Firenze

Buonasera da Firenze!!

So I know I still have to finish writing about Milan, but I need to tell you about Florence!! ahh!

Francesca and I got into Florence yesterday morning and my hotel luckily was right across the street. It is probably the most gorgeous hotel I have ever seen. It's absolutely stunning!! It's in this old, historic building and the doors are these ancient rounded doors, like what you would see in a castle.

Even though the weather was bad and it was rainy out, the city was still fantastic. It's so interesting because the streets and buildings are so old, yet seeing the designer stores left and right makes it all the more interesting and beautiful.

Right next to our hotel was the Basilica di Santa Maria Novella. It is beautiful!

Now this hotel is probably 4 or 5 blocks from the very center of Florence. The streets are all cobblestones and lined with amazing palazzos and old buildings. Just a few blocks away is the center of  the city. We walked down one street and along the right side was Prada, Hermes, Cavalli, while on the other was Armani, Bvlgari, and Gucci. Like…. what? Then the street curves and opens up to the center Piazza del Duomo. And in the center is the breathtaking Santa Maria del Fiore.

That's literally what you see when you turn the corner. Absolutely amazing. I thought I should make the picture big so you could see just how ridiculous this is.

The outside is all white and green marble. It's so different from all the other churches and cathedrals I've seen in America, Lithuania and even Milan! I guess the green and white marble was a staple thing that the Florentines used in the old days. It's what separates the Florentine churches from the other churches in Italy. Here are some more pictures:

The Duomo is the most breathtaking and magnificent dome I've ever seen! And knowing that it was built without any support beams or shell underneath is just mind-blowing. And the inside of it is even more beautiful:

Thought I should make that one big too. It is just absolutely amazing!

When looking at a map of Florence, everything seems far from everything and like it would take a while to get places. BUT that is so very false. Francesca and I were walking down a street just seeing where it would lead, and stopping to look at the Prada shoes and the diamonds at Tiffany's (you know, normal stuff), when the next thing we knew, the Fiume Arno was right in front of us! 

Presto! Ponte Vecchio! So awesome! It was more beautiful today because the sun actually came out today- it was probably the warmest it's been since I've been in Italy. It was fantastic. 

We walked across Ponte Vecchio and stopped at a cafe for some cioccolata calda because it was so cold, and it was probably the best hot chocolate I've ever had. It was so rich and thick and just perfect. I literally can't even compare anything to it, it was that great. 

We walked a little more down the street because why not? Everything was so close we were getting around faster than we thought. We saw this church, Santa Felicita which was so simple on the outside, yet inside was stunning. 

So it's getting really late here, and I do have more to tell and show, but I'm going to go to bed. 

Buona notte