Red Hot Florence (Pre-tour days + tour days 1 - 3)
A marble throne
Under the shadow of a stately Pile,
The dome of Florence, pensive and alone,
Nor giving heed to aught that passed the while,
I stood, and gazed upon a marble stone,
The laurelled Dante’s favourite seat. A throne,
William Wordsworth, Memorials of a Tour in Italy 1837
First stop: Florence. We land in Florence on the Friday before our Rick Steves tour begins and spend three wonderful pre-tour days immersed in the city of Florence. We have a long list of "must-see" things to do, but the Uffizi Gallery is front and center. Closed on Mondays (and not included on the RS Tour itinerary) we pre-purchase tickets for Sunday.
When we arrive we find the Uffizi Museum gluttonously rich in treasures, stunning, and crowded. It's overwhelming without a qualified guide to show us the way. We consider plugging into Rick Steves' audio tour, but we want to chat while we tour, too. Plus, I'm certain a long ago art history class qualifies me to lead us through (Not!). We end up using the flow of the crowds as a beacon to the most important artworks. We ogle Botticelli's 'Birth of Venus', Caravaggio’s 'Medusa', and da Vinci's 'Annunciation’ (to name just a few). Within a few hours we are dazzled and sated. It's not until later that we truly understand the benefits of having a friendly, knowledgable guide to lead us.(Tip: Ignore Rick Steves' travel advice at your peril).
During our after-tour time at the Uffizi roof-top cafe, we order coffee-topped gelato (my new favorite) and enjoy the incredible view of Florence spread out before us. We're off to a fabulous start!
Homebase Hotels
Rita Jean & I experience many "firsts" on our trip. First time away from the U.S, first time visiting a country where the language and culture is foreign to us, etc. Our biggest first is being on a Rick Steves tour. It's exciting and we can't wait, but it's a bit scary, too. We've never trusted anyone to plan a trip like this for us. Of particular importance: the cleanliness and quality of our lodging.
During my own trip planning, I've gone with in-the-comfort-zone hotel choices. Rick Steves shows me a better way. Our tour hotels are clean, comfortable, and charming. Welcome-to-the-family charming. All meet a high standard of service (old-fashioned, personal attention), with a dash of pizzazz. In fact, virtually all of the hotels we have the pleasure of calling home (if only temporarily) turn out to be an experience unto themselves.
Rita Jean's never-met-a-stranger personality means we make immediate friends among the friendly, helpful staff. In particular, our bartender and all around man-about-the- hotel, Superman, becomes a friend. In the bar each evening he queues up dreamy playlists, salty and sweet snacks, and mixes the perfect gin and tonic with a playful sense of humor. We spend some seriously fun time here. Cin-cin!
Our first "homebase" hotel is the Hotel Cellai. Located in the heart of our Florence, the small boutique hotel is everything and more we want in a hotel. Each morning we look forward to the breakfast buffet and each morning it is fresh, plentiful and terrific.
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After a hard day of touring, the hotel is a haven that offers a variety of small, comfortable niches scattered about. At one point or another, we tuck into every single one.
