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If there aren't locals waiting for a table, move on.

There are some good "main square" spots in Italy, especially in small towns or big cities, and during the week. And sometimes the scene is worth it; sometimes not. But I get your point.

Hmmm, not traditional... so that's why Chef Boyardee ABC's and 123's are in English and not Italian.

Outstanding!

I guess Italian transportation is the theme today. Just got two 45 Euro fines from Europcar from our Christmas trip. We realized about halfway through that there were speed cameras. Heads up.

I was on a motorcycle trip with about 12 bikes in Europe. Two of our group were pulled over by Swiss police in Lichtenstein for running a red light. Another guy in our group was an ex San Francisco motorcycle cop, and he pulled up to negotiate. Offered to give Swiss cops some CA police shoulder patches. $750 fines instantly dropped.

I am aware of the speed cameras. Unfortunately I drive fast. All the time. Fast. Kinda screwed on that.

I know about the ZTLs and I do not intend to drive into any city or town that has one. In fact I do not intend to drive INTO any city or town. As long as the rental company in Florence puts me/the car on the list I will be ok.

This is the sign you need to be cognizant of.

The red circle means no cars allowed. The numbers underneath are the times of day, using the 24-hour clock. So the sign above means no entry between 8 am and 8 pm. The fine print says that cars with a pass can enter.

Five Reasons It’s Easy to Get a ZTL Fine



1 – You’ll see other cars crossing the ZTL boundary and may assume you can proceed. Not so. You may see plenty of Italian drivers crossing into the ZTL zone, but they’re locals and they have passes. You do not, and you’ll get a fine.



2 – All cities do not have the same rules, so learning the rules for Pisa may not be useful for Florence or Milan. In some cities, non-residents cannot enter the ZTL, period. In other cities, any car can enter, but only with a pass. In Milan, access to the ZTL, and what kind of pass is needed depends on how environmentally friendly the car is. The details are written on the signs, so you just need to recognize and read them. But that’s not easy when you’re in a moving vehicle, and because these zones are in city centers, there are usually many other distractions such as pedestrians, bikes, vespas, narrow streets, lots of parked cars, etc.



3 – Zones are monitored by cameras, so tickets are issued immediately and automatically, as soon as (and each time) the car crosses the ZTL boundary. There is no chance to explain to an actual person, “but officer, I didn’t understand….”. The ticket is sent to the address registered with the car, or for a car rental company, the ticket will be forwarded to the home address associated with the credit card (with an additional forwarding fine and a fine from the car rental company – more details below).



4 – GPS systems do not know about ZTL zones, and will just suggest the shortest route, which may indeed include driving straight into a ZTL.



5 – Once you’ve started approaching the ZTL area, it can be impossible to turn around. By the time you see the sign, you may not be able to avoid getting a fine. Due to traffic, narrow or one-way streets (which are probably the reasons the zone is designated ZTL), it may be necessary to enter the Zona Traffico Limitato in order to leave it.

In Bologna my hotel was in the ZTL. Guests at the hotel got a pass. But you had to get to the hotel by driving into the ZTL to get the pass. In that case you drove to the hotel and the hotel called the police to cancel the ticket. You also then had to park a long way from the hotel b/c no resident parking pass.

The add-ons via the rental car company are huge.

The ZTL's are worse in the small towns. I think I got one in Sienna, outside the walls. And as noted, sometimes you are stuck going through them. And street maps don't show them. The signs are seldom as obvious as the photo above; some are at curb level.

sounds like a merry prankster trick

Drive back to Florence. This is the city that everyone that I know that has been to Italy says is their favorite but can’t really explain why.

It may have something to do with the view from our rooftop terrace






No big deal bedroom with the fold up bed (as opposed to a fold out couch).


Or because it is the home to Leonardo da Vinci (although there are better LdV museums in the world) who apparently had a pretty epic beard.


Or the home to Michelango’s David in La Galleria dell’Accademia


Or The Uffizi, one of the world’s great museums containing Sandro Botticelli’s Birth of Venus


Or the Pitti Palace, Costume Museum, Modern Art Gallery, Silver Museum, Galileo Science Museum or any of the others.
 Or the Ponte Vecchio over the Arno




Or the Oltrarno neighborhood, or any of a thousand other things…

But I suspect that it is Lampredotto from a street vendor




Now some may call Lampredotto just a tripe sandwich but no, Lampredotto is not just tripe, the lining of a cow’s stomach, it is exclusively the lining of a cows fourth and final stomach.

Since I intend to eat Bistecca Fiorentina at Dario Ceccini’s I will pass on having it in Florence proper. The problem is that the only serve Steak Florentine by the kilogram, usually starting a no less than 1.5 and NEVER less than 1 kg for 2 people. With PJ being a vegetable I would be tasked with consuming at least 2.2 pounds of beef flesh. Not that it couldn’t be done but damn. At Dario’s it is all family style so they bring out slabs of it and you eat as much or as little as you want. Problem solved.

I have found a really cool looking organic/ veg friendly place in Florence called Vivanda that has their own organic farms, specializes in organic & biodynamic wines and produces their own organic wine. They restored the vineyards on their farm and then began collaborating with local farmers from vineyards owned by local farmers who, mainly because of their age had not been able to properly maintain their vineyards. They have helped convert these to organic operations and are planting/restoring old forgotten local grape varieties like Pungitello & Foglia Tonda. Kind of cool.

Archea Brewery is right around the corner. What are the chances of that?

I actually prefer Rome, but agree I am in the minority. That is only when considering shitys, which I generally detest, but that's where they put the museums and churches. Much prefer the small villages in general where people are real, prices are low and the crowds don't exist.