So this past weekend Maaike, Barbara, and myself went to Florence. Even though our train was two and a half hours late, the trip was well worth it. Sitting on the train as we passed through Tuscany we could still see snow on the ground from the previous week's snowfall. It was beautiful seeing all of the hills from the train.
We checked in at this quaint little hostel right near the center, and set out for dinner. We decided to go to one of the recommendations in Lonely Planet, and came upon a sweet looking little restaurant with three people running the whole place. The wine was good and the food was incredible. We started out with bread that had tormino cheese and honey. This was an interesting combination, the cheese was not very strong but the honey added just a little something extra to it. Then the peppercorn beef stew came and I thought that I had just discovered a fine treasure hidden in the restaurant. The beef was so tender it fell off of your fork. We quickly devoured that and sat for a while talking about our studies and how we were excited to be in Florence. The waiter came over and immediately poured us more wine and also brought to the table hot apple cake. Needless to say our first evening in Florence started off with amazing food and hospitality.
The next day we went and saw all of the sights, like the statue of David by Michelangelo (which was beautiful and giganctic), the ponte vecchio, the Duomo and my favorite, the Piazza del Michelangelo. This spot was truly the most beautiful part of Italy that I have seen so far. We were treated to a panoramic view of Florence. Words can not even describe how amazing and content I felt seeing such a beautiful city from high above. It was truly something magical. Almost like being in a movie. We grabbed dinner at a local pizzeria and enjoyed listening to All Saints play through the speakers. We decided that since Tuscany is famous for Tiramisu, we had to have some. After a desperate search we finally found this upscale restaurant and believe me, the tiramisu was well worth the search.
Sunday morning we headed to Siena which was also incredibly beautiful. The weather was wonderful and we walked around and sat on the steps of the Duomo for some time. Maaike and Babsi decided to head up and see the view of Siena but I was perfectly content on just soaking in the sun. After some time I saw a violinist start setting up. As he started to play I was immediately put into a dream. The romantic songs he played and the way he played made me wish that my someone special was there with me to share this little secret by the church. I felt as if I was the only one who could hear the sweet notes being played and the music made sitting at the duomo that much more serene.
We walked around for a little longer and then got on the train for the 4 hour ride home. All in all Firenze and Siena made this past weekend something truly amazing and that I will never forget this special part of Italy.
Ciao Ciao
Elle
We checked in at this quaint little hostel right near the center, and set out for dinner. We decided to go to one of the recommendations in Lonely Planet, and came upon a sweet looking little restaurant with three people running the whole place. The wine was good and the food was incredible. We started out with bread that had tormino cheese and honey. This was an interesting combination, the cheese was not very strong but the honey added just a little something extra to it. Then the peppercorn beef stew came and I thought that I had just discovered a fine treasure hidden in the restaurant. The beef was so tender it fell off of your fork. We quickly devoured that and sat for a while talking about our studies and how we were excited to be in Florence. The waiter came over and immediately poured us more wine and also brought to the table hot apple cake. Needless to say our first evening in Florence started off with amazing food and hospitality.
The next day we went and saw all of the sights, like the statue of David by Michelangelo (which was beautiful and giganctic), the ponte vecchio, the Duomo and my favorite, the Piazza del Michelangelo. This spot was truly the most beautiful part of Italy that I have seen so far. We were treated to a panoramic view of Florence. Words can not even describe how amazing and content I felt seeing such a beautiful city from high above. It was truly something magical. Almost like being in a movie. We grabbed dinner at a local pizzeria and enjoyed listening to All Saints play through the speakers. We decided that since Tuscany is famous for Tiramisu, we had to have some. After a desperate search we finally found this upscale restaurant and believe me, the tiramisu was well worth the search.
Sunday morning we headed to Siena which was also incredibly beautiful. The weather was wonderful and we walked around and sat on the steps of the Duomo for some time. Maaike and Babsi decided to head up and see the view of Siena but I was perfectly content on just soaking in the sun. After some time I saw a violinist start setting up. As he started to play I was immediately put into a dream. The romantic songs he played and the way he played made me wish that my someone special was there with me to share this little secret by the church. I felt as if I was the only one who could hear the sweet notes being played and the music made sitting at the duomo that much more serene.
We walked around for a little longer and then got on the train for the 4 hour ride home. All in all Firenze and Siena made this past weekend something truly amazing and that I will never forget this special part of Italy.
Ciao Ciao
Elle
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