First Full Day in Florence

The morning started out with a mess as the little espresso maker exploded all over the kitchen. I had visions of fixing my coffee and having a nice leisurely breakfast in our little apartment, which eventually happened. But first... Turns out there was a piece missing from the Moka Express. After cleaning some of the walls and floor, I made some Nescafe, poured oj for W, and enjoyed some of the pastries we got at yesterday's market. Interesting fact: it takes no fewer than 10 paper towels to mop up exploded coffee and grounds.

We discussed what to do today. After yesterday's crowds, I'm not anxious to reenter the fray. I'm hoping it was just being Saturday of a holiday weekend. Also- there are sore muscles from schlepping luggage and walking up and down hills, so the Tylenol has to kick in.

Wayne wants to visit Fort Belvedere. We headed up the road behind the old City wall- it was VERY steep. We sort of tuckered out and turned around, heading toward Ponte Vecchio. The walk along the Arno River is beautiful - we saw the Library, Galileo Museum, Uffizi, the Tower of Palazzo Vecchio, the top of Santa Croce, The dome of the Duomo, and of course, Ponte Vecchio.

We made another attempt at approaching Ft Belvedere from another angle- just as steep. Later in the evening I discovered that we can catch a bus from Piazzalle Michaelangelo, so we'll give that a try.

We stopped for gelato at Strega Nocciolo (I just realized it's probably a play on Strega Nona.) Cafe for me, Nocciolo for him. A few steps further was the supermercato that Cinzia told us about. We picked up some more goods, facing the fact that we can't eat all our meals out. On a positive note, we can't overbuy because the fridge is tiny, and there's no microwave, so leftovers have to be warmed the old fashioned way.

Back to our place for some planning. We'll plan for Ho-Ho tomorrow, although rain is predicted. Alternatively, we might just hang out.

One of the TV treats was what looked like a Renaissance band competition with drums and flags and fancy outfits.Read more