With just under a week to go here in Florence, we packed as much as possible into our last free weekend. It's hard to believe how quickly these five weeks have gone by but thankfully we prioritized, saving the best for last. The first of our "final countdown" days came with a familiar mantra: pizza, gelato, Duomo. Thanks to some reputable guide books and the recommendation of our program directors, we ventured across the Ponte Vecchio to the best pizza place in Florence, Gusta Pizza. Getting there twenty minutes before opening time (7pm) and standing at the correct entrance guarantees you first place in line (nearly 30 deep by 7:00!) and a seat inside this small hole in the wall establishment. Their 5 euro Margherita pizza is simply amazing, with the fresh mozzarella melted atop perfectly seasoned sauce. I hate to go against my Dover roots on this one, but I think this may be the best pizza I've ever had!
No Italian dinner is complete without gelato, so we stopped on our way back at another great find, a sure frontrunner in my unofficial Florence gelato contest. The combined nutritional value of the pizza and gelato served as great fuel for our next stop, the Duomo. Construction of this gothic style cathedral began in 1296 and was completed in 1436, though it still maintains beautiful color and clarity. Some of the best views of Florence come from atop the Duomo, so we couldn't wait to climb the 450 steps and explore the city we've called home from a new vantage point. At this point we were accustomed to the spiral, Alice in Wonderland-like staircases and shifted stones, so in no time we reached the top! The sun was starting its descent which made for some beautiful pictures:
Unfortunately we couldn't stay up there too long, but it was great to check that off our Florence bucket list! Since we've been living here for weeks now it often takes things like the birds eye view of the city to remind us just how beautiful it is. Or, like in this picture from another night last week, when you stumble upon the sun setting over the river. Doesn't get much better!
Let's Go to the Beach
Though we've transitioned quite nicely into urban life here, since it turned consistently 80+ degrees outside we've been anxious to get our first real taste of summer from the Italian coast. Friday we made it happen, boarding our first solo train to the costal town of Viareggio. We hopped off the train and trusted the Italian youth for the first and probably last time, following those in bathing suits just about a half a mile to the beach! The weather was perfect, the beach was fairly empty, and we only saw a couple middle-aged men in Speedos. Not a bad day!
We had such a wonderful time at the beach, as it was our first real relaxing excursion. I also loved it because the sand reminded me of one of my second homes, the Jersey Shore, which has my name on it come August!
Bolognese in Bologna
Saturday I was back at the train station again, this time heading to meet my friend Andrea in Bologna! The convenient meeting place was a city we had heard much about, particularly with respect to food. But first, since we kind of have a thing for old universities, we ventured on over to the campus of the world's oldest, the University of Bologna. Founded in 1088, it marks the origin of the word "university" and is still in operation today. The campus was quiet yet charming, filled with porticos and other medieval looking plazas. The much-anticipated lunch came from a small restaurant chosen somewhat at random on one of the busier streets in the city. Without hesitation we both ordered tagliatelle con ragú alla bolognese, as Bologna is the birthplace of the meat sauce "bolognese." As expected it was delicious, catapulting itself to one of the best Italian meals I've had thus far!
Feeling the effect of our mid-day carboload, we began our venture to the Basilica Madonna di San Luca, home to a prized icon of the Virgin Mary, allegedly painted by Saint Luke the apostle himself. Thanks to Andrea's Italian proficiency, we asked for directions to the bus stop and found our way outside the city center to the basilica's base. Per usual, access to this basilica and the best view of Bologna doesn't come easy. The basilica demands a roughly two mile hike uphill through the world's longest portico of 666 arches. Thankfully the arches gave us some shade, but we sure felt the burn by the time we reached the summit! The view was once again spectacular, making all that effort so worth it!
We returned to the city center without issue and after a celebratory gelato run headed to our respective train tracks. It was great to see a friend from home for the first time since I've been here. We had a blast and were so glad we got to see each other and a new city in Italy!
Cinque Terre Trekking
Bright and early Sunday morning we met with a travel company here in Florence for my last day trip of the weekend, this time to the beautiful coastal paradise of Cinque Terre. Translating to "five lands", Cinque Terre is composed of five villages each with distinct character: Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, and Monterosso al Mare. The natural scenery and hillside houses pinned between the sea and mountains offer some of the most spectacular sights in all of Italy. Due to their location, however, these houses are at the mercy of natural disasters such as land slides and flooding, evidence of which exists in spots across the region. In addition to the beachfront, Cinque Terre is known for its hiking trails connecting the small cities. Our knowledgeable tour guides took us from town to town to maximize our time there, leaving the most time in Manarola, Vernazza and Monterosso. The first stop in Manarola gave us our first look at the incredible cliffs and accompanying houses. We got to climb out on rocks for some more photo ops!
Vernazza came next, bringing with it more views of coastal beauty. They are famous for their focaccia bread, so we couldn't pass up a stop at the local baker! We ate fast since we only had about a half an hour here before the highlight of the trip, the hike from Vernazza to Monterosso. This is the most challenging of all the hiking trails at a length of just over 2 miles and about 800 vertical feet with an average completion time of about 90 minutes (which we obviously took as a personal challenge to beat). The first part was the most challenging, but as soon as we got our first view of Vernazza we knew this would be well worth it. With each bend and set of stairs we were greeted with an even more impressive seascape and couldn't help taking lots of pictures! By now the temperature had warmed up and the added weights of our backpacks made for a pretty hot trek, but overall I'll never forget what an amazing experience it was!
At the highest point on the hike we could begin to see our destination, Monterosso, giving us even more motivation to get there and get into our bathing suits! After stopping for a celebratory picture of the hike's completion, we hustled down to the beach to cool off in the crystal blue waters. Even the crowds of tourists and streams of vendors couldn't take away from our beach experience! Like always, we could have spent hours there but sadly had to grab some lunch and head back to the buses.
Arrivederci!
Megan
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