Florence awaits…

The next stop on our Italain vacation was Florence, Italy. Florence has so much art history where many of the famous Renaissance artists settled and made an impact on Italian culture. From the city to the countrysides, Florence has so much to offer!

We stayed at the Grand Hotel Mediterreno which was in a great location right by the Ponte Vecchio. This modern hotel had great accomodations as well as daily breakfast that offered a variety of foods from different cuisines. While I did enjoy this hotel, I would not recomend staying here if you want to escape the tour groups.

Academia

We dropped our bags off at our hotel and ran (literally!) to the Academia. We didn’t want to miss our guided tour to this amazing museum. Running through Florence to the Acadmeia you see scooters and a lot more hustle and bustle. Once we grabbed a quick slice of pizza to go, we had arrived at the home of the David. We had a guided tour that not only took us through the Academia, but also toured us around some of the other famous sites in Florence for the afternoon. When you first walk into the museum you see paintings and other sculptures. Once you turn a corner, you see a long hallway and there he is standing at the end. The museum is definitely focused around the David and it is unbeliveable to see this work of art in person. There are many different versions of the David all over Florence, but there is nothing like the real one.

Duomo

The next part of our tour was to see the famous Duomo. This church was so enormous that I couldn’t even fit all of it into one photo. From the baptisery to the church itself, this definitely was a masterpiece. Looking at the complexity of this massive dome that dominates the city is breathtaking. Unfortunatly, we did not have time to go inside of the Duomo becuase there were so many crowds preparing for Palm Sunday. If I ever go back, I would love to see the detail and expertise inside of the church as well. If the outside looked this spectacular, I can only imagine what the inside looks like. There are churches and squares surrounding the city and around every corner. Each one has its own flare and stlye, but I think the Duomo takes the cake!

Tuscan Leather and Cuisine

To cap off the day in Florence, we spent some time at the Church of Sante Croce. All around the church is a square with some great stores and restaurants. We were able to visit Misuri which is a leather and gold store. Florence is famous for their leather and gold and this store showed us some of their key items that represent the culture in Florence. This is definitely a store to add to your list as they have beautiful leather jackets, handbags and gold jewelry galore!

Instead of going to a restaurant for dinner, we took a cooking class and made our own dinner. We visited Apicus (a cooking school) who taught us how to make classic Tuscan dishes that represent the region. We made a garden salad, meatloaf, tomato sause, homemade pasta and lemon muffins. This was quite a feast that had so many unique flavors that I will definitely try to replicate myself. It was amazing to not only taste the food but to learn the techniques that make these foods so treasured.

Piazzale Michelangelo

With all of this delicious eating, we also needed to balance it out with some walking! We took a morning walk to the Piazzale Michelangelo church that is at the very top of the hill that overlooks all of Florence. The view is amazing and is perfect for a panorama! You continue walking up the hill to where the church is and you climb a huge staircase to the top. Even though this is quite a hike, the view is worth it! We happened to be there during Palm Sunday where many people came to visit the church and give their palms. The arhcitecture inside of the church was amazing and had so many different stoneworks that were incredible. While you may think that you would get sick of seeing a lof of churhces, each one is so different and spectacular!

Ponte Vecchio

For the afternoon we walked down to the Ponte Vecchio and explored that great area. The bridge has so many stores on it that sell jewlrey and beautiful pieces. Most of these stores are pretty pricy, but they sell some amazing one of a kind pieces. If you look up to  the top of the bridge, you see a covered walkway on top of the shops. This was the walkway of the Mussolini family to transport them from their estate to the government buildings becasue they didn’t want to walk with the common people. All of these facts were so interesting to here and see the history for yourself!

Tuscan Farms

While Florence is known for the major historical city, it is also known for the Tuscan farms surrounding it. We were able to enjoy a delicious meal at one of these farms and take a tour of the property. Our lunch consisted of marinara with homemade penne, an assortment of cheese and meats, homemade bread, a fresh garden salad and chocolate mousse. The food was delicious and it was amazing to eat some things that they make right there on the farm. At this farm, they are known for making their own wine and olive oil. They have olive trees and over 200 acres of vineyards for their assorted wines. They also have a barn where they keep cows as well! I would definitely recommend going to a Tuscan farm as you escape the busy downtown of Florence and learn about the food and wine seen in Italy. It was such an amazing (and delicious) experience!

San Gimignano

Before heading back to Florence, we had a couple of hours to explore San Gimignano. This small midevil town is all made from stone and brick and has so many towers and lookout points. You truly feel like you are being transported back in time! There are some  cafes along the main drag and a couple of hotels to stay in. I don’t think that this place is a destaination to stay at, but it is definitely worth a day trip to go explore it. There are so many great scarf, handbag and sterling silver shops as well. You can tell that this little town has so much history and it was so neat to visit something that has been preserved for so many years!