Florence

Hi readers! The past two days in Florence have been amazing days full of walking and pizza. Yesterday, we explored the Duomo and all that entails. It is actually a really great deal, you pay 10 euros for a ticket that let's you climb the dome, go to the Duomo museum, go into the baptistery, climb the bell tower and go into the crypt. Sadly, we didn't get to everything- we only did the cathedral, crypt, bell tower, and baptistery, but it was definitely worth the ten euros. Going into the Duomo itself is amazing because it is so beautifully decorated and is an architectural feat. I would recommend going during the week instead of the weekend because it's not as crowded. From there we went into the crypt where you can see remains of previous churches and buildings on this same site. It was very cool to see how this church has grown and how Florence has developed through history. 

Then, we went to the baptistery. The most famous part of the baptistery is the carved doors, but they are currently being cleaned and restored. However don't let this discourage you because the interior ceiling mosaics are some of the most stunning mosaics I have ever seen! Definitely worth the ten euro ticket. 

Finally from here, we climbed the baptistery. I would really recommend doing this even over climbing the done because the lines are shorter and you get the same views that you would get from the dome, but the dome is in your pictures. A little word to the wise, there is no elevator, you walk to the top using the original stairs. It is a little squishy but doable. The faint of heart might want to skip going all the way to the top because the last flight required us to cling to the walls as we slid past people. This is also not for people unwilling to climb the 414 steps it takes to get to the top. On the other hand, coming from someone terrified of heights, this was an unforgettable experience and the views were amazing. 


Other than the Duomo, yesterday we just chilled, napped, people watched and ate pizza. We did try something new at dinner though called coccoli. Basically it's pizza dough prepared like beignets but with salt instead of sugar and served with prosciutto and cheese. It was absolutely marvelous.

Today, Jill and I decided to be part of team early bird aka wake up at the butt crack of dawn, forget yesterday was daylight savings so only get five hours of sleep, and go to the Academia to see Michelangelo's David. It was all worth it though, because we didn't have to wait in line for tickets and the museum wasn't busy at all! The David of course was amazing, but the rest of the museum was a little disappointing. It was a lot of beautiful medieval art, but it was like the museum was trying to make sure David wasn't overshadowed by any of the other are. Obviously a must see for the David, but not a three hour affair.

From the Academia, we decided to cross the river and walk up to the Basilica San Miniato al Monte. It was quite a long walk and up a steep hill with a lot of stairs so definitely not for the faint of heart, but the view from the top of the hill over the city was fantastic. It was absolutely breathtaking! After our walk, we were very ready for pizza lunch, which lead to siesta and some work time before a lovely dinner. Tomorrow,we are going to Sienna and then Pisa and finally to Seville on Tuesday! XO

Just some of the delicious pizza I have eaten while here.