Planes, Trains, Boats, and Automobiles!

  From Tuscany to Venice May 11, 2025 We left Villa Il Patriarca and made our way to the train station for the trip to Venice. I managed to find a direct train ,  Trenitalia #588 , leaving Chiusi-Chianciano Terme at 12:10 and arriving in Mestre at 16:16 (4:16 pm). Our hotel, Best Western Hotel Bologna, is one we have stayed in before and is a short five-minute  walk from the station. Best Western Plus Hotel Bologna We got ourselves checked in,  relaxed for a bit, and then walked around the block to Pasta and Pizza, where we each got a pizza - margherita pizza for Jeff con una birra (with a beer), and a verdura (vegetable) pizza con una demi bottiglia di Chardonnay for me.  It was a lovely evening, so we sat outside and watched the traffic go by,  seeing travellers come and go, and just enjoyed our food. Enjoying Dinner at Pasta and Pizza in Venice Mestre We headed back to the hotel to relax and read before bed. I worked some on the Chiui portion of the blog...

  The Journey Begins in Tuscany May 6 - 11, 2025 This trip began with a Travelzoo advertisement for three nights in a 5-star hotel in a tiny town in Tuscany. Daily breakfast, a cooking class (and lunch), and two dinners were included.  The package was too good to pass up, so we decided to book it.  The challenge was to design a reasonably priced two-week trip.  After several false starts and a less than helpful travel advisor consultation, I came up with what we hope will be a lot of fun with two "off the beaten path" and two more famous towns. May 6, 2025 My brother and sister have been touting the all-business-class airline La Compagnie for several years, so I decided to try it by flying round-trip from Newark to Milan.  Of course, for the last two days Newark Airport has been in the national news due to air traffic control problems and massive delayed flights (mostly United Airlines), so we decided to play things safe and give ourselves plenty of time at the ...