On to Florence!

Our last day in Rome, before we caught a train to Florence.  This famous Michelangelo was tucked away in a church just one block away from our bed and breakfast.  Entrance to the church was free, but you could put a .50 Euro coin in a box that would illuminate the artwork for a minute.  Look closely at the figure of Moses in the center.  He has horns.

 After this visit, and a short trip to the National Museum of Rome (where no cameras were allowed) we caught our train to Florence.  As a side note, the trains were fantastic.  Clean, fast, easy.  I would love to see something similar in the US.  High speed rail is awesome.

Once we got checked in at our room in Florence we had few hours to kill.  So naturally, we got some cannoli.

Our first evening in Florence we were registered for a basic cooking class.  Nothing fancy, just pizza and gellato.  I would love to go back and take the full day class, but this worked out great for us.  The class normally seats 15-20, but being off-peak season, there were are grand total of 3 of us, not including the chef.  It really made it fun and easy.  Really low key.

Enjoying the fruits of our labors.

This was breakfast every morning.  You could do worse.

The famous Ponte Vecchio (Old Bridge) in Florence.  The most interesting fact about this bridge is that it is over 600 years old while all of the other bridges in Flornence that span that Arno river aren't a day over 70.  When the Germans retreated through Florence in 1944 they destroyed every other bridge along the river, and yet for some reason, spared this one.  The others have since been rebuilt, while the original Ponte Vecchio still stands.

My favorite meal of the entire trip.  Tagliatelle pasta with wild boar ragout.  Soooo good.

This is what every street in Florence looks like.  Every single one.

We had some time to kill before the Opera, so we found another gelateria.  Naturally.

We had tickets to a performance of La Traviata at St Mark's Anglican church in Florence.  This was a fantastic way to experience our first opera.  An intimate setting (sitting 15 feet away from the performers) with each act described in advance in English.  It was really amazing.

The four performers and their accompanying pianist.   From their website: According to their website these are ..."professional opera singers in full costume, chosen from the best Opera Houses in the area, and accompanied by one of our top virtuoso pianists."

Day 2 of Florence meant a we were headed out on a museum blitz.  First up was the Uffizi (the largest, most impressive, and most overwhelming of all the museums in Florence),

Next we went to the Accademia (home to the original David)  David was more impressive in real life than any photo could convey.  I have seen countless photos of it over the years and I still had no idea it was so big.

Finally we wandered into the Meseo dell'Opera del Duomo.  This was the only one that allowed cameras, which means you get to enjoy this photos of Miranda admiring one of Michelangelo's unfinished pietas.

Miranda in the Piazza della Signoria.  Beautiful plaza.  Beautiful girl.

And finally, after all that work, we get dinner.  This was the appetizer sampler plate.  I don't know what most of this stuff us.  Some of it was delicious, and some of it was not edible.  I guess that's how you know it's authentic: when you can tell it's designed to be enjoyed be an entirely different palate.