This is the second part of my 6-week European adventure earlier this year. So far I’d travelled through Albania, Montenegro, Croatia and Slovenia (which you can read about here). After a few nights in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, I took a bus west to Trieste, crossing into Italy, and I’d spend the next 3 weeks travelling all the way down through the country, stopping in Venice, Cinque Terre, Florence, Naples and Puglia.

Italy is well-known for its high-speed rail network, and I did investigate purchasing an Interrail pass. However the youth ticket (which saves you 25%) applies only to those aged 27 and under, and I found a regular adult ticket was no more cost effective than simply purchasing tickets individually. Additionally, the popular high-speed rail journeys between the large cities also require additional reservation fees.

Grand Canal, Venice

Venice

Border control from Slovenia into Italy took nearly 2 hours, with police coming onboard and taking several passports away for a while. Fortunately I had plenty of time before my train from Trieste to Venice departed. I opted to stay in a hostel close to the Venezia Mestre train station as it’s cheaper to stay on the mainland, and only a 10-minute rail journey across. I’d previously visited Venice with my family in 2013, but we hadn’t had time to explore the smaller islands in the lagoon so that was something I was keen to see.

I met a lovely German girl in my dorm and the next day we both went on a free walking tour of Venice. I couldn’t believe how busy the city was even in early April! Luckily the tour took us to some quieter areas. It was fascinating to learn that most of the squares would’ve once contained farm animals and grass, with the main entrances to the buildings being from the canal side. It truly is a unique, beautiful destination. In the afternoon I had a mosey around the Peggy Guggenheim art gallery, a tranquil spot with a lovely sculpture garden and a terrace overlooking the Grand Canal. After that I enjoyed my first gelato of the trip and found a couple of nice sketching spots.

The next day I joined a boat tour to see the islands. Before the tour started, we watched an immersive 5-minute VR history video which really brought the past to life, seeing the same square change throughout the decades. The boat took us to Murano first, where we watched an incredible glass blowing demonstration – I could’ve watched the craftspeople for hours! After a peaceful wander around the island I returned to the boat and we headed to colourful Burano. Here we watched some traditional lace-making, which did feel a little touristy but it was fascinating to see so I didn’t mind at all. The quaint houses are all painted beautiful bold colours, supposedly so that once upon a time fishermen could easily locate their own homes. It was an uplifting place to walk around, and I felt glad that Bristol has lots of colourful houses too.

Murano

Burano

Cinque Terre

From Venice I made my way across Italy to La Spezia (requiring 3 separate trains, changing at Florence and Pisa), where I had a friendly welcome at the 5 Terre Backpackers City hostel. I stayed here two nights so that I could spend a day exploring the charming nearby hillside fishing villages of Cinque Terre. With more time I’d have done some of the hiking trails between the villages, but it’s possible to see them all in one day using the day rail ticket. I started at the northernmost one, Monterosso al Mare, which I imagine really comes alive in the summer with its colourful beach parasols – there wasn’t much going on in April. Vernazza was more what I expected with colourful houses and a quaint harbour. The third, Corniglia had some lovely gardens and lemon trees, and my arrival timed nicely with the free bus that bypasses the 300 steps up from the train station. Manarola was the prettiest yet and I enjoyed sketching the gorgeous view and drinking a delicious lemon soda. The fifth and final village, Riomaggiore, was a fitting finale to the day with more sketching of the picturesque houses and some fresh calamari and chips by the water.

Sketching in Manarola (see more @alexaholroydart)

Riomaggiore

Florence

From La Spezia I hopped on a train to Florence, passing through the scenic Tuscan countryside, arriving at a large hostel which had lots of activities, a laundromat, free daily pasta at 8pm and even a rooftop pool! I was finding overall that most people I met were quite a few years younger than me, having recently finished school or university, and so (generalising) much more interested in drinking and partying than I was. Overall I preferred the smaller hostels, but this one did have a few free creative activities available and I thoroughly enjoyed making a magazine collage and painting a tote bag.

I joined a free walking tour of Florence as I’d done in Venice – as I mentioned in my Balkans blog post, these are available in most cities, providing a great way to learn more about your surroundings, and you can choose to tip the guide at the end. Another benefit is that the guide often provides recommendations of places to visit and restaurants to eat at. I had a delicious schiacciata sandwich for lunch (a thinner, crispier version of focaccia) and then explored the Palazzo Vecchio which the guide had mentioned earlier. The former-palace-turned-town-hall receives fewer tourists than many of the other more famous sights but still has plenty of ornately frescoed rooms along with beautiful sculptures and furniture too.

Palazzo Vecchio

I enjoyed walking around beautiful Florence, soaking up the architecture and admiring the artisan wares at Scarpelli Mosaici (a mosaic makers), Riccardo Luci Marbled Paper and the Female Arts in Florence (FAF) art gallery. I watched an amazing sunset over the city from Piazza Michaelangelo (along with heaps of other people), and was happily tucked up in bed reading as other girls in my dorm were getting ready to go out for the night!

Piazza Michaelangelo

I was delighted to be able to join an Urban Sketchers Firenze meet (I regularly attend the Bristol and Bath sketchmeets) and sketch within a modern neighbourhood. Urban Sketchers is an international movement – it’s pretty cool that wherever you are in the world you can find out if a sketching group is meeting up nearby. The group were so welcoming and it was fun to spend time with some locals, even though I struggled a little with the language barrier! I had some delicious arancini, stuffed olives and grilled skewers at Il Mercato Centrale Firenze, an indoor food market offering a broad range of cuisines, and then caught up on some laundry too.

Il Mercato Centrale Firenze

The next day I wanted to get out into the Tuscan countryside, so I spontaneously hopped on a bus to nearby Fiesole which proved to be a delightful outing. The views as we ascended into the hills were so picturesque, and I found myself in a quaint town with a charming monastery, peaceful gardens where I read awhile, the inviting Pasticceria Alcedo laden with treats and even a Roman amphitheatre that you could sit in! I meandered through the archaeological site (Musei Di Fiesole) and admired the baths and Etruscan temple. There was even a free water fountain and a free toilet, which aren’t always the easiest to come by.

View from Convent San Francesco

Musei Di Fiesole

I had visited Florence previously back in 2011, and I find that returning somewhere you’ve been before means there’s less of a need to hit all the big tourist sights, which I also felt in Venice. It’s very lovely to have time to just wander around and soak up the beautiful architecture. Leaving Florence and heading into southern Italy did take me to new ground however! I’d be spending a week in Puglia, the ‘heel’ of Italy, and was thrilled that my mum and my sister came out to explore with me. To conclude my trip my boyfriend then met me for a long weekend in Naples before flying home to Bristol together. Stay tuned for the next instalment!

Where else in Italy should I explore?

Alexa

P.S. If you enjoyed reading this post, maybe you’d like to try some solo travel yourself, why not take a look at my Solo Travel Tips, Paris Guide and Sightseeing in Sri Lanka.

Header photo: Piazza Michaelangelo, Florence