Florence - The Real City

I was determined to escape the lemmings and find the real Florence – and my strategy was simple: get up early and head to the outskirts of town.

I was out by 8.30 and there was a lovely calm as I walked through the main part of town, then crossed the river and walked up through the Michelangelo Park to a wonderful piazza and view of the city – and I was still early enough to almost have it to myself. I also found two lovely churches nearby – one where there was no one else in it other than me and it was just so peaceful. The other was in an active monastery, surrounded by a very old cemetery and further up the hill with another lovely view – but most impressive were the stairs leading up from the road – very grand – like something out of an old French chateau.

I then headed back down and wandered through the Oltrano section – ran into some lemmings but bypassed them quickly and found a lovely local bakery with pizza as in Rome – I was very happy with my portable local lunch! I also found another lovely church in a very residential part of town – Santo Spirito – it is incredibly plain from the outside – not even gothic, just a cement frame and yet on the inside, it is wonderful – very graceful and almost delicate - another real favorite.

It was lovely morning and I was feeling much better about Florence. I then had a lovely afternoon by the pool followed by dinner at a local pizzeria with very, very good pizza!

The next day was museum day and I was feeling ready to get back into circulation with my fellow lemmings. The morning was the Uffizi Gallery and I had learned my lesson from Rome – I bought the audio guide and had a good tour through their collection of renaissance art and the classical styles leading up to it. I really enjoyed the two paintings by Botticelli's (the Birth of Venus and Primavera) and my absolute favorite was a painting by Da Vinci – it had the most amazing colors but what struck me most was the emotion the overall picture generated combined with the depth of detail within. I could just stare at it for hours – which is very rare for me and art!

Other than Da Vinci's painting, my favorite part of the museum was the building itself. Designed by one of the leading architects of the time, the palazzo is two very long rectangular buildings joined by a closed in bridge like structure at one end. Very graceful. The masterpiece however, are the stairs inside – magnificent. (A theme in case you can't tell ...)

I also found a great spot for lunch - I had been walking around the main part of town and everything was just so touristy ... so I headed back near my hotel and found a little coffee / lunch bar - sat at the bar eating a so so greek salad and feeling at least a tiny bit like a local :-)

A small side note, in Rome I had this true ah ha moment when in a museum, I caught a look in a mirror and realized just how much I collapse my chest, even when walking – I was surprised as I always thought I had good posture standing. So it's been something I've been working on especially when wandering through other museums ... and I've been surprised by the effort it takes to lift it up - and also the natural settling that my shoulder blades then do into my back. Little by little I just might be getting there.