Firenze

Monday 9 July 2012  - Off to Tuscany

Day 87 and 72 to go

With a good nights rest I woke refreshed and ready to start the next day. Paul hadn’t slept so well as it was quite warm and still during the night. He went off for a shower while I cleaned up in the van and got breakfast ready. When he returned we ate cereal and then I went for a shower.

When I returned we returned to the wifi spot to call home and catch up on what was happening there. I added some more photos to Facebook and checked the banking before we returned to the van and got going.

Our drive was not a long one today. La Spezia to Florence in 1 1/2 hours spent on the motorway. The traffic was minimal and the roads good. I am still amazed at the feats of engineering as the motorways carve a path between mountains following massive bridges both in length and height above the ground and then through mountains with tunnels that make the Farmer Freeway fade into insignificance.

At 11am we pulled into Camping Internazionale Firenze, paid our fees and found a place to park up on the hill. With the van set up, I went and put on some washing, before returning to the van. It was quite warm outside so we were looking for somewhere to retreat to.

We had a wander around the camp to check out the facilities. The pool looked so inviting that we returned to the van had lunch and then changed into our swimming gear before taking a dip that was so welcome. The pool was relatively quiet and we enjoyed the relax.

Once we were cooled down we returned to the van, changed and returned to the reception to buy our bus ticket to Florence centre. We then had to walk 500m to the bus stop and wait for the 37 to go by. It did so about 20 min later and we were on our way to Florence at 2pm.

The road in was rough and bumpy with road works, cars and scooters to dodge. It was not particularly pleasant. The bus squeezed its way through the old city walls before winding through the streets to our stop in the centre.

Once off the bus we had to find our bearings, that wasn’t particularly easy, as like many Italian cities, there are just too many little streets and they all branch off in higgledy piggledy directions.

We stopped firstly for water as the sun was beating down, making the aimless wander slightly unbearable. Just like I remember when I was here in 1999.

We eventually found the tourist bureau and with map in hand we had somewhere to head. If only I could work out which street was which!

 We made our way to an outdoor market where Paul bought a new wallet and I bought a scarf. The small of the leather was just divine. So many jackets, gloves, belts to choose from, but it was just too hot to try anything on and seriously where am I going to pack it?  I can see another box being sent home.

Our walk continued on to the Duomo, a magnificent structure of coloured marble. Here there were many tourists taking the obligatory pictures. There was even an Asian bride and her husband, dressed in what looked like a damask tablecloth and sneekers, having their wedding pictures taken. Cute.

With dehydration setting in we stopped at a small restaurant just down from the Duomo and had a drink. Paul had a massive beer served in a very heavy and large glass stein. It was lovely to just sit and take it in. A Segway tour went by and I wished I was on it too. Maybe tomorrow.

Our walk continued to the river where we could see the Ponte Vecchio. The famous Florence bridge that has many goldsmiths selling their wares along it. We crossed the bridge before wandering along the street and returning to the main centre in search of our bus stop. In the end we had to ask at the train station where our stop was.

At 5.05pm we were back on our bus returning to our campsite 20min later. Sweat dripping off us and in need of more water by the time we got to the van, that was also stifling. With the washing in and bathers on it was straight to the pool. This time it was a little more crowded with many twenty somethings also enjoying the water. It seems we have decided to camp up at a Conitki campsite. Let’s hope it is quiet!

 We enjoyed the refresh, laying around in the water and chatting. Once we were cooled off enough we returned to the van and had the leftover spag bog before playing cards again. It was still very warm and the mozzies were coming in as there is no screen door on this van unlike our Spanish one.

We went to the restaurant / shop and bought some more drinks and a citronella candle before enjoying a drink in the alfresco area where it was a little cooler. Once done, we returned to the van. We lit the candle in the hope it would keep the mozzies at bay and then read while trying to keep cool before finally heading to bed.

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