What a crowded place! It must be unbearable in the peak summer season. We were constantly elbowed, and knocked off the narrow footpaths by women with their suitcase-sized,well-ladened YSL or Louis Vuiton handbags. It took a lot of effort to keep out of the way of the pedestrians and the vehicles. It is not a place to daydream in.
We walked from the train station to our hostel near the Ponte Vecchio (Old Bridge). The bridge used to be lined with butcher shops but the Medici family couldn't stand the smell so replaced them with goldsmiths. Some of the descendants of the original goldsmiths still work in the jewelery stores today.
The hostel was in a street a few paces from the bridge and was run by an interesting man who originally came from Skopje in Macedonia.
We did what everyone does who comes to Florence, climbed the hill to Piazzale Michelangelo to get an overview of the city. A bronze statue of 'David' kept us company along with dozens of secondary school kids. We enjoyed the warm 16 degree day and feel like we are leaving the cold zone behind at last.
We had a 30 minute wait in the queue to buy tickets for the Uffizi Gallery and then discovered that about 10 of the rooms were closed for restoration. After about 10 marble busts the other thousand became tedious. 250 years ago the Medici family bequeathed their art collection to the city and so there is a lot of religious art and sculptures.
Just as we thought we were out of the cold zone we got winds off the Siberian snow and a 7 degree day. On Sunday we visited several piazzas where the locals had 'bio-gro' produce for sale; olives, pickled peppers, honey, cheese and herbs. In another part of town we saw a puppet show, artists and musicians. Italy is the home of Pinocchio so he was included in the show too.
Recognize the pianist?The children were dressed as story book or movie characters for carnival. They carried huge bags of confetti and streamers which they sprinkled on the ground or over any other dressed-up-character they saw.
Meanwhile the old ladies were airing their furs.
John has been having problems with his ears so has started a course of antibiotics to see if that will clear them. Her damaged ribs are much improved but Lil still cannot lie on her back and extending her left arm is still painful.
