We'll Always Have Florence

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Florence, what a place to end a European adventure! Elyse and I traveled to Florence for a day and a half to wrap up our 11 weeks of European adventures, from London to Zurich, Dublin and Munich, we have traveled Western Europe and loved every minute of it! Florence, a short train ride from Venice, was our last stop and we were excited to see the art and Tuscany scenery. We arrived mid afternoon Friday and immediately went to the Accademia to the hottie with a body, David- and boy was he good looking! Michelangelo’s David is such an artistic icon, and obviously we had both studied him in many of our art history classes. But what I did not expect was his sheer size! As we walked into this huge, domed room, David rose above us, placed on a large pedestal, and stood 5 meters tall. He was magnificent- perfectly sculpted and beautiful in every way. There was something enchanting about him and I think Elyse and I both developed a slight crush 😊

After our visit to the Accadamia, we headed over to explore the Duomo, and get a workout climbing up to the top of the Dome. Let me say, it was an experience!!! The climb itself was pretty entertaining, as we traveled through twisting and winding caverns that looked like we were in a cave. We climbed up zillions (ok, slight exaggeration!) of stairs that were ridiculously steep and somewhat claustrophobic. We were able to walk around the inside of the Dome, so we were up close and personal with the huge frescos…it was amazing! By the time we got to the very top and had a beautiful view of the city as the sun was setting, we were sweating profusely and completely out of breath- but it was so worth it! The view was awesome as the sun was setting and Elyse and I reflected on our time in Europe together...we'll always have Florence!

The next day we went shopping around the markets and bought tons of souvenirs and gifts! We went out to the Ponte Vecchio and saw a wonderful view of the city and Tuscany- so pretty! We spent the rest of the day shopping and Elyse got her leather boots, and they’re amazing!!! We took a train home that night, but we absolutely loved ending our trip in Florence and now are ready to head home to Indiana for Christmas time!

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