Following on from last week’s post, we left the Swiss Alps behind for Italy.

To start our Italy leg of the trip we passed through Pisa before heading onto Florence and then my final stop, Rome.

Italy, in all three places I visited, was blessed with detail. From the quaint small apartments, to the grander architecture that draws in all the tourists, Italy had it spot on. Even though it was a pretty miserable day in Florence – a constant barrage of rain – it didn’t take away from how crazy good the place was. The Duomo is something that stood out through the drizzle and kind of acted as my centre point for if I ever got lost (which I did).

With Paris there were particular places I wanted to visit, but in Italy it was more of a case of just wandering around aimlessly and seeing the city in that way. I found myself zigzagging, but I think this was the best way to see the place. I think when you have a to-do list you can sometimes switch off in-between the places you want to visit. So my advice would be to walk. Everywhere. It also allowed me to see how crazy good the fashion was in Florence and Rome.

It may have helped that Pitti Uomo was happening whilst I was there, but everyone had a slight ‘swagger’, for use of a better word, to their walk. The same for Rome. I even did a little post about this whilst I was waiting in the airport. There's a real good

sense of individual style in London, but I feel with Italy even the older guys had such a sense of confidence with what they wore.

So as for the tourist spots. In true tick list style, I visited: the leaning tower of Pisa, the Duomo, Ponte Vecchio bridge, St. Peter’s Square, Trevi fountain, Pantheon and of course the Colosseum. All worth doing, and the Colosseum was very cool to see, but it wasn’t the best part of my trip by any means. By visiting so many different places in such a short space of time, I think you notice the differences and feel of a place a tad easier and I enjoyed being part of different cultures. The tourist landmarks are just a tiny part of that.

If you’re pushed for time, ignore those places and instead, try the food, visit the small stores and talk to the people. That was my way of thinking and travelling with Topdeck allowed me to do that. They were my inside expert throughout the whole trip, offering a locals level of advice.

This is the last of my travel posts for my trip with Topdeck and I hope you’ve enjoyed seeing all my photos from my adventures. If you liked the sound of this trip then it carried on through various other countries passed Rome, but I had a flight to catch and a university lecture to go to at 9am the following day. Until next time!