Florence

Our time in Naples came to an end. We hopped on another high speed train heading to Florence. Our trip took about 3 hours, with a short stop in Rome on the way. The first leg from Naples to Rome, the train was pretty empty and we could spread out in our own little area. However, after Rome, the train became very full! I was watching people board the train and started to wonder if we’d run out of seats for them. They definitely ran out of space for luggage on the overhead racks! Luckily for me and Kiley, we packed pretty light compared to what I’ve seen some people carry (or drag) around. I really wish we could travel around on trains like this in the US.

We arrived in Florence with no issues in the afternoon, and set off for our airbnb. Again, I think we chose well when we booked accommodations for Florence, because it’s a short walk from the train station and it’s close to almost everything we want to see in the city! The Santa Maria dei Fiore is just a few minutes’ walk from our airbnb! We had a small hiccup with the airbnb because we got inside, and it had obviously not been cleaned yet (towels on the floor, bed unmade, etc.) but while we were trying to get ahold of the host and figure out what to do, the cleaning crew showed up so we just went to the Starbucks next door (there are two American constants I’ve seen in Europe so far – McDonald’s and Starbucks!) and chilled for a bit, then we decided to walk around the area and check it out. The church looks amazing, and there’s a ton of detail! I could spend a while just looking at it.

When we felt that the crew should be done cleaning (we’re staying in a tiny apartment) we headed back because we desperately needed to do laundry and there’s a washing machine available for us to use! That was the rest of our night – laundry, dinner, and rest! It was also at this time Kiley found out she got her official diploma!

Our first full day in Florence was surprisingly full because we didn’t really make any solid plans to begin with. The only specific thing I had on the agenda today was a visit to the Galleria dell’Accademia – home of the famed Statue of David by Michelangelo. The website told us we *had* to book timed entry tickets, so I picked whatever was available and that turned out to be at 9:45 am, but when we arrived – a little earlier than 9:45 – they just let us right in so I don’t think the timed entry booking was entirely necessary especially since we were eligible for free tickets anyway. Oh well, doesn’t matter now. We browsed the art for a bit, and saw some cool stuff. Of course, the headliner is David – and that was really amazing to see in person. You see it so many times in art books, on TV, etc… but seeing it right there in front of you is pretty neat. It’s 17 feet tall! And it has a space of its own in the museum, so you can see it in all its glory. It’s a really beautiful piece of work.

After wrapping up at the Galleria dell’Accademia, we headed back to the apartment to figure out a plan for the rest of the day. We decided on lunch on a place nearby, and while walking there, Kiley spied a place she had seen on TikTok and thought I’d enjoy. It turned out to be a bookshop-slash-theater! My dream store lol. I enjoyed looking around for a bit.

Lunch was super delicious. I actually think it may be the best pizza I’ve had so far in Italy. I don’t know if that was the hunger talking… but it was freaking good. I also got an aperol spritz (I wanted to see what all the fuss was about) and Kiley got a lemon spritz. We liked the lemon spritzes we had in Positano better – I think these drinks were made with soda water instead of Sprite, so that’s probably why… but I enjoyed my drink all the same.

After lunch, we had a wander about – we decided we wanted to check out the Boboli Gardens/Palazzo Pitti, and that was across the famous bridge, Ponte Vecchio. That was neat to see. Shops line the outer edges of the bridge, and the passageway is pedestrian only. Get some nice views overlooking the Arno River.

We arrived to the Boboli Gardens / Palazzo Pitti, and decided to do the gardens first. These are gardens that the Medici family established. They basically created the first model of the “Italian style garden” that Europe would later go on to imitate in many other gardens. The gardens are huge! There’s a couple of landmarks within the gardens that we wanted to check out. There’s a lot of inclines within the gardens – so we had to stop for breathers every so often, but overall it’s a great place for walking and hanging out. We saw a lot of spaces where people were having picnics or just hanging out in the grass, reading or sunbathing.

After walking the gardens to our satisfaction, we headed into the Palazzo Pitti to see what was in there. There’s a lot of art, both in the rooms and on the walls. We explored for a while. When we were done, we decided we were done for the day because we both were feeling tired! All the steps and hills were really getting to us today – I don’t know if we’re just worn out from all we’ve been doing over the last couple of weeks, or if today was just an ‘off’ day – but we were done! So we started the walk back to the apartment, stopping off at a store to pick up some drinks, and we happened to stumble across the Piazza della Signoria, which was one town square I wanted to see. There’s a copy of the Statue of David there, in front of the Palazzo Vecchio (the town hall of Florence), and the Uffizi galleries are also there.

When we got back to the apartment, it was rest and relaxation time! I watched some TV, went through some photos, and then went to bed!

More later!