My post-program vacation has officially begun! I had an easy flight from Prague to Milan, took a bus to Milan's central train station, and enjoyed a nice glass of Italian wine while awaiting my train to Florence. My travels were stress-free but now I truly understand what people mean when they refer to crazy Italian drivers! I was cracking up the entire bus ride as our driver dodged smart cars and bikers while honking the entire way to the train station. I had a pleasant train ride to Florence and I'm now even more sure that trains are one of one of my favorite means of travel. Dylan's train arrived twenty minutes before mine so we planned to meet in the station. As I walked down the platform, I saw him approaching and I ran up to him and we shared the biggest hug. I cried tears of joy upon seeing him because it had been SO long and it was so incredible to see such a close friend from home. We met Nikki, my friend from Tulane and our host for the night, and headed back to her flat. Nikki visited me in Prague a few weeks ago and has been studying art in Florence this semester.
Florence was bustling and incredibly crowded but I was so taken by the Renaissance charm that encapsulates this small city. The buildings are so quaint and the streets resemble alleys more than actual roads.
Her flat is right in the center of it all and after setting our things down, we headed out for dinner at a wonderful restaurant called La Giostra. Nikki heard that their famous pear ravioli is not to be missed so we ordered it as an appetizer for the table. Our waitress brought out a bottle of prosecco and a big plate of assorted appetizers on the house, followed by the pear ravioli. All of the food was spectacular. As my entree, I ordered gnocchi with ricotta and spinach. Dylan ordered parpadelle with boar. Boar is a Tuscan specialty so he was excited to try the food of this region. He studied in Rome this semester so he was exited to experience northern Italy.
Yummy gelato
Pointe Veccio at night
Dylan and I! So happy to be reunited
Came across the replica of David. The original was intended to stand here but the overwhelming crowds forced it to be relocated to The Academia Museum.
Nikki had heard of these "secret bakeries" that open after midnight. They are unmarked and you must find them by following your sense of smell. We managed to find one and tried two of their fresh pastries. It was such a cool experience that I would have never discovered had I not been shown around by a resident of the city. At that point point, Dylan and I were exhausted to a point of collapsing so we headed back to Nikki's apartment and fell asleep immediately.
Pastries from the secret bakery
Dyl and I woke up bright and early today in hopes of getting to the Uffizi Gallery right when it opened in order to avoid the infamous long lines and crowds. We left the flat by 7:45, grabbed a fabulous coffee and headed to the gallery. It's hard for me to describe how wonderful the museum was because of the sheer magnitude of world-renowned works on display. I had chills as I walked through the gallery and passed by Botecelli's Birth of Venus, as well as numerous works by Raphael, Michelangelo, Titian, Caravaggio and many others. We all grow up knowing these images but seeing them as tangible, real paintings is really just something else.
We actually got to the gallery 20 minutes before it opened, so we walked over to the Pointe Veccio to see it in the daylight:
We watched the sunrise over the water. It was absolutely breathtaking
Pictures from the Piazza outside of the Uffizi:
We were exhausted by the time we finished at the gallery because of sheer culture overload so we grabbed another coffee and headed to the Duomo. We walked around the entire site, enamored by the monstrosity of the building.
Dylan inside of the Duomo. Such a cutie!
The magnificent dome of the Duomo.
Selfies with the ceiling/dome of the Duomo
View of Florence from the gardens
Another beautiful view
A grotto. Dyl and I love a good grotto!
In the Renaissance, the idea of nature unleashed was very frightening to people, so they attempted to control nature by building incredibly symmetric gardens/outdoor spaces. The Boboli Gardens represented this perfectly. This grotto looks untamed and natural, but this was their attempt at containing nature and then making it look natural again, but under their terms instead.
We met up with Nikki for lunch at a restaurant called Osteria "Il gatto e la volpe". We ordered few dishes to share, one of them being a famous Tuscan soup called Riboletta. It was so hearty and delicious.
We got another delicious gelato then headed back to the Duomo to climb the 444 stairs of the Bell Tower. Dylan and I, although winded by the climb, loved it. It was so quiet and peaceful as we overlooked the entire city and the overwhelming crowds from below appeared as ants.
Climbing the Bell Tower. So steep!
View from the top of the Bell Tower.
Panoramic shot of Florence from the Bell Tower.
After soaking in the beauty of the city, we climbed down the steps and headed back to Nikki's where we took a quick nap and the departed for the train station. Next stop: Rome! Florence was wonderful and we had a perfect 24 hours here. Even though our trip was short, we covered a lot of ground. I can't wait to explore Rome and see the differences in the two cities.
Czeching out,
Grace
Notable differences between Czechs and Italians:
1. Italians are LOUD! I've gotten so used to the soft-spoken nature of Czechs that hearing people speak this loudly in public places was shocking.
2. Florence is very Renaissance inspired while Prague is very medieval and Gothic.
3. The streets of Florence were so crowded and people just walked (and stood) wherever they pleased. In Prague, there is a more clear etiquette and it was just funny to see how different the two places were.
Dylan and I bought coordinating aprons for our house next semester (we're living together in NOLA). Can't wait to cook up feasts while toting our David and Venus aprons!
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