Continuing our tour of Italy, we traveled to Florence. As the birthplace of the Renaissance, Florence seems like a walking museum. The churches, streets, and galleries are packed full of masterpieces. We were excited to start exploring!
After arriving at the Florence train station, we headed to our sweet little bed and breakfast.
Once we were dropped off our luggage, we were excited to do a little exploring before we went to sleep for the night.
We ran into the dazzling Duomo. The architecture is spectacular! The streets of the historic city center of Florence were flooded with people.
After enjoying our cappuccinos the next morning, we rented bicycles so that we could move quickly through the city and see as much as we possibly could.
We biked back to see the Arno river, and noticed that the water is much prettier in the dark.
But the view is amazing!
We made our way through the crowded streets filled with stalls of Italian leather bags, straw hats, and other Italian trinkets.
The sun was so intense that my scalp quickly began to burn, and my skin was tingling with a rainy, ice-like feeling. So we searched for a famous Florentine straw sun hat- you know, the floppy, light-colored straw hat with a big black ribbon tied in a bow. It saved my scalp, and I love it! (Unfortunately, I don't have much use for it here in Aberdeen.)
Before traveling to Florence, James got the advice to go to Piazzale Michelangelo (or Michelangelo Square) for the most spectacular view of Florence. The piazzale is perched high on the hillside and offers breathtaking views!
A replica of Michelangelo's David is in the center of the piazza.
A wonderful view of the Arno from Piazzale Michelangelo
Tuscany is absolutely beautiful!
After biking to the top of the hill and exploring the piazza, we had to stop for more gelato, naturally.
Experimenting with flavors
We then headed back to the city center to tour the inside of the Duomo (Santa Maria del Fiori). This Florence cathedral is the city's most famous landmark.
Smaller part of the gigantic cathedral
Although the inside of the Duomo is very pretty, I much prefer the exterior green and white colored architectural masterpiece that the cathedral is.
Wearing more appropriate church clothing
After touring the Duomo, we navigated the narrow and winding streets to find a spot to enjoy dinner.
We found a local pizzeria and ordered our first pizza of our trip. By the end of the trip, I believe we had eaten at least eight pizzas.
The pizza was incredibly delicious! If you haven't tried pizza without cheese, you should. It's fabulous.
James loves pizza. Pizza may or may not have been ordered every single night we ate out in Italy. (Oh wait, there was a time when we ordered tripe on accident. Gross. I don't recommend it.)
We had to have tiramisu while in Italy. It was great!
Our last day in Florence, we visited a local food market in the morning.
Tons of fresh pasta
Watching pasta being made
We found a ton of interesting looking and smelling fish.
We bought some delicious produce to take on a picnic. We biked uphill past the Piazzale Michelangelo to the San Miniato church.
The views were, again, incredible!
Seeing the amazing views was our favorite part of Florence.
I loved seeing all of the different churches.
Ciao, Florence!
I am glad you had the chance to visit such a fabulous place and enjoy it! Congrats!
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