Making the Most of Florence - May 27, 2015

The GSU crew only had one day in Florence, but Dr. Michel helped us make the most of it! Usually on our day trips, a bus picks us up and takes us where we need to go. Today, however, we took a city bus to the train station and then took a train to Florence. Once we arrived in Florence, Dr. Paul gave us a quick walking tour of the city and we split up for breakfast. Cara, our two new friends, Mike and Sydney from University of Florida, Dr. Michel, and myself went to breakfast at a rooftop café! Our friend, Sydney, will be the first to tell you how much of a picky eater she is. So much so that she literally picked off the poppy seeds from her sandwich and shared them with a bird.

Once we (and the bird) finished breakfast, we met up with Dr. Paul and the rest of the crew to finish up our walking tour before going to see the Uffizi. I have to say, I am not much of an art person, but when we walked into the Uffizi I suddenly had a great appreciation for the amount of beautiful artwork that filled with walls and ceiling! Cara and I set out to see the Birth of Venus before we left and ironically it was the one of the first pieces of art we saw when we walked in. It was amazing to see amazing piece painted by Sandro Botticelli from 1486.

            

After about an hour in the Uffizi, Cara, Mike, Sydney and I got lunch at an outside cafe. We actually spent the majority of our lunch discussing the similarities and differences between UF and GSU's multicultural classes.

After lunch, the four of us decided to try this dessert called Gelato. Apparently it’s something similar to ice cream. Okay- I’m obviously kidding. By now, we had all had Gelato at least 15 times, but hey- when in Italy aren’t you suppose to eat Gelato every single day? I have to point out that the only reason we ate at this Gelato place was because of the amount of Gelato they had. The only thing better than Gelato you ask? Mountains of Gelato. 

Cara, GiGi, and I then met up to visit the David at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Firenze. We were all pleasantly surprised to learn that we could take pictures of him (without the flash of course). What an incredible opportunity this was! The three of us spent about 30 minutes sitting and talking, before Cara and I were ready to head out. GiGi decided she “needed more time with David” so Cara and I set off to do some shopping before meeting the group at the train station to head back to Casa Cares. 

            

Tonight was one of the first nights it was warm enough to walk up to the volleyball court on the hill and watch the sunset. The pictures truly do not do it justice.