Italy Family Travel Review: Rome, Tuscany, Florence, Venice, Pisa, Vatican City, Vespa Tour, Cooking Class, Local Cuisine

We treasure the entire experience and continue to rave about our trip, but we particularly enjoyed and would like to thank the travel company for the following:
1.  Lodging.  Each location was ideally situation, the rooms were awesome, and the service at each was world class.  The converted monastery in Tuscany was particularly picturesque and offered unparalleled views and service.
2.  Vespa Tour.  We were dubious given the somewhat spirited and enthusiastic driving in Rome, but we ended up thoroughly enjoying the Vespa tour that covered many of the main sites in Rome.  I may have screamed once or twice (or thrice) in the first half hour, as it often appears death is imminent.  However, it proved to be completely safe and the whole family could not stop talking about it throughout our journey, and we're still talking about it today.
3.  Food.  Even the worst dining experience exceeded our experiences for most eateries State-side, and we thoroughly enjoyed the Italian cuisine wherever we went.
4.  Cooking Class.  The travel agency put us in touch with a chef in Florence, and we had the privilege and pleasure of learning to cook Italian food in Chef's home kitchen, and to have a hearty repast with his lovely family.
5.  Drivers and Guides.  The travel agency has a network of completely professional drivers, all of whom were local and grew up in the areas we visited, and who were where they were supposed to be and made sure we arrived safely to every destination.  The guides were also all local and offered interesting and thorough explanations of each city and the various sites we visited.
6.  Sites.  The following were our favorite:  Vatican and its museums and St. Peter's Basilica; the Coliseum; the Pantheon; Pisa and the Basilica and Leaning Tower (not to mention the town itself); and St. Mark's Basilica and Square in Venice.