Florence

We've had a wonderful time in Florence. I don't think I've ever eaten so much gelato in such a short period of time! It didn't help that we arrived smack in the middle of a city-wide gelato festival!

Our first full day in Florence, "we" slept in (as usual) and wandered downstairs for breakfast in the courtyard. Our hotel boasted about serving an "American Breakfast", which didn't really appeal to us in the first place - who wants to eat an American breakfast after travelling all this way? The scrambled eggs were good, as was the cereal and juice. They had plenty of European-type stuff (brioche and even chocolate cake! For breakfast? I need to move here...), but we could tell right away that their big attempt at an American breakfast was serving "American'' coffee. In Italy, if you order coffee, you get espresso by default. At breakfast at our hotel, when we ordered coffee, we got a pot of instant coffee that tasted EXACTLY like the kind you get out of a vending machine at a bus depot. It was funny to be sitting in Italy, birthplace of the best espresso in the world, and trying to drink this coffee. Needless to say, we knew to order the real stuff the next morning.

After breakfast, we walked to the Duomo to hike the big dome. Pictures just don't do it justice. This Dome is huge by any standard, let alone something that was built hundreds of years ago. Hiking the dome was a mini Grouse Grind, but definitely worth it. You start with a spiraling staircase (think corkscrew), and right about the time your head starts to spin, you emerge at the base of the dome on the inside, close enough to see the brushtrokes of the fresco. The painting reminds me a lof of the Sistine Chapel, awe-inspiring, so busy with story-telling details. Then you start your ascent sandwiched in between the inner layer and outer layer of the dome, and emerge at the cupolo, with breathtaking views of all of Florence and the surrounding Tuscan hills.

After climbing the Duomo, we made our way to Galleria del Accademia to see Michelangelo's David. We purchased a reservation that morning at our hotel, so we were able to bypass the long, long line of tourists and pretty much walk right in! David was impressive, and Dan was happy to see such a world renowned statue in person (as was I - I saw it for the first time about seven years ago, but found it just as impressive second time around).

After David, we stopped to share a pizza. We managed to convince the server to convince the kitchen to make a pizza with half cheese and half no cheese. He said he wasn't sure if he could get the chef to do it, but that he would try. Sure enough, a vegetarian pizza came out with a little barrier made of crust running down the middle, separating the cheese side with the non-cheese side! I was so impressed I took a picture! The pizza was delicious - we especially liked the eggplant on it.

After pizza and wine for lunch, we wandered some more, and then went back to our hotel for our much loved siesta, and woke up just in time to wander back for some shop-browsing before dinner. We tracked down dei Frescobaldi, a restaurant that came recommended to us by Tracy at C2 (as previously mentioned, her friend's boyfriend is a professional server there). We had a fantastic dinner there, starting with a little amuse-bouche of cod on crostini, drizzled in olive oil, complimented with a glass of prosecco each. I then had a pecorino cheese souffle with caramelized pear, drizzled with honey for an appetizer - not dessert! Dan had a caprese salad (I ate the cheese as usual because the server said the chef would kill him if he asked for a caprese salad without cheese because then it would be "just a bunch of tomatoes"...lol.) For the entree, I had pumpkin and sage stuffed ravioli with a roasted almond sauce (topped with biscotti), and Dan had...you guessed it...beef! Although he did say it was the best beef he's had. We then shared hands down, the best tiramisu either of us has ever had. When we asked for the bill, the server brought us complimentary grappa (he joked it was to help us digest the bill). He warned us not to shoot it, but to sip it, an that it would keep us there for another half hour. He wasn't kidding! It knocked our socks off, and made for a fun walk back to the hotel!

Part way through dinner, we asked if there was a Francesco in the restaurant and it turns out he was one of two waiters there! We met him and explained our connection, and coincidentally, Tracey (Tracy's friend Tracy) was there sipping wine! So, halfway across the world, we met a fellow Vancouverite through one degree of separation!

The next day, we went to the Uffizi (for a lack of a better description, Florence's version of the Louvre). It was an overwhelming museum with so much to see, but the highlight for me was seeing Sandro Botticelli's Birth of Venus. After the Uffizi, we walked over the famous Ponte Vecchio (the bridge with shops lining each side, hanging precariously off the sides), across into the very well-to-do suburbs. We wound up narrow alley ways with walls covered in flowering vines, and old creaky doors painted in blues and greens. Dad - I found the original doorway I've been painting for you for the past seven years. We took more pictures of it and feel inspired again. Maybe I'll have it ready for you by 2017! Lol...

After wandering the hills for a few hours, we made our way to Piazzale Michelangelo for sweeping views of the river and city. We then made our way allllll the way back across town to catch the city bus up into Fiesole, a small Tuscan town on a hill overlooking Florence. The city bus wound its way up the narrow, swithbacking streets with alarming speed. I loved it! Just like a rollercoaster! The bus drivers here drive their buses like they would drive a lambourghini. It's shocking, but great. The bus took us past beautiful old villas, the kind with pools, surrounded by cypress trees and vineyards, and dropped us off in the town square just in time for sunset. We hiked to the highest point in town, which is a little monastary dating back to the 1300s. I though it was inactive until I saw a cloaked figure with sandals and rope tied around his waist running to the bell tower to ring the bells!

We then had dinner at a restaurant overlooking the city. The food was forgettable compared to dei Frescobaldi, but the view was spectacular at sunset.

We both loved Florence very much, and could probably easily spend another few days here (well, let's be honest - I could probably easily live here). That being said, our trip is quickly coming to an end, and we want to make it back to Paris with a few days to spare (just enough time so that Dan can get his fill of Pain au Chocolats, which he's been missing ever since we left France).

Arrivaderci for now!

K&D