Sally and Michael’s Honeymoon: Part Two, Florence

The Santa Maria Del Fiore

We travelled from Paris to Florence on an overnight sleeper train… which was an interesting expereince to say the least! We arrived safe and sound in the early hours of the morning, and had the chance to explore the city a little before checking in to our hotel ‘Hotel Pendini’ – A lovely family run hotel which is decked out with antique furnishings and does a great buffet breakfast. One of the first things we did in Florence was to check out the ‘Santa Maria Del Fiore’ or ‘Dome’ church… which included climbing to the top of course! Below is the view of the inside of the ‘Dome’ featuring amazing artwork by Andrea del Castagno, Paolo Uccello, Luca della Robbia, Michelozzo, Vasari and Zuccari.

The view of Florence from the top of the ‘Santa Maria Del Fiore’, including one of the bell towers which stands beside the church.

We only spent two days in Florence, so we decided to do a few ‘hop on, hop off’ bus tours so that we could get a comprehensive view of  the city. Our hotel was really central, so it was great to also be able to explore the heart of the city on foot. We were surrounded by endless streets of markets, quaint cafes and resturants and soo many gelato shops! Yum! 🙂

Top deck tour bus with audio guide of the city’s history

The tour included a trip up into the beautiful hills to ‘Michelangelo Square’ where a statue of the famous ‘Michelangelo’ stands.

We also ventured to ‘Fiesole’, a beautiful town outside of Florence which has a rich history attached to it.

View of the ‘Arno’ river which runs through Florence

The paved piaza outside our hotel

Michael enjoying some espresso and brioche!

We found the people in Florence to be really lovely and welcoming, and made friends with a particularly friendly waiter name ‘Giuseppe’ at the Hard Rock Cafe Florence. We had some delicious meals in Florence, including an amazing hand made gnocchi dish (see below), complemented perfectly by a bottle of red!

We loved exploring Florence, and wished we had spent more time there! I think it was probably the most laid back of all the cities we visited, and the general atmosphere of the city and it’s people was warm and inviting. I think this will definitely be a place that we will come back and visit some time in the future. But for now, it was off to ‘Roma’…

Pictures from ‘Sally and Michael’s collection’