I am seriously getting into this business of unwinding.  I slept til ten o’clock!  Then I had a nice long chat with my Italian landlady (about the complaints of getting old –she’s twenty years younger and has the same issues).  Afterwards I went for my appointment at a lovely spa (the Ladies made me do it, of course) where I was thoroughly pampered, European style.  It is serious business over here.  They wear lab coats and have offices with massage tables as just one of the accessories.  Their many degrees line the walls.  I was even given samples of orange scented oil to take home with me to my masseuse in Utah.  Some things, alas, are the same the world over these days.  My poor technician told me dolefully that she and her boyfriend of eighteen years had just broken up.

I went back to the B & B to meet the faithful David who had spent the time doing laundry.  As a special treat for my long-suffering spouse, I proposed a trip to Piazza Michelangelo where the view of Florence is unparalleled, especially as the sun is setting.  Never have I seen a city that actually makes the natural landscape around it (the Tuscan Hills) even more beautiful.  The tile roofs, the mellow walls of mustard, sand, and caffe au lait combine with the muddy green Arno river, its bridges and the tolling of the church bells to bring about a scene that sets like a jewel in the magnificent valley formed by the cypress, olive, and vine-laden hills.  David is a much better photographer than I am a writer, so look at his photographs, and see if you agree!  (He said he might be a few hours getting them up, there are so many.)

As a matter of interest, my clinician (who must have been in her thirties) told me that Florence and Tuscany were just now experiencing an awakening.  For so long they have not treasured their culture.  Now, as it is disappearing under the graffiti, they are realizing they need to conserve the beauty they have inherited.  Perhaps this is the reason for all the construction around the city.  I am very glad for the Tuscans that they have had a change of heart and can’t help but wonder what prompted it.

Here are the photos.  These are bigger files to provide more detail and may make the page a little slow.