Saturday, May 29, 2010
First Day in Firenze Entry from Caroline
Friday morning, we had to literally run to catch our scheduled train to Florence, and thank God we packed the night before- made it just in time, but the two hour ride was interesting to say the least with a slightly less convenient train set-up for travelers; their was limited space for storage of luggage and we ended up with our two BIG bags sitting on our laps the last hour of the trip.
From Florence’s train station we grabbed a taxi and even this local man had a hard time finding our B&B, but once we reached it we were more than pleasantly surprised at it’s amazing location at the center of everything Florence has to offer J Quick run to see Michaelangelo’s David and then a quick pass through the Duomo (no we did not have time or energy to climb the 463 stairs to the top) and then we waited in line to take in the Uffizi gallery. It feels like a cardinal sin that we walked though as quickly as we did, but the heat of the building mixed with a 6:30 wake-up call, and all-day travel to that point suddenly overtook us. We drug ourselves back to the sweet “La Signoria de Firenze” B&B and collapsed for an early evening siesta.
After resting for a few we headed right back out and took advantage of the reservations “Tommy”, one of the proprietors of the B&B made for us at Coquinarius, a favorite enoteca of his. We were certainly not disappointed as we devoured the best meal of our trip! Between the antipasto sampler featuring zucchini and formaggio, crostini with goat cheese and sweet preserves, eggplant rolotini, and finally the prosciutto with arugala and pine nut infused ricotta. YUMMY! Add gorgonzola and spinach gnocchi, and orecchiette “literally meaning ear-shaped” with prosciutto, pine nuts, fennel and cherry tomatoes.
Last, we enjoyed a salad of sorts each; John enjoyed the raw beef (cured and sliced super thin), and I had the tuna. I cannot express the bliss that it brought us. Nicoli, helped us out big time by allowing us to purchase a bottle of wine from them to take on the road- yes you can drink out on the streets here at any time you wish- and even said “I trust you” while allowing us to take two wine glasses from the restaurant to drink from with the understanding the following evening. After walking to the Ponte Vecchio and downing our second bottle of vino for the evening we stopped by a late night gelateria for my second scoop of the day, and found our way back to the B&B for a wonderful night’s sleep. John has posted some additional photos of everything from the day!
From Florence’s train station we grabbed a taxi and even this local man had a hard time finding our B&B, but once we reached it we were more than pleasantly surprised at it’s amazing location at the center of everything Florence has to offer J Quick run to see Michaelangelo’s David and then a quick pass through the Duomo (no we did not have time or energy to climb the 463 stairs to the top) and then we waited in line to take in the Uffizi gallery. It feels like a cardinal sin that we walked though as quickly as we did, but the heat of the building mixed with a 6:30 wake-up call, and all-day travel to that point suddenly overtook us. We drug ourselves back to the sweet “La Signoria de Firenze” B&B and collapsed for an early evening siesta.
After resting for a few we headed right back out and took advantage of the reservations “Tommy”, one of the proprietors of the B&B made for us at Coquinarius, a favorite enoteca of his. We were certainly not disappointed as we devoured the best meal of our trip! Between the antipasto sampler featuring zucchini and formaggio, crostini with goat cheese and sweet preserves, eggplant rolotini, and finally the prosciutto with arugala and pine nut infused ricotta. YUMMY! Add gorgonzola and spinach gnocchi, and orecchiette “literally meaning ear-shaped” with prosciutto, pine nuts, fennel and cherry tomatoes.
Last, we enjoyed a salad of sorts each; John enjoyed the raw beef (cured and sliced super thin), and I had the tuna. I cannot express the bliss that it brought us. Nicoli, helped us out big time by allowing us to purchase a bottle of wine from them to take on the road- yes you can drink out on the streets here at any time you wish- and even said “I trust you” while allowing us to take two wine glasses from the restaurant to drink from with the understanding the following evening. After walking to the Ponte Vecchio and downing our second bottle of vino for the evening we stopped by a late night gelateria for my second scoop of the day, and found our way back to the B&B for a wonderful night’s sleep. John has posted some additional photos of everything from the day!
David
Last Night in Venice
Friday, May 28, 2010
San Marco Square Floods for 2nd night in a row
Day 3 Dinner continued
Day 3- Dinner at Cantinone Storico in Venezia
Day 3 - Antica Forno for lunch
The Mask
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