Italy trip…next Florence (one)

We took the fast train from Bologna to Florence expecting to get a view of the tuscan  countryside. Wrong ! 99% of the trip was inside tunnels. Luckily it only took half an hour, but what a disappointment.

the cathedral, and our hotel was just around the corner

Palazzo Vecchio

you know who, grinding his teeth over the crowds

Never mind. Our boutique hotel was a short walk from the train station and handily placed beside the Gucci shop.  Good position, lovely room and friendly staff so a good choice by Graham.

Loved the Museo del Bargello. This building was started in 1255, the same year as our village in France, and was used as a barracks and later a prison.  It is now filled with art, including works by Michelangelo, Donatello and Cellini, amongst many others .  

the Museo del Bargello

sheltering the masses

now this is a cannon !

The Uffizi Gallery was as expected, Crowded with tour groups as well as the usual tourists. So much to see , some of it worthwhile. 

a school group taking a break at the Uffizi

Some of the artwork at the Uffizi is very well known , 
like Botticelli's 'Birth of Venus",
and some was decidedly more obscure.

Pity about the tour groups. Even in Paris we usually only see so many groups during the summer vacation time in July and August. They weren't in Bologna or Modena or Mantua, so perhaps that says something about Florence. We walked and walked to see the usual sights – Ponte Vecchio, Uffizi Gallery, Museo del Bargello, Basilica de Santa Croce, etcetera.

Had an excellent lunch at a little trattoria in a lane off the Uffizi ( I do love the vitello tonnato). Enjoyed the local wines. Looked in shop windows at the handbags and jewellery as that seemed to be the big businesses here, after tourism.

one of the leather markets

We wandered through the open air market and I remembered being at the same market the last time I was here in 1978  and buying a handbag. Plus ça change, as the french say.

..........too many photos for one post so on to post two !