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Published: February 23rd 2013
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Hello loyal fans,
I'm back from my travels to Florence & Pisa. We were lucky with the weather as it was nice sunny, unlike here where it is still snowing (seriously how much snow can one country take?). The day before I left for Florence was Valentine's day, so I enjoyed a nice romantic lunch at the local Birrerria with Kasia. Her boyfriend was in France for work, so we were the Lonely Hearts Club.
The next morning at some stupid time I took the train from Feltre to Florence. In only 3 hours and 20 minutes I had arrived. My next challenge was to find the apartment we'd rented and check-in. I got so lost and the most annonying thing was it turned out only to be a 5 minute walk from the station (typical)! After I'd eventually checked-in, I met my mum at the station, as she had to take a bus from Pisa airport to the centre of Florence.
In the afternoon we explored the city and found a big market (San Lorenzo street market), where I bought a leather jacket for 120 Euros and 2 leather belts for 25 Euros each, so I was
a very happy bunny. We also discovered the Ponte Vecchio bridge which is one big row of jewellery shops and the Palazzo Vecchio, an old palace. While we were walking we had some gelato as it was nice and sunny.
We then did some more random walking about to get our bearings and by this time it was quite late so we decided to look for somewhere to eat. We wanted pizza so we had a look around to find a good deal. One waiter came outside and was talking to me, so my mum decides to comment on this by saying: "he's nice for you!" (Aww Jewish mothers, gotta love 'em!). We finished the day with a glass of prosecco in bed whilst watching BBC News (rock & roll!)
On the second day we decided to visit Michelangelo's David. Again my fantastic map reading skills managed to get us stupendously lost. However, 2 hours later we had arrived! It costs 6.50 Euros to enter the gallery, but once you're in you can see everything inside and there is also a small music museum in there as well. I was surprised how tall David was, I thought he
would be life size! The detail was amazing, even down to the veins in his hands.
After this we went to see the Duomo, a very big Cathedral which has a beautifully painted ceiling inside it and is free to enter. After lunch we did a bit more shopping and then went to visit Porcellino. Il Porcellino ('the piglet'😉 is located in Mercato Nuovoin. What you have to do to guarantee your return to Florence, is put a coin in his mouth so it falls through the grate below for good luck, and then rub the boar's snout. This expereince was ruined a bit because of the tramp hanging around trying to snatch up any stray coins. I was actually quite angered by this, which is why I look grumpy in the photo! That night we enjoyed a nice mushroom risotto and spritz (an aperitif consisting of wine, sparkling water, and liqueur) and I introduced my mum to tiramisu.
The following day we got up early to take the train for 45 minutes to Pisa, to visit the famous leaning tower. It was boiling hot when we arrived, so we sat on the steps of the tower and
ate our packed lunch. After this it was 'let's be a tourist and take photos of ourselves looking like we're touching the tower time.' There's not much to do in Pisa to be honest, so after a quick walk in the centre we took the train back to Florence. The centre of Florence was so busy when we returned, I was surprised as it was a Sunday and the other days it was nowhere near as bad as this. I introduced my mum to gnocchi, which we had for dinner, followed by profiteroles.
The next day it was time to return to Feltre, we had one last wander round in the morning and then stopped for a last plate of spagetti before I put mum on the bus back to the airport. Then I had to take the train again, however my first train was 25 minutes late (the trains in Italy are late all the time!), so I missed my connection and had to wait an hour for another one (grrrr). Not a great end to the holiday!
Nevertheless, I had a lovely weekend. Florence is a small but beautiful city and I would recommend it to
anyone wanting a short break away. We rented a little apartment in the centre for 60 Euros a night and it can sleep up to 4 people. I would definitely recommend doing this as it was so cheap. We self-catered breakfast and lunch to make it cheaper, plus you get more space and privacy than staying in a hotel. I found it by chance by googling 'cheap place to stay in Florence,' but here is the official website - www.housetrip.com
The family are back from the Maldives nice and brown. I'm trying not to stand too close to them, for fear of being attacked by the Ghost Busters!! I've handed in my notice here now, so only 3 weeks and 6 days to go (but who's counting?).
Hope you are all well and see you soon (well, in 3 weeks and 6 days anyway).
Love from,
Soph
XxX
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