Italy Day Four: Hello, Tuscany

On day four, we left Rome to go to the Tuscany region. Rome had been interesting, and from a historical point of view, it is undeniably significant, but it was very crowded and full of tourists. When we left, it was a nice change of pace to be someplace that was less busy. 

We went from Rome to a town in Tuscany by train. I'm pretty sure it was my first train ride, and riding a train made me think of being on the Hogwart's Express :) We ended up traveling by train frequently to different cities - a very handy way to travel. I wish we had a more similar system here in the United States. 

We arrived at the town of Chianciano Terme in the early afternoon where we stayed at the Ave Hotel. We wanted to get lunch, but many of the stores and cafes close during the afternoon. After a bit of a walk, however, some friends and I did find a little cafe that was open. 

Later in the afternoon, most of us went up to the outdoor pool that was on the roof! We played pool games and enjoyed the amazing view. 

the view from our balcony window 

the view from the roof 

sunrise the next day - my friend Devin woke up early and borrowed my camera 

The area was absolutely beautiful. I even enjoyed riding the bus to different places, just looking out the window. 

After our busy days in Rome, I enjoyed having a more relaxing time :)