Hi Emily, How lucky you are to live in Italy. I missed our trip this year. I looked at the Via Bolgnese on Google Earth between Florence and Bologna and it looks like a beautiful drive. We have never watched the cars along this part of the course. Last time we followed the cars from San Marino to Urbino and then traveled to Siena to watch them drive through the Campo the next day. It is always a little challenging to make reservation along the route as the specific roads are not published very far in advance to the general public. It has been a great excuse to see lots of Italy. See you tomorrow!

Thats a good point. I might enjoy Adult Ed on Zoom. I agree, with Janet about the Meet-ups being too unstructured. See you tomorrow.

Thanks for the ideas. I had a long commute for many years...almost an hour each way. I made it through Unit 35 or 36 and then repeated. 😊

@Liz Loveland Thanks. I will give it a look.

Hi Janet, I too have been practicing my Italian for years. At this point I have a fair "travelers" vocabulary. I have never taken a formal class, I just started listening to Pimmsleur tapes on my long commute to work and back. I once spent a month in Italy and attempted to speak Italian whenever possible. What fun! I would love to be able to live in Italy for an extended period and combine a language program with an art history program. What strategies have you used to become more fluent?

Hi Liz, I think genealogy is fascinating. My Mom is an avid genealogist. As a kid I spent a lot of time at the Archives in D.C. and in graveyards in the Washington/Baltimore area. My husband and I had planned to go to Greece this year on a small ship cruise. That didn't happen and now I am rethinking our plans. We may just fly to Athens and ferry between islands. Any suggestions would be welcome.

Hello Elaine, Kellin and classmates, My name is Cheryl and I live at Smith Mountain Lake in Virginia. Before retiring in 2016, I spent 31 years working for a large school district in Northern Virginia. I have a background in Information Technology and education. I fell in love with Italy while on a Mediterranean cruise in 2008 and have been back as often as possible since then. Some of my interests include art, history, gardening, wine and food. My husband and I are also avid car enthusiasts. We both love to travel and I enjoy planning trips around our interests. I am fortunate to have visited the Uffizi and the Accademia multiple times, as well as many of the beautiful churches and cathedrals throughout Italy. I saw the Last Supper in Milan and have toured the Vatican and Borghese Gallery in Rome. For the last three years we have attended the Mille Miglia, an historical re-enactment of a famous race. We enjoy following the vintage cars from town to town as they race around Italy. Each year we try to visit different towns along the route…but we still have a big bucket list! I am looking forward to this class and hope to return to Italy with an increased understanding of the history and art of the Renaissance as well as some new “can’t miss” destinations.