Day two - Florence

Pinch and a punch.....

Picture taken by Jeff!!

Well June got off to a fabulous start and we got up early, headed to the train station...

......and caught the train to....

....Florence!

Not a bad way to start your day.

First stop, tickets bought before we flew, was to climb Giotti's Bell Tower.

All 463 steps to the top!!

We decided to climb the bell Tower, so you could get views of the Duamo, rather than the other way around and according to my inter-railing diary, we climbed the Duamo 30 yrs ago!!

And obviously views over the whole of Florence too.

Smile!!

But don't look down!!

Taking in the views and having a breather!

And time for a coffee and gelato!

We then visited the Bapistry, the oldest building in Florence. 

Our ticket allowed us to go in here too and two other places, all for 20 euro's

There was a lot of restoration work taking place inside 

but you could still view the ceiling in full.

Next stop was the Mercato Centrale, an Italian Food Hall on two levels. 

The lower level, all the stalls and deli counters and upstairs.....

....a food hall. 

Around the perimeter was a huge selection of food stalls, which you bought from individually, then found a spot to sit down on one of the many large trestle tables

We shared so we could try a bigger variety and it was delicious!

meat

pasta

cheese

fruit and veg

sandwiches

We walked off our lunch exploring the city. It was very hot, so plenty of coffee stops and we found the Boar!! Rub the nose of the Boar and get good luck!

The river Arno flows through Florence and one of the most famous bridges is the Ponte Vecchio Bridge, made up of small jewelry shops.

 

We then walked along the river to....

....the Uffazi Gallery Courtyard.....

....which was full of artists painting.

We just sat in the shade, had a breather and people watched.

When researching our trip, this sandwich shop had fantastic reviews 

"ignore the queues, they move quickly and the food is worth waiting for"

So we queued, asked for a Sandwich to be cut in half, wrapped....

....and yes, it was worth waiting for - delicious foccacia.

Our plan for the evening was to go to the Piazzale Michaelangelo....

.... the highest point on the far side of the river.....

....with views over the whole of Florence.

Everyone comes here to sit and watch the sun set over Florence.

Sadly we didn't have enough time to stay and watch the sun set fully but we did sit and eat our sandwich with an incredible view.

The Ponte Vecchio Bridge

We walked along the river as the sun lowered...

.....appreciating the views....

....and getting to experience some sunset views.

A truly fabulous day in Florence and yes, I would return. Had a slight panic at the train station as our train wasn't listed, platforms super busy but asked a Policeman who directed us to a train heading to Pisa, so we got a seat and relieved headed back to the hotel.

When inter-railing trains were the main focus, so it's been funny relying on trains again. At least this time around you have the Trainline App and constant updates and information, would be so much easier to inter- rail today!!