Italy by Train from Florence

When taking the train in Italy I count the number of stations before I must get off so even if I do not see the station name I will be at the correct stop.
So on Sunday when i took a short day trip (1/2hr) from Florence to one of the charming medieval towns to the north, I counted 4 stops.

What a surprise to find there was a Chocolate festival int eh main square......yummm.

One of the many counter of chocolate....

But a bigger treat was to meet Marta Benini.   Marta was working at the tourist office on Sunday morning and even though she was scheduled to close for the day she continued to chat with me about the project I am researching on this trip:   Italian Christmas Traditions.

Marta

I am sure there are many surprises down the old lanes of this town..

 

What a nice surprise to find that Marta also does translations and gives lessons in Italian.    With a short hop on the train outside of Florence, you can experience a lesson within the ancient walls of Prato.    The town is easy to walk around with many pedestrian only streets.  Although everything was closed (Sunday) it appeared to be a very good shopping hub.

My only problem was I had planned to go to Pistoia!   There was an extra stop in Prato (2 train stations).  Never mind, once i found the train station I continued on my quest for Pistoia.