My favorite Places in Italy

As my time is coming to an end in Siena, I wanted to write about some of my favorite places I saw in Italy and share some photos. While the city was incredible, I loved taking the Friday through Sunday weekends to see as much of the country as I could while I was living in Tuscany. While there is even more I wish I saw, hopefully some of my recommendations you will find helpful in your future travel plans! 

First, I wanted to start with Palermo, Sicily and Mondello Beach, Sicily. Mondello is right outside of Palermo, so we were able to spend time in the city and at the beach in one weekend by flying directly to Palermo. The food was incredible; arancini (a street food that is a fried stuffed rice ball) and cannolis were some of the favorites that we tried. We also had brioche con gelato, which is a brioche bun stuffed with gelato. The city of Palermo has amazing history and a lively downtown. There is Roman, Norman, and Arab architecture. We spent time at the beach, taking a boat tour, walking downtown and enjoying dinner and live music, and enjoying the scenery. I wish we had more time to go to museums and explore more of the Island! 

Another favorite of mine was Peschiera del Garda and Sirmione, which are both on the southern tip of Lake Garda. I went to this location on a solo trip for just one night, and it was the perfect place to go to relax. I took a bus to Florence, and a train from Florence that in total took about three hours. I stayed in a hostel in Peschiera del Garda that had a gorgeous rooftop for sitting in the sun and reading a book and a great outdoor common space. The lake has walking trails all around it with incredible views of the Italian Alps. I mostly went for walks, got aperitivo with a lovely girl I met at the hostel, and took time to go to Sirimione and take a thirty minute historical boat tour which was incredible. We had a great view of the Grotte di Catullo, which are the ruins of a massive Roman villa. 

While these are just a few of the places I visited, I loved everywhere I went in Italy. Some other favorites were Rome and the Vatican for their incredible history and beauty as well as Cinque Terre, which was a dream in March for hiking and lush views. I could go on and on with recommendations!