Traveling to Florence was via a train ride from Stazione di Venezia Santa Lucia to Firenze Santa Maria Novella. Time was up with exploring Venice and touring Murano. It was easy finding our train coach and seats. The only hiccup to the whole process was the conductor transferring us to another seat. Accordingly, Gate 1 Travel booked us a different seating arrangement.

We arrived in Florence. Walking from Firenze Santa Maria Novella to the Grand Hotel Adriatrico was seven minutes long and brisk. The hotel was small but clean and comfortable. We were happy to clean up and refresh before heading out the door.

Piazza della Signora, the main town square, was the meeting place for our Florence walking tour. It was within walking distance but we saved our knees for the walking tour by taking a taxi. We arrived early and we started exploring the whole piazza. We were seeing works of art that were on display openly in the piazza. History was rich in this piazza with each work of art representing a specific significant event.

The buildings were also as magnificent as the works of art. Palazzo Vecchio definitely represents the seat of power at the square. Loggia dei Lanzi housed the outdoor arts. There were several other buildings in the surrounding area of the square that served different purposes. Definitely, it required more than the one day that we were there to fully explore it.

Step by step we were moving forward along the narrow streets of Florence. All around, we saw subtle changes of influence that shaped the city. Similar to Venice, my naive mind thought of Florence as a homogenous city. Contrary to my belief, the different cultural influences, whether recent or long-standing, has given the city its unique character.

Walking the narrow streets, though interesting and excellent as a learning process, became monotonous. The monotony did not last very long. We turned a corner and was awe-struck by the massive and intricate design of Santa Maria del Fiore cathedral. The familiar combo of baptistry, cathedral, and bell tower were there but, this time, a duomo (dome) housed the bell.

It took a while to get over the awe of seeing Santa Maria del Fiore. We took time walking around and talking about it. Eventually, we kept on moving through the narrow streets and ended up at Piazza di Santa Croce. There was night market in the piazza. A stall was selling Bavarian cuisine and that became our dinner for that night. The plan for the next day was a bus tour to the southern part of Italy.