Drinking Alone

FLORENCE: So the sun had barely risen on Thursday morning when I set out for the Tube, pack across my shoulders, to catch the first train, change catch another train to north London before getting on still another train on why way to Stanstead. Then it was on a plane, an hour wait at a train station and another train from Pisa to Florence before I could get to my hostel. Why is it that even if you're only flying for an hour or two, you end up being in transit for about seven hours?

That said the plane ride did provide me with some of the days highlights. Flying over the Swiss Alps, still covered with snow on the cusp of summer, was incredible. I think I was able to pick out Lake Lucerne, Mont Blanc in the distance towering far above the clouds and possibly Lake Como as we crossed in to Italy. I've often heard people say that when you fly past Everest you look down instinctively, but to see it you actually have to look up. Mont Blanc was like that.

When I got to Florence it was largely overcast and since most of the museums keep odd hours I decided to wander around. First visiting the massive Duomo which, despite being incredibly impressive on the outside, is somewhat underwhelming inside. Then I paid 9 Euros for an ice cream. Seriously.

And then I walked down towards the Arno, across the river on the Ponte Vecchio and then on the Piazza Pitti which includes the Renaissance-era Boboli Gardens. The sun was straining against some oppressive cloud cover but it wasn't raining so I spent the next two hours climbing these steep gardens for an impressive view of the city. There's an old fort, Belvedere, at the top of the hill at it has some of the most wonderful views of Florence.






For dinner I had osso bucco, beans and bruschetta in a restaurant overlooking the river and proceeded to get thoroughly sozzled on my own before staggering back to my hostel.