We arrived at our B & B (lovely and modern with a balcony and a 21st century private bath and TV that gets the BBC and lots of other foreign stations) around 2:00 pm yesterday and promptly went to bed and slept soundly until 5:00.  We then roused ourselves, showered and dressed and braved the streets, trying to find a recommended restaurant.  Unfortunately, the Italians were very helpful, pointing us in contrary directions, until we gave up and settled for a lovely dinner at Il Clarinneti around the corner from our B & B.

Our dinner was great.  I  had prosciutto and melon to start and shrimp and clam linguine (homemade noodles al dente)   And of course I had wonderful chocolate gelato for dessert.

That was about it for Day One.  Remember, I am still nursing a hip back to health, and haven’t been able to exercise.  Plus, in Chicago, I had been forced to sprint at full speed, towing a bag, down the concourse as our flight had landed just as the final boarding call was announced for our flight to Munich!

Today we got up and breakfasted on yummy bread and jam and juice.  Then, following our ablutions, we caught the bus for packed tourist area of the Duomo—Florence’s cathedral, which David will attach pictures of.  It was magnificent, but far far more crowded than I remembered from 40 years ago.  The bronze and gold doors of the baptistry were stunning, representing the very first work of Renaissance Art.

After lounging in the comparitive calm of an outdoor cafe (another gelato!) where the proprietor accosted all passers-by guessing at their native tongue, we enjoyed the gorgeously modern Duomo museum.  The sculptures which had been taken out of the Duomo were truly breathtaking in this cool, skylit environment.  My favorites were the amazingly modern bronze of Mary Magdalene.  She was set at a distance and appeared to be gazing at the altarpiece (a crucifix), though they were two entirely different sculptures.  My other favorite was the unfinished pieta by Michelangelo.  We spent several hours doing a very liesurely tour.  It is so nice that we have 2 weeks here and don’t have to worry about anything except what my crazy ladies would be likely to do.  It was hot and crowded and we were tired, so we splurged on a taxi to take us back to the B & B, where we are reading up on Michelangelo and the tour guide for the Uffizi—the greatest repository of Italian Renaissance paintings in Europe—where we will visit tomorrow.

In thinking of what my crazy ladies would do if they were here (if you don’t know, the whole reason for my trip is to research my next novel—The Crazy Ladies of Oakwood: Vol. 1, the Florentine Escapade), I have decided that at least one of them would take a cooking class.  This is not something I would do (I hate cooking), but definitely something one of them would do.  They would also visit the birthplace of Puccini and hear a concert in his birthplace—a short train ride away, so we are going to have to figure out the Italian train system.

Visiting here in my 60’s is a whole lot different than when I was 20!  But, so far a good time is being had by all.