August 10:
Morning in the Precious Stones Museum. Small and sweet, and filled with lovely and detailed stone inlay (so much skill, so much patience), and with staff who seemed less frazzled than at the larger museums we've been to. There was a lady sitting at one end of each of the three long rooms, reading a book & sort of casually keeping an eye on things.
Then to Grom for a noon mustkeepupourstrength gelato. I got 'crema come una volta' (old-timey vanilla egg cream - yum), and Derek got blueberry - which, as far as I am concerned, wins the 'most delicious gelato so far' prize. It was so good and so very blueberry-y. Turned our lips a little purple for a while, but totally worth it.
Then to the beautiful and spacious Santa Croce basilica (undergoing a lot of renovation to the most famous bits, but still wonderful). I think my favorite thing about it is the way the roof beams (wooden) are completely covered in geometric decorations:
Also got to tour the leather workshop there.
Went to Vinaino di Parte Guelfa, a sandwich shop just downstairs from our hotel, for a very late lunch. Picked up yummy porchetta sandwiches & brought them up to the (air conditioned...ahhhh) room. And then slept for the rest of the afternoon. We've had siestas every day except one (the 9th), and that one siesta-less day was exhausting. So on the 10th we took two days worth of siesta.
Showered and dressed and went back to the little church with the nightly organ concerts. Got to hear more lovely music, including a bit of a more formal concert with a man singing opera in a surprisingly high register, and a wonderful, goosebump-inducing Bach piece.
And then we went out for dinner. And this dinner was the best yet in Italy. And I am not awake enough to do it justice. And we have to check out of here in the next hour. So - later.
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