Florence in May

We flew from London Heathrow to Pisa arriving around lunchtime. There are shuttles buses running regularly into the main town of Pisa. We boarded one to take us to the main railway station, where we were due to catch a train to Florence. As we had a while to wait for our train, we found somewhere to have a bite to eat for lunch. We sat outside, then the weather took a turn for the worse. The staff put up very large umbrellas rapidly, four of them, but the rain was so heavy it fell through between the umbrellas! We managed to keep relatively dry, though my sandaled feet did get a little wet from the water trickling down past us.

I had brought my trusty pink umbrella with me, so managed the short walk to the station without getting too wet. The journey to Florence took about an hour. The train was very popular but we managed to get seats.

Arriving at Florence we walked to our hotel. Unfortunately we had discussed several different hotels before booking, but we went with my choice (being the Travel Agent!!). My husband was looking for a different hotel (not having checked the paperwork) so this meant we saw more of Florence, dragging our small cases, than we had intended. I thought he knew where we going, as he has a much better sense of direction than I have. We eventually arrived at the correct hotel. It was very nice and we could hear the bells ringing out from the Duomo, the large beautiful Cathedral. It was a lot bigger and more impressive than I expected.

The receptionist was very good and advised us the room we had reserved could be a little dark. She took us to see this room and also a higher grade one. We decided to upgrade and were very pleased we did.

A friend recommended we visit the Uffizi Gallery, suggested it was a good idea to go early in the morning. We pre-booked a time slot the day before. We didn’t have to queue. The museum is on more than one floor. There are lots of steps up to the first floor. Not being as fit as I maybe should be, I was slower and slower the higher I went. There are arrangements that can be made for disabled clients who wish to look around the Gallery. It was very interesting, although a lot of the paintings were very similar in content and many were religious but still beautiful. Lots of marble statues as well. There was one small room dedicated to Leonardo da Vinci, which was very busy. It took some time to view the drawings and the paintings in this room but it was worth the wait.

Florence has several squares. We visited the Piazza Della Signoria Square, stopping to have a drink (this was more expensive than in other parts of the city). This square was our means of getting from one part of Florence to another. We had a meal in a restaurant in the shadow of the Duomo. Another time we went to a small café and had a lovely meal. There are lots of little places in Florence to have a snack or just a drink of hot chocolate or maybe even a glass of wine!

A must see is the Ponte Vecchio, built across the river at the River Arno’s narrowest part, with shops all along the bridge. Quite a few of the shops sold jewellery. It does get very crowded on the bridge and on the riverside walk up to the bridge. One view from the bridge was along the river and the many other bridges crossing the water.

One afternoon we walked up a steep hill to the Boboli Gardens on the outskirts of Florence, where you get a nice view overlooking city, the Cathedral and the red roofs of houses.

Just one word of warning. It seems that I have become allergic to mosquito bites over the last couple of years, reacting to the bites in an unpleasant way. This first happened to me in Cyprus, but I never gave it a thought as I was in a city. The local chemist said British people were always being affected by mosquito bites!

We stayed for one night in Pisa so we could see the Leaning Tower of Pisa. We walked from the station area to the Tower, about a mile. It took us about half an hour. There are many other buildings in the area and a large grassy park, where families were eating picnics or just sun bathing. I was surprised (though I shouldn't have been!) by the number of people taking photos of others looking as if they were pushing the tower over or appearing to be trying to hold it up.

If you're interested in exploring all that Florence has to offer, call me to discuss your next adventure.