Florence, Day 1

This weekend was perfect. I loved all of the art, culture, and scenery that Florence had to offer. I would definitely put this beautiful city at the number one spot on my list of places to travel. I wish I could live there for part of my life.

Thursday we caught Alberto's bus, which took us directly from campus to the Prato Centrale bus station (4 hours). I traveled this weekend with Danielle (KU), Katie (KU) and Maria (UARK). We got a cheap train ticket to Florence Centrale (about 20 minutes away from Prato) and made it to Florence around 6pm. Danielle had booked us a room in Hotel Veneto for 3 nights. It was SO cheap, 12.37 euros each for 3 nights (total about 37 euro each) and I couldn't believe how we lucked out. There was a double bed and a separate room with two single beds. We also got a private bathroom, which is rare in hostels. The place served a free breakfast of breads, jams, and coffee, which also saved us money. The place wasn't a palace, but all we needed was a place to sleep and keep our stuff.

Thursday night we found an authentic Italian buffet, Il Pirata, close by. I had read about it in a Rick Steve's travel book and thought it sounded interesting. It was DELICIOUS, and also extremely cheap. It was all you could eat with a water for 7 euro or with a soda for 7.50. This is a great price when compared to pizzas and meals at most places, especially when water and other drinks are charged for a separate amount of at least 2 euro each. The food was a variety of meats, pastas, cheeses, vegitables, and breads. Absolutely delicious and a nice change from the generic pizzas I always get to save money. The place had a really local feel to it, and the owner was very kind.

We planned to hit all the museums on Friday to try and beat the weekend crowds, so we decided to walk around the city Thursday night and just get a feel of the new streets and landmarks. One thing about Florence that really surprised us all was how small it actually is. We could navigate from our hotel (which was more north of the main streets) to the southern landmarks of the city (the Duomo and various piazzas) very quickly. The duomo at night was so beautiful. There are giant piazzas, or plazas/squares everywhere with many statues and fountains. It is a great way to observe the social life of the locals. Florence has many art schools with art students coming from all over the world to study. At any given time you can find a number of them in the piazzas sketching the scenery. Very cool.

Friday morning we ate our free breakfast and set out early to the Uffizi Gallery to beat the crowds. On the way, we passed through the Piazza Signoria, where the David replica and many other statues are located. The Piazza was beutiful in the morning sun, and I got some great pictures. We took pictures with the David replica because we knew we would not be allowed to take pictures of the real thing later. The Uffizi is home to Botticelli's "The Birth of Venus" and "Primavera", Caravaggio's "Medusa", and Leonardo da Vinci's unfinished "Adoration of the Magi". We only had to wait in line for about 45 minutes, and the cost for the entire museum was 6.50 euros. It was two levels and HUGE. We spent a good 3 hours there. After the Uffizi, we ate lunch at Osteria de' Peccatori near the Piazza San Firenze, where I got a pineapple and prosciutto pizza. Very delicious.

After lunch, we made our way to the Duomo (Dome). We were allowed into the church for free and of course it was absolutely breautiful. The structure of the entire building is phenominal and I can't imagine having to build, sculpt, or paint it. We decided to pay 8 euro to walk the 463 steps to the top of the dome. We met a man from London on the way up the tiny spiraling staircase and he was very entertaining. It actually surprised me how fast we made it to the top, and the stairs were definitely worth it. We had a 360 degree view of all of Florence and much of the distant hill towns of the region.

After the Duomo, we went to the Accademia Gallery to see Michealangelo's David. This museum was 10 euros, a little more pricey, but we went there late enough (6pm) that there was no line at all so we just walked right in. I was looking at some paintings and found myself in an open hallway, directly opposite the statue. I actually gasped because I was so shocked at the magnificence of the piece. I honestly didn't think it would be so large. The detail is so breathtaking as well... the muscles looked so natural and even the veins were visible in his hands. I just sat on a bench and stared the entire time we were there. I realy didn't look at the rest of the museum (it closed at 6:50) but I didn't mind. I was completely captivated. I hope you will all have the opportunity one day to see the statue for yourself, if you haven't already.

As we made our way back to our hostel, Danielle and Maria saw a serial killer exhibit and wanted to go. Katie and I were definitely not into that, so we all ate some cheap McDonald's and parted ways. Katie and I went back to the hostel to rest and get ready for the night out. When the others got back, they got ready and we went out to the Fish Pub, a place we had received a flyer for earlier in the day. The bar was great, with really cheap shot specials. Three Italian guys asked us to sit with them so we did, but only one of them could speak broken English. It was pretty entertaining trying to communicate. They bought us drinks but then we got up to dance and lost them. Some American guys asked us to go to a dance club called "Twice" and we went outside but ended up talking to a group of Italian guys instead. They were hilarious and from Naples, visiting Florence for the weekend. Katie and I decided to go to Twice with them while Maria and Danielle went back to the hostel. It was a really entertaining night. Italian men are very very very VERY blunt if they like you. I have never gotten so much attention in my life. I had to swat a few hands away but other than that I had a great time meeting people. Katie and I made it back to the hostel around 3:30 and slept very well.

I will write about Day 2 in my next post! Pictures should be up soon!