Firenze!

So, after leaving Cinque Terre, we began our journey south further into Italy. We stopped off at Pisa and took the requisite tourist pictures, then continued into Florence. Everyone has spoken very highly of Florence, so we were pretty excited to get here.

Our first day here was pretty slow, just exploring the city and getting a feel for our area. Yesterday, we climbed to the top of the Duomo, which gave us a great view of the city. We also explored Florence's open-air market, grabbed some lunch, and cooled off with gelato in the city that made it famous. At the end of the day, we went up to the Piazza Michaelangelo to watch the sunset over the city. Today, we are getting ready to hit up the Galleria Accademia to see the world-famous David sculpture and explore that side of the city.

We have been hanging out with a group of kids from Colorado we met in Cinque Terre who are actually staying in our hostel here too. It's been fun to see the sites and hang out with a group for a change, and it allows everyone the flexibility to do what they want a little more.

The only downside about Florence so far is the unbearable heat and humidity. It's really draining to walk around in the heat, and almost nothing here is air-conditioned (ah, spoiled Floridians!) Needless to say, we've been consuming disturbing amounts of water and taking lots of cold showers. Rome is going to be just as bad.

Oh well, such is summer!
Alison