Up The Farway Tree

Tuscany

Well we got back from Tuscany at the weekend and I can't believe we are nearing the end of another week - busy busy! Tuscany was lovely although I have to admit the weather was pretty bad. We had a lot of rain and thunder storms. When I say rain, I mean the torrential bouncing of the pavement kind of rain!

Hiding in a cafe

Stunning views when the rain stops

We were staying just outside a town called San Gimignano which is between Florence and Sienna. It's a very pretty medieval town and it was nice to wander about exploring the little streets. It was a small (!) hike up from our villa but it is amazing how much easier this is for me - I could never have coped with that before. The couple who own the villa just stay next door so they were very kind and gave us a run up in the car sometimes - especially for my uncle who has had 3 joints replaced in the last year and my cousin who is pregnant. It was odd not being the person who actually needed a lift this time!

We decided to hire a minibus one day and we went to a small town on a hillside called Montechino, which had beautiful views over Tuscany. We then managed to get into Sienna and sit in the main piazza having a coffee in the early evening sun.

Sienna

We also spent a day in Florence when it was sunnier and I really enjoyed this - it is a beautiful city. I would like to go back and stay in Florence for a few days so we can explore it properly.

Despite the weather I still really enjoyed it - it was just nice to spend some time with my family. We spent evenings playing various games my uncle had brought and it always ended in much hilarity :-) Amusingly one of the games he packed was the 'travel bomb' - can you imagine them finding that when searching a bag ;-)

Now it's back to reality and it has been a busy week so far. My consultant is on holiday this week so it has been a bit manic. I am coping well and managing the workload but I am still finding it quite emotionally draining. Sometime I think I become a little over involved (emotionally) with patients and I always feel exhausted at the end of the day. Although in all honesty this has been such a difficult month with Frances Ann's anniversary and her birthday, which is on Sunday. I seem to be more affected this year for some reason - perhaps because it has coincided with starting a new job and also the steroid reduction regime which can play havoc with mood and emotions. Hopefully everything will settle down soon and I will be back to my normal bouncing self :-)

Always a rainbow after the rain...