Frantic Florence

We left the sleepy village of Radda in Chianti this morning and drove through the hilly countryside of Tuscany, firstly in the direction of Pisa. 

We had the luxury of two 8-seater vans today, a bit extravagent perhaps, as we were expecting a car and a van, as we had previously, anyway, that’s what turned up, so we spread out, 4 to a van and enjoyed the scenic views. 

Arriving in Pisa at midday, we took the obligatory photos of everyone trying to either push the tower over, or push it back up, along with many other people, before we walked the streets to find an inviting place to eat, away from the madding crowd. 

Panini, bruschetta, and even hamburgers were on the menu, and enjoyed by all. We had a brief look in a couple of shops, but it was all very touristy, and we were back at the vans a few minutes before our departure time of 1:30, which greatly impressed our drivers Maurizio and Stefano. Apparently they are unused to punctuality from their patrons. 

Back on the road, we left the gentle green of the Tuscan hills and sped along the highway towards Florence which is to be our home for two nights. Here we have lost sight of La Dolce Vita and replaced it with horns, traffic chaos, sirens, and crowds. 

We arrived at three and had a short time to settle in to our rooms, in what is another grand building with high ceilings and rooms decorated with dark, bulky furniture. We are already missing the spacious bathroom and roomy suite we had in Radda, but it is spotlessly clean, very comfortable  (if a little crowded with two suitcases on the floor), we have our own outdoor seating area, and it is in a very central location. 

By 4 pm we had all gathered downstairs for a short walk to the Galleria dell’Accademia di Firenze where we had a timed ticket entry for 4:30 to view the Statue of David and many other impressive works of art. It was quite crowded despite the timed entry, although not as bad as the Vatican museum and galleries were, and we didn’t stay overly long, just long enough to ensure we had thoroughly examined the famous statue. Finding the exit was quite tricky and we did accidentally stumble across the Museum of Musical Instruments which was very interesting, as we tried to locate the way out. 

Out in the open again, we walked to the Duomo di Firenze, another impressive domed cathedral, faced with colourful marble panels in shades of green, pink and white, not unlike the cathedral in Siena we visited yesterday.  We then discovered one of Florence’s famous wine windows nearby, so of course, we had to sample this curiosity. A bell is rung and a man appears to slide the window open and take your wine order. The bell is rung again when the order is ready and rung again when payment is made! The wine is enjoyed while milling around in the street, skilfully avoiding passing buses and other traffic, as well as pedestrians on the footpaths. Quite a novel experience. Hopefully we will find another as we wander the city again tomorrow. 

As it was beginning to rain and it was time to eat again, we strolled into a piazza and sought refuge in a restaurant on the edge of the square. We opted for outdoor seating which was roofed, but as we waited for our meals the rain began to get heavier and fall through gaps in the roof and around the lights. We persevered however and enjoyed our meals (more pasta and pizza!) and by the time we were ready to leave for the 13 minute walk back to the Grand Hotel Baglioni the rain had eased. 

We caught the lift to the 5th floor and settled into the rooftop bar for hot chocolates, taking in the sunset and the city views before retiring to our rooms for the night. There is more of the intriguing city of Florence to be explored tomorrow.