On our way to Firenze!

Today we are off to Firenze or Florence as we know it!

Sunday, May 1, 2011.

We woke up this morning in Somewhere Italy (somewhere between Rome and Florence) at around 10am, showered and hit the road, on our way to Florence, Italy. Tim drove. At first I was a little bugged by this. Him driving means that he is driving AND navigating and I am staring out the window helpless to help him.  I got over it after a few minutes and pulled out my computer to get this blog caught up. We got on the road around 12:30pm and drove till around 4:30pm, when we found our hotel. 

It is hard to tell but that is a little village on top of that hill! Gives a whole new reason not to let kids lean out the window. Not only are you indanger of falling out the window, you could fall right off the cliff!

The River Arno. Absolutely beautiful!

I tried to get a picture of the traffic here. Everything is more of a suggestion, including lanes. In America, it is illegal to changes lanes in an intersection, right? Here, everyone just sort of merges in wherever they can fit. It's a bit disconcerting.

This hotel is called “Hotel Davanzatti.” I just realized that I haven't taken any pitures of the outside of it yet, so I will have to remember to do that.

The Hotel Davanzatti Lobby

The foyer area of the hotel

The bedroom area of the hotel

Bathroom. Did I not mention that EVERY hotel we have stayed in has a bidet. I guess it's good they like to keep IT clean. LOL

Hey! That's me!

There was a little balcony off our room that was connected to another room by a narrow stairwell, community area I think.

The view from the little balcony. Mostly just rooflines.

Looking down from the balcony into a little courtyard.

Tim in the hallway area of of hotel.

"Piazza della Signoria" A piazza is an open suare area where people congregate.  There are usually ristorantes and museums or churches in these areas. Piazza Della Signoria is the focal point of the origin and of the history of the Florentine Republic and still maintains its reputation as the political hub of the city.^[1] It is the meeting place of Florentines as well as the numerous tourists, located near Ponte Vecchio and Piazza del Duomo and gateway to Uffizi Gallery.

There were all kinds of statues in this Piazza

The Fountain of  Neptune

This is a courtyard

The Entertainment crew and ME! These guys were part of the entertainment that was going on and were fun enought to take a pic with me!

This was rerally cool because it looks 3 dimentional but it is not. It is flat and plastered to look 3D. Did a good job of it didn't they?

This is a replica of the famous "David" by Michaelango. The original is housed in the Galeria dell'Academia in Firenze.

A fence of keys. Wasn't this on the Amazing Race as one of the challenges?

The River Arnos. The bridge you see in the background is the only bridge that wasn't blown up in WWII. Today it is a big shopping area.

OMG Isn't this amazing? Look at the people sitting on the grassy area having picnics. 

Pack up my stuff and send it to me. I am not coming home. 

Shopping area on the Ponte Vecchio

Ponte Vecchio is very busy during the day.

This is one of the shops on the Ponte Vecchio that was closed. They don't just close the front doors and lock them, they board it up with beautiful wood and padlock it.

I wonder how long until the US starts seeing this fashion trend? Parachute pants.

No idea what is going on here but it was some sort of parade.

All of the people involved were fairly young, so it must be something they do to carry on traditions and teach people about what life was like.

Firenze!!!

This was a painting on the wall of one of the courtyards. Can anyone tell me what is wrong with this pic? HAHA

This is a street, see all the people milling about? Cars still drive on these road, they just push through and the crowds part and then they all go back to where they were walking. It's crazy.

Tim likes the advertisements here. Everything uses beautiful women to attract. We saw one at the airport that was similar to this one, with the backside of a woman...it was for cell phone covereage. LMAO

Back at our hotel, they offered a "Happy Hour" of snacks and wine. I love Happy Hour.

Happy hour! See how happy we are!

I am sorry kids, parents and friends. Send me my shit. I am not leaving Italy. I am in love!