The Brandt Blog

In a word, “YES”; the actual scenery throughout Toscana is (a lot) nicer than is captured mid-ride on my sweat-coated, iPhone camera lens. The photos make for great blog posting, to be sure but they’re also my memory triggers for just how vast and uniquely beautiful this region of the world really is. And so […]

Biking, chocolate and coffee – Jeff had a great “Italian Fathers Day” aka St Joseph’s Day

Centuries after William Shakespeare crafted the tale of star-crossed lovers Romeo & Juliet, a more contemporary story of intrigue, passions and family loyalties emerged from the very same Veronese streets and courtyards. The familial bonds of the Brandt Clan surely straddle time and space. As such, an heirloom treasure has been securely and secretly placed […]

We exited Firenze today to enjoy a couple of days in Verona/Padova within the Veneto Region… you know, to see how the other Ducale lives. After detouring off the Autostrada into Bologna for a lunch we went right to a tasting of Amarone di Valpolicella wines, then strolled the streets made famous by the Shakespearean […]

After flying in just one week ago for a fun-filled, fleet-footed, family romp through Firenze … the time to bid, “ARRIVEDERCI” to Maddie and Blake arrived all too quickly. And so it was done. At 4:20am Saturday morning the driver escorted the zombie-walking and Flo-filled couple with their overstuffed suitcases into the minibus thereby reducing […]

With everyone together again it’s just like Christmas morning except without the jammies; that, and we’re gathered in someone else’s home – – – in Italy. We’re just as excited and running a frenetic holiday-esque pace as we go about fitting our lofty ambitions and long to-do list into a fixed time frame. Here is […]

One thing about ancient buildings and structures that’s easy to forget – maybe because of the wonder and awe they conjure up – is that they usually were embellished with beautiful art. Long since lost to the ages or invading hordes were: statues, friezes, tapestries, frescoes, paintings, woodwork, metalwork and more that all combined to […]

My heart is so full! We are together again after 7 long weeks.

I’ve walked or ridden by these bridges what feels like 50x since landing in Firenze. Today while taking an easy ride heading from West to East they were especially eye-grabbing. The names of each crossing (In order of their River-bound alignment) are: Ponte Alla Carraia (1944), Ponte Santa Trinitá (1944) and the Big Daddy of […]