Arrived in Florence on time and were met by friends Jim and Maz who had been living in Florence for xxxxnearly a fortnight (Greg had known Jim from high school days in Newcastle, and Jim's sister had gone to school in Newcastle with Anne and Val, and all 3 were still close friends). These now "locals" offered to be our guides, so we headed straight for our first objective : Cattederale di Santa Maria del Fiore, Florence's Duomo.
Jim, Anne and Val had decided to climb the 600+ steps Cupola del Brunelleschii but at first sight of the long, snaking queue waiting to do the same, that idea was quickly swapped for a climb of the campanella tower instead. It only had 400+ steps, and surprisingly, little queueing.
So, while they were doing that, Maz, Bob and myself headed off to Mercato Centrale (central markets) where the others could meet up with us for lunch.
Fabulous market area. Outside, rows of stalls selling Florence's trademark leather products. And they must've been genuine - they strong smell of fresh leather was in the air. Inside, produce, meat, smallgoods, fresh food of every sort and variety.
Lunch at the markets, then Val and I headed off for our 1.15pm appointment for a tour of the Uffizi Gallery, famous for its artworks of Michelangelo, Rafael, da Vinci, Bottecelli. A 1.5 hour tour barely scratched the surface of the gallery's possesions.
Jim, Maz, Anne and Bob headed off for guided walking tour of the other sights including the famous Ponte Vecchio, which we also visited after the Uffizi Gallery.
Jim, Anne and Val had decided to climb the 600+ steps Cupola del Brunelleschii but at first sight of the long, snaking queue waiting to do the same, that idea was quickly swapped for a climb of the campanella tower instead. It only had 400+ steps, and surprisingly, little queueing.
So, while they were doing that, Maz, Bob and myself headed off to Mercato Centrale (central markets) where the others could meet up with us for lunch.
Fabulous market area. Outside, rows of stalls selling Florence's trademark leather products. And they must've been genuine - they strong smell of fresh leather was in the air. Inside, produce, meat, smallgoods, fresh food of every sort and variety.
Lunch at the markets, then Val and I headed off for our 1.15pm appointment for a tour of the Uffizi Gallery, famous for its artworks of Michelangelo, Rafael, da Vinci, Bottecelli. A 1.5 hour tour barely scratched the surface of the gallery's possesions.
Jim, Maz, Anne and Bob headed off for guided walking tour of the other sights including the famous Ponte Vecchio, which we also visited after the Uffizi Gallery.
On the Ponte Vecchio with just a few other tourists .....
Walked a million miles today, so good to get back to the relaxing comfort of our seats for the train ride back to Venice, arriving 7.35pm (on time, of course) then the vaporetto home for the evening. On the train trip home, the in-carriage video screens showed our train speed at one stage - 218 kms/hr. Ya don'get that Newcastle to Sydney.