A visit to Florence makes sure that we remember that we have definitely arrived in the land of the De Medicis under the Tuscan sun. Do forgive us for all the mixed metaphors, but we had finally arrived in Florence! Here was a city choc-a-bloc with history, romance and culture. Any itinerary to Italy should include Florence, which is located in the Tuscany region of Italy.
Florence is a short train ride from Rome of about 1 hour 32 minutes and a rail ticket is about 19 Euros. As for lodging, the best way to stay in Rome, and here Florence, is to stay in shared apartments and soak in life as a local. Rents start as low as 12 to 13 Euros and then go up. Searching is easy through one of Europe’s more popular apartment specialist like GoWithOh.
While the city of Florence is quite small (it can be completed explored in 3 days), it is a treasure trove for seekers of history and culture. This endeavour is sweetened by several gelatos on the go. Other food include the standard Italian fare of pizzas and pastas.
Beginning the exploration with a walk form Lungarno (the road that goes along the river) to Viale G. Poggi was recommended by Jenna Fransico’s blog. We took it as guidline in our visit to Florence and found it quite helpful. Then we visited the Piazzale Michelangelo. After that was visit to the church of San Miniato al Monte. Built in 1080, this is one of the oldest church in Florence and history seeps out from it. Beautiful mosaics and other examples of Romanesque architecture are a delight.
A visit to the Palazzo Strozzi museum is highly recommended. Exhibits include old and contemporary art and other artifacts and the Ferenze card also helps in entry to various other museums. After that a walk by the River Arno would not be amiss. It has one of the oldest rowing clubs built in 1888 next to Ponte Vecchio. The bridge of Ponte Vecchio was believed to be originally built by the Romans but the contemporary one was built in 1935. A serenity surrounds the walkers here despite being quite crowded by tourists. Sunrise and sunset views from the bridge are amazing.
After that is the visit to the Bell Tower or Giotto’s Campanile for a bird’s eye view of Florence. From there one can see (and later visit the Duomo). The dome of the Duomo (the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore) that dominates Florence, Italy is one of the oldest in the world and is a wonderful example of Renaissance architecture. After that is a visit to the church of Santa Maria Novell. After paying the entry fee of 3 Euros, one receives a treat of Renaissance art.
A visit to the Boboli gardens is also a must. On a sunny day it is definitely picture postcard perfect example of Tuscany. Then came the Barlini Garden and the Pazzi chapel. While other tours continued the next day, our Florence visit was definitely fulfilled the promise of a wonderful visit that it had been touted as.
