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LONG DAY!! Maybe one of the busiest days of my life? Well to sum it up, I left the room at 8 am and got back at 4 am. Is that successful or what? Dragging the girls downstairs to meet the boys for 8:30 breakfast, we wanted to get to the Duomo nice and early to ensure not waiting in a very long line. We got there (about a fifteen minute walk from our Hotel Leonardo Da Vinci) at about 9:30, and waited a half hour to be admitted. The outside of the Duomo is truly magnificent. It is probably the largest church I have ever seen, with beautiful alternating patterns of green and white marble. The vastness and magnitude of the structure overwhelms the city square. It started raining outside, causing us to think we would be doomed for another day of horrific weather! Bundled up from the cold rain with umbrellas, ponchos, and rain jackets, we made it into the Duomo. It was very pretty, but then again all churches are very pretty. I thought the outside with ornate green and white marble was much prettier than the inside. However, the inside featured a beautiful, sky high dome with painted depictions of heaven and hell. When the church was originally built, they left a gaping hole in the ceiling because the technology did not yet exist for what they planned to build. However, they were sure that somebody would come along and be able to build it, and they were right! We knew that we wanted to climb the 463 steps to the top of the dome, so we paid the entrance fee and began the trek. The stairs were scary at times, alternating between steep climbs and dizzy spirals. After many careful steps, we reached the inside of the top of the dome. Looking over the side into the church below made me a little nauseous due to the height, but we did get a close up of the paintings of the dome! Christian and I quickly concluded that hell was a place we never wanted to be. Next came the best part of our day: the outside of the dome!! It was as if God had cleared up the sky for us on our way up, because the sky had become completely clear! The view was one of the coolest things I have seen in my entire life. Looking over the tall clock tower, the vastness of Florence jumped at you in the most picturesque way in the world. Antique brick and narrow alleyways contrasted the spacious mountains in the back of the landscape. You could see clouds throughout the rolling mountains, as their peaks poked through the top of the clouds. We took WAY too many pictures but it was well worth it. The descent was a lot easier than the climb up!
We meandered to Ponte Vecchio, a famous bridge crossing the river in Florence filled with an array of jewelry shops, ranging from Pandora to local turquoise and pearl jewelry. We quickly retreated back into central Florence to meet Stampsies for lunch. She was treating her theater kids, but in our quest to be her favorite honorary class member, Christian and I joined as well. Thank goodness we joined!! This was my best meal I have had so far in Italy. The restaurant was called Trattoria Za-Za, famous for being an authentic Italian restaurant and not just a tourist trap. Starting out with breadsticks, caprese salad, and bruschetta, I was already head over heels in love. Once the waitress recommended ricotta and spinach ravioli in a truffle sauce, I decided to expand my limits into the sphere of mushrooms. It was the best lunch of my entire life! The art history students left to go on a field trip to a theater, so Christian, Austin, and I ventured off on our own. Christian and I dubbed it "Twin Date Day," since we were dressed in exactly the same mint color, and we had the greatest bonding afternoon ever! Attempting to go to the Boboli Gardens, it started raining as we arrived and since it stopped right as we turned around, we took it as a sign not to go. Instead, we headed towards the Michelangelo platform overlooking the entire city, per Lucas's suggestion. It was also free which didn't hurt! On the way, we grabbed the most delicious gelato at a cute, decorative joint right in the water. Continuing our trip to the Michelangelo, we hiked up lots of stairs and got a gorgeous tour of many flower gardens. The purples, reds, whites, and yellows of the roses and wild flowers were beautiful! We reached the top, and got yet another breath taking view of the city from the other side of the river. We got to see more of the river and Ponte Vecchio from this direction. Upon our descent, we stumbled upon a Japanese zen garden (because I got us lost), which was very random! The afternoon was very fun, as Christian and I bonded over long term relationships and religion (haha). We headed back across the river to meet the rest of the crew, who was just getting back from their field trip. Thank God for Italian phones!!
We met at one of the town's leather markets, which is a trademark of Florence. The bags, belts, jackets, and wallets were never ending. Unfortunately, I set my sights on one bag which was fraying, and couldn't find the same one. Oh well! It was fun wandering through the cheap prices and I got Christian a nice nautical belt! After shopping around for about two hours, we went back to the hotel for about five minutes before heading right back out for dinner! We stumbled upon a cute little place called Trattoria ???, which boasted an authentic Italian atmosphere. Christian, Adam, Karina, Olivia, Alyssa, and I went in, paid for water (as usual), and I decided to order the waitresses' recommendation of crepes. Unlike any crepes I have ever seen! It was almost like stuffed shells in a yummy creamy sauce.. Very interesting to say the least! We enjoyed the cute restaurant after our long day of walking. By the time we left, it was around 11:00, but we ran into Nick, David, and Tommy on our way back to the hotel. After a little convincing from their Florence map with all the good bars marked, the girls decided to join them to go get a drink for just an hour or so. Next thing we know it, the lights to the bar are turned on to close and we get home at 4 am! After refusing Tommy's ridiculous (as usual) request to go to a club across the river, we ended up at a semi-American bar right next to the Duomo, where we got to experience a lovely Martini Monday! The fruity drinks were delicious, and we had the greatest time. David met some Lambda Chi brothers from another school, but Tommy got a little jealous that they were "talking to our Miami girls," and he shoved them away. Like what?? We yelled at him a bit, and he finally apologized and left us to go talk to some hefty chicks. By the time we arrived back at our hotel, Tommy was so gone that he did not realize Nick and David were hiding in our room, so he called the police to file a missing person report. Very stupid, but very funny!
This was one of the greatest days of the trip, loving Florence!!
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