Florence, Saturday, 9/10/22: Let the Medici Games Begin
Out of our hotel early, our first stop is the nearby Piazza San Marco. We tour the Church of San Marco and afterward the museum & convent (Museo di San Marco). The library and cloisters are an unexpected delight.
After lunch we tour the Basilica di San Lorenzo, and then it's on to the Medici Chapel entrance. It's locked. We just miss the last entry time of 2:00 pm. Disappointing to be sure (I'm a HUGE Michelangelo fan) but there is always tomorrow. Instead, we go over to the Santa Maria Novella complex to wile away the rest of our afternoon.
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After a long day of touring, we're both starving. We ask the hotel for a recommendation and they like the family-owned, Ristorante Cafaggi which opens in a mere ten minutes. We go and are embarrassing early (we-are-the-only people-there early). The slightly bemused owner recommends the ossobuco and I can't resist. It's awesome and rich and too much, and I love it. We waddle back to the hotel and park ourselves at the hotel bar, enjoying Superman's playlist, drinks & snacks, and his company for the remainder of the evening.
Florence, Sunday, 9/11/22: Uffizi, Medici Chapels
The Uffizi Museum is a bit of a walk (almost to the Arno River) so we leave the hotel early to ensure we arrive well before our assigned entry time. We arrive with time to spare and stroll around the Piazza della Signoria spending most of our time at the Loggia de' Lanzi (shown above) where the riches are so vast, and the images so mesmerizing that a turn of the head is all that's required to see another piece of magnificent art. We almost miss our ticket entry time.
Giambologna's Abduction of the
Sabine Women
Fountain of Neptune by Bartolomeo Ammannati & Giambologna. Located in the Piazza della Signoria.
After we tour the Uffizi, we stroll back to the center of Florence, popping in and out of shops on the way, but we don't linger today. No way will we risk missing the Medici Chapels (and we don't).
After enjoying the (truly magnificent) Medici Chapels, we spend the remainder of our day strolling around the Duomo area (we tour it in earnest tomorrow), until we find a cool side-walk cafe where we can rest our weary feet (and brains). Later, back at the hotel, we enjoy a pre-dinner drink and then dinner at the restaurant adjacent to the hotel. The food is excellent but tonight the main attraction is the easy two minute walk back to our rooms and beds.
Florence, Monday, 9/12/22: Our Man Brunelleschi
Brunelleschi's Dome - Sunset
This morning we each take our required COVID test and, hurray! we are both negative. In celebration, we linger over breakfast, and then hotfoot it down to the Piazza del Duomo.
We have tickets to see everything and start with a climb to the top of Brunelleschi's Dome. Two minutes in, we unceremoniously abort. The narrow stairs and tight turns induces claustrophobia in Rita. Backing out of the climb puts us inside the gorgeous Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, and bonus! Mass is in progress. We scoot into a back pew to recover from the near-death (not really) climb experience and end up gawking at the fabulously lush Cathedral ceiling. Once mass ends, we walk around to see the rest of the Cathedral interior. Later, we realize that had we gone through with the Duomo climb, we would have missed the incredibly personal experience of attending mass inside the Cathedral.
Next up, a tour of the Baptistery and the Crypt of Santa Reparata. Then, it's one more loop around the entire complex. Soon, a nearby sidewalk cafe calls to us and we answer. After lunch, we stumble upon what in my view is the most underrated (and least advertised) treasure in Florence: the nearby Opera del Duomo Museum (don't miss it!). The rest of our day is spent here. An exhibit of Michelangelo's work is particularly awesome (below). I want to stay longer, but the official Rick Steves tour kick-off meeting is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. at the hotel and we don't want to be late. Our Rick Steves' guided tour is about to begin!
