Firenze
Klaus JonesAugust 8th, 2009 at 7:44 am
Florence, Florence, Florence. Where to begin.
We traveled from Cinque Terre, risking the rickety chaos that is Tren Italia, and made our way in relative comfort to Firenze Centrale. Following instructions emailed in fractured English we discovered our hostel for the evening and promptly went searching for dinner. The hostel owner had recommended a place slightly out of the mainstream for us to try, so we wandered past the Duomo to indulge ourselves in Italian gastronomy.
Once seated, this cozy restaurant wasn’t quite what we’d expected. Ordering was less a matter of choice and more of memory and reflex, as the waiter rapidly spoke out the menu from memory required immediate replies. There was an unlimited supply of bread and wine, but not water. The wide variety of desserts on the menu – the only thing actually ON a menu – looked delicious, but were unfortunately but a distraction; the only desserts actually available were, once again, off memory. Thankfully, the restaurant’s foibles didn’t detract from the experience, rather complementing the entire evening. The food was superb, and well priced – 10 Euro for a 3 course meal.
Throughout the 5 days we spent in Firenze we dabbled in many different foods, spending an afternoon grazing our way through the food market, trying all the cheeses, meats and wines available, not to mention the countless varieties of ice cream we indulged in. Many hours were spent in the various markets we found, most notably the leather markets, rife with pick-pockets and imitation goods, bargaining less an option and more a necessity for one to avoid being completely fleeced.
Not the cleanest of cities, the garbage trucks in Firenze seemed to empty dumpsters and bins into their trays, then drive around and redistribute the trash throughout the city, ensuring the level of scunge remained constant citywide. Wanting to see some other locales, Steve and I journeyed to Prato one evening to party with the Corona Promotional team. Drinking till well into the morn, we ran into a high school mate Ollie, also doing a euro-trip. On that note, on our last night in Firenze, partying on the roof of our hostel, we ran into Laura Baker, another Elthamite. Small world.
The classic trips to the Duomo, Ponte Veccio, Pisa, and many others, were made, but the atmosphere of Firenze was the selling point, not the sights.
While 5 days were plenty to see the sights, I could have spent many more enjoying the nightlife. Seeing how we are living off a (frequently broken) budget however, we packed our bags and headed to Rome, which is a entire different story.
And don’t forget to check out Florence Photos, Prato Photos and Pisa Photos