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Published: January 19th 2007
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Duomo
From about halfway up the adjacent tower The early morning train ride from Siena to Florence was quick and easy. Florence's station was bustling with activity, even on Christmas, and so we had to thread our way through the throng to emerge onto the sunny streets of Florence. It didn't take long to get to the hotel this time -- the correct map helped! We dropped off our stuff and set off to find some grub. It being Christmas, there wasn't much open beyond the trusty kebab shops. It took some persuading, but I managed to get mom and Patience into one of the more promising ones. I hadn't had a good kebab in a couple weeks, and it really hit the spot. Mom was a bit skeptical, but she seemed to come around, and Patience enjoyed her falafel.
Stuffed, we set off to explore Florence a bit. The Duomo was stunning, especially in the afternoon sunlight. Our wandering eventually took us over to the river as it was starting to get dark, which we crossed and worked our way through a medieval neighborhood for a bit before turning back towards the hotel. I really liked the feel of Florence -- much nicer to walk around in
than Rome. I never felt like I needed to watch my back like I often did in Rome.
The next day we had an early breakfast and headed out into the frosty air to get to the Uffizi museum in time for our 915 reservations. We picked up the tickets without any trouble and headed inside, bypassing a small line. I guess this really is the off season; the reservations were totally unnecessary. The museum had some cool art -- notably Birth of Venus, but I just wasn't in the mood for room after room of religious works, and so I found it to be a bit tiring. I ended up leaving mom and Patience and heading back to the hotel early. I stopped at the kebab place and grabbed a falafel, which was even better than the kebab! I used the internet a bit until they got back. Mom's cold was getting worse, and so Patience and I took off and left her to rest.
We headed over to see the dull interior (at least it was free) of the Duomo and then climbed the adjacent tower for some spectacular views over Florence. It was a slow,
David
The copy... somewhat claustrophobic climb up the progressively narrower staircase, but it was worth it. I can't imagine trying to climb the thing in the summer when it's hot and packed with people, though. Afterwards we headed back to the hotel and hung out for a bit before going to a nearby Chinese restaurant for dinner. I was pleasantly surprised with the food, which was good and cheap, and the 660mL Tsing Tao didn't hurt either.
The next morning we got up early once again, this time to make it to the Galleria Dell'Accademia for our 915 reservations. Hardly anyone was there when we arrived, so we didn't even bother picking up the reserved tickets and saved 9 euros in the process. As far as I'm concerned (and I think most tourists share this opinion) the museum has only one attraction -- David. And it really is quite the attraction, although I was a bit let down since I had already seen the copy near the Duomo. Unfortunately, there wasn't much else to hold our interest, and so we were soon on our way. Patience and mom wanted to do a walking tour, but first we all headed off to find
Duomo
Looking up at the dome an english book store listed in the LP. When we got to the book store there was a sign saying it had recently moved to a new location near the Duomo. So, Patience and mom set off to do the tour while I went to find the new location. It wasn't too hard to find and I ended up getting a Bill Bryson book as well as a birthday present for Patience.
I took the books back to the hotel and spent the better part of the afternoon reading
Down Under, which chronicles Bryson's travels through Oz. It was easy to get in to and I was thoroughly engrossed when Patience and mom returned a couple hours later. When they got back I was recruited to take Patience to see a couple more churches, of which only Santa Maria Novella was really interesting. We didn't do much else that evening other than grabbing some pizza for dinner and walking through the pretty shopping district packed with Italians and tourists alike.
That's it for Italy, stay tuned for Interlaken.
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