On to Firenze!

Our train taking us from Roma to Firenze:

There were sunflower fields everywhere. They make lots of sunflower oil:

Our room at the little B&B we stayed in. Our hosts, Edo and Celia, were amazing!! This was our favorite place that we stayed the whole trip because they were so welcoming :)

Celia is a dancer from France and loves to decorate the rooms ... Edo is very Italian and had us in stitches with his stories about drinking grappa while he was a ski instructor!

They gave us a bottle of Chianti when we arrived and a tour of the neighborhood so we'd feel comfortable. Just down the street was a little patisserie with the best gelato I've ever had in my life. Edo used to go there as a little boy :)

Michael getting off his feet for a little bit!

We headed into the Mercato Nuovo (Straw Market) to look around and found that we liked the fruit area out in front better than the indoor market! Michael had a peach and I had some apricots:

So much fruit to choose from!

We kept meandering and eventually stumbled across the Duomo! Its hard to miss Brunelleschi's dome!

Such a beautiful Gothic church! It is covered in pink, green and white Tuscan marble!

A friend of mine had just gotten back from this area and had highly recommended Grom for some gelato - it was super yummy!!

Afterwards we kept walking and saw the Palazzo Vecchio. Michelangelo's David used to be at this entrance until it was moved into the Accademia:

The Fountain of Neptune:

Heading down the small streets on our way across the river:

Right before we crossed the river, we saw the Santa Croce Church - the remains of Galileo Galilei are in this church.

Once we crossed the river, we headed up a steep hill to get to Piazzale Michelangelo. Looking down at the Ponte Vecchio:

An exact replica of David:

... and SUPERB views of Florence!

Michael in front of the Duomo and the Palazzo Vecchio:

after spending a good while up top, we headed down to cross the Ponte Vecchio. This area is lined with gold and silver shops!!

the gelato shops were a treat for the eyes as well as the taste buds!

some amazing street art (this is actually on the pavement):

heading to dinner before we turned in for the night!