I'm fortunate to have had the opportunity to visit Italy 3 times, and I cling to the hope that there will be more trips in my future! On my first visit, I traveled to Rome, Polignano a Mare, Savelletri, and Positano. One beautifully sunny morning while sitting on the rooftop patio of my airb&b in Polignano a Mare, I was chatting with my host while devouring his nona's homemade breakfast pastries and staring aimlessly into the Adriatic Sea. We were discussing the differences between the American and Italian way of life and my host said, "we live a life of pleasant idleness". That comment, and the ease and nonchalance with which it was said, have inspired me ever since. My second trip brought me to Italy to hike the five towns on the Italian Riviera coastline known as Cinque Terre. Homemade pasta, fresh seafood, limoncello, and multiple gelato’s, it was the kind of hiking only Italy could offer. I was then off for a brief stop in Florence before heading to a yoga retreat in Tuscany, with Montefioralle as the base and side visits to Siena, San Gimignano, Volterra, Panzano, and Greve in Chiani. It was dubbed as a yoga retreat but may have had a hidden agenda as a seven-day Tuscan wine tasting trip. Crow pose and Chianti if you will. My third visit was a short one while completing the Tour du Mont Blanc. I hiked into Italy via the Col de la Seigne, spent a night in the Cabane du Combal hut which was at the base of the massive Miage Glacier. I then begrudgingly made my way via a 4,000 ft descent into Courmayeur where I also spend a rest day and then hiked back up and out to spend one final night at the iconic and classic Refugio Bonatti before hiking into Switzerland.