Florence, Italy

Our first port after setting sail was Livorno, Italy. We used the first of four complimentary ship excursions to take a bus from the port to Florence, where we explored on our own. Two of our stops in Florence included the Basilica of Santa Croce—built at the close of the 13th century, and known as the largest Franciscan church in the world—and La Accademia Gallery, which has what is arguably the most famous sculpture in the world, Michelangelo's "David". Completed in 1504, "David" was originally placed just outside the Piazza della Signoria, but was later moved to the museum for better protection.

Inside the Accademia we also saw two of Michelangelo's incomplete sculptures known as "The Prisoners". Down the hallway, we saw the museum's section on musical instruments, which included pianos by the inventor of the piano, Bartolomeo Cristofori, and a viola by Antonio Stradivari.Read more