2018 Italy Vacation - Day 1 and 2: Florence

Back in 2008, Kathi, her mother and grandmother made a trip to Italy and we talked about them visiting Kathi's grandmother's home town, San Marco D'urri, in the foothills northeast of Genoa.   Since a tour company best fit their collective needs, and San Marco D'urri is off the beaten track, they did not go and I know that was a source of disappointment for Kathi.  So when we were talking about revisiting Italy, making a pilgrimage to San Marco D'urri became a focus of the trip.

I had not been to Italy since the time I was 9 when my family had tent-camped throughout Europe for 6 weeks.  We had visited Florence, Pisa, Rome, Venice, Pompeii, and Sorrento, but I was ready to experience Italy as an adult and visit places I had heard about but had not been.

The itinerary started out as a trip to visit Italy and then cross the border into France to experience a mountain stage of the Tour de France and perhaps spend some time around Mt. Blanc in the Alps.  However, the more I worked on the logistics, it became apparent that the TDF and France were a separate trip unto itself.  So the itinerary shifted into an Italy-only trip and expanded in breadth to take in more of the abundance Italy had to offer.  Our itinerary would take us to Florence, the hill towns of Tuscany, Cinque Terre, San Marco D'urri, and Rome. 

We put money away every month for three years so that we could spare no expense.  Kathi and I developed a detailed itinerary with transportation, sightseeing, and financial logistics and pre-trip reservations all worked out.  To save time, increase security and provide maximum flexibility, we would rent a car for a large portion of the trip.  Over time, we bought packing cubes, power converters, hand-washable clothes, and got an international driving license.  We upgraded and bought mid-sized suitcases to force us to pack light (such a good decision!), and I pre-packed to make sure we could fit everything we needed (with a little space for returning with souvenirs).  

We were ready and on June 26 we took off from Norfolk International Airport in Virginia.

Day 1

Originally, our Delta flight was supposed to leave ORF at 3:00 pm, fly to Detroit, and then fly non-stop to Rome.  We would arrive in Rome around 9:30 am the next day, hop on the fast train from Rome to Florence, and be in Florence by lunchtime.

However, shortly before heading to the airport, we got a text that the flight from Detroit to Rome had been delayed for 3 hours.  We weren't real happy about the delay because it meant our whole timeline just shifted to the right and we would lose time exploring Florence.  We could have tried to re-route through JFK, but that would put us on a really tight connection schedule with the real possibility of missing our overnight flight entirely so we stayed safe, kept our flights, and took the time hit.  

We eventually boarded the plan and made our way to Detroit.  Hungry, we had a light dinner at the airport P.F. Changs and boarded our plane at around 8:30 for the overnight flight to Rome.  We both popped two Advil PMs to help us sleep, watched an onboard movie (me - Red Sparrow; Kathi - I Tonya), had second dinner (beware of the seafood!) and blanked out.  

Day 2

With the 6 hour time change, it wasn't long before the sun was coming up.  I woke up to light streaming through the crack in the window shade and opened it to see these mountaintops through the ice crystals on the window. 

 The onboard monitor continued to show our flight progress. And when zoomed in, I could see we were over the French/Italian Alps.  

 We had breakfast over the Alps - yogurt, fruit and cheese, and coffee.  We arrived in Rome around noon, collected our bags and quickly and easily made our way through customs, and then caught a train to the main train station.  We got coached through the process of purchasing our Treno train tickets, validated them, and boarded the train for Florence - all within less than 15 minutes.  The train to Florence was 90 minutes.  Because we purchased late, Kathi and I were in separate but adjoining cars so that was disappointing and a little nerve wracking.  No one ever checked our tickets. 

We got to Florence without incident, stood in the taxi cue for about 20 minutes, and then got our 10 euro cab to the Relais Piazza Signorina apartment.  We splurged on accommodations in Florence to be in the center of all our activities.  It was very nice.

 

You can see pictures of the room here:   http://www.relaispiazzasignoria.com/en/studio-deluxe.php
 We thought we were going to get a balcony with table and chairs overlooking the Piazza, but that was a little bit of false advertising.  The room was very nice, and the location was pretty ideal, but I think without the balcony, we would have chosen something perhaps a little less expensive.  

It was already mid-afternoon when we arrived, and too late to go to the Bargello Museum as planned, so we took care of a little business and then decided to go for a leisurely stroll and relax for the rest of the day.  We picked up our Firenze cards that would get us preferential access to a host of museums (without having to wait in long lines), bus rides, etc.  

 When was the last time you went to a ticket office like this?! Inside the Palazzo Vecchio.

 

When in Italy, you must always remember to look up...

 We walked along the Arno river ...

 Statues at the entrances to the many bridges across the Arno...

 

After our stroll along the river, we stopped in at the Ristorante Orcagna on the Piazza Signorina.  

 Kathi had pizza and I had pasta with a spicy red tomato sauce.

While dining, we were entertained by a parade - complete with flag tossing!  At the streetside cafe, we had front row seats! 

 

 After dinner, we got our first taste of Italian gelato -so good.  Kathi got mixed berries and I had a mixture of coffee and hazelnut.

 We took another walk to burn off some calories and crossed the Arno (to the "Oltrarno") to form a big loop and hopefully catch the sunset.  We did.

 We made out way back to the Piazza della Signorina and there was an orchestra playing amid the terrace sculptures adjacent to the Palazzo Vecchio.  We headed up to the room and opened the windows to let the music waft in.  It was wonderful.  After a long day, we took showers, washed clothes, and listened to the orchestra as we drifted off to sleep.