Friday evening & Saturday,  21 & 22 December 2012

Getting to Florence is not a problem at all.  It is the getting into Florence part that is the challenge.  The pedestrian only area has recently been expanded and what roads you can drive on are almost exclusively one way.  Couple that with a good amount of traffic, the iPhone software not having addresses in the correct geographic position, and poor location capability due to the narrow canyon like streets and it can take a while to get from point A to B where ever it might be.  We resorted to backing up the one way street were we on, driving through the piazza, parking the car and calling the hotel.  We were 100 feet from their door but the sign for the place is about the size of a post card!

Location is everything!  The hotel is located on the Piazza della Signorelli in the heart of Florence.  It is a two minute walk to the Ponte Vecchio or the Duomo in the historic center of the city.  During the Renaissance, and the rule of the Medici family, it may have been some of the most important real estate in the world.  The list of historic figures who live and worked here is a Who’s Who of of culture, science, and art.  We headed out at 8 in the evening to get our bearings and show the girls a little bit of the neighborhood.   The Christmas lights  were the most beautiful we have seen on the trip and there were a good number of people out and hustling about.

Saturday was planned for a guided tour of the Uffizi gallery.  Our guide, Paola was fantastic and steered us through not only the slightly crowded galleries but also the history of the major highlight paintings of the Uffizi and the sculptures of the Loggia di Lanzi.   We thoroughly enjoyed the morning with her.  http://www.guidedflorencetours.com/  Regretfully, but understandably you can not take any photos in the galleries.  Following the Uffizi we had some lunch and then Claire, Alessandra, and I decided that we had to climb the 404 steps from the ground up to the base of the cupulla  atop the dome.  It is an effort  but the view from the top is worth it.  Just make sure sure you don’t mind small enclosed areas and then being close to edge at the top.  Otherwise stay on the ground.  You will be much happier.

We stepped outside the hotel and were greeted with the moon rising over the Palazzo Vecchio.

The sculptures in the piazza have ab entirely different look at night.

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As Claire and I walked around the entrance to the Palazzo Vecchio I could not help but think of all the historic people who have been in exactly these same places.

Always look up.

The Ponte Vecchio at night.

Main street Florence Christmas lights.

A couple of shoppers hurrying along the wet street.

The Baptistery, Duomo, and Bell Tower.

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This guy must be asking for a new bike tire for Christmas.

This is not the easiest map to carry around.

It’s the little things that count.

The decoration atop the carousel.

The horse drawn carriage business was getting off to a slow start.

Another bicycle wish list person.

The “sky way” to the top of the Duomo. A bit snug.

But at the top the view makes the effort all worth it.

Thank you to the fellow visitor for snapping this photo.

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This lady sits stone still until you stop, put a coin in her purse and then she reaches into her horn of good fortune and chooses a small curled piece of paper for you.

The smile makes it all worth it no matter what the fortune reads.

I saw the owner wash every horse and the floor each morning and vacuum the carpet tread way along the edge of the ride. He was obviously proud of his ride. The feathers were put on each morning.

If you have ever been to the Village Arcade in Houston to shop you can see a copy of this statue outside of the Victoria’s Secret store.