I felt the most at home in Florence, it was peaceful, welcoming and beautiful. On our first day there we walked up to the Boboli gardens. Everything is so easily walkable in Florence and it was fun to explore the city and gardens.



Navigating with a map is a skill I am fairly adept at. However, on the day we went to explore the Duomo I went to get food while the husband waited in line. I was several blocks away when I realized is I did not have the map. I mixed my left and right turns and quickly got lost among the winding streets and alleys. I felt safe but was without anything to communicate with my husband who in the meantime was becoming more and more worried with each passing minute. It took me 45 minutes to find my way back to him and was only able to do so by the kindness of a well dressed elderly Italian man who spoke no english. I was mostly upset that I had ruined lunch and mad at myself for forgetting the map. 45 minutes apart isn't terribly long, when you are in a foreign country and have no way of communicating it is oh so wonderful to be reunited.

A side note on elderly Italian men. I used to spend a lot of time as a young child with my Sicilian grandfather and his Italian friends at the community garden they all gardened at.  Their deep voices and easygoing rhythm of the language was always a warm and comforting memory. My grandfather was loud and outgoing but his friends Frank and Vince had a more quiet and gentle demeanor.  I learned a small amount of Italian then but remember almost none of it now. My grandfather would teach me greetings for me to say to his friends such as "Isn't is a beautiful day? The sky is blue and the sun is shining...".  I am pretty sure the greetings I was taught at age five would have been very little help as an adult. Hearing the language again so many years later brought back fond memories but alas very little ability to actually communicate. 




Art is a deeply rooted part of the culture and history of Florence. One of my favorite moments in Florence was seeing the Statue of David. I have never been very drawn to sculptures, I generally prefer paintings and didn't think seeing this sculpture would be a big deal. And while I have been really excited to see certain painting. I don't typically feel an emotional reaction apart from a deep appreciation for a style. However, seeing the statue of David and knowing what it meant to the people of Firenze moved me in ways I have never felt for art. The sculpture was a symbol for a small republic surrounded by powerful enemies and it was incredibly evident how important and loved this sculpture was and still is for the people of Firenze.