28/11/24
Being in the middle of the city we were expecting there to be the sound of hustle, bustle and revellers into the early morning. Also the sound of vans and trucks restocking the shops nearby in the wee hours. It was well noted on the page of Airbnb reviews. What we didn’t know to expect was the construction work that would start in the early morning and would involve a lot of heavy machinery as they rebuilt the pavement on the street outside. Disturbed sleep was an understatement.
We didn’t head out to explore the city till after 10am, we predictably had pancakes and a couple of coffees first. Firenze on a budget was a hard task. We aren’t ones to spend our cash on everything. Some of the attractions are completely overpriced. We narrowed it down to the Uffizi gallery, and headed there first. Alas the queue was already hundreds of metres long and we put it off till later.
We decided to walk to the cathedral. We’d read online that there was a nearby building that you could climb the stairs of and get a wonderful view of the dome. It was easy enough to find and we ascended the 5 floors of stairs before coming across the gate that led to the roof terrace. It had a sign that forbade access and had a PIN code keypad. Defeated. We pulled on the gate anyway and it opened! As we snuck up the stairs surprised at our luck a cleaner peered out of one of the doors at the top but we acted like we belonged and went onto the terrace. It was a great view of the whole cathedral complex, no wonder they’d closed that loophole.
We walked round the cathedral enjoying its grandeur and the fact that yet another attraction was undergoing refurbishment. There was a cafe nearby that we knew might have vegan croissants. The server said they had unfilled and filled, the filled being fudge! Our hopes were quickly dashed when the other server corrected her to ‘forest fruits’. It was tasty but fudge would have been superior.
The cathedral cost €19 to go in and there was a big queue outside when we’d arrived. The ticket included the whole complex including the baptistery and tower. We thought that was too much to give the church. But as we passed the now smaller queue we saw that it said it was free to go inside the main building. So we joined the line. As we waited we noticed there was one of those people walking stylishly up and down while they were filmed by an iPhone being moved up and down for effect. Firenze is no doubt a target for influencers.
There were metal detectors on the way in with some understandably surly security guards. The inside of the cathedral wasn’t particularly of note though the dome looked pretty fantastic. There were lots of barriers unfortunately and a well trodden tourist path in and out. We were excited that we could go into the crypt but we couldn’t get far without paying the entrance fee. Still we could see the remains and doubted there would be much more to gain.
As we left we thought at first that the queue had completely depleted but there was actually a moratorium on access for some reason. It was around lunchtime so we assumed everyone else would be eating and headed to the Uffizi gallery. We were right and were able to sail straight in. You have to climb several flights of stairs and we immediately regretted not taking the lift to the second floor, where the exhibition started, as our legs were so weary from the day before.
The gallery was really worth seeing. It’s full of classic Italian artwork and sculptures by the like of Botticelli. You don’t need to know anything about the art world to marvel at the incredible interpretations of the gods. Everyone seemed to know what the ‘ones to see’ were already but we got an app that showed us what was ‘important’. After an enjoyable few hours we were mighty tired. We decided to pop home and get some food. It was so convenient being a few minutes walk from all the major attractions. We cooked the rest of our dough and ate it with some salad bits.
We headed back out to visit Ponte Vecchio, the bridge that was made of jewellery shops, it just looked like a street when you’re actually on it. Looking back it was actually very intricate. It almost looked like it was from a miniature toy town. At that moment, Jonathan’s aunt accidentally called him from America. It was a really nice surprise and we couldn’t stop smiling. It was thanksgiving in America, and now we understood why there were so many American tourists around!
We were headed to Piazza Michelangelo. A lovely square that overlooks the city. It’s about a twenty minute walk from the city and you have to walk up stairs and ramps. We went slowly to minimise the wear on our legs. There were beautiful moss covered stone fountains along the way. We were hoping to see the view at sunset but the Sun had failed to materialise as was promised. We didn’t mind. We watched people for a bit, some taking photographs while perched precariously on the balustrade and some drinking wine with little picnics. There was another statue of David overlooking everyone.
We walked back via the larger supermarket on the edge of town. Keen to eat at less inflated prices. As we headed back home laden with treats like oat milk, peanut butter and jam, we experienced some rain. We’d had more in two days than more than a month. Crazy.
We were home not long after sunset and made our usual dinner and watched some James Bond. We were enjoying the Brosnan’s. After dinner we went gelato hunting and found Venchi, the big chain, had a delicious flavour of fondente (dark chocolate) with crunchy hazelnut pieces. Fearful of missing out we also found a lovely organic place under the cathedral that had caramelised fig and salted pistachio. Sublime.
Back at home, full of gelato, we snuggled in for some more James Bond. Distraction from the fact that we would be cycling again the following morning was much appreciated. The only question now was how much sleep would we actually be getting?
Surly They Won't Make It 