If you know me at all, you know that the thing I love most in the world (besides Theo, of course) is pasta. Well, welcome to Florence. Of all the things on this trip that I've been excited about, it's Italy.
Last night, Brian and I took an overnight train from Luxembourg to Florence. It was interesting, to say the least. We had tiny little beds that folded out of the wall, and had to share a couchette with 4 other people. Ugh. The last time I took an overnight train was on my France/Spain trip in high school, and, since I was 16 then, I spent about 5 hours in the bar car drinking red wine with some family that I met. It was probably not the best idea, in hindsight.
Eventually, though, we arrived in Italy, and basically all my dreams came true.
This morning, Brian and I settled into our hotel and set out to explore the city. Needless to say, I am never coming home. We disregarded all forms of a map and set off on our first Italian adventure.
We walked about a block from our hotel before we stumbled upon an open-air market with vendors selling all sorts of Italian goodies.
One of the first booths we found sold all sorts of hats, which reminded me of my sweet mother. Mama, this one's for you. I love you!
With only our intuitions leading us, we quickly found the Duomo, the most beautiful church I think I've ever seen.
We were awe-struck at the sight. There were so many tourists, but I managed to take some good photos without them.
After the Duomo, we immediately ran into the ponte vecchio, the oldest original bridge in Florence. During World War II, in a raid on Florence, the rest of the bridges were destroyed. "Ponte Vecchio" means "old bridge" in Italian.
After wandering for a few hours, we finally gave into temptation and set off on a journey to find an authentic Italian restaurant. (This is my favorite part of the story.)
Insert: Café Bellini (established in 1895). The food pictures are a must... (what else would you expect form me? I mean, come on. Let's be realistic here.)
Cheers to our first glasses of wine!
Bread, olive oil, and balsamic vinaigrette.
Brian pointed out that I literally made a wall around myself with Italian-ism.
This is the face of the happiest girl in the world.
A real "insalata mista." But I must say, PortaVia, you do hold your own. It was delicious (and don't worry, I was being safe).
Oh. My. God. Homemade linguine in a mushroom/truffle sauce. Can somebody please kill me before I have to leave this place?
A post-meal cappuccino.
We finished our (incredible) meal and set out again to the streets of Florence.
Brian and I bought of first pairs of handmade Italian sandals!
Florence is truly the most beautiful place I've ever been to.
I love Italian flags. They just make me happy (and also make me think of Mario and Luigi... Thank you, childhood of video games).
When we were tired of walking, we sat down in the shade to rest. This is where we sat. You don't see things like this in the States.
And that's just the beginning of my day. It's 8 o'clock here and we're about to head out for dinner. As the Italians say, "A day without pizza is like a day without sunshine." I couldn't love my life more.
As usual, I'm missing everyone at home (but I'll never see you again unless you come to Florence, because I'm moving here, eating pasta, and getting fat for the rest of my life).
Arrivederci!
Caroline
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