The Dog Ate Your Baby Book : Florence--Italy's Gem

Samuel Johnson said, if you’re tired of London, you’re tired life. And I say, if you’re tired of Florence, Italy, you’re lying. The only problem with our time in Florence was that we didn't have a few more days to spend there. Just a two-hour train ride from Rome, after dropping our luggage at the Vasari Palace Hotel (an excellent 3-star property in the heart of Florence) we sped off to grab lunch at the famous paninni shop, All’antico Vinaio. So, we had no idea about this place except for the fact that we sat across from two fellow Americans on the train who told us all about it and, since they ended up staying in the same hotel, we ended up going there together. Business is so good for the sandwich guys at All’antico that they have two shops, one across the street from the other, and both had lines out the door. The guys behind the counter were funny and quick to take your order. Each paninni is huge, and looks amazing, but here’s the thing. Thanks to a salt tax in the middle ages that incensed the Florentine bigwigs, Florence does not, to this day, use salt in its bread. I suppose it’s a lovely little tradition, but it means this: Florentine bread sucks, and that meant the sandwich wasn’t my favorite. I liked it, but the bread, though massive, had little taste. My sandwich had an interesting taste that got less interesting and more repulsive the more I ate. I didn't eat the whole thing.

Also, the local merchants, to encourage you to not sit on the curb and eat, came out and poured water on the curb in front of their shops. Just a subtle Florentine way of saying, beat it. And we did beat it. After lunch, we headed off to a free tour of the city called, Another Florence. The tour was great. Our tour guide, a Russian lady who spoke flawless English without ever visiting an English-speaking country, showed us the less touristy parts of the city as she explained the history of Florence. Because of her, we discovered the city has acqua frizzante (fizzy water) on tap, right next to the tap for regular water. Both spouts are on the wall of Palazzo Vecchio that faces the piazza. The water is cold and free, and the piazza is a good place to rest before heading out to do more sight-seeing.

That evening, after asking out hotel clerk for a recommendation, we ended up at Trattoria Enzo e Piero, and the food was excellent. Florence’s specialty is meat, not pasta. I ordered Tagliata Di Manzo Alla Massimo, and the meat was so tender and gustoso that I probably looked like I was filming a commercial for the trattoria, nodding with each bite, pointing at my food with my knife and exclaiming, Delicioso! Another nice thing about the trattoria is it isn’t pricey.

After dinner we headed down to Ponte Vecchio, stopping to listen to Florence’s street performers along the way. Apparently, no musical slouches are permitted to perform in the streets of Florence, because everyone we heard was so talented they could have been performing in a concert hall. One lady playing the violin was dressed in an evening dress like she was in a concert hall. She, clearly, had paid attention during her violin lessons. It was a pleasure to listen to her. A cover band was playing on Ponte Vecchio with a big crowd surrounding them. A lady standing next to me erupted into a paroxysm of delight when the band started playing, Hey, Jude. It was interesting to see an older, smartly dressed Italian lady go nuts. Beatlemania is alive and well. Ponte Vecchio means old bridge. The bridge has walls on each side that you can actually sit on and enjoy the show and the view of the river about 40 feet down. At night, of course, you really can't see the river since it is dark. Lisa and I were sitting on the wall enjoying the music when I mentioned to her that it was amazing how high up we were. At which point, she looked down and realized how close she was to the edge and immediately got off the wall and started hyperventilating. Good times. I placed a link below so that you can see the bridge. In the middle you can see where Lisa was sitting and then contemplated falling.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Panorama_of_the_Ponte_Vecchio_in_Florence,_Italy.jpg

Sunday was our one full day in Florence, and we started it out by heading to Sesto Fiorentino for church. The first Sunday of every month is fast and testimony meeting, which means the members fast for two meals and donate the money they would have spent on food to the church to help those in need. And instead of prepared talks, members of the congregation are free to stand at the podium and share their testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It’s supposed to be a short and to-the-point declaration, so when the first member of the ward got up and started talking about the evils of playing sports, you could say he was off topic. He may have been off topic, but what I loved was that I could understand what he was saying, or at least most of it. It's nice to know the church is the same everywhere.

As it turned out, going to church was a smart move since a good chunk of the city that morning was blocked off due to a marathon. So, by the time we got back to our hotel, the hubbub was cleared up and we were able to move about the city without a problem. We got busy knocking sights off our list: the baptistry, Duomo, Duomo museum, and the Campanile. All of it is worth seeing, along with L’Accademia (where Michelangelo’s David resides) and Santa Croce (where Michelangelo’s bones reside) which we saw our first day in Florence. Be sure, when you’re in Florence, to see it all. But I have to say that one of my favorite things is that first glance of the Duomo as you’re walking along one of Florence’s narrow streets. Its massiveness is so unexpected and breathtaking. But, if we’re talking interiors, for me, Santa Croce beats Duomo hands down. I liked Il Duomo, but not as much as Lisa.

Dave, an American living in Italy that we met at church, told us not to miss the sunset at Piazzale Michelangelo, and I’m glad he did. That sunset was so beautiful it was surreal, but not only that, it was fun to walk there, winding our way up and up and up through a part of Florence that sits on the other side of the Orno river. Just before the piazzale there’s a rose garden that you can walk through if you’re not too late (It closes at dusk.) I was beautiful and fun to see. It is a walk , it is uphill and it is crowded. But hey, I was able to get some good pictures so it is worth it.

Piazzale Michelangelo is no secret, and the crowds were thick, but it was just part of the fun, and Rich had no problem wedging his way in to the crowd to get the perfect shot. I say it has something to do with growing up in L.A. He’s got crowd awareness—the ability to avoid crowds while driving, and when on foot, to navigate quickly through them. Anyone born in or who has lived in LA knows what she's talking about. This means we got tons of great pictures, but one of the best things that happened while watching the sunset was bumping into Danny and Danielle again, a nice couple we’d met earlier in the day. We walked back down into Florence together and grabbed dinner at a trattoria along the way. Great food and great conversation. It was a perfect end to a perfect day.