Wednesday, November 15, 2023
Port of Livorno,
Italy
Aboard the Enchanted
Princess
Sunny/ 70F
What a rocky night! TK said we must have gone through a storm, but now the weather is calm and off we go to Florence, delivered by a Princess bus. We elected to explore this historic city on our own, the capital of the Tuscany region and considered by many to be the birthplace of the Renaissance. Every building exudes history, block by block. Narrow cobblestone streets, churches every 2 or 3 blocks (it seems), a variety of cafes, fine restaurants, leather factories and shops, fine jewelry, fashionable clothing, gelato, pizza, a wonderful mix of smells and beauty.
This is a view of the Cathedral of Florence from a hill--we had to take photos from the bus
We wanted to visit the food market because I had fresh olive oil on my mind. We have been to Florence many times and visited museums and churches. That said, now we especially like to enjoy a coffee and a croissant at a little café and watching the hectic pace of a city full of tourists and native Italians hustle around.
The market did not disappoint, the smells of fish and fresh meat,
mixed with citrus and pizza and wines. And the colors of orange, red, yellow, oranges,
apples, peppers, every fruit and vegetable imaginable. Vendors with limoncello,
candies, and tins or bottles of olive oil. Finally we found the olive oil we
wanted (fresh, extra virgin, light).
We moved to the outside vendors with leather goods, bags, coats, belts,
pashminas, Florentine stationery, souvenirs, and so much more. The rest of our
time was spent strolling along the different streets, admiring the beauty of a
city that counts its origins back to the Romans in 59 BCE.
Our final mission was finding the Caffe Condotta, on the corner of
Via della Condotta and Vicola Dei Cerchi.
We don’t want to forget where this café is because it has the best sfogliatella—the
pastry I fell in love with last year. With no shame, I ate 3 and TK ate 2. (Note:
the first 2 we ate at a different café—and my friend Ann said I could eat as
many as I wanted with the number of steps we are walking!)
We were exhausted when we returned to the ship and went straight to
the dining room. To tell the truth, we both
fell right asleep when we returned to our stateroom. I guess we are getting
older.
My FitBit says 16,550 steps today--TK has 16,025--our feet and legs agree with those numbers.
TK’s Takes:
There was lots of traffic on the highway as we traveled to and from Florence.
Another thing he said was that he would not want to drive an Erie sized
firetruck in any of the cities with all the narrow streets. Firetrucks in
Europe are much smaller. He also saw a Mercedes pickup truck but did not get a
photo to his disappointment.
[Reminder: I need to add a disclaimer that this blog is only a draft, mostly done after 9 hours of touring on this particular cruise and lots of walking. I write for a couple of reasons, to remember all the wonderful things we see and do, to let family and friends know what we are doing, and to provide a bedtime story for those who need a way to fall asleep.]
