Florence

 Before making our way down to Florence, we decided to make a pit stop in Pisa to take in the tower. We were warned by a funny couple in La Spezia that there were three pregnant gypsies in Pisa that try to pickpocket. As a side note, we first met this older couple in the laundromat one evening and helped them work the machines. After then ran into them three other times throughout the trip and they would get so excited to see us. Back to Pisa. We made it to the tower without any incidents of pickpocketers. I was pleasantly surprised by how pretty the area was, but there were massive amounts of people walking around all taking the same type of pictures. We decided to join in on the fun and take our own shots, which turned out to be the best part of the visit. We only had about two hours until our train arrived, so we made our way back to the train station and noticed what looked like the three pregant gypsies hop on too. We kept a close eye on our stuff and made it back in one piece. It was also very helpful that we could check our large backpacks at the train station so we didn't have to carry them to the site. We made it to Florence late afternoon and after a few wrong turns we ended up at our place. We stayed with a lady named Cristina and her husband in a beautiful Italian building. After dropping our things we decided to get out and explore. 




Florence is a pretty compact city with a lot to see in a small area. It was nice that we stayed right in the heart of it all and needed no transportation. The next block housed the replica of David and several other sculptures. We then went on to take in the details of the Duomo, which is by far the largest, most elegant structure I have ever seen. It really was breathtaking. The detail in the work was something only to be experienced in person, and made the whole stop to Florence worth it. We then moved on to Ponte Vecchio bridge, which was the only one left standing after WWII. It now housed some very expensive jewelry shops and some beautiful views of the river. On the second day in Florence we made our way across town to the Piazza Michaelangelo, which sat atop a hill and overlooked the city. It was well worth the hike up the hill to take in the view. From there we headed back into the city in search of an antique mall. We ran into a couple who spoke English who pointed us in the right direction but mentioned that the shops would probably be closed. We also learned in the brief conversation that the man grew up in the same city Nate was born. We did find that the majority of the little shops were closed but did find one that housed some old postcards. From there we made our way back down the street through the leather market. I was in search of a leather jacket, hoping to find one that had long enough sleeves. We ended up in huge shop that had a great selection and even found two jackets I really liked that fit nicely. Of course I picked the more expensive of the two, but felt it was worth the investment because they tailored it to fit just right. I had to then go back and pick it up in the evening once the alterations were complete.

From there, Nate and I decided to split up for the afternoon and take it our own thing. He went to the Uffizi Museum, while I decided to get my shopping fix. It was the perfect afternoon to take a stroll around town and do a lot of window shopping in some amazing stores I could not afford. I did manage to make a few purchases and then headed back to pick up my jacket and meet up with Nate. We decided to grab dinner in the piazza and enjoy our surroundings. All the restaurants had just outdoor seating, which didn't bother us a bit. After that, we made our way back to the Duomo and found a library with a rooftop cafe. The place had an awesome atmosphere and had many college students walking around. We grabbed a drink and took in the sunset over the duomo. The stay in Florence was short, but very interesting and was the perfect amount of time to enjoy the cities main sites.