On Wednesday July 13th we were woken up at 5AM to take the 6:19AM train from Pordenone to Firenze. We picked this early train as it went right throught with no train change along the route.
The high-speed train arrived on the minute and left 5 minutes later- we boarded quickly and found our reserved seats. Quite luxurious for 2nd class tickets!
The train pulling into our station.
After an uneventful and restful 3 hour ride, we came to Firenze. We had a map and got a mite confused leaving the train station. We knew where the B & B, Residenzia Vespucci, was that we had booked but somehow got turned around and walked the wrong way for a couple of blocks. No problem- we soon corrected and found our way with Uwe draging our suitcase.
Front of our B & B centrally located right beside the river.
When we first found the correct address the door was locked! We finally pressed the bell for what we assumed was the correct floor/apartment and were buzzed in and told to turn left when we got off elevator on 2nd floor.
And our wonderful host, Francesco, in the reception area.
The room for three people was large especially by European standards and the bathroom was enormous. We were very pleased with our accomodations.
The dining area where a huge and varied & breakfast was served every morning.
View out the front of B & B
Since we had arrived so early- 10:30AM- we had a whole day to explore the city. We started by walking to Duomo- most famous spot in Firenze.
Lots and lots of tourists in this area
Including Lucy & I
We also walked along the river and took some scenic photos
And more
That evening we had diner at a recomended restaurant- Trattoria Armando- totally excellent. We had our best meal ever.
Pictures on the walls were of all the famous artists- opera singers, ballet stars, movie stars- who had eaten there.
The next morning we walked over the Ponte Vecchio on our way to the Pitti Palace & Boboli Gardens where we had reserved tickets.
The bridge- Ponte Vecchio
Inside the bridge
Many jellery/gold shops and many, many tourists. After a few more blocks of busy touristy roads, we arrived at the Pitti palace where we picked up our reserved tickets. Because we had arrived early in the morning- 9:45AM- the line-up to buy tickets was only slightly longer than the line to pick up reserved.
Inside the square of the Pitti Palace
Lucy taking pictures inside the square- this gives you some idea of the size.
The Boboli gardens were enormous! We walked ( and walked) and took many pictures.
The palace from the gardens
Standing on hilltop overlooking palace in the distance
More garden pictures
The grotto with strange statues & pictures inside
From the top of the gardens you could see some beautiful typical Tuscan scenes
After a short lunch ( and a well-deserved bierre) inside the complex, we went on to see the Pitti palace. No photos were allowed inside? though I did manage one before I was warned.
Most of what we saw room after room were paintings of old Italian & Dutch masters of the 1800's. And there were a few rooms decorated with furniture of that period.
That evening we went to the Piazza della Signoria to see the replica of the statue of David ( the original was moved to a museum).
Still pretty impressive. At least 3 times life size- he towered over us.
The Piazza was as usual crowded with fellow tourists.
And a youth band played and entertained.
On the walk back to our hotel, we stopped and had a drink at Harry's bar.
Our last day we still had lots of time left to explore. Our train home did not leave until 6:30PM so we had an entire day. We explored a few side streets on our way to the open-air market.
Here are some typical street scenes- all very safe and better for walking than driving!
With hundreds of parked Vespas
The outdoor market was huge- block after block of merchants selling leather goods, tee shirts, ceramics, shoes etc etc.
As well, there was a huge building housing an indoor market for meats, cheeses, flowers and more.
After finding yet another out of the way place for lunch, we did more walking through more scenic piazzas
Finally after 3 days of walking and playing tourist, we arrived back at the train station to catch our 'First class' coach home.
