How exciting! This first trip will leave you wanting to come back:) With only 10 days in Italy, you could split the time between Rome and Florence, or spend 4 nights in Rome, 4 in Florence, and 2 in Venice. If you really want to see more of the countryside, you could rent a car for a few days and drive from Rome to Florence, stopping along the way at hilltowns and driving the backroads. According to my husband, nothing beats a fresh porchetta sandwich from a roadside

stand in Umbria!

It really depends on what you want to focus on this trip. The cities provide you with an opportunity to see alot of history and art, and get a feel for daily life, if you stay in less touristy areas of the city. But the countryside is beautiful, too. You could easily day trip to Siena and Lucca from Florence, and spent part of a day in Fiesole, which is a very short bus ride from the Duomo. From Rome, you can spend the day at Ostia Antica, the ruins of the old Roman port town, and take a bus to Hadrian's Villa near Tivoli.

My first trip to Italy was the big city tour, which gave me a taste for the culture and a direction to focus for my future visits to Italy. Remember, less is more... Italy is our annual summer destination, so feel free to ask anything!

Ciao, Kristy S.F.