Florence, Italy

Sam and I left the house at 8:30am on December 26th after dropping off our kids at the Angerbaughers. We met up with Jason (someone in Sam’s MBA class) and Jessica in the airport so we were able to figure out our travelling together. It wasn’t something we planned, but it made for a much more enjoyable travelling experience. We had a layover in New York and then an 8 hour flight to Milan. Sleeping on an airplane is not fun. I am not sure how much sleep I got, but it wasn’t enough. We arrived in Milan at 8am. We found the right bus without any trouble and arrived at the train station. The train station was tricky. We could not find Firenze in the automated ticket machine, so we got in a huge line to buy tickets from and attendant. Jason and Sam decided to try another machine and were able to buy our tickets but there were only four tickets left, so we ended up in first class. When boarding the train, we went to the wrong end and had to jog back to where we came from. It was present to watch the Italian countryside from the train but we were all so tired that we fell asleep during the 2 hour train ride.
I am already in love with Florence. After Sam and I checked into Hotel Albani Firenze, which is very nice, we went on the Oltrarno Walking tour. To get there we passed the Duomo, which is just incredible. There are open air markets and fashion shops everywhere. I can’t wait to buy some art. We did stop for gelatos and I had pistachio. It was very yummy and look forward to more gelatos, even in the cold. To start our tour we walked over the Ponte Vecchio that crosses the Arno River. It is lined with jewelry shops and street vendors. The view of the river and the city were breath taking. Sam and I loved walking around on the Oltrarno side of the river. You can find beauty in so many things around you. The architecture is so different from the USA. I love it and the details are amazing. I even took some pictures of some beautiful doors. We stopped by the Pitti Palace, a massive place that shows off Renaissance esthetics. It has a museum but we didn’t tour it because of our time constraints. We did get to go in three churches Piazza Santo Spirito, Church of Santa Maria del Carmine, and San Frediano. Piazza Santo Spirito was the largest, had the most art, was the best lit, and had a beautiful stone carved ceiling. I just marveled over the painting that the church had on display, works from the 1300 to the 1600s that I see in art history books. My only regret is that their Michelangelo crucifix in on lone to Naples, so I didn’t get to see it. Santa Maria del Carmine had a beautiful painted ceiling but it was very dark in there, so we couldn’t see very many of the paintings. San Frediano was small but was also had an impressive painted ceiling. Our walk back to the hotel in the dark was delightful. The streets still are decorated for Christmas and the city feels magical.
We had hot chocolate at a café with the professor of Sam’s MBA group and some of the other group members. The hot chocolate was semi-sweet and very rich. Very different from Swiss Miss Dinner was served at the hotel buffet style. We are going to bed early today after an exhausting two days of travelling. I can hardly wait to explore this beautiful city tomorrow.