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The View From My Apartment!

The bells of the Duomo continue to ring (on the quarter hour, every quarter hour) and I, like them, have begun to settle into a daily routine. Despite my routine, this city continues to surprise me. Each and every day I hear a minimum of five languages being spoken around me, the bustling tourist crowds at the Duomo contrast sharply with the peaceful serenity of the Oltrarno (across the river), and immigrants hawking fake designer sunglasses walk up and down the trendy streets which house the same (real) brands. One of these men (Moosa) sold me a pair of black aviators on the Ponte Vecchio (The Old Bridge). The moment I showed interest in his wares he packed up his things and pulled me into a dark alley away from the eyes of the corruption police. The sunglasses weren’t fake designer but just a regular pair, so when he told me they cost 45 Euro (about $70) I was flabbergasted. After trying to give them back to him (he hid his hands from me so I had to stick them in his shirt pocket) I walked away. Moosa pursued me down the street until we finally agreed on the more reasonable price of 5 Euro.  I’m finding more and more that Florence is a city of contradictions, and I’m discovering that this is what makes it so fascinating.

Another thing which makes Florence unique is its inhabitants. Going out at night has been such a fun and interesting experience, and meeting local Florentines has been one of the best parts of my trip so far. At a bar the other night a man approached me and some friends and told us that, and I quote: “I used to be a model, but you can take my picture for free”. He and his friends ended up showing us around the city, pointing us in the direction of the best hangouts, and gently correcting our Italian. The people here are so friendly and most are thrilled to talk to me in Italian, which I love because I am getting better every day. I got a chance to barter at the Central Market, a huge indoor food market with fresh everything, and got a tour of all the best places to eat from my Italian cooking teacher.

I Couldn't Resist

Today I travelled with two friends to Pisa and Lucca. We had heard mixed reviews about Pisa and nothing but good things about Lucca so we planned our day accordingly. In Pisa we jumped off the train, powerwalked to the tower, took the traditional cheesy tourist photos (see attached!) and then hightailed it to Lucca. Lucca is a very charming smaller Tuscan city twenty minutes north of Pisa. We entered the city through its circular medieval wall system and proceeded to walk around exploring. We had an amazing lunch at a little ristorante where we could see the Mamma cooking our food in the kitchen. After that we explored the back alleys and little streets, getting lost and not caring. We ended our day with gyros and gelato back in Florence, eating in the Piazza della Signorina with live violin music playing in the square.

I have so many stories (and pictures) but this blog can only be so long so I’ll have to save those for a later post. Thanks for reading!

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