Italy: Rome to Florence
Today was a travel day. After getting up early again, I walked around a bit in the city and then stopped by the Cafe Byron for a cappuccino and a sandwich. Before long, it was time to head off to the Termini. A quick ride to the train station and with John finding the right train for us to board we were soon on our way to Florence. The train was surprisingly smooth, it didn’t even seem like it was moving until you looked out the window. Of course, Sondra and I had to take lots of pictures of the rolling countryside. The mountains in the background coupled with the rolling hills with acres upon acres of vineyards, and occasional groups of sheep made of idyllic views. As we were traveilling first class (thanks again John) light snacks and drinks were served. As too soon, we arrived. We took a taxi from the Termini to the Casa Rovai. The B&B itself is on the third floor of the building, and there is no elevator, so we lugged all our luggage up the steps – 38 in all! The lady who runs the B&B, Anna, first sat down with Sondra and I and pulled out a map. She gave us lots of good pointer of places to see and visit, and also told us about a great restuarant and a gelato place. Then we had a tour of some of the rooms of the B&B where guests had not arrived to show us the frescos on the wall. This level of the building was apparently owed by her husbands granparents. When they passed on, and her husband inheirted the place, they decided to remodel to bake the B&B. during the remodeling process, they began to find pigment under the paint on the walls. It is law in Florence that when such things are found, it has to be evaluated. It was found to be true frescos, so they had to have them properly restored. The frescos on the wall date back approximately 900 years, and the details of the ceiling work dates back approx 700 years. Some areas of the B&B was apparently a convent during the time the frescos were painted. By this time, it was almost 4pm and we had not had lunch. We stopped at a corner cafe to eat a sandwich, have a gelato, and plan our attack of the day. We walked to the Duomo, of course taking lots of pictures, and marveled at the sheer size and beauty of the structure. I am contemplating taking the stairs to the top….. The baptistry next door showed the beautiful, immense bronze doors, and the piazza was milling with people. We went inside the Duomo to wander around, and I even spent 3 euro to go into the crypt to see the foundations of the building that had stood in that place 1200 years before the cathedral was built. From there, we walked past the shops to the Piazza dello Signoria to see the Neptune Fountain, the replica David, and the Loggia dei Lanzi and the statuary there. By this time, we were all starting to feel a bit tired and not up for a long supper. We started back to the B&B and along the way found a Spaghetterie where we stopped to eat. Very simple but extremely delicious food! Again, we had to take pictures of the food! It was then a short walk to the B&B, and I finished unpacking a little bit. I sat down to write this journal, but found I was too tired to think very well, so ended up just going to bed. What a surprise to realize that it was only 740pm!
- Italy day 2
- Day Four: Florence