We’re going into Florence again today! The key to this day being family-friendly is we have low expectations. In other words, we won’t be dragging the kids through the Uffizi or expecting to climb to the top of a tower for the view. It’s all about walking around and seeing where the day takes us. 

It’s cool enough to wear a sweater at breakfast this morning. I love a little surprising chill in the morning, especially in this peaceful farmhouse.

My parents leave early to use the Firenze Card as much as possible. We’ll meet them for lunch. Stefan and I enjoy some quiet coffee time in the house before the kids wake up. When Oly wakes, I hear, “guys?! guys?! it’s morning time!” He immediately wants to sit in the kitchen and eat two bananas and a pear. This kid.

The drive into Florence is much easier today. We use Waze the whole way, which probably helped us avoid more of the traffic jams. And I it may have been calmer generally because we don’t have some giant agenda to see lots of things. Today is just walking around, having lunch and seeing where the day takes us.

We walk to the Duomo, and Lillian is very impressed by the size and the fact it is multi-colored.

My parents have enjoyed the morning climbing the Duomo’s bell tower and meandering their way through the Uffizi.

//Grandpa Notes> Florence was awesome. Too many people, but what do you expect. Debbie and I drove up early and climbed to the top of the Duomo Tower and then went through the Uffizi museum.  We have not been in Florence since 2000 so it was a treat to see some of it.  We didn’t want to fight the crowds to see more, like the David.

We meet them for lunch at Obica,  a place Stefan finds via TripAdvisor. It’s really nice, in an internal patio. It actually looks so lovely we almost leave, but then we see the menu prices are reasonable. Awesome. The salad and pizzas are very good. Stefan finally gets a Negroni.

We walk from here to COS (yay for swedish clothing!) and then over to the Ponte Vecchio Bridge. It’s lined with jewelry shops.

My mom wants to do more shopping, so we separate into two groups again. This time Lillian goes with grandma. I think they are the two people who enjoy shopping the most in the entire world.

//Grandpa Notes on the afternoon with Lillian:

The kids drove up with the grandkids and we all met up for lunch.  We then somehow ended up shopping.  Big surprise!  Then we walked around some together before Grandma and Lillian decide that they need more shopping so I head off with them while Stefan, Kimberly and Olaf headed off on for more sightseeing.

Walking in Florence is everything that walking in Florence should be. It is all art and history and culture.  We pass street artist that have spent the entire day drawing fantastic pictures with chalk on the street.  A really amazing place.  So even following Debbie and Lillian around as they shop is okay until they start the serious department store shopping.  That’s when I find a nearby outdoor café where I can drink wine and wait.  

After a couple of glasses of wine Deb and Lillian join me.  The waitress naturally falls in love with Lillian.  We order sandwiches and more wine.

Stefan and I take Oly and get some gelato. The kids have been excited about gelato since we go to Florence and passed 50 different shops selling it. We walk to take another bridge over the river, and we discover the Museo Stefano Bardini. He was an antiquities dealer hundreds of years ago, and this is a special collection of some of his favorite things. It’s very random but interesting. There’s a room full of weapons that Oly likes.

We walk over the river and to the Basilica of Santa Croce. It’s outstanding. I can’t believe how many beautiful churches there are in this city. The inside of the church is huge, and the ceiling is painted wooden beams, which is different from anything we’ve seen. There seem to be many important people buried in this church, not just around the sides but also underneath our feet. Oly likes to stand on the outlines of the bodies. It’s a bit weird.

This is more than a church. There are cloisters and a couple other chapels. And a museum. We walk through some exhibits, but we don’t see it all. It’s huge and beautiful. I’m glad we have the Firenze Cards because I’m not sure we would check out as many things if we didn’t have it.

It’s almost 5, and Oly is tired. I can’t believe he hasn’t napped yet today! He’s trying to lie down anywhere he can, so we have to find a place to sit quickly. We brought along our computers in case we found internet today. We’ve been without for over a week, and it’s starting to get to us. So Stefan finds a great spot a couple blocks away. It’s a cool bar that is super relaxed this time of day. The bartender is very nice and gives Oly some popcorn. I have blueberry juice (very strange) and Stefan enjoys another Negroni. And they have great wifi! It’s the simple things. We sit in a cute little nook and catch up on some things. I post on the blog for the first time in a week. It feels really good.

After at least an hour of indulging in internet, we walk over to meet my parents and Lillian on a nice patio at Caffe La Posta. They have free happy hour appetizers, so they’ve loaded up. We sit and have some snacks and a drink. The plan is to head back home afterward, but Lillian is super disappointed that she hasn’t been to a museum in this city I told her is known for its fantastic museums. I think she feels cheated.

So we use our Firenze Cards one last time. My mom, the kids and I walk over to the Museo di Palazzo Vecchio, Florence’s city hall, in the center of town. The meeting hall is like nothing I’ve ever seen. It’s so expansive and the ceiling and walls are covered in beautiful paintings depicting the city’s history. Then we walk through many rooms with different stories of strong women depicted on the ceilings. It’s pretty cool. Lillian says it makes her dizzy to look up at them. In addition to all the historical paintings, furnishings and architecture, there are many modern art pieces throughout the museum! I don’t really understand how they all connect, but I don’t really care. It’s fun and interesting.

So Lillian got her museum, and I’m glad she made us come see something else. Florence has so much to offer.

//Grandpa Notes> Stefan, Kimberly and Olaf finally join us.  We are wrapping up our day in Florence and planning our hour drive back to the house. Then Lillian informs her mother that it would be a shame to drive home and then just come back the next day so that Lillian could go to a museum in Florence.   So Kimberly, Debbie, Lillian and Olaf head off for one more museum. This leads to us sitting around until after dark before heading back to Poggibonsi.  A big day.

We meet the guys in the square, where they’ve sat to have a drink. It’s dark now, and there are guys selling light-up toys in the square. My dad buys the kids a flying light-up toy, and they go play in the square. My mom and I sit with Stefan and enjoy the best glass of Prosecco I’ve ever had (Valdobbiadene).

//Grandpa notes> Grandpa is the best flying light-up toy launcher.

The drive home is easy, but it’s late. We put the kids straight to bed. And a bonus: the owner of the house is here installing a new router and making the internet work! It’s slow, but at least we have something! Hallelujah.