I know it's been a while....

The internet at the villa can't handle uploading pictures anymore.  So.... I have to wait to put up more pics... and believe me I have more... loads more. In my last couple of posts you saw my photos from my trip to the Duomo in Florence and our daytrip to Sienna.  Both cities were beautiful.   We returned to Florence on Friday and visited the Pitti Palace, which was an amazing building... formerly a palace (hence the name) turned art gallery.  The most amazing part of the place was how they had Botticellis and Raphaels just hanging up high in a corner... like it's no big deal.  On Thursday we went to Arezzo, a wonderful medieval town with lots of banners flying.. on the way back from Arezzo Mark graciously stopped at a sunflower field for a photos shoot (pictures coming soon). 

Yesterday we went to the Trebbio Castle, formerly a Pazzi villa (more pictures coming soon).  The historic building was amazing, and was actually the location of the Pazzi family when they planned the failed assassination of Lorenzo De Medici, leading to apx 200 members of the Pazzi Family being hung from the ramparts of the Palazzo Vecchio.  Pop up video moment: Hanibal Lecter mentions this little story in the movie Hanibal.  On Easter morning in church the Pazzi assassins attacked Lorenzo the Magnificent and Giovanni de Medici, killing Giovanni but only wounding Lorenzo.  Lorenzo exacted his revenge by wiping all living memory of the Pazzi family from Florence.  All of the Pazzi coat of arms were destroyed, except the one at the Castle Trebbio.  While we were visiting there the guide pointed it out to us saying "Lorenzo could not destroy this coat of arms because it had been made by the most talented Donatello." A Donatello hanging over there... no big deal.  It matches the Raphael in the livingroom...also no big deal.  About a hundred years ago the Castle Trebbio was bought and converted into a Winery/Olive Oil producer.  We got to do a tasting of their prized Chianti and Olive Oil... and some how bottles of each made there way into my luggage to come home.

In about 4 minutes I'm leaving to go to the Villa Itati, the Harvard Villa in Florence.  I'm told there are beautiful gardens there.  Today was my last day of painting... and like the trooper I am I got up at 6 and was in the Gale Force winds and rain painting during my last chance to paint... it didn't even look bad.  I may have gotten a chill from it, as I'm sitting here inside with my University Di Roma hoodie on and not warming up.  Tomorrow is my Italian Final... and I need to write out the story of Goldilocks in Italian before class tomorrow.  It may be a very crude and simple version... there will be bears and porridge, that's what counts right.   More stuff to come... stay tuned.