22nd Aug

Early morning today, 6.30, cause we had an early train for Florence, actually 1 early train, and multiple others.

We got to the station at 7.50, got to the platform, and took train 1, to Monaco.
It only took 35 minutes, met a girl from Miami, who was going to Rome.
At Monaco we had to wait another ½ hour for another train to Ventimiglia – in Italy, just on the border. From there we got a couple of sandwiches for lunch, and boarded the train, it didn't take long.
So train number 3 was to Milano, a 3hour, 57 minute journey, which wasn't too bad I guess, except we went through a hell of a lot of tunnels, really long ones too.

The train was sweltering hot after about 2 hours, I think the air con broke or something.

Anyway, we just read our books, and looked at the scenery, and the darkness in the tunnels.

In Milano, we got some snacks, and water, and also changed money, that took a ridiculous amount of commission.
But...the train to Firenze was really nice, Eurostar train!! A nice train from all the bunk ones we took previously.

1Hr 45min to Florence, got there at exactly 6pm.
We got a map from the information centre for 1 euro...bargain, and walked the 1km to our hotel. It is in amidst all these little alleys, next to about another hundred hotels, even shares a building with another hotel, like one storey each, alternating.
It's called Hotel Giada, now don't let the name deter you (giadia – deadly disease) cause even though it was 2 stars, the room is as big as the one in Nice, very large, and the quality of the hotel in Paris – very nice, so I'd give it a 3 ½ or 4 star rating myself (minus the fact there's no pool)

We checked in, room 5, and then went out to a restaurant called Canto de' Nelli. We absolutely had no idea what to order, due to our inability to read Italian.

I wanted lasagne, so I ordered this 3 course menu thing for 12 euros, the lasagne was the size of a playing card, a bit one to be fair, but a very small piece of lasagne, I had chicken and potatoes for main, which I did learn the name for chicken, but forgot, and tiramisu for dessert.

The cake was also the size of a small playing card this time. Yummo.
Trudy had a big pizza, with what the man said was tomatoes, but turned out to be capsicum, so we are now not sure if pomodoro is tomato, or capsicum???

We do know that Dolci is Ice Cream!!!

We got groceries after our 22 euro dinner, + 3 euro service charge for each person, to save money for lunch.
Sleep pretty early, because we have a tour tomorrow, at 8.30am.