Firenze Shopping Spree
Florence, Italy, Wednesday, July 12, 22:55
Today was shopping day in Florence. After sleeping in a bit, we first grabbed a late breakfast of a pastry and cappuccino at a café around the corner from our pension.
Then we started the shopping adventure at the Mercato Nuovo (New Market), home of Il Porcellino. Katie was looking for a purse, while Kevin needed new belts and perhaps some Italia soccer shirts.
After success with the belts and shirts (along with a new duffle bag to put some clothes in for the trip home so we could free space in luggage for gifts etc.) we headed back to the room to drop the items off and rest our weary feet. Then, we headed to the Ponte Vecchio, the famous pedestrian bridge across the river that contains shops. Mostly high end jewelry places we didn’t buy anything but did have our photo taken. That’s the Uffizi in the background.
Next we headed for a pottery store that Katie had spied our first evening here. It has hand painted Tuscan pottery. On the way, we stopped in a bookstore to pick up some more gifts. When we got to the pottery store it wasn’t open yet, even though it was 15:00 and that is what time it was supposed to re-open. Disappointed, we walked down the street a bit and then doubled back, just in time to find the shopkeeper opening back up. She is the artisan that fires her own pottery in the shop, then paints and glazes it. We picked up several items, and she was happy to pose with Katie in front of the shop.
After a late afternoon siesta – much needed – we dashed over to a leather vendor at the Piazza Republicca (near our pension as well) to see about a purse that Katie had her eye on. After a bit of negotiation, she bought it. Oh, and Kevin got a new leather wallet/moneyclip.
We went to dinner outside of town at a restaurant up in the hills. It was a lovely setting to end the day. Our waitress, a young Italian woman, was enjoying practicing her English on us. We were the only American tourists in the place.
Tomorrow, we rent a car, do our best to get out of Florence, and drive to a small town in the Tuscan countryside called Montalcino. We may not have internet access there, so there may not be an entry tomorrow. But we’ll try to post one last time on Friday night from Rome.
Ciao!
Today was shopping day in Florence. After sleeping in a bit, we first grabbed a late breakfast of a pastry and cappuccino at a café around the corner from our pension.
Then we started the shopping adventure at the Mercato Nuovo (New Market), home of Il Porcellino. Katie was looking for a purse, while Kevin needed new belts and perhaps some Italia soccer shirts.
After success with the belts and shirts (along with a new duffle bag to put some clothes in for the trip home so we could free space in luggage for gifts etc.) we headed back to the room to drop the items off and rest our weary feet. Then, we headed to the Ponte Vecchio, the famous pedestrian bridge across the river that contains shops. Mostly high end jewelry places we didn’t buy anything but did have our photo taken. That’s the Uffizi in the background.
Next we headed for a pottery store that Katie had spied our first evening here. It has hand painted Tuscan pottery. On the way, we stopped in a bookstore to pick up some more gifts. When we got to the pottery store it wasn’t open yet, even though it was 15:00 and that is what time it was supposed to re-open. Disappointed, we walked down the street a bit and then doubled back, just in time to find the shopkeeper opening back up. She is the artisan that fires her own pottery in the shop, then paints and glazes it. We picked up several items, and she was happy to pose with Katie in front of the shop.
After a late afternoon siesta – much needed – we dashed over to a leather vendor at the Piazza Republicca (near our pension as well) to see about a purse that Katie had her eye on. After a bit of negotiation, she bought it. Oh, and Kevin got a new leather wallet/moneyclip.
We went to dinner outside of town at a restaurant up in the hills. It was a lovely setting to end the day. Our waitress, a young Italian woman, was enjoying practicing her English on us. We were the only American tourists in the place.
Tomorrow, we rent a car, do our best to get out of Florence, and drive to a small town in the Tuscan countryside called Montalcino. We may not have internet access there, so there may not be an entry tomorrow. But we’ll try to post one last time on Friday night from Rome.
Ciao!
posted by Katie | 1:47 PM
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