Frenzied Firenze

The pace of Florence did not diminish today, in fact, as it was Saturday, it even ramped up a notch or two.  We had eaten a pretty ordinary breakfast, by Tuscan standards,  in the rooftop restaurant of our hotel, before taking our lives in our hands to walk into the old area of the city again, as everyone does, along the road. It seems the footpaths are just not wide enough to take all the foot traffic, but at the same time there are taxis, private vehicles, electric scooters, bicycles, motorbikes and even buses to contend with, as we all try to share the same stretch of road. 

Our destination this morning was the Uffizi Gallery (via a well-known Affogato bar), a vast building containing a colossal collection of works by the masters such as Michelangelo, Raffael and Botticelli. 

Before we could view the art of the masters however, there was the famous Ponte Vecchio, an ancient bridge which spans the River Arno and houses many shops, once home to meat markets, to be photographed from the colonnade which passes along river  from the beginning of the bridge to the Uffizi building.  

Then, as we entered the forecourt of the Uffizi, there were the many sellers of art, with their street stalls, to visit and admire the many evocative paintings of the Tuscan countryside we have so recently enjoyed.  

Our timed entry ticket allowed us two hours to visit the two levels of the gallery, however we only managed one level before we decided we had seen enough naked male statues and dark portraits of solemn people, and we opted to have some lunch in the gallery cafe before it was time to move onto the next activity  

Intriguingly, a kilometre-long corridor tops the buildings on Ponte Vecchio and can be accessed from the Uffizi Gallery. Built in 1565 by Cosimo I dei Medici to enable he and his family to pass from Palazzo Vecchio to their private home, the Pitti Palace, the recently restored Vasari Corridor (named for the architect who designed it) is a fascinating walk through the past with views over the river; views enjoyed by Hitler himself, which were the reason this bridge was spared from bombing during the war. 

After passing through the corridor, visitors find themselves in the famous Boboli gardens, the grounds of the Pitti Palace.  Furthermore, the palace and its extensive art collections can be accessed and viewed at leisure, passing through room after elaborate room of sculptures, framed paintings and ornate painted ceilings. The wealth and opulence is overwhelming. Wending our way back over the Ponte Vecchio, this time on the road, past all the jewellery shops and street sellers, edging our way through the crowds, we made our way back to our hotel (via a gelato shop). 

We set ourselves up on the outdoor patio outside our rooms and feasted on cheese and bread, biscuits, chips and fruit, plus a little drop of wine, until a few threatening drops of rain broke up the party!  Later we walked to a Florentine Steakhouse for dinner. I have to confess I enjoyed a delicious chicken caesar salad (it is rare to find chicken in dishes here) but some had the full Florentine Steakhouse experience, an extravagance, but apparently delicious. 

Another wine window was the next destination for some of the group, while others, myself included, decided to return to the hotel and rest after a long, busy and very fulfilling day in beautiful, but frenzied Firenze.  

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