Florence on a busy day can be bonkers, but we managed to escape the crowds and the stress with a day trip to Fiesole in the nearby Tuscan hills. About 9km from the city, it takes hardly any time to get there on the number 7 bus from the Piazza San Marco. The only aggro we…
Month: March 2014
In the heart of Tuscany – the city of Florence
It was inevitable that we’d end up in Italy’s most tourist-tastic region one day. Our excuse for the trip to Tuscany was a friend’s wedding in the historic city of Pisa, but Florence was also on our list of must-see places. It turned out to be a city of crowds. Monumental crowds. It positively swarmed…
A short break in the historic French city of Angers
Give me a good history book and a glass of wine and I’ll be a happy man. She-Wolves by Helen Castor turned out to be a particularly good read, the story of three of England’s great medieval queens and their various battles to make a mark in a male-dominated world. But it also introduced me…
A week on the beach in Maspalomas, Gran Canaria
Gran Canaria represents tourism on steroids to some but the sunshine, the sandy beaches and the great nightlife have drawn me to the island three times over the years for a lazy winter break, away from the drabness of a British winter. Having been based in a giant and distinctly average hotel in Playa del…