Fiesole to Settignano, Part 2

The path wound through some pretty thick forest for awhile and we gained some altitude, hitting "real" hiking trails. This is part is a park maintained by the village of Fiesole and the mountain is Montececri. We got our first glimpse of the Arno Valley. I really wish I had better pictures many of mine were lost when my old computer broke and these are just out of iPhoto.


We then found what used to be mines. There was a settlement up here at one time called Borgunto.
We continued on from here and we followed the signs to Piazzale Leonardo on the top of Montececeri. Unfortunately, those pictures are lost, but I did find this one telling you to not fall on your head.

Another view from further up the mountain. Piazzale Leonardo had a picnic table and a monument to Leonardo da Vinci. From the top of this mountain he led experiments in human flight. Let's just say he did not succeed, but the monument has a story and quote from Leonardo and makes for an nice place to break for lunch, which we did.

After lunch we came down the mountain and followed our directions into a small settlement there was a church and two or three other buildings, but no signs of any people. This horse was the only other living thing we saw on this section of the hike. We passed through this "town" and continued down the footpath, which we hoped was getting us ever closer to Settignano...Now, for those of you out there who would wish to check out Fiesole. You simply take the Bus #7 from downtown Florence to the end of the line the main square in Fiesole and walk around. The town itself deserves a day with a monastery, park with a great view, some restaurants, amazing Etruscan ruins and an archaeological museum. To get bus tickets in Italy you go into a shop that says "Tabacchi" and ask. They'll speak English in Florence or for the adventurous you can simply say "Vorrei un biglietto per l'autobus." Most likely they'll give you one and answer in English. Bus tickets were 1,10 Euro last time I was there. When you get on the bus remember to validate your ticket in one of the big yellow boxes near the entrances. Insert your card and a time and date will be printed on the ticket and your good to go. This trip is easy because you'll see bus stops all over Florence. The best place to get #7 is from the train station or across the street from the Duomo. Again, if lost, just ask! In general, people are very helpful and even a simple "Ciao" and "Grazie" is seen as an attempt at the langauge.

There will be more on this trip to come very soon. Enjoy!

Nice Day for A Hike...

One day two intrepid travelers decided to set off on foot using directions they had found through Google which were better at describing the poetic quality of the route than the actual route. This is the record of that trek from Fiesole to Settignano, Italy.

The path started in Fiesole, Italy. An ancient town which resides on a hilltop above Florence or the Arno river valley. The town has some amazing archaeological sites because it is where the Etruscans originally settled in the area.

A little further down the path we found ourselves on a road between two high, stone walls. Nice and quiet and not something you see everyday.
My fellow traveler, Matt, is ready to attack the road ahead. At this point he did not know how lost we would get or how much we would be able to see.

We stumbled upon this road side shrine. You see many of these all over Italy. On busy city street corners and here on quiet country paths. I've decided to do a series of posts from this hike sharing both the story and the pictures as a kind of photo essay. Enjoy!

Tampa Boat Parade...

Here are three pictures I took at the Tampa Boat Parade. These are my first attempt at shooting at night with the D300 and I have a ton of pictures, but just grabbed the ones I liked the best to put on here. My two favorite boats are featured and then a shot of the procession with Channelside in the background. The parade took place on December 20th and the boats came around Harbour Island and up to Channelside Plaza. I took pictures and watched the parade with my family from the bridge connecting Harbour Island with the mainland.

I'm hoping to post some pictures from some more traveling adventures soon and also to keep putting up pictures from the Tampa area. As the Super Bowl approaches I hope to get some good pictures from around the Tampa area and the Super Bowl-related activities. Enjoy these for now and expect more soon!

O! Christmas Tree...

While I know these pictures are just a bit late to really fit the current "news cycle", I have the pictures and wanted to share them as a good way to restart things here on the blog. Also, expect some pictures from Tampa Boat Parade '08 soon.

Manatees...

Well, it has been awhile since I have been posting regularly, but now that I am working back to good health and good spirits I am going to work on posting up more photos that have been cataloged and also new ones as I take them. Here are three photos taken of Manatees at a Manatee viewing center just south of Tampa run by the Tampa Electric Company. They also have a web cam if you'd like to check these guys out. Here's the link:

http://www.tampaelectric.com/manatee/funstuff/webcam/



Thanks for checking out the blog. I hope to keep adding more posts with the intent of improving the quality of everything herein. I'm working on getting out and taking new photos with the D300 and also on working with what I have already taken to share some more travel photos and stories. Enjoy!

Marist versus Iona

Here are a few pictures from the game.

Marist beats Iona in Final Seconds....

Here are a few pictures from the end of friday night's Marist vs. Iona game. Marist won 51-50 after being behind 4 with 26 seconds left. Here's a couple shots from the last few moments. Goodwin made the winning field goal with about 4 seconds to go.