Florence

We all slept in! We are staying in the Santa Croce area, it is a little less busy than the main square, has some of the best restaurants, quaint streets and houses the largest Franciscan church in the world, associated with St. Francis of Assisi, Italy's patron saint since 1939. Kyle, Molly, Myself and Klaus walked around a bit, grabbed a bite to eat and a coffee. We did a little shopping before Bryce and Brooke met up with us. We went to an amazing food market with 3 levels and everything you could ever want to eat. Bryce and Brooke said it was some of the best pasta they had. We walked the packed streets filled with leather markets and stores. Next stop Santa Maria del Fiore, the Duomo, ranks as the world's third-largest cathedral. It took over 140 years to build and is still today the largest masonary dome. We climbed all 463 steps to the top with amazing views and then back down. We stopped for a quick aperol spritz and went to the famous I’ Girone De’ Ghiotti sandwich shop, it was very delicious but we all agreed we were more impressed with the sandwiches in Milan. Molly, myself and Brooke did a little shopping while the guys waited and had some beverages. We all took a little rest back at the apartment before dinner at II Vezzo. The dinner was great, the boys got the Florentine steak again and we had probably the best bolognese pasta ever. We went back to the market for gelato and walked back to the apartment, it was incredible how empty the streets that we could barely navigate earlier were. Off to bed early morning to Bologna tomorrow.Read more