Much of our recent hiking has been done with Mario Acciai and Vittorio Natali. Mario, who lives with American wife and fine arts scholar Lise and teen-age son Lorenzo in a 500 year old farm house near Florence, has been a professional hiking guide for over 20 years with several well-known tour organizations. Vittorio, who lives in Florence with wife Michaela and daughters Sonya and Louisa, also has a nearby vineyard, and makes excellent wine and Limoncello. These two extraordinary Tuscans met as young gold smiths working in London and in recent years have been conducting private tours together for groups of friends and others who soon become friends.