01.06.2011 – Florence –Tuscany

Today we left beautiful Venetia and travelled to my absolute dream destiny TUSCANY – Florence!  We crossed the river ‘Po’ which is 600km’s long, the longest river in Italy.  Florence used to be the Capital city of Italy until they changed it  in 1900’s to Rome as the capital city. There are 4.2 million people living in Florence. Florence was built in the 15^th century. We saw about 8 Ferraris on the road to Tuscany! I also saw the red fast “bullet’ train, and it was gone in a flash! We also drove past the mansions of Venetian nobility that line the Brenta Canal. Of course Tuscany is where the famous ‘Cianti’ wine originated from. We stopped at the Piazzale Michelangelo to see the sweeping views over Florence. In the afternoon we had a great 3 hour shopping spree in Florence, quite expensive, but famously known for their leather jackets and shoes. Needless to say, I dis not buy a leather jacket, as we do not need them in Perth, but I did buy some gorgeous shoes, and yes, a couple of little handbags.

The next morning we visited the Academy Museum to see the famous ORIGINAL statue ‘David’ sculptured by Michelangelo. All I can say to the sight of this fantastic piece of art which stand 4.5m high is WOW. I could not take my eyes of him, he almost looked alive and at any minute he was going to walk through the building. We were not allowed to take photos, but I simply had to buy a small statue to remind me of this beautiful sculpture, the best I have seen. You could even see the hair on his arms and legs, not to mention the veins; it was really like he was real. A couple of us girls decided not to do the guided history tour through the amazing Cathedral and Baptistery, as we were all history OUT, we opted for a stroll for last minute shopping (as girls do) and stop for a cuppa before meeting the rest of the group again.

We took off on a delightful excursion to Tuscany’s famous hilltop town ‘San Gimignano’. It is considered the medieval Manhattan of Italy due to its towers and which dominated the skyline. The towers were a sign of wealth to those who lived there, the higher the tower the more wealthier the families. I certainly enjoyed the relaxing atmosphere of this ancient jewel (not too busy) which stays unchanged since the 14^th century, and today is a UNESCO world heritage sight. We all enjoyed a lovely lunch and I decided to have the famous ‘cianti’ wine and a vegetable soup! We were dropped of at the hotel for a couple hours siesta.

The evening excursion we took a drive to the Certosa Monastery, we were taken in to see the chapel, and a monks room, I still cannot believe this entire place was built for 12 monks and 6 lay monks(helpers). They all lived in total isolation, today there is 4 left, and they will not be replaced, instead it will become a museum. We enjoyed a Tuscan dinner, prepared in the exact way the monks used to eat, the menu featured all local specialties one in particular that sound quite awful was so nice, a slice of pear, with a slice of goats cheese drizzled with a bit of honey…you have to try it – yum – we then had  tasting of famous liqueurs, and I had to buy the medicinal water (not) the liqueur is 90% alcohol…yes 90% and it is firewater, so ues, I have 100ml of it!!! We were entertained by soprano and baritone, and we had so much fun, as the waiters were all dressed up as monks, but naughty ones! Viva Italia!!