A casual little terrace and good food, that's the way to live.