Day 11: Florence

Preferred Mode of Transportation in Italy
see all photos »

Ting’s phone makes sure we get up in time for breakfast at 8 – eggs and sausage, yum. Just what one needs on those hangover mornings. By 8:30, we’re on the bus to head into Florence, except for Stacie who stays behind sick. There is a bit of a bug going around the bus - Ting and I have sore throats today.  On the way, Tori gives a rundown on the significance of Florence and the renaissance, although she pronounces it “re-nay-sance”. We get into the city about 9:15 and Tori leads us on a short walking tour, showing us the Piazza della Signoria, the Duomo, and the Santa Croce church (which contains the tombs of Michelangelo and Galileo). Florence is full of awesome sculptures, scattered everywhere, so we see many of them walking around. I opted not to bring a bag today, heeding Tori’s warnings, and Lamar wears his on his front, having been bitten once this trip.

Florence, Italy
see all photos »

Tori drops us off at “Leonardo’s” for a brief leather “demonstration”…this is quite boring and really provides no useful information. It’s mainly an excuse to get us into their expensive shop. The majority of our group is pretty dead today, so they are really not into the leather talk. Ting doesn’t spring for an expensive leather wallet, but in the attached jewelry shop, Jeff picks up a link for his Italian bracelet, and I pick one up for Steph.

We are rewarded for our labours with an incredible view of the city, but Lamar is terrified of heights...

Sculpture of Leonardo Da Vinci
see all photos »

After that, it’s free time in Florence so the group disperses to check out various things. Lamar needs to get to the post office to pick up some money his parents have sent him via moneygram or some such thing, now that he is wallet-less (Darren has lent him some cash in the meantime). He’s going to grab a taxi there, and asks us to wait for him so he’s not by himself all day. We wait in the Piazza della Signoria (essentially the main square) which has an open air museum full of some interesting sculptures. He shows up a while later, frustrated because the place was closed for renovations when he got there, resulting in a waste of 15 Euros for the taxi and no money to show for it. He is getting fairly stressed about the whole situation, which is quite understandable.

Replica of David
see all photos »

We plan to check out the Santa Croce but we meet Suzie and Michelle coming out of it and they say it’s not that great, so we decided to skip it and hike up to the Academy of Art to see David. Upon arriving there, we find the queue is absolutely insane, and doesn’t seem to be moving. We find Kenny and his crew close to the front of the line and try to casually insert ourselves, but a lady behind them gets pissed off, and insists we go to the back. From what they tell us, we estimate it’ll be a 90 minute wait to get in, so we decide to give it a miss. We had seen the replica statue in the square, how much different could the real one be?

Sculpture in Florence
see all photos »

The next stop is the Duomo, where we line up some more to climb the 463 steps to the top of the dome. Legs have to be covered to go in, so luckily I have my zip-on/zip-off pants – the other guys are not happy about wearing jeans in the heat. On the way up, we get a good look at the mural on the dome – pretty awesome. We are rewarded for our labours with an incredible view of the city (check out the pics), but Lamar is terrified of heights and as such does not venture close to the railing.

Sculpture in Florence
see all photos »

After getting down, we grab some quick lunch – I have a bruschetta sandwich thingy, while the others have calzones – then some gelatti, before going inside the main part of the Duomo. Of course, it’s quite impressive, especially looking up at the dome. We then hike over the famous Ponte Vecchio bridge, full of jewelry shops, to the Pitti Palace. We pay 8.50 to look at the art museum inside, while Lamar opts to wait outside and read. It’s quite nice inside, with many impressive paintings and sculptures, but there are a LOT of them, and our feet are quite tired, and I'm more than a little bored, by the time we leave.

Piazza della Signoria in Florence
see all photos »

We hike back the bus for our 5:00 pick-up, and along the way run into Laura who tells us that Vicki and Lana had gone back earlier, as Lana was really sick. Quite the epidemic going around! It sounds like most people had a pretty lazy day…only a few braved the line for David, but they say it was worth it. Oh well. We drive up to the Piazzale Michelangelo for another nice view before driving back to camp. Darren negotiates with the crew, and manages to get breakfast bumped from 7:30 to 8 – way to go Daz!

Sculpture Museum in Florence
see all photos »

Once we’re back, I check with reception and the bar to see if my camera has been turned in, but no luck. After recharging my cash card, Ting and I do some laundry (3.50 each for washer and dryer!), and pick up a beer and some vino for later. I hop on the net to send an email back home – due to Italian law, I need a passport to do this! I also find a sign in the bar humorous that says you must be 16 to buy beer, 18 to use the internet. Crazy. Renato joins us for dinner at the restaurant, where I get lasagna, while they get various pasta dishes (and of course ice cream). Side note: the waitress is quite hot (and nice too!).

Florence Sculpture
see all photos »

We head back to the trailers and sit around with a bunch of our group, drinking wine out of plastic water bottles (due to an absence of glassware). We have to return our cash cards for a refund before 11, and people start turning in early. Ting and I head to bed around 12.