Florence, Italy

Miles: 6.9 Steps: 17189
Flights stairs: 4

We spent the day exploring Florence. There is so much art and history here - especially things related to Michelangelo.

We started our day early at the Florence Cathedral seeing Brunellelchis dome from the inside. It is an amazing architectural marvel. They built the church but then couldn’t figure out how to put the dome on top, so it sat roofless for over 100 years! Eventually they had a contest to see who could figure out how to design the dome, and Brunellelchi won! They still can’t replicate his dome today. It’s the largest dome in the world made by brick.

Then we went to the Gallery Academia - a museum that houses Michelangelo’a “David”. It was incredible up close. So much detail and it is HUGE. Originally it was intended to go on top of the dome, but instead it “lived” in a nearby square until eventually moved to the museum for safekeeping.

On our wandering we came across a giant street market. Neat to see all the goods for sale just out in the streets.

We headed back to our hostel during the heat of the day (near 100° here) to relax for a few hours by the pool. Very nice choice. In the evening we went back out for to Piazza della signoria - where “David” lived originally (now a replica sits in its place) and saw dozens of other statues. Had a wonderful dinner in the square and called it a night.Read more