OK, no calling birds or partridges in pear trees, but look at what she brought you from her trip.
A whole lot better than a t-shirt, eh? She writes: This is the side of the Duomo in the late afternoon sun. It is all faced with marble (white, green and pink). The scale of this church is amazing.
Babs is back in the U.S., but not in Michigan yet. Our regularly scheduled programming will return next week . . .
Posted in: Babs Young photos
Torch Lake Views 
Joss
December 5, 2011
I remember sitting on the Duomo steps … in tears. I had just realised that I’d left my rucksack at a bus-stop in downtown Florence, and that it contained my passport, money, camera, and worst of all my diary. That book contained words, drawings, photos and autographs from the previous three months of travel. The British consul helped me get home ok, but I never recovered the diary. I think you can easily imagine how I felt.
Gerry
December 5, 2011
I am so sorry. To lose a book filled with stories is truly a tragedy. There is only one cure for such losses. We go on to make new stories of new travels. They will not replace the lost ones, but they are a comfort, aren’t they?
DAwn
December 5, 2011
Beautiful! Isn’t it amazing the size and color and details of that and so many buildings in that country!
Gerry
December 5, 2011
Intricate, beguiling, astonishing . . . One of the things I like best about that photo is that it puts the people in. Most of them I suppose are visitors, but some, like the person on the bicycle, must live there. Imagine going about on your daily rounds, thinking your thoughts about the marketing, the children, the job you love or hate–and moving through that particular space. It would shape your thoughts as surely as the sandy bluff above the bay shapes mine.
That’s why I like going visiting. Gives me something new to think about, and a new way to do it.
DAwn
December 6, 2011
I had a similar thought when we were in Rome walking past the Colosseum, especially at night when it was lit. How people that lived there and drove or walked by on their way to work got to see that every single day, that it was all part of their normal life, and how cool that must be.
kanniduba
December 5, 2011
WOW! So many wonders out there to behold, isn’t there? I wish I could touch that marble…ah, well, will settle for this beautiful photograph and be thankful for the chance to see it. Thanks Babs and Gerry!
Gerry
December 5, 2011
Yes, wonders indeed. Good to fill up on beauty whenever we have the chance. That way we have it when we really need it. I’d like to touch the marble too, now that you mention it. Why don’t I think of that more often?
P.j. grath
December 5, 2011
All my friends recently returned from Italy said it was a beautiful November there–no crowds, sunny days, warm weather. The sights, of course, are always breathtaking. No, I’ve never been there, but I have it on good authority and trust my sources.
Gerry
December 5, 2011
I think November is a really good time to go traveling, largely because all the college students have gone back to school and it is blessedly peaceful. They are a lot of fun, college students, and I do enjoy their company, but thousands of them at one time are a bit overwhelming. A person needs November to recuperate.
Sybil
December 7, 2011
Lovely photo.
chris
December 8, 2011
Lets have show and tell at the store next week.
I am excited to see all her pictures and listen to the adventures
Gerry
December 9, 2011
Absolutely. We are excited to have you back.
Babs Young
December 9, 2011
You are on, I’ll be there, still not speaking Italian, but with pictures.
Gerry
December 10, 2011
We are excited to have you back, too. Domani non ci parlano l’italiano.
shoreacres
December 10, 2011
What a wonderful photo. I’m a toucher – always have been – and that marble is a fine target.
I still remember the visceral shock of walking into a German Inn and discovering a party. I asked what the occasion was, and they said they were celebrating the town’s 1500th anniversary!
I wish I could be there for show and tell, but I’ll have a Baci instead and wait for more photos.