Yesterday we had a guided tour of Pisa. I’m rather fond of the city. It’s a manageable size and has its own charm. If I was going to live anywhere in Italy, it would probably be here. We also had one of my favourite guides in Italy Alessandro. He’s not only one of the best …
Siena
Siena is like a living Museum. It hasn’t moved on much since the 15th century. Sure, the shop front, bars and restaurants are glitzier than they used to be, but look up, and it’s as if time has been preserved in aspic. Twice a year, Siena is home to the worlds, most fabulous bareback horse …
A love letter to Mrs TimOnTheTrain and easyJet go on the sh*t list!
I’m very sorry that I haven’t posted so far on my Italian tour. It’s been frantically busy, and to be honest, I’ve posted about Venice and Florence many times before. As I write this, I’m waiting in the hotel lobby in Florence, and shortly my clients will be joining me for dinner at our local …
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Two Tours, Three Countries, Four Weeks
June is the second busiest month of the year for us Tour Manager people (September, since you ask). This year is no exception. I have two tours, back to back, with only 36 hours between them. The good news is that they are both strong Tours and I'm already familiar with them from previous experience. …
Hold your breath and here we go… Sorrento, Amalfi, Positano & Pizza Class… Phew!
Busy, Busy, Busy Boy. The header image above is my coffee break table in Positano. It has all the Tour Manager essentials. Ray-Bans, Clicker Counter and iced coffee. If I lose everything else I can still do my job with what you see Yesterday we travelled by rail to Naples (Napoli) and then on to …
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CT & V
That’s Cinque Terre and Venice to you. We visited Cinque Terre, the five villages along the coast linked by ferry and rail. Our Local Guide Sara spent the day explaining the tough life of the people who lived there in the past and the difficulties of maintaining the area now that they are connected to …
Florence & Pisa with a pig in focaccia (and wine… lots of wine)
Yesterday we visited Florence (Firenze) and today we visited Pisa. I’m sorry that there won’t be so much text in this post but I’ve been really busy on this Tour doing Tour Managery stuff. The stuff that they pay me all those millions for! We were back on my old friend the Flying Tomato from …
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‘The Sweet Life’ in Rome
So… we’re in Rome and had a busy first day. Not quite as busy a time as Marcello Mastroianni had with Anita Ekberg in the Trevi Fountain scene in Federico Fellini’s 1960 production of La Dolce Vita - but you can’t have everything (where would you put it?). I’ve copied a link to the famous …
Hi-Speed Italy
I'm off again on Saturday morning and it's Italy once more - but this time all of my clients are from the USA (38 of them altogether). We're doing a lightning Tour of Italy for Great Rail Journeys sister company, Vacations by Rail - Highlights of Italy Featuring Tuscany & Venice. I'm looking forward to …
HZERO
I wasn’t going to do another post on this Tour since we’re almost done (I’m writing this on the TGV from Nice to Paris) but this was too good to miss. While wandering in Firenze, waiting to rejoin my clients after they had enjoyed some free time, I came across the HZero museum, located in …