We got up early to catch a high speed train from Milan to Florence. The train ride was very comfortable just like the high speed train in Taiwan. We did not have any trouble of finding tram line T1 from Firenze S.M.N. train station to the Hertz rental car office. However, just as we stepped off the tram, it was down pouring for a couple of minutes. We had to stay under the roof of a local store to keep dry. Then it was a short walk to the Hertz office and we got a diesel VW.
The drive from Hertz office to Montecatini Treme was a challenge. I had google maps direction sheets printed and ready to be used. However, quickly we found out that street signs in Italy are not easy to spot. The traffic was bad and it didn't give you any time to look for street signs. Therefore, we had to turn to iPhone Map to seek Steve Job’s help. The iPhone Map apps pronounce the street name in Italian, however, the direction of turning is in English. We quickly gave up of paying any attention to the street name and just follow the English direction on turning. With Steve Job’s help, we were finally able to get directions and drove to Montecatini Treme safely.
The drive from Hertz office to Montecatini Treme was a challenge. I had google maps direction sheets printed and ready to be used. However, quickly we found out that street signs in Italy are not easy to spot. The traffic was bad and it didn't give you any time to look for street signs. Therefore, we had to turn to iPhone Map to seek Steve Job’s help. The iPhone Map apps pronounce the street name in Italian, however, the direction of turning is in English. We quickly gave up of paying any attention to the street name and just follow the English direction on turning. With Steve Job’s help, we were finally able to get directions and drove to Montecatini Treme safely.
Montecatini Terme is one of the most popular destinations in Italy for thermal spa tourism. We chose this town as the base of our Tuscany area tour found on Gate1’s itinerary. It is located centrally to many Tuscany attractions reachable by either driving or train ride.
We chose the same Hotel San Marco as Gate1’s itinerary, however we have to reconsider of following Gates1’s choice in future trips. Hotel San Marco is about a 2 stars hotel with poor insulation. The first night we were there was on Friday. A lot of guests came in late and made a lot of noises which woke us up several times. The only good thing about this hotel is the breakfast which is reasonable, but the same stuff for every morning.
The sky cleared up here and we ventured out to check out the town. Since the town center is for pedestrian only, so we walked around the town. There are shops, cafes and restaurants just like a popular tourist town. Since it was a weekend, there were a lot of tourists from nearby cities such as Florence. In addition, there is a hugh park Parco delle Terme (Park of Thermae) near the hotel and we walked through it from downtown area to the hotel. It is a peaceful and quiet little tourist town.
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