:: FLORENCE ::
huh? what’s that you say?
the huge trip you talked about for forever leading up to it, and then only posted about half of it so far?
YES.
I’m back to continue The Italy Travel Diaries.
finalllllly.
I have so many friends going to Italy this year that I knew I needed to get back on it and talk about Florence, Positano, and Rome.
and next up is Positano the absolute favorite and I could cry I want to be there right now.
we took a train and arrived in Florence.
we had originally planned on taking a cab from the train station to our hotel,
but we took screen shots on our phone and it was easy enough to find it.
for our hotel, we found it through the Rick Steves book.
After we unloaded our bags at the hotel, we immediately ventured out.
We rounded the corner from the hotel and the Duomo was just towering down the little road.
It was about a three minute walk to the Duomo and we started out with Rick Steves audio tour because so many friends had recommended it. It was a great walking tour to get acquainted with the city.
We walked to one of the locations where we could get the Firenze Card which we had decided would be well worth the 72 Euro per person because the lines for everything in Florence are nuts. Luckily friends and everything we read confirmed that this was the right thing to do.
Definitely, definitely get this card! Otherwise, you will spend all of your time waiting in lines and not seeing anything of Florence.
We went across the Ponte Vecchio, and looked at all of the pretty jewelry in the windows as we went, and settled on a spot for lunch outside of the Pitti Palace and the Boboli Gardens.
The Gardens were so gorgeous. It was such a fun afternoon wandering around and not doing anything. I was also reading Dan Brown’s Inferno so it was fun to be in the place I was reading so much about.
…… my jumping shot was a complete and utter fail. and I’m very special.
we stopped at a little place between our hotel and the Duomo for apertivo before showering for dinner.
We went to dinner at Il Porcospino, a restaurant our neighbor raved about from when she was studying abroad in Florence. She e-mailed ahead and told Franco to be expecting us and it was such a wonderful dinner. He just brought food out for us, no menus, and it was a perfect first night in Florence.
The next morning we got up early to go to see The David. The Academia was right behind our hotel so we got there in no time, and even though we went right at 9 (or whatever time it opened) there were lines already. The Firenze Card was a lifesaver again, but still about a 15 minute wait.
I’m so glad we got in early because there was hardly anyone indoors and it made seeing the David much much better. I couldn’t believe how big it was in person.
Then we climbed The Duomo – oh my gosh – tight spaces getting up there. Like, crazy tight. It was nuts.
worth it at the top though.
at this point in the trip Kip kept asking me when I would stop making us climb things. (little did he know what was to come with the stairs in Positano…..)
after The Duomo we did a ton of museums…. most of which we could have done without. They were just so crowded and it was lots of wandering and none of the rest of the day was as a great as The Boboli Gardens or The David (to us). It was all wonderful but it just gets to be the same religious art 9,000 times after a little bit.
We did Uffizi and got super cheap pizza and wine after which was amazing. So glad we stumbled upon the little place and not a clue what the name was but there was a cute couple our age in Ole Miss polos that seemed just as excited to find a quick cheap yummy bite.
We went to the leather school (after getting seriously lost finding it) after lunch, but no one was working when we were there so it was a bust. Their leather belts for Kip were a lot, so we passed, and luckily found two cute ones on the way to dinner that night for much cheaper for him to take home.
We also stopped at the Galileo Museum because I am a science lover and what could be better I thought that Kip would enjoy it, but it was just weird. Like, a lot of vagina (or allota fagina) and pregnancy things.
I was like “wheres the finger that Rick Steves said was here? Lets just look at that and get out of here”
we ended our last night there with Gelato after a dinner surrounded by locals at I Che Ce Ce Trattoria while we strolled past the Duomo one last time at night to our hotel.
We loved Florence, but it did get exhausting. I can completely see why it was so many peoples favorite places. We saw so much in the two days we were there that it kind of started to become a blur, but it was an amazing highlight to the trip. I can’t get over how these pictures do no justice to how beautiful the buildings are there.
So, definitely do the Rick Steves Renaissance Walk – the app is so helpful for so many different things and we loved it for Florence to get acquainted.
We also loved the Boboli Gardens for wandering.
Hotel Information :
We stayed at Hotel Loggioto Dei Serviti. (website)
It was about a 3 minute walk to the Duomo, and when you rounded the corner from the square out hotel was in, you could see it immediately towering overhead in the distance. I could not believe how beautiful, and how BIG, it was.
I did like our hotel, but the square was definitely not a lively one and I’m sure there are better places you could stay. But the room was massive and very old Italian. The inside of the hotel was beautiful – the hallways and stairwells and everything. And breakfast was great too 🙂 So overall we were happy with it.
Below I am including the two pages from my nerd-alert word document that I combined from all of your recommendations along with my friends emails and things like that. So this was what I had on hand before our trip and hopefully can help some of you with your trip plans!
:: FLORENCE ::
Sights +
Activities
Activities
*Renaissance Walk : Rick Steves
Start at Duomo, can do self guided
walking tour, hit all the main sights – theres a free audio tour in the app
walking tour, hit all the main sights – theres a free audio tour in the app
*The Accademia that houses the David
book a tour for the
accademia, massive lines
accademia, massive lines
*Dumo : have euros to enter
* Giottos Tower : less crowded to climb than The Duomo and
with great views
with great views
*Scuola del Cuoio (here) which is a
leather school. This was a definite highlight of our time in Florence.
You can stroll through the building and see true leather artisans at
work, learning the ins and outs of the trade. The leather they work with
is the best of the best, and you really feel like you are in the presence of
artists. There are photos on the wall of celebrities who have been there.
And, it’s completely free to enter, which is refreshing when you are on a
two week trip where everything, everything, costs money.
leather school. This was a definite highlight of our time in Florence.
You can stroll through the building and see true leather artisans at
work, learning the ins and outs of the trade. The leather they work with
is the best of the best, and you really feel like you are in the presence of
artists. There are photos on the wall of celebrities who have been there.
And, it’s completely free to enter, which is refreshing when you are on a
two week trip where everything, everything, costs money.
* Pizzale Michaelangelo
From there we made our way up the 26742 steps
(or maybe it just seemed that way) to Piazzale Michaelangelo (here). There was a cathedral up at the very
top where we stopped to sit on a bench and just take the glorious view in.
If I had it to do again, you better believe I’d go armed with a book and
a bottle of red.
(or maybe it just seemed that way) to Piazzale Michaelangelo (here). There was a cathedral up at the very
top where we stopped to sit on a bench and just take the glorious view in.
If I had it to do again, you better believe I’d go armed with a book and
a bottle of red.
*Piazza
Santo Spirito for nighttime
Santo Spirito for nighttime
from
Amy : One night we just happened upon the Piazza Santo Spirito when walking
around – definitely a local young person spot to drink outside and really fun
people watching!
Amy : One night we just happened upon the Piazza Santo Spirito when walking
around – definitely a local young person spot to drink outside and really fun
people watching!
*
Ponte Vecchio : the famous bridge, especially romantic at night
Ponte Vecchio : the famous bridge, especially romantic at night
*
Galileo Science Museum : has 3 of his fingers! Telescopes , gadets, inventions
Galileo Science Museum : has 3 of his fingers! Telescopes , gadets, inventions
*Leather
Shopping + Visit The Leather SChool great leather, leather jackets. Rick Steves
has a few places in particular recommended, can get amazing jacket for 250-300.
Shopping + Visit The Leather SChool great leather, leather jackets. Rick Steves
has a few places in particular recommended, can get amazing jacket for 250-300.
*Uffitzi Museum
Food
* I’ Che’ C’e’ C’e Trattoria We got advice from one of
Ryan’s wholesalers who grew up in Florence. It is a MUST! No tourists, except us of course. Off the beaten
path, very cool. Once again our hotel called to make reservations. The balsamic
beef was amazing.
Ryan’s wholesalers who grew up in Florence. It is a MUST! No tourists, except us of course. Off the beaten
path, very cool. Once again our hotel called to make reservations. The balsamic
beef was amazing.
* Il Porcospino – The
Porcupine – Glenn and Angelina’s favorite place
Porcupine – Glenn and Angelina’s favorite place
*
Cibreo (it’s a country club like place that we had to join – I think it
was like 10 euro pp but it was worth it) was another restaurant recommendation
we got from Ryan’s Italian guy. It is family style and they just bring
things out and they bring small dishes to your table. The wine is on tap.
Cibreo (it’s a country club like place that we had to join – I think it
was like 10 euro pp but it was worth it) was another restaurant recommendation
we got from Ryan’s Italian guy. It is family style and they just bring
things out and they bring small dishes to your table. The wine is on tap.
(from
online : Il Cibreo is THE restaurant that you have to go to in Florence; it
ranks as one of our favorites in all of Italy. We prefer the trattoria, over
the more formal ristorante and café across the street (the formal ristorante
& café are very good, but very expensive, and a little stuffy); in
any case, they all use the same kitchen, the only difference being that the
trattoria menu is more limited. Il Cibreo’s menu is based on traditional Tuscan
cooking, before the introduction of pasta. The menu sticks by classic dishes —
e.g., polenta, minestra di pane, pappa al pomodoro — but they are typically
done with concentrated flavors in a more sophisticated way than your typical
Italian restaurant. The secondi are also highly recommended, including their
collo di pollo ripieno (stuffed chicken neck), polpetti di vitella (veal
meatballs), and salsicce con i fagioli (sausage and beans) Note that the
Trattoria does not take reservations, so keep this in mind, because you will
likely have to wait for a bit to be seated.
online : Il Cibreo is THE restaurant that you have to go to in Florence; it
ranks as one of our favorites in all of Italy. We prefer the trattoria, over
the more formal ristorante and café across the street (the formal ristorante
& café are very good, but very expensive, and a little stuffy); in
any case, they all use the same kitchen, the only difference being that the
trattoria menu is more limited. Il Cibreo’s menu is based on traditional Tuscan
cooking, before the introduction of pasta. The menu sticks by classic dishes —
e.g., polenta, minestra di pane, pappa al pomodoro — but they are typically
done with concentrated flavors in a more sophisticated way than your typical
Italian restaurant. The secondi are also highly recommended, including their
collo di pollo ripieno (stuffed chicken neck), polpetti di vitella (veal
meatballs), and salsicce con i fagioli (sausage and beans) Note that the
Trattoria does not take reservations, so keep this in mind, because you will
likely have to wait for a bit to be seated.
* Aqua al Due – * this is where EVERYONE has recommended * You
MUST go here. There will be a wait but order their pasta sampler and blueberry
steak with a bottle of brunello wine, it will fill you up but it is amazing!
MUST go here. There will be a wait but order their pasta sampler and blueberry
steak with a bottle of brunello wine, it will fill you up but it is amazing!
Osteria vini e vecchi sapori – need reservations, amazing tiny hole in the wall!
Le colonnine – quattro formaggio pizza and the
Nutella calzone dessert
Le colonnine – quattro formaggio pizza and the
Nutella calzone dessert
La Fagolio (http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g187895-d1068024-Reviews-Del_Fagioli-Florence_Tuscany.html) and ordered the steak for two. Best meal of my life. I think
it’s cash only and I would highly recommend a reservation. It was
incredible.
it’s cash only and I would highly recommend a reservation. It was
incredible.
*
Il Pizzaiuolo – best pizza ever had, per cupcakes and cashmere
Il Pizzaiuolo – best pizza ever had, per cupcakes and cashmere
Il Cibreo Trattoria: Via dei Macci, 122R;
Ristorante: Via dei Macci 118r; Telephone 055 234 1100; closed Sundays and
Mondays.
Ristorante: Via dei Macci 118r; Telephone 055 234 1100; closed Sundays and
Mondays.
*Perche No! in Florence (here)
voted one of top gelato
places in the world
places in the world
*Il Latini – make a reservation, its about
$45 euro per person but is about 5 courses, includes wine and is delicious
$45 euro per person but is about 5 courses, includes wine and is delicious
* Westin Bar for great views
* Lunch: Trattoria Mario (you sit with
locals, close to Mercato Centrale)
locals, close to Mercato Centrale)
I looked up on the map and this is an 8
minute walk from our hotel
minute walk from our hotel
*Procacci – Wine and Truffle Bar
Tips
* We
walked to the Galleria dell’Accademia (where David is) and instead of waiting
in the crazy lines, we bought tickets for a particular time and went and
explored/had lunch and then came back and got right in at our designated time.
walked to the Galleria dell’Accademia (where David is) and instead of waiting
in the crazy lines, we bought tickets for a particular time and went and
explored/had lunch and then came back and got right in at our designated time.
* We got the Firenze card which I highly recommend. Let’s
you jump the line and get into all of the museums.
you jump the line and get into all of the museums.
* You MUST make reservations in advance (well in advance)
for the Uffizi Gallery especially (and Accademia)
for the Uffizi Gallery especially (and Accademia)
And incase you missed previous Italy Posts:
I am saving this post to come back to! I am dying to go to Italy…Bryce jokes that I'm not allowed, because I would never want to come back home!
I cried on our last night because I didn't want to go back home haha 🙂