Day #256 - Florence, Italy

David statue - atop Michelangelo Plaza in Florence

Statues outsdie the Piazza della Signoria

Great Thanksgiving Dinner

A view overlooking the river in Florence

A view from Michelangelo Plaza - hilltop

Kay & I overlooking the city

Thursday, November 25th

Happy Thanksgiving! This year I have a whole lot to be thankful for - great family, great friends, and the good fortunes which have made this gap year journey really special.

Today was excellent. My sister and I started out early morning for our tour of Florence. We walked across the Fiume Arno river and climbed the steep steps leading to the Piazzale Michelangelo. There was a lookout point where we could see over the entire city. Spectacular. This was my first true look at Florence.

We continued our walking tour on the southern side of the river - making our way to Fort Belvedere. This was a nice walk through some tree-lined streets that winded their way across the hillside. Once we reached the Fort, we were able to get a different view from the city. We then descended down the steep hill onto the Ponte Vecchio bridge. We didn't even know we were on a bridge until we were half way across. There were shops and street vendors all along the way. The sun was just coming out at this point. We took some incredible pictures of the riverbank.

Our next stop was one of the most popular locations in Florence - The Uffizi Galleries. This is a large U-shaped art gallery - housing some of the most recognized masterworks of Western Civilization. Artists such as: Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Francesca, Lippi, Raphael - they can all be found in this world-reknown gallery. It was interesting to see - a mixture of sculptures and paintings.

We next walked over to the Piazza della Signoria. This is one of the most impressive plazas in Florence. The sculptures were amazing. It's one of the more memorable sites I'll take home with me from Europe. We followed the busy street of Via del Calzaiuoli up to the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore. This place brings back memories of Notre Dame in Paris. The ceiling and paintings were the take-away for me.

We next worked our way over to the Galleria del Academia. This place holds the take-home symbol of Florence - the statue of David. This sculpture was made by Michelangelo between the years of 1502-1504. This original statue once stood at the Piazza della Signoria - until 1873 when it was brought to its current location. Today, 2 other large 'David' statues exist in the city: a marble copy sits in the Piazza della Signoria and a bronze copy sits atop Michelangelo Plaza (the hill we visited this morning).

We then walked around several of the open markets. Florence is known for leather. Every other shop had leather coats, handbags, wallets, etc -- some pretty high-dollar items on the streets of Florence. By this time, it was late afternoon. We worked our way back to the river and took some pictures of the fading sun. Then, back to the hotel in preparation for dinner.

Tonight we needed to get serious with dinner. I've only been out of the country 1 other time on Thansgiving day. That time, I ate kangaroo in the OutBack in Australia. Tonight, we researched the best restaurants in Florence on the internet. We decided we needed 'atmosphere' at a reasonable price. We decided on a place called ll Latini. We chose this place because it's family style. You get seated with other people. There's no menu - the waiters just give you a couple options - and pretty much bring you what they think you'll like. The wine is free-flowing and so is the conversation. This place was excellent - I'd recommend it to anyone.

My sister and I got seated by a couple from London. These people were absolutely some of the nicest, friendliest people I've met on my trip to date. What a fascinating dinner. They were extremely well traveled. Matter of fact - Andrew introduced me to the website: mosttraveledpeople.com. He currently sits as the 147th most travelled person in the world (at least of those who have signed up on this site). There is not a place I've been that they have not been. It was incredible. As I told them, I could sit and listen to their stories for a month - easy. They were very nice and down to earth. Andrew worked in the investment business and retired at the age of 48. They live on a boat for a portion of the year - aboardthe world.com. They just finalized a purchase on an apartment in Florence. Kay and I walked with them back to their place where they showed us around. Well - this was the fanciest, classiest home I've ever seen in my entire life --- amazing.

Good night from Florence. Here's to good times and good people. Here's to those who make us better - those people that keep us focused and keep us striving for new goals. Here's to believing that "Anything is Possible". And, here's to one of my favorite movies of all times - "It's A Wonderful Life" -- a movie that brings us a quote that's simple, but oh so right. "Dear George, remember, no man is a failure who has friends". I like to watch this movie every year during Thanksgiving break. It helps put things in perspective. Get back to the basics. Sorry to get so philosophical today -- but, it never hurts to think that way every now and again.