Florence, Italy

My sisters and I spent the last three days exploring the beautiful city of Florence. It is the home of many of the great Renaissance artists, including Leonardo, Michelangelo, and Botticelli, to name a few. But one does by have to be an arts major to appreciate the beauty of Florence. It’s a city that is best experienced through walking it’s streets, consuming its delicious cuisine, and people watching.

We spent my first evening at a little Italian restaurant. As the waiter was pouring wine, one of the girls didn’t drink and said no thanks. Our waiter was so shocked, he took a step aback. But wine is part of the meal! It is part of life! It is good for the body and it makes people happy!

She couldn’t refuse his plea, and agreed to just a bit of wine. 🙂

The next day, I decided to take in the art at the Ufizi gallery of Renaissance art. Unfortunately, I know nothing of art history, and after my 15th Mary and Baby Jesus, I was a little bored. I may have taken a short nap, while resting in one of the chairs in the gallery… What surprised me about the art gallery, was that I found the depiction of nudity of women in many of the Renaissance works was really beautiful. Such a contrast to what I associate with nudity.

After the art gallery, we went to a little pizzeria which was just so delicious! The chefs even made our pizzas in heart shapes!

We spent the afternoon sauntering through the royal gardens, which was one of my favorite parts of Florence. The garden is huge and it was not so meticulously groomed that it looked like it tried too hard, but was still beautiful. I may have taken a few naps just lying on the grass, listening to the trickling of the water fountain, and enjoying the sweet floral scents.

This beautiful sunset across the river was a beautiful way to remember my time in Florence.