Personal Post: Day 4: Florence

We departed from Venice in the morning. The train station was a convenient 15-minute walk from our hotel. We got there about 45 minutes early in case we had to check-in or exchange our e-ticket for real tickets, but we didn't. We loitered around the gift shop and then hopped right on our train. Everything went so smoothly that we definitely think we can manage future European vacations on our own. Why would anyone choose to do a guided tour when the transportation system there is so adequate and nice?

Our train made three brief stops: at Mestre, Padova, and Bologna. The girl who sat next to me was going through major drama with her boyfriend/husband, who was sitting across the aisle from us. We kept interjecting stories about the two of them. Good thing that she doesn't know any Cantonese (or so we hoped).

I have to admit, despite what I said yesterday, that the Italian language is starting to grow on me. I really like how sing-song-y it sounds. It's like music to my ears. When our train conductor announced that the next stop is Firenze Santa Maria Novella, she said it like, "Firennnnnze Sannnta Maria Novellllla." And I was all too eager to imitate her accent.

After arriving at Santa Maria Novella, we walked to our hotel to drop our bags off. The directions had said 20 minutes, which should be easy-peasy for us. As we find out from this walk and other walks on our trip, you should always double the amount of time that they give in writing. That 20-minute walk turned out to take more like 45 minutes. Maybe we were walking a tad slower than usual, each towing some luggage behind us. But still! Unless we were jogging, there was no way we could have made it there in 20 minutes.

We dropped everything off at the hotel, and walked around the corner to get some lunch. Afterwards, we tried making our way to center of town for some sightseeing. Oh, wait, except please let us get lost first. The supposed 10-minute walk became half an hour, but even if we hadn't gotten lost, I think it still would have taken 20 minutes.

At the Accademia of Fine Art, we got to see Michelangelo's masterpiece, David, up close and personal. I even took an illegal photograph of it. What surprised me the most was that there was barely anyone there. I just always imagined that this place would be packed, like it always is on TV.

Not far from the Accademia is the famous Duomo. It's the biggest of its kind in the entire world, and I was definitely not disappointed! It's hard to describe just how big it is without being there to see it for yourself. However, I must say that I was unhappy to see the outer exterior of the complex in an ugly gray hue. They definitely have not cleaned the building in ages.

The Giotto’s Bell Tower is located adjacent to the Duomo. We climbed up 414 steps to the top and it was completely exhausting. We did get an awesome up-close view of the Duomo. We also gazed out over the red roofs of Florence, stretching out for miles. If only there were fewer clouds, we would have seen a beautiful sunset as well.

Dinner that evening was planned at Trattoria Anita, located in a tiny street behind the Uffizi. We had planned for this dinner after reading a number of recommendations for their steaks. And after our ascent and descent from the Giotto, we were ready to get something hearty in our stomachs. We made sure that we had good directions to this restaurant because a few patrons have noted that it's difficult to find. Well, we found it all right. But it was closed for four days around Christmas. Great. Just great. Instead, our Christmas Eve dinner was at another restaurant around the corner. The food was good enough, but I image that it was not even close to the quality of Trattoria Anita.

After dinner, we walked around the area. We got to see the Uffizi and the Ponte Vecchio at night. I must admit that they were both kind of disappointing. First, the Uffizi had a huge crane that was blocking the classic view. Then, the Ponte Vecchio had no decorative lights for the holidays. In fact, very few lights were illuminating the bridge at all. It just didn't look as great as I remembered it in all the photos.

In the Piazza della Signoria, behind the Uffizi, we got our second exposure to David. This time, it was a fake, standing in front of the Uffizi tower, which was drowning in red lights. This David is nothing like the real thing. It has stood outside in the sun and rain, and there are gray stains running down its white body. The details aren't as fine. But what do you want for free?