Florence, The Day Trip

We took one day trip to Florence. We wanted to go to Assisi, but there were train issues and delays, so we didn't. Next time!

So off to Florence, where in 1979 I had the best meal I have ever had. Every year that I have been to Florence I go back to this place to eat, and have NEVER been disappointed. Well, okay, a few times, but not due to the food, but that they were not open. In 2001, we all ate here, but alas, 32 years after my first visit, they were closed and would not be open until after our train left. If you get to Florence, this place is a MUST!

Gold is one of two things you buy in Florence (the other being leather products). On the Ponte Vecchio there are some amazing gold shops, and amongst them was the BEAUTIFUL weiner dog bracelet. No we did not buy it, but we did find some nice gold earings at another location that I know.

The City Center (Piazza de Republica) is a great time to sit and watch the tourist run by and the locals sit and relax. Not the cheapest spot to sit and enjoy a coffee or a beer or wine, but so much to see!

If you arrive by train, you arrive at the rear of this famous church known as Santa Maria Novona. This is the church where Leonardo did his dissections. Well not in the church, but the Hospital that is attached to it and is still in operation today.

Of course there is food..always food, I mean I started this entry with a Trattoria! And fresh is the key to Italian cooking. The ingredients need to be as fresh as possible, and are brought in from the farms everyday.

Not only fresh, but delivered to the homes or business. And cars are not allowed on all streets, so bikes are important, as well as the right biker to handle the rough roads and take on the cars and scooters on the streets where they are merge and fight for the first spot! This was the best biker I ever saw!

And we are not limited in our choices for food or bikes!

And speaking of roads and traffic, dehydrated tourists are the biggest pain for the locals. This emergency center was right by the Duomo (Cathedral) of Florence. And they took a tourist about every 15-20 minutes who could not handle heat and not drinking water....ALWAYS stay hydrated!

However art is what Florence is known for. And art there is in so many places, even on the streets! These are art students who draw these pastel paintings on the street for whatever coins people toss in the basket. The works are AMAZING! Art is alive, not in the United States and our schools, but some societies still prize the vocation/skill of the artists....