Day 7: MIlan, Italy to Florence, Italy

Day 7:                        Milan, Italy to Florence, Italy                   6/24/14

We received our wake up knocking of the door at about 5:30 am. I slept ok, but my back was aching a bit when we got up.

The train was late and we arrived in Milan around 6:30 am. Everyone got off feeling a little gross. The weather was noticeably warmer and the clothes were a little sticky.

The crest of the Medici family, benefactors of Florence

We got on the high speed train and got into Florence around 9:30. We loaded our stuff on the bus and then started our walking tour of the city.

We made our way to Leonardo’s Leather Shop, where we received a demonstration on how a leather bag was made. We also received tips on how to tell if leather is real. You have to rub on it. If friction lets it heat up, it is real.

A copy of the statue David

We found out that we arrived on St John the Baptist day in Florence. There were special events going on throughout the city. Some of the musical ones we enjoyed.

Our tour guide gave an amusing history of the city of Florence. He bragged about the accomplishments of the people who were from Florence.

Amerigo Vespuci in Florence

One example was Amerigo Vespuci, for whom America was named for. The iguana in the statue is the symbol used to represent America. He also mentioned the “competitions” between Florence and Pisa, Rome and even the Roman Catholic Church. It was quite the amusing talk. He told us not to believe the boasts of the Vatican about the biggest dome for a church.

After he left us, we had free time. We had pizza at a restaurant and discovered that the normal size was quite large. We certainly ate our fill.

Afterwards, we went to the church and took a tour inside. We contrasted it with the churches in France, noting how open and light the interiors were in Italy.

Pizza in Florence

Heidi, Elise, and Zach went up to see the dome and look around. They really liked the view they could see of the city. For the extra 10 euro price, they got to see the baptistery, which was restricted as it was in the process of being cleaned for when the Pope visits next year.

The Travel Club at the Basilica of St. Mary of the Flower

The street art of Florence

Afterwards, we found a good cheap place to buy gelato, the ice cream that is a highlight here in Italy. Then we took off looking for the new market (just over 200 years old) to do some shopping and pass the time just before we had to meet the group at 5:30.

From our rendezvous point, we walked about a half hour to our hotel, The Hotel Meridiana. We got our stuff off the bus and settled into our room.

Since there was scheduled to be fireworks in the evening, Elise and the Texas group walked back down town to watch it. Oh to be that young again. We’ve done a lot of walking since the trip began.