
...waiting for orders, waiting to PCS, waiting for this pandemic to end - I am contemplating happier days. There was a time when the Wheeler fam was blazing a trail across Europe. It started in 2010, when we first moved to Germany. Our first trip to a big European city was to Paris in late November that year. After that, we absolutely fell in love with travel, and it sparked a desire in us to see as much as we could while we were here. We've been to a total of 13 countries together, and we are aware of how incredibly lucky we are to get to experience this life the way we have.
Today it's snowing in Germany and our high temperature is only supposed to be 25 degrees. Brrrrrrr. This has me thinking of our favorite country to escape to for sun and warmer weather - Italia!
Spring of 2019 we took a trip to Florence, Italy. It's one of my favorite Italian cities. The first time we went, we were with a tour group (RTT Travel at Ramstein AB is AMAZING and the Classic Italian package is a dream vacation) in 2011. It was late September, and we were at the end of our trip. We only got to spend a day in Florence, and I knew I wanted to come back. The city is just beautiful. The buildings of the city center were built during a revival of the ancient Roman and Greek architectural styles during the Renaissance. It is a story book city. It feels like a small village, but offers so much to experience.
Driving down to Italy from Germany, we are always - no matter how many times we do it - struck by the vast difference in the weather north versus south of the Alps. It never fails that we are shrouded in clouds and dreariness on our side, while the Italian Alps offer deep blue skies.

We stopped in the Austrian city of Innsbruck on our way down to spend the night and enjoy this beauty of the Austrian Alps. We had bad luck for weather, and I left my camera at home, but we enjoyed walking the fairly deserted city and seeing the towering alps reaching up into the cloud cover as a backdrop to this gorgeous city.


We were so tired from a long day of driving that we ate at the most American restaurant we could find - I know we are the worst - but I was craving nachos and Hard Rock Cafe Innsbruck was right there - and it was raining!
The next day we woke up to blue skies and a much busier city center. We grabbed some bagels at the bakery next to our hotel and headed out to make the rest of the trip to Florence. The drive was about 11 hours total.
The drive through the Alps in Italy is incredible. Castles periodically jut out of the rock formations of the mountains and the villages are nestled in the valleys between ranges of huge towering mountains. It's a beautiful drive. As you get closer to Florence, you drive through over 30 tunnels! Some of them are over 5km long, so if you don't like tunnels, I can't recommend driving!
Our hotel was about a 15 minute walk from the Duomo. We had an interesting parking experience when we arrived. Some Italian men greeted us as we entered the hotel parking garage, took the keys to our car, and proceeded to park our Kia in a stack of vehicles in a strange car elevator system I'd never seen the likes of before. It was interesting to watch, and I worried for the safety of my little car, but everything was fine in the end.
We immediately unpacked, took note once again of how everywhere in Italy smells strangely like men's cologne, and took off for the city center of Florence.
It was a beautiful day, but it was definitely on the chilly side. We ate at a pizzeria that sat in the shadow of the Duomo.

We ate outside, but they had heaters set up at each table to blast away the spring chill that comes at sunset in northern Italy. The food was delicious, and I enjoyed a local red wine recommended by our friendly waitress. Dessert was an incredible tiramisu.
Once that was done we literally got lost winding our way through the streets of Florence. We enjoyed just meandering and taking in the sights of the Italian town. Florence is known for their leather-making shops. You can order a custom-made jacket and pick it up within a day or so if you time it just right, and if you can afford the price-tag!



So, the sun was setting and we were definitely lost - well I was lost, Matt swears he knew where we were going the whole time. Eden and I were freezing, so we were forced to buy sweatshirts from one of the street vendors who was camped out on a corner of an alleyway. Forty Euros for a sweatshirt from a guy on the street!
The next day, we got up early and decided we would go see the Pitti Palace and Boboli Gardens. This palace/museum combo sits perched on the hills south of the city and across the River Arno. It was about a 30 minute walk from our hotel. It's a beautiful area, with lots of sculptures, fountains, a museum with frescoes and renaissance paintings, and a cute little cafe with a pretty decent wine selection. We didn't tour the museum, because this was pre-pandemic and we were museum'd out at the moment. We wanted to enjoy the weather and the beautiful views of the city this location offered.





We love spring break trips because by the time April gets here and we've suffered a long, dark, German winter, we are ready for some sunshine!
After we'd gotten our fill of the Boboli Gardens, we ventured back into the city. This time we somehow managed to cross the Arno via the Ponte Vecchio - total accident because we planned nothing about this trip. The Ponte Vecchio is a covered bridge that serves as a market for all kinds of vendors. It is crowded with tourists, but provides some interesting sights and the opportunity for some serious trinket-buying.
Once back in the city, we made our way to the Piazza della Signoria, where we toured the Ufizzi Gallery. This gallery has tons of beautiful renaissance art and sculptures. It wasn't crowded at all and had no wait time to get in. The Piazza della Signoria is the square in Florence that has more outdoor sculptures than any other location. A copy of Michelangelo's David stands there, though it is a poor substitute for the real thing!


After enjoying the sights of Piazza della Signoria, we got some gelato - do NOT skip gelato in Italy - and then headed back to our hotel for a little refresher before dinner.
The next day we booked advanced tickets with a tour group to view Michelangelo's David in The Accademia Gallery. If you do not book advance tickets to see this, you will be waiting in line for hours. No joke, there is no good time to go. It can be pouring rain, it could be over 100 degrees - there will be an hours-long line. We booked a One Hour with David tour in which we had a guide who described him to us in all his splendor. This meant we got to skip the long line, and get in the line for tour groups. This is also a thing. We still had to wait about 20 minutes to get in, even with advanced tickets. The guide was great, really. She had this amazing Italian accent and went above and beyond providing us with information about Michelangelo and David.

David is presented to us in his own dome-ceilinged room. He was originally installed on the roof of the Duomo, but the decision was made to preserve his beauty by bringing him inside the museum. There isn't much else to see at Accademia Gallery, and it may seem crazy to go through all that for one statue, but he is worth it. Michelangelo is known as the greatest sculptor of all time for a reason. I highly recommend booking a tour and having a guide provide you with info. It really enriches your experience.



After visiting the Accademia Gallery, we found a restaurant - and I really wish I could tell you the name, I do, because they had the most amazing black truffle ravioli I have ever had in my life. Have the black truffle ravioli while you are in Florence. I've never had anything better. Here is a link with the 15 best places to get truffles in Florence.
This was our last day in Florence. We had such an amazing time. We booked this trip on Booking.com about 2 months in advance. We didn't plan sights to see (other than David) we didn't search for restaurants. We just wandered and meandered and enjoyed ourselves. The only stress came from how crowded it was. I would gladly go back and spend a weekend there in the future if coronavirus will just allow it. Until that time, I'll enjoy reliving these memories and know that I will never take it for granted again.

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