Daily Details: July 6

After taking the train ride to Florence, we hop off and walk a short distance to our hotel. Unlike in Rome, we don’t have to take any Metros or taxis to our hotel—that is how much smaller it is. Our hotel is right in the center of the city. Apparently, there was a little mix-up, and we are put in a much less nice sister-hotel instead of where we were supposed to be. The rooms are cramped and the AC doesn’t really work, but it is still quaint in its own way. It is amazing to open your window and just see everyone bustling around on the streets. Florence has a very different flavor than Rome, and I enjoy it. It is slower paced, less traffic, and the people here are much friendlier. They also have better English, and that is something that I am SOOOO grateful for. I am starting to become much more grateful for things that I used to find commonplace—amongst those, cold, delicious water. The water here tastes pretty awful, and is NEVER cold. Even if you buy the bottled stuff from a fridge, it is still only lukewarm. I am grateful to have my eyes opened up to the blessings we have in the U.S.

We have a walking tour of Florence as soon as we get there, and we see many cool things. So many cool things in fact, that I can’t really tell you much about them—the docent gave us so much information that I can’t really remember any of it. My favorite thing we saw all day was the Brancacci Chapel. It is so ornate and features one of my favorite frescoes by Boticelli, showing Adam and Eve as they are being expelled from the Garden of Eden. The shame and remorse on their faces is so vivid and touching.

We take a little detour from our planned tour, because as we pass S. Spirito, a cathedral by Brunelleschi, our docent sees that it is open and people are welcome inside. Inside, we get to see one of Michelangelo’s earliest works—a crucifix of Christ.

We end at the Florence Cathedral, nicknamed the Duomo. The cathedral is closed, so we are not able to see the inside, but that’s okay because there is so much to look at on the outside alone. My favorite part of this visit is being able to see the bronze doors by Brunelleschi on the doors of the baptistery. I remembered learning about them in Art History, and these are definitely one thing where pictures hardly do them justice. The amount of detail in every panel is unbelievable! It is no wonder that it took Brunelleschi 50 years to complete them!

Left on our own to have some free time, we go to what the docent has told us is the best place in Florence to get gelato. She wasn’t kidding! Up until this point, I had not been at all impressed by gelato—in fact, I preferred American ice cream. This place changed everything though. The place is named after the owner, Grom. He grows all of his own fruit that he puts in the gelato. I got lemon and raspberry, and both exceeded my expectations. They were WONDERFUL!!! We then split our different ways, and Malory and I decide to go the place where we can use the internet. After a brief visit there, we go to get some dinner at a little cafeteria. The prices are much better here, and the man helping us is very friendly. As I pay him, the man asks, “Your name is Jennifer?” I am totally blown away that number one, he is even asking my name, and number 2, that he gets it so close. I tell him he’s close and that my name is Jenna, and then we leave. I’m still a little creeped out that he guessed a name so close to my own, but whatever.

Our last stop for the evening is a 97-cent store we find close to our hotel. It’s marvelous! I find some vanilla wafer cookies and something akin to Pringles, and nothing that I’ve seen here has looked so wonderful! Hallelujah for this heaven-sent store!