TRIP REPORT-Florence apartment living for 12 days, day trips to Venice, Pisa and Chianti
Nov 28th, 2005, 08:50 AM
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TRIP REPORT-Florence apartment living for 12 days, day trips to Venice, Pisa and Chianti
Landed only 12 hours ago, but felt compelled to list our top experiences:
1. Accidental Tourist day trip. Without a doubt, the highlight of our trip. Wine and olive tour, followed by pasta making and eating with a lovely family on a beautiful hilltop farm. (no, I don't have any interest in the business!)
2. Leaning Tower, Duomo and Baptistry of Pisa, bathed in a glorious sunset.
3. Rounding the corner in the Accademia, getting our first glimpse of David.
4. Stepping out of the train station in Venice to see the most unique city in the world.
5. Meandering down the scenic Chianti road, stopping in many of the small towns along the way.
6. Waking up to the Campanile bells every morning.
7. Listening to our 8 and 9 year old daughters' interpretations of what they were seeing.
8. St. Mark's Cathedral, and the nightmarish pigeons outside.
9. Listening to an opera singer in Piazza Republica, under the newly-lit Christmas lights.
10. Buying fresh foods from the market every day for our European breakfast each morning.
More to come! Laundry beckons!
1. Accidental Tourist day trip. Without a doubt, the highlight of our trip. Wine and olive tour, followed by pasta making and eating with a lovely family on a beautiful hilltop farm. (no, I don't have any interest in the business!)
2. Leaning Tower, Duomo and Baptistry of Pisa, bathed in a glorious sunset.
3. Rounding the corner in the Accademia, getting our first glimpse of David.
4. Stepping out of the train station in Venice to see the most unique city in the world.
5. Meandering down the scenic Chianti road, stopping in many of the small towns along the way.
6. Waking up to the Campanile bells every morning.
7. Listening to our 8 and 9 year old daughters' interpretations of what they were seeing.
8. St. Mark's Cathedral, and the nightmarish pigeons outside.
9. Listening to an opera singer in Piazza Republica, under the newly-lit Christmas lights.
10. Buying fresh foods from the market every day for our European breakfast each morning.
More to come! Laundry beckons!
Nov 29th, 2005, 02:26 AM
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Florence trip report:
We arrived fairly rested, as all – even the kids – had slept most of the night flight. The air was brisk as we rolled our luggage out of the train station and into the hustle and bustle of Florence. Excitement mounted as we neared our apartment, even though we knew we’d have to lug all our bags up 5 flights of stairs! That being done, we through open the shutters and marveled at the view of the Duomo and Belltower, right out our windows! Our apartment was great; two loft bedrooms, modern kitchen, laundry and bath, and comfy living area complete with red leather sectional sofa and an assortment of travel and other books. We quickly unpacked and took off to find a grocery store, orient ourselves around our neighborhood, and get our first taste of riboleta!
Day 2 (Friday-Ufizzi)
We had 11 am reservations at the Ufizzi, and were pleased to see that we didn’t need them. No lines at all! We casually strolled the galleries, pointing out the “main attractions” to the girls (Botticelli, Birth of Venus, etc), but also let them discover their own favorites. I was apprehended by an old Italian lady with a vicious looking purse swinging, for gently touching a black marble sculpture of a baby that was in the hallway, his chubby thighs just screaming for a pinch. Mind you, he was just lying out in the open, with no barrier around him! The girls were embarrassed that I’d caused a “scene”. I thought it was a great story, even though I typically would know better!
More than the great works, our girls were enthralled by the cows that have taken over Florence. Local artists were commissioned to paint these statues, which were placed all over town, most in the courtyards of the big attractions, but some in more obscure places. It was a nice diversion for them, and easy for us to say, “Hey, I heard there are some cows in front of the Accademia, let’s go take pictures of them, and while we’re there, let’s take a quick peak at David”
We were lucky enough to have connected with a friend of a friend, Luca, who lives in Florence. He met us in front of our apartment and took us for a glorious dinner. We all enjoyed the many courses, including wild boar, squid ink ravioli, eggplant tart and codfish. Too many more to remember, especially after our third bottle of wine! Luca and DH walked the girls and I home, and went out for a few beers and conversation.
Day 3 (Saturday-time to climb and explore)
Took a leisurely stroll through Florence, down through Piazza Republica, across the Ponte Vecchio, and to the Pitti Palace (lots of cows there!). Had a lovely outdoor lunch, at a cute café that had blankets on every chair. Girls fed the pigeons while we plotted our next move. We had a very loose itinerary, which has always seemed to work well with the girls and us. Time to climb! We began by nearly sprinting up the 414 steps of Giotto’s belltower, and by step, oh, 75 or so, were taking it much more slowly. When we finally got to the top, we could pick out our apartment window, plus pretty much about everything else in Florence. Loved the 4:15 bells, too!
Day 4 (Sunday- Leaning tower)
Took the train to Pisa. Had heard mixed reviews, but considering we had the kids, thought it was a must-see. Very easy to get there, ticket machines are a no-brainer. Caved in and bought McDonald’s for the kids to eat on the trip, banking some brownie points. Walked across town, noticing the Arno is much more scenic here. We were not prepared for how lovely the Tower, Duomo and Bapistry were, especially in the fading light of day. It really took our breath away. Being late arrivers, we were not able to climb the tower, but did go into the Bapistry, and loved the LOUD echo, especially as the doors closed. Almost surreal. Had our fourth gelato of the trip (Howard family rule: mandatory daily gelato!) NOTE: We had several episodes of feeling ripped off. Buying gelato was one of them. We learned fairly quickly to establish how much it was, before we ordered. Our first day, I ordered three medium cones, and almost fell over when I was charged 17 Euros! Once I wised up, it never cost us more than 2.50 a piece.
Day 5 (Monday - Accidental Tourist)
Woke early to meet our Accidental Tourist guide. They promised small groups, never more than 6 people, so we were please to find it was only our family of 4. Elizabeth was lovely, piling us into her van to take us into the Tuscan hills to tour a wine and olive oil factory. We picked some olives, gave ourselves an impromptu olive oil treatment on our chapped hands, and learned a lot, about how the yummy stuff is made. Spent a very interesting hour or so there. Moved on to a 1000-year old building to taste the wine and oil we just saw made. Fine wines, great oil on good Tuscan bread. We noted, and she agreed, that most of the breads we’d been eating have little to no salt. A bit disappointing, as we LOVE bread, so gave each slice a liberal shake before we ate at each meal. Finally, onto the pasta making! We arrived at the home of Christiana and Gianni Belli, a beautiful farm on top of hill. We met Christiana and Nonna Eva, busy preparing food for us all to eat later. We, however, were responsible for making the pasta. They have a kitchen set up in their basement, and we had a great lesson in making home made ravioli and tagliatelle. Upstairs we proudly went, bearing the fruits of our labor. We sat down with this lovely family of 8, sharing artichoke frittata, pizza, bread, our pasta with two different sauces, and finally, home made pear ice cream. Gianna had come in from working the olive fields along with his sister-in law-Gianna and her friends Paola and Andrea. We felt like we were at home, lots of funny multi-lingual bantering, gesturing and laughing. Truly the highlight our our trip, for only 80 Euros per adult, 40 for kids. A bit of a splurge, but not at all pricey for all that we got!
Will continue with the rest of our trip later!
We arrived fairly rested, as all – even the kids – had slept most of the night flight. The air was brisk as we rolled our luggage out of the train station and into the hustle and bustle of Florence. Excitement mounted as we neared our apartment, even though we knew we’d have to lug all our bags up 5 flights of stairs! That being done, we through open the shutters and marveled at the view of the Duomo and Belltower, right out our windows! Our apartment was great; two loft bedrooms, modern kitchen, laundry and bath, and comfy living area complete with red leather sectional sofa and an assortment of travel and other books. We quickly unpacked and took off to find a grocery store, orient ourselves around our neighborhood, and get our first taste of riboleta!
Day 2 (Friday-Ufizzi)
We had 11 am reservations at the Ufizzi, and were pleased to see that we didn’t need them. No lines at all! We casually strolled the galleries, pointing out the “main attractions” to the girls (Botticelli, Birth of Venus, etc), but also let them discover their own favorites. I was apprehended by an old Italian lady with a vicious looking purse swinging, for gently touching a black marble sculpture of a baby that was in the hallway, his chubby thighs just screaming for a pinch. Mind you, he was just lying out in the open, with no barrier around him! The girls were embarrassed that I’d caused a “scene”. I thought it was a great story, even though I typically would know better!
More than the great works, our girls were enthralled by the cows that have taken over Florence. Local artists were commissioned to paint these statues, which were placed all over town, most in the courtyards of the big attractions, but some in more obscure places. It was a nice diversion for them, and easy for us to say, “Hey, I heard there are some cows in front of the Accademia, let’s go take pictures of them, and while we’re there, let’s take a quick peak at David”
We were lucky enough to have connected with a friend of a friend, Luca, who lives in Florence. He met us in front of our apartment and took us for a glorious dinner. We all enjoyed the many courses, including wild boar, squid ink ravioli, eggplant tart and codfish. Too many more to remember, especially after our third bottle of wine! Luca and DH walked the girls and I home, and went out for a few beers and conversation.
Day 3 (Saturday-time to climb and explore)
Took a leisurely stroll through Florence, down through Piazza Republica, across the Ponte Vecchio, and to the Pitti Palace (lots of cows there!). Had a lovely outdoor lunch, at a cute café that had blankets on every chair. Girls fed the pigeons while we plotted our next move. We had a very loose itinerary, which has always seemed to work well with the girls and us. Time to climb! We began by nearly sprinting up the 414 steps of Giotto’s belltower, and by step, oh, 75 or so, were taking it much more slowly. When we finally got to the top, we could pick out our apartment window, plus pretty much about everything else in Florence. Loved the 4:15 bells, too!
Day 4 (Sunday- Leaning tower)
Took the train to Pisa. Had heard mixed reviews, but considering we had the kids, thought it was a must-see. Very easy to get there, ticket machines are a no-brainer. Caved in and bought McDonald’s for the kids to eat on the trip, banking some brownie points. Walked across town, noticing the Arno is much more scenic here. We were not prepared for how lovely the Tower, Duomo and Bapistry were, especially in the fading light of day. It really took our breath away. Being late arrivers, we were not able to climb the tower, but did go into the Bapistry, and loved the LOUD echo, especially as the doors closed. Almost surreal. Had our fourth gelato of the trip (Howard family rule: mandatory daily gelato!) NOTE: We had several episodes of feeling ripped off. Buying gelato was one of them. We learned fairly quickly to establish how much it was, before we ordered. Our first day, I ordered three medium cones, and almost fell over when I was charged 17 Euros! Once I wised up, it never cost us more than 2.50 a piece.
Day 5 (Monday - Accidental Tourist)
Woke early to meet our Accidental Tourist guide. They promised small groups, never more than 6 people, so we were please to find it was only our family of 4. Elizabeth was lovely, piling us into her van to take us into the Tuscan hills to tour a wine and olive oil factory. We picked some olives, gave ourselves an impromptu olive oil treatment on our chapped hands, and learned a lot, about how the yummy stuff is made. Spent a very interesting hour or so there. Moved on to a 1000-year old building to taste the wine and oil we just saw made. Fine wines, great oil on good Tuscan bread. We noted, and she agreed, that most of the breads we’d been eating have little to no salt. A bit disappointing, as we LOVE bread, so gave each slice a liberal shake before we ate at each meal. Finally, onto the pasta making! We arrived at the home of Christiana and Gianni Belli, a beautiful farm on top of hill. We met Christiana and Nonna Eva, busy preparing food for us all to eat later. We, however, were responsible for making the pasta. They have a kitchen set up in their basement, and we had a great lesson in making home made ravioli and tagliatelle. Upstairs we proudly went, bearing the fruits of our labor. We sat down with this lovely family of 8, sharing artichoke frittata, pizza, bread, our pasta with two different sauces, and finally, home made pear ice cream. Gianna had come in from working the olive fields along with his sister-in law-Gianna and her friends Paola and Andrea. We felt like we were at home, lots of funny multi-lingual bantering, gesturing and laughing. Truly the highlight our our trip, for only 80 Euros per adult, 40 for kids. A bit of a splurge, but not at all pricey for all that we got!
Will continue with the rest of our trip later!
Nov 29th, 2005, 02:28 AM
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Hi Tiff!
Not really. We might have spent more time enjoying the art, but with two little kids, you have to take what you can get! I also might have actually bought some leather, but frankly, it was very overwhelming! If you know you'd like to shop, I'd have a very good idea of what you're looking for. Many, MANY choices!
Not really. We might have spent more time enjoying the art, but with two little kids, you have to take what you can get! I also might have actually bought some leather, but frankly, it was very overwhelming! If you know you'd like to shop, I'd have a very good idea of what you're looking for. Many, MANY choices!
Nov 29th, 2005, 03:52 AM
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Thanks for the lovely report. I'll put on my "to do " list today the Accidental Tourist tour. Heading that way in March, that sounds quite interesting. Well, maybe not the squid ink ravioli..LOL!
Nov 29th, 2005, 08:15 AM
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Thanks for your response Icthecat. Yes, I can imagine that you are somewhat restricted with the kids on your journey. Sounds like they held up quite well though! Loved the cows, and loved the "Howard Family Rule of Daily Gelato"
What a good rule, what a good Mom.
What a good rule, what a good Mom.
Nov 29th, 2005, 08:33 AM
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Hi Icthecat, I'm enjoying your report very much. My DH and I returned to Pisa for a longer visit and enjoyed the town.
FYI, I read some place that by not using salt in bread, it lasts longer. Salt retaining moisture making mold? That's how it is poss to make croutons with the stale bread. Makes sense to me! Bring on more report please!
FYI, I read some place that by not using salt in bread, it lasts longer. Salt retaining moisture making mold? That's how it is poss to make croutons with the stale bread. Makes sense to me! Bring on more report please!
Nov 30th, 2005, 04:54 AM
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OH, is the jet lag kicking in, baby! I can hardly keep my eyes open by 5 pm. Thank goodness for Starbucks!
Day 6 (Tuesday- Venice)
Ahh- Venezia! We’d bought tickets for the 8:39 Eurostar earlier in our stay. Just over a 3 hour ride, it was quick and comfy. We bought a decent lunch on board, read, enjoyed the scenery and played games. We were not prepared for how beautiful it was! We walked out of the train station, and literally stopped short and gasped at how sparkling blue the water was. We had to take a minute just to let it sink in. We bought a 24 hour vaporetto pass (even if you only go to and from the station, it’s what you should buy) and promptly got on going in the wrong direction. No worries, we just took the scenic route to Piazza San Marco! It was a brisk day, but the sun glistening off the water was just lovely. We’d only planned to stay for the day, and decided to go with the flow. The girls were simply overjoyed at the pigeons landing on them in front of St. Mark’s. I was a bit freaked out, and hung at the sidelines and took pictures. We pried them away to tour the cathedral (free!). It was really breathtaking, the prettiest (gaudiest?) of all that we’d seen. There was a small charge (1 euro) to go behind the alter and see the jewels, but well worth it. We stopped to light a candle and say a prayer, which was nice, but interrupted by the sound of some tool or another, some marble repair being done. We happened upon a glass factory, and got an up-close and personal view of some pretty incredible pieces being blown. I swear, it took the glass master all of one minute to create an incredibly detailed Pegasus. He also made a beautiful vase, and gave the girls a pretty bead, each. This was also free, but we tipped him for being so gracious and taking pictures with us. My husband left to explore some back alleys, and my goal was to get a photo-op of the girls on a gondola for a holiday card. Now, mind you, I was fully prepared to pay a large sum for a gondola ride, but it was quite cold, and my little one was not feeling so well. I approached the gondola stand near Piazza San Marco, and offered to pay whatever they’d like (took a chance there, didn’t I???) if my girls could just sit in a gondola for a minute. “Not possible”, I was told on 3 attempts. Finally, the crusty old guy of the group said in the Italian version of, “Come on knuckleheads, let the lady get a picture!”. So, the girls jumped in, smiled on command, and I snapped away. The guy would seriously not take a dime. He only wanted the girls to kiss him on the cheek, and they happily complied. So much for spending a bundle in Venice! I think it was the cheapest day of our trip! We did a little shopping and browsing, then hopped back on the vaporetto to go back “home’. BTW- Venice train station has a FABULOUS little cafeteria! Much nicer than Florence! The entire day was one of the best of the trip.
Day 7 (Wednesday-Florence)
We took it very easy today, not a lot to report. We were all very tired from the previous busy days. Just went to the market, bought some great local food, napped, went out for a coffee and gelato. Relished in the simple pleasure of “living” in Firenza!
Day 6 (Tuesday- Venice)
Ahh- Venezia! We’d bought tickets for the 8:39 Eurostar earlier in our stay. Just over a 3 hour ride, it was quick and comfy. We bought a decent lunch on board, read, enjoyed the scenery and played games. We were not prepared for how beautiful it was! We walked out of the train station, and literally stopped short and gasped at how sparkling blue the water was. We had to take a minute just to let it sink in. We bought a 24 hour vaporetto pass (even if you only go to and from the station, it’s what you should buy) and promptly got on going in the wrong direction. No worries, we just took the scenic route to Piazza San Marco! It was a brisk day, but the sun glistening off the water was just lovely. We’d only planned to stay for the day, and decided to go with the flow. The girls were simply overjoyed at the pigeons landing on them in front of St. Mark’s. I was a bit freaked out, and hung at the sidelines and took pictures. We pried them away to tour the cathedral (free!). It was really breathtaking, the prettiest (gaudiest?) of all that we’d seen. There was a small charge (1 euro) to go behind the alter and see the jewels, but well worth it. We stopped to light a candle and say a prayer, which was nice, but interrupted by the sound of some tool or another, some marble repair being done. We happened upon a glass factory, and got an up-close and personal view of some pretty incredible pieces being blown. I swear, it took the glass master all of one minute to create an incredibly detailed Pegasus. He also made a beautiful vase, and gave the girls a pretty bead, each. This was also free, but we tipped him for being so gracious and taking pictures with us. My husband left to explore some back alleys, and my goal was to get a photo-op of the girls on a gondola for a holiday card. Now, mind you, I was fully prepared to pay a large sum for a gondola ride, but it was quite cold, and my little one was not feeling so well. I approached the gondola stand near Piazza San Marco, and offered to pay whatever they’d like (took a chance there, didn’t I???) if my girls could just sit in a gondola for a minute. “Not possible”, I was told on 3 attempts. Finally, the crusty old guy of the group said in the Italian version of, “Come on knuckleheads, let the lady get a picture!”. So, the girls jumped in, smiled on command, and I snapped away. The guy would seriously not take a dime. He only wanted the girls to kiss him on the cheek, and they happily complied. So much for spending a bundle in Venice! I think it was the cheapest day of our trip! We did a little shopping and browsing, then hopped back on the vaporetto to go back “home’. BTW- Venice train station has a FABULOUS little cafeteria! Much nicer than Florence! The entire day was one of the best of the trip.
Day 7 (Wednesday-Florence)
We took it very easy today, not a lot to report. We were all very tired from the previous busy days. Just went to the market, bought some great local food, napped, went out for a coffee and gelato. Relished in the simple pleasure of “living” in Firenza!
Nov 30th, 2005, 08:40 AM
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Check out www.accidentaltourist.com
I booked online, they got back to me within 2-3 days, and I called to confirm (mandatory) when I got to Florence. It was all run very efficiently.
I booked online, they got back to me within 2-3 days, and I called to confirm (mandatory) when I got to Florence. It was all run very efficiently.
Nov 30th, 2005, 09:01 AM
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Day 8 (Thursday- Chianti Road)
DH reserved a car for us last night. He picked it up this morning and met us at the train station with it. We decided to head towards Sienna, and see how far we got. We took the Chianti Road instead of the Autostrada, we, (okay, he) likes to meander a bit. The first little detour we took found us in Montefioralle. Gorgeous little bend in the road. We sat on a wall overlooking the most scenic vista we’d ever seen, and were flipping through a guidebook to see what it was all about. Imagine our surprise to find that this is where Amerigo Vespucci was born, and here we were, a bunch of yanks, on Thanksgiving day, ending up here! The girls really enjoyed that, makes for a good school journal story. It was a bit cold and we were ready for lunch, but nothing was open yet, so we climbed back in the car. Castellini was our next stop, we ate ribolitta and yes, more wild boar for lunch. As soon as we got in the car our oldest started moaning about being carsick. Uh oh. We made a quick stop on the side of the road, she deposited her lunch, and before it hit the ground, she was once again an enthusiastic co-pilot. Crisis averted. Ah, youth!
After that we did end up in Sienna for just a moment or two, we were really enjoying the journey more than the destination, so after feeding some geese in a pond, we hit the road, this time the Autostrada, as it was nearing dusk. We couldn’t resist one more detour, ended up in Monteriggiano, THE most lovely little walled city with 14 towers, sweet little shops and a view to die for. After that we headed home, dropped off the car and took a new route home through town. At this point our youngest, quite the fashionista, commented that all the “fashion ladies” were wearing tight pants tucked INTO their boots, not “wide pants that flop around their boots”. Here I thought I was going to blend right in with my gauchos. Bought them especially for the trip, as they are in every store in Washington DC. Consider yourselves forwarned, ladies, and don’t buy any more wide-legged pants. I will draw the line, however, at buying ANYTHING with stirrups!
We stopped for a cappuccino at a trendy little café, then got home and put our feet up for while. We decided to eat at a restaurant just across the street from our apt. During the latter part of dinner the girls were getting a little squirmy, and asked if they could go back to our house. Hmmmm…..do I sense a mini-date in the making? DH walked them across the street, let them in and locked the main door behind them, and they waved from the apt window. We actually were able to finish our wine and have a coffee! What a nice surprise.
Day 9 (Friday – Firenze)
Rain, rain go away! It was quite wet and cold. We had a lazy morning at home, then tromped through the puddles to meet our new friend Luca for lunch at a local market. He turned us on to deliciously fresh buffalo mozzarella, still warm. Yum. We then perused the olives and meats. Almost ruined our appetite. Skinned rabbits, ducks, halved pig’s heads, brains, kidneys, liver. Almost like my med school anatomy class! “Too much information!!!” our oldest exclaimed. We decided to let someone else do the cooking and proceeded to the tiny luncheonette meant for the market workers. Hard to describe, but basically you enter each individual booth from the outside of this glassed in diner, so each booth has it’s own set of double doors. You are served from a central buffet, a very limited but very delicious menu. We had pasta fagioli, lasagna, ravioli and beans. The servers kept walking buy and pinching the girls’ cheeks, talking to them in rapid-fire Italian, and they just kept smiling, nodding and saying, “Grazie, grazie”. A very cool, local experience. We just couldn’t deal with walking home, as we were already half-soaked, so we sprung for a cab. After we dried off for a bit, we headed out for a stroll again to shop the stands and let the girls ride the carousel at Piazza Republica.
Next stop, David (Finally!)
DH reserved a car for us last night. He picked it up this morning and met us at the train station with it. We decided to head towards Sienna, and see how far we got. We took the Chianti Road instead of the Autostrada, we, (okay, he) likes to meander a bit. The first little detour we took found us in Montefioralle. Gorgeous little bend in the road. We sat on a wall overlooking the most scenic vista we’d ever seen, and were flipping through a guidebook to see what it was all about. Imagine our surprise to find that this is where Amerigo Vespucci was born, and here we were, a bunch of yanks, on Thanksgiving day, ending up here! The girls really enjoyed that, makes for a good school journal story. It was a bit cold and we were ready for lunch, but nothing was open yet, so we climbed back in the car. Castellini was our next stop, we ate ribolitta and yes, more wild boar for lunch. As soon as we got in the car our oldest started moaning about being carsick. Uh oh. We made a quick stop on the side of the road, she deposited her lunch, and before it hit the ground, she was once again an enthusiastic co-pilot. Crisis averted. Ah, youth!
After that we did end up in Sienna for just a moment or two, we were really enjoying the journey more than the destination, so after feeding some geese in a pond, we hit the road, this time the Autostrada, as it was nearing dusk. We couldn’t resist one more detour, ended up in Monteriggiano, THE most lovely little walled city with 14 towers, sweet little shops and a view to die for. After that we headed home, dropped off the car and took a new route home through town. At this point our youngest, quite the fashionista, commented that all the “fashion ladies” were wearing tight pants tucked INTO their boots, not “wide pants that flop around their boots”. Here I thought I was going to blend right in with my gauchos. Bought them especially for the trip, as they are in every store in Washington DC. Consider yourselves forwarned, ladies, and don’t buy any more wide-legged pants. I will draw the line, however, at buying ANYTHING with stirrups!
We stopped for a cappuccino at a trendy little café, then got home and put our feet up for while. We decided to eat at a restaurant just across the street from our apt. During the latter part of dinner the girls were getting a little squirmy, and asked if they could go back to our house. Hmmmm…..do I sense a mini-date in the making? DH walked them across the street, let them in and locked the main door behind them, and they waved from the apt window. We actually were able to finish our wine and have a coffee! What a nice surprise.
Day 9 (Friday – Firenze)
Rain, rain go away! It was quite wet and cold. We had a lazy morning at home, then tromped through the puddles to meet our new friend Luca for lunch at a local market. He turned us on to deliciously fresh buffalo mozzarella, still warm. Yum. We then perused the olives and meats. Almost ruined our appetite. Skinned rabbits, ducks, halved pig’s heads, brains, kidneys, liver. Almost like my med school anatomy class! “Too much information!!!” our oldest exclaimed. We decided to let someone else do the cooking and proceeded to the tiny luncheonette meant for the market workers. Hard to describe, but basically you enter each individual booth from the outside of this glassed in diner, so each booth has it’s own set of double doors. You are served from a central buffet, a very limited but very delicious menu. We had pasta fagioli, lasagna, ravioli and beans. The servers kept walking buy and pinching the girls’ cheeks, talking to them in rapid-fire Italian, and they just kept smiling, nodding and saying, “Grazie, grazie”. A very cool, local experience. We just couldn’t deal with walking home, as we were already half-soaked, so we sprung for a cab. After we dried off for a bit, we headed out for a stroll again to shop the stands and let the girls ride the carousel at Piazza Republica.
Next stop, David (Finally!)
