Italy 2011- Final Days in Florence

Our last days in Florence were spent more casually. Florence is very laid back and has a smaller town feel. Everything was much quieter, the people were less tolerant of tourists and it was much easier to navigate.
On Monday, we went to the Galileo Museum (no photographs allowed) which was very cool for the scientist in me. It was three floors of scientific instruments and discoveries. I quite enjoyed it. Then we made our way to the Mercato Centrale, or Central Market by way of San Lorenzo Market. San Lorenzo Market is the 'street market' for clothes and leather. Florence is known for its leather factory. Some of these stalls are attached to permanent stores and some are temporary and just sell standard tourist trinkets. We meander through...a coat catches my eye.
We make it to the Central Market which is more of a farmers market, filled with stalls of produce, oils, meats, etc for local shoppers.For those of you who follow me on Facebook, it was in this market where the mean Italian man yelled at me (not the one pictured). It was the only 'bad' thing to happen and it wasn't that bad..I am sensitive so it hurt my feelings but that is OK.
We made our way to Nerbone which is a VERY popular spot in the market (every guidebook and travel site mentions it) where Jason stood in line and pointed at what he wanted while I found a spot on the communal benches.And he returned with tripe, pasta and wine. Staples of Italian cuisine.After lunch, we meandered back through the San Lorenzo market and 'happened' back upon the aforementioned coat. To soothe my wounded feelings, I tried it on..and fell in love! Luckily, they haggle. Victory! The tag says it all. (Firenze=Florence)
That evening we had scheduled to participate in a cooking course at the local cooking academy. It was fun, but we had hoped to make pasta..but we did not. But we had a good time regardless. While walking there, I snapped a few photos of the Vecchio bridge The kitchen was professional!Jason tried not to 'do it all' but did get to show off a few skills.One of the finished products, Chicken something....On the way back to the hotel, I got some of my FAVORITE shots of the trip..the lighting was perfect and IMO they turned out well. The Tiber River and Florentine bridges.
The next day we did a bit more sightseeing. First, the Duomo Notice the little white part at the top of the big orange/copper dome...We walked up there..and they didn't exactly plan for elevators during the Renaissance period. So we walked up 463 steps...straight up. It wasn't easy at all. This is a shot of us going down so you get an idea of how small and steep they were.
but once there, we were rewarded with amazing views of Florence and the surrounding Tuscan countryside.The first photo of the Duomo from the ground shows this towerFor the pain, he was rewarded with gelato
After this, we visited the Accademia, which houses the original David by Michealango. it was amazing..but of course..no photos allowed. The detail was breath taking..an item not to miss if visiting. Then we went through the Uffizi Gallery which houses the Birth of Venus painting among other great works. it too was great.
our last night was spent with the our friend at Pitti Gola e Cantina. he treated us so well and the food was so amazing, that we had to go back. he again showered us with good wine, great food and great company.This steak tartare had sooo much fresh black truffle grated on it..Overall, Italy was awesome. The food was fantastic, the people were inviting and the structures were amazing. it was a great trip. Thank you for reading my blog about it! The trip home was long and tortuous but it was worth it.
Ciao!