Day 1: Florence, Italy

Our morning started out strong with breakfast. Now, I haven't talked much about the breakfasts in Europe, but they are definitely not the same as the US. There are a lot of cold meats and cheeses, vegetables (cucumbers for breakfast is a bold choice), pastry's, and breads. In all locations, Nutella was a staple. I'm not a huge breakfast eater to begin with, but nothing looked appetizing except for the pastries. It was a good thing I brought protein bars with me. That helped. And before I forget, no Diet Coke on the breakfast menu in Italy (in fact, no soft drinks were available).

We scheduled a private walking tour of Florence. Hands down, hiring a private guide in every city was worth it. Florence was no different. Our tour guide spent 5 hours with us, walking us all around the city, ending up at arguably the most famous "stone" in the city. 

Here we go:

San Gaetano Church

Piazza della Repubblica square

A local leather shop.

Ponte Vecchio

I mean, the scenery is mind blowing.

Palazzo Vecchio

Fun fact, the tower of the building is not centered. Also, the faces on the statues are of the artist. As our tour guide said, imagine the ego of the sculptor , Benvenuto Cellini, who wanted people to believe that he was Medusa and Neptune.

 

Rachel and I also became obsessed with the art painted onto the walls of these buildings.

Basilica of Santa Croce

What was fascinating about this church was the incorporation of the Star of David (which is not something you see in design of Catholic churches).

The workshop/home of Michelangelo.

We passed by a family-owned jewelry shop. They made the jewelry for the Oscar-nominated film, Conclave. The pieces in person are stunning. If you. have had a chance to see the movie, I'd highly recommend making the time to see it.

The Duomo

The Gallery, and the star of the show. 

I almost cried when we turned the corner and saw David. To be in the same room with one of the most recognizable pieces of art was overwhelming. I'm glad we were there in the offseason because we could get up close. Plus, we could see it from every angle with a live soundtrack from our tour guide.

Did you know that David had to be repaired at one point? Well, if you look really hard you can see the "screw" that was used to put him back together. As our guide said, this was a crude fix and not done to historical accuracy, but it got the job done.

And one more angle.

But the one thing I needed to accomplish in Florence had to happen here. I don't think I could have come home if I could not complete the task.

Our tour guide brought us to a restaurant that served traditional Florentine dishes (something we asked for) and it was good (and an adventure).

Now these traditional spreads, including duck liver, raw sausage, and pork fat, were more than we could handle. Rachel is more adventurous than I am, but she would not eat all four. I tried all four, but we did not finish this. 

Rachel and I absolutely fell in love with Ribollita, a traditional Florentine vegetable bread "soup." The consistency to me was more like stuffing, but this was a two thumbs up for us.

This porchetta and potato dish was also two thumbs up.

We headed back to the hotel for a quick bathroom break and headed out again to explore the city on our own. 

We made our way back to a leather market who saw earlier in the day located between the Piazza della Repubblica square and Ponte Vecchio. From there, we made our way to the other side of the city to visit the "famous" leather market (where we were harassed by every vendor - "it's almost free" they kept telling us) and the Florence Market (you know I'm a sucker for a market).

We found out the market closes at 3 p.m. each day and we arrived at about 2:55 p.m. We made our way around the market, but didn't see a whole lot. However we found a family-owned balsamic vinegar business and the fifth generation was more than happy to have us come taste test their product. This was an awesome experience. We tasted years old (oldest 45 years old) and different flavor profiles (apple, wine, and truffle). We met "Mom" - and she was exactly what you'd think an Italian Mom would be. They liked that we were from Chicago because they had friends from Chicago that stayed at their other business - the family home in the countryside is an Airbnb. 

We wrapped up our tour of the city by stopping at the wine cellar in our hotel basement (which was nothing more than a "machine" that dispensed wine. But we can say we visited it once). We needed a rest before our evening event. 

But wait, another door (I fell in love with the doors in Europe).

Starting the night out strong with another glass of wine. What I will say about the wine in Europe is that it does not give me a stuffed up nose. I now know I'm allergic to tannins in wine, which makes it difficult for me to drink wine. No problem in Europe!

Next up...

...pizza making!

And gelato!

Rachel and I even passed - with honors - and received a diploma!

This was so much fun. First, both of these delicious foods is made from very simple ingredients. The crust is flour and water. That's it. We learned that there are different crusts depending on the region in Italy you are in. Ours, cracker thin. Also did you know that Pizza was actually invented in Florence. By an engineer no less. It was an engineer of a building site that needed to feed dignitaries something unique and he came up with Pizza. Now the first known trademark registration for Pizza was in New York (brother who came to the US from Florence). Gelato has more milk than cream and is heated/stirred at a smaller rate than ice cream. Honestly it is the best Gelato I've ever had. In fact, we got a lesson in what to look for at Gelato shops. Our chef told us that most Gelato shops in Italy are actually serving ice cream (because of the taste preferences of tourists) so it is hard to spot a good one if you don't know the tricks. Here are a few places our chef recommended in Florence for good Gelato (other than ours, of course).

The class was intimate and very hands on. In fact, a couple from Kuwait were the only other participants in the class that night. I would highly recommend an experience like this one if you are in Florence any time soon (they also had a Pasta making class too).

 We walked back to the hotel, making our way past the Duomo (which I wanted to see at night). Look at this pasta!

But the absolute best part was hearing "Sara Perche ti amp" from the musician playing in the square.I've seen a number of videos on social media where in the summer - at midnight - people gather at the Duomo to sing this song. The title translate to "it must be because I love you."

What a great first day in Florence.