So this is another entry in a long series of travel blogs. We went to Paris, then Italy and Greece. All these entries are about that. You may wanna read the others first but up to you. This one is a bit shorter, I didnt really have a good place to break things off that made sense. So I am going to wrap up Rome and get us to our hotel in Florence.
There is no picture that does it justice, no write-ups that come close to understanding what it is like, so I will not try to fumble one out. The vastness and grandeur are beyond imagination. My first reaction is that of a nerd. I thought of that scene in The Lord of the Rings where the Fellowship enters Moria right before the Balrog comes. It just goes on forever. It is stunning. On the creepy side, you can see the body of a pope, but I'm not sure which one it is. The floor has air vents to keep air in the crypts below. Supposedly, St Peter, the first pope, is just below the high altar. Of course, people were snapping pictures, who wouldn't? To me, this place feels like the center of Catholicism on earth. I mean, it is, but I can see why! Again, not religious, but I am very happy we got to see this place! Then we spent a few minutes outside to look at St. Peter's Square, which was much emptier than it had been the day before. Of course, we spent some time visiting the official Vatican store and spent more money. I don't think anyone ate the bland food, but I know that after being through the tour, people spent more money; it does have an effect on you, and you do want something to remember it by. Then they took us to some famous piazza. I wish I could remember the name. A quick Google search, and I might get it, but I might also get it wrong, as there is more than one! It was nice, but it kind of felt like a way to kill time. There were some amazing fountains. Not much more, really. Stores dotted the square; we had half an hour. Again, a few pictures were taken, and then we were on our way. After that, we went on the bus again, and sadly, we left Rome. I will end this chunk on Rome, which has become my favorite city. Not that I have seen a ton, but I loved Victoria until I went to L.A. However, seeing Rome opened my eyes to the world. Paris, ya, it's great, but it's no Rome.
As we left, Scott told us a bit about Rome. So there is the fictional tale of Remus and Romulus. Two infants were raised by a shewolf, and they founded the eternal city. That's the gist of it. Titus Livy wrote a more accurate history, which is almost Game of Thrones. A usurper takes a crown, his sister has twin boys, he orders them executed, and she is put into a nunnery so no one can oppose him. Assassins suck at life and just leave the two boys by the Tiber. "Supposedly," a shepherd does hear boys crying and suckling from a shewolf. He takes the boys home, guessing who they are, and raises them. His wife is a bit of a nasty old lady that locals refer to as the she-wolf (that's why it is said they were raised by a wolf). Some turmoil ensues, and in the end, they retake the crown. There can't be two kings, and Romulus kills his brother, then founds the kingdom of Rome. That's a very brief overview of the real version of how Rome was started. Then Livy wrote the entire history of Rome, and it is quite a tale. I was sad Scott said he would tell us more, but he never got back to it. He explained that the water fountains we found on our bike ride come down from the mountains, and I still wish we could have nice things like that in Edmonton. Scott also let us know that it was that lovely man, Mussolini, who reopened Vatican City to Italy. When Italy was unified, the Pope was opposed to it. A unified country, and he loses a lot of his power, so Italy just landlocked the Vatican. I would have to look into it more to see how it worked, but they were cut off from Italy. Then old Benito did one good thing in his life and struck a deal reopening the Vatican. I found that interesting; you would have thought he would be against that. Usually, dictators don't want to give power away, but reopening the Vatican is kind of doing that. Plus, I think the Pope is against war and murder, and Benito, well, we all know his story. Then we arrived at one of the gas stations I had explained earlier. Everyone ate lunch this time, we were all excited by the mini Walmarts of the road. Half of us had the cold sandwiches, which were still great, and others ordered the warm food. For us, this became the water and pee stop. Fill our bottles each time and remember to use the bathroom. We ate that day and had a few minutes to spare, so we went and sat at the playground. Yes, these massive gas station supermarkets even have small playgrounds for children. My wife noticed her necklace with her grandmother's ashes had popped open. This was bizarre as shit. It was glued and saudered, so it really should never have come open. My wife was crushed, then something I never saw coming happened. The grandmother from Texas saw that my wife was upset and became comforting. Not that she wasn't a lovely lady at any point, but they mostly kept to themselves, and this was literally the only time we talked with her. However, she came over and was comforting. My wife explained the reason she had brought that necklace was that her grandmother was a devout catholic and had never had the chance to make it to Rome. That it had been extra special for her to see the Pope. The old lady said the most calming and wise thing. "Maybe she wanted to stay in Rome, in the heart of Catholicism." An impossible opening happened around Vatican City. Maybe Grandma was happily resting in Rome. Some people do bring ashes to leave there on purpose, perhaps she had just wanted to stay. We wrapped up what was left and ensured it was secure to get home.
The rest of the drive to Florence was tame; I read more of my book and waited to see what Tuscany was like. It is the postcards we have all seen, rolling green hills covered in grape and olive trees. I am from Alberta, and I drive a lot; mostly, it is flat land until you get into the mountains. Tuscany is actually rolling hills. It isn't enclosed like the highways running through forests; it isn't flat and dull, it is actually picturesque. When we pulled into Florence, it had a smaller city feel, unlike the massive cities of Paris or Rome. The roads were much smaller; again, the bus driver surprised me by being able to move the bus on the streets. When we rolled up to our hotel, I was amazed. The driveway was like a large circle, and I really didn't think he would be able to manage it. Of course, he did. The hotel was mind-blowingly beautiful. Hotel Villa Neroli. You can Google it if you want, or I can tell you about it. I won't do it justice, though, have a look!
If you think of a drug lord's house in Mexico, you are in the right direction. Lush, dark green front yard grass. Four stories of a white building, windows with wooden frames that open to let fresh air in. Still hate that they don't have screens on them, but it makes them look nice. Lawn chairs are spread out on a cement patio in front. Not the cheesy lawn chairs we had in the 80s, though, big soft cushions, with a few tables between them to hold drinks. Doors open into a bar where you can purchase drinks to sit on the lawn. It is very welcoming because it doesn't look like a hotel, just a massive house, or as they would call it, a villa. If you take the time to go out, there is a patio and a pool. It is surrounded by trees and vines, which hide it from the world, another very nice touch. It isn't quite as classy, as it is made of old sidewalk blocks, and it does have the cheesy old-school lawn furniture. That is what you want around the pool. It's not a massive pool, but it's plenty big enough if people want to jump in. I really wanted to, but we had enough time to check in, settle a bit, and we would be on our way. Of course, some people rushed down and got a drink in before we left. We were just on the main floor, so we never did go upstairs to look out an upper window and see what we could see. Possibly nothing, as the whole thing seemed nestled in trees, which also made it feel not like a hotel in the city but a nice getaway spot. The room was actually fairly large, and the bed was comfy, something Europe really struggles with. As I said, I hate that the windows have no screens, but folding open the wooden shutters is actually fairly awesome and does keep it in line with an authentic villa feel. The bathroom was also massive. I am not a design kinda guy, but it was a brown color that just worked for some reason. We only had a shower, big enough for two for sure, but I guess other rooms had tubs. When traveling, your room isn't the most important thing; it's where you rest. However, if I were to return to Florence, I would stay here multiple nights, as it's a beautiful and comfortable hotel. You could play house in it and pretend you had a Tuscan Villa. Even the breakfast buffet in the morning was one of the better ones on the trip. I mean, fairly similar to all of them, but a bit better. They were kind of annoying, though; they would not open it until 7 on the dot.
They loaded us all on the bus and were taking us out to a Castello for what is called a, be our guest meal. Something newish to the tour company is what we were told, but they take you for a "home-cooked" meal with a family that opens its doors to you. Now it is almost like that, except we were going to a Castello, which also has a restaurant and a winery. So no, it isn't exactly going into someone's house. Still, it is reasonably close, and I suppose the family actually prepared the food as they would for themselves. The drive was kind of interesting. If there is an industrial district, you seem to go through it on the way out of Florence, but then, within minutes, you are driving through the rolling green hills. It didn't take long at all, and we were headed up a hill to Castello del Trebbio; let me tell you all about that.
The Castello was originally owned by the Pazzi family. Ever heard of them? If you watched The Medici, you probably have. In general, maybe not, as the Medici did try to wipe them from the history books. According to legend, in 1099, Pazzo di Ranieri was the first man to scale the walls during the siege of Jerusalem during the First Crusade. This victory was the successful end of that crusade. He founded the Pazzi family. Somehow, his family grows in power and influence. By 1477, the family was powerful in politics and banking. Florence was almost at its height in wealth and power during this time in the Renaissance. The Pazzi were a force, chief rivals to the Medici. To put these families into perspective, they are the Elon Musks of their time. However, instead of just discussing politics on social media, they have family members in the government. On top of that, they have family members who become Popes and Archbishops. That's a big deal now, but back then it was massive. As important as some of these modern politicians, businessmen, and church leaders think they are, they are shadows of what the Pazzi and Medici were. So the Pope at the time, Sixtus, was constantly bumping heads with Lorenzo Medici. Fun fact: he was known as Lorenzo the Magnificent. Not sure if he gave himself that name. SO, the Pazzi family and supporters scheme that if they take out the two main Medici brothers, Lorenzo and Giuliano, who rule Florence, they can take over. Pope Sixtus strongly supports this, as it will remove a rather large thorn from his side. However, he is not a dumb man; he writes a letter very clearly stating that he cannot support a murder. If someone were to remove the Medici, however, he promised they would be dealt with favorably by the church. SO, during high mass at the Duomo, the Pazzi assassins tried to take them out. They did kill Giuliano, but Lorenzo escaped and rallied his men; a Pazzi massacre began. It was disturbingly brutal hanging their bodies around the city, going as far as to decapitate Pazzi men and using a head as a door knocker on their own home. On top of that, the family was banished from Florence, and all their lands and properties were taken. Their name was erased from public registers in an attempt to erase the entire family. Anyone bearing the Pazzi name was forced to change it, and they were no longer allowed to hold public office. Pope Sixtus didn't like this and excommunicated Lorenzo, and with the help of Naples, began a war with Florence. In the end, the king of Naples formed a shaky peace between the two men. So that is your history lesson, the Pazzi were the guys who first had this Castello. See what I mean, modern businessmen are pretty high on themselves, but they have nothing on Lorenzo the Magnificent.
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