Day 4 – Parma & Florence

Hopped on a high-speed train for Parma this morning cruising along at 250 kph. Here’s how that converts to miles: the United States needs to rethink the way it looks at transit. Instead of spending almost two hours battling Italians who drive like they’re angry at the road, we transversed the 80 miles in 50 minutes of peaceful bliss.

Parma was a nice change from the bustle of Milan. We visited Caseificio Ugolotti for a tour and tasting of their delicious parmesan reggiano. After that we headed into the city center for lunch – where David narrowly avoided eating horse (!!!) – and a quick visit to the Duomo di Parma, which completely caught us off guard with its amazing interior.

And then off to Firenze! But only just barely, as our regional train to Bologna was running late and we managed to make it to our high-speed train to Florence about 90 seconds before it left the station.

We’re really fortunate that our lodging is just a block off the Arno River and pretty much anything you want to do or see in the city is within a 10-minute walk. The vibe here is unlike anything we’ve ever experienced before.We had a wonderful dinner last night at Buca Mario (highly recommend), where Kara and I were fortunate enough to share our 26th anniversary with the kids, some limoncello and of course, gelato. Can’t wait to start exploring tomorrow!