Scenes from Florence

We rode the train from Verona to Florence for a full week in the beautiful city of Firenze. To save money, we rented an apartment and used the fully-stocked kitchen to cook breakfast and lunch. We walked every other day to the open air markets to buy freshly made pasta, organic olive oils and balsamics, local fruits, herbs, vegetables and delicious cheeses and salami. In Florence we did a guided tour of the Uffizi, where we learned the history behind many of the paintings. We visited the Boboli Gardens, where if you walk uphill long enough you get the most amazing view of the city. We watched the sunset at the Ponte Vecchio and sought out the most amazing gelato, which after much searching we found to be Edoardo II Gelato Biologico behind the Duomo. According to our taste buds, it was the best gelato in all of Italy! The small shop uses all organic ingredients and hand makes the gelato in small batches every day.

Because of the heat, most of the locals were escaping to the beach cities, so I would recommend spending less time inland if you are visiting in the summer months. Driving the car through the countryside was fairly easy, especially since we rented a car with GPS, but once we reached the main cities it was really unnecessary and virtually impossible to take a car to Florence (rental cars are not allowed in the downtown area). Taking the train was very easy and straightforward–even for us Southern Californians who are mostly starved for public transportation. Knowing Spanish, I found that I understood a lot more Italian than I thought I would. After arriving back in the U.S. I instantly missed the Italian Cappuccinos, market produce (tomatoes and basil just tasted better), and ancient history everywhere we turned. We can’t wait to go back to Italy and see more of this beautiful country!

La Bella Bed and Breakfast
Via Castello, San Pietro in Cariano
Veneto 37029, Italy

Our VRBO apartment in Florence came with fantastic views of the Duomo!

Stephanie Williams is a fashion and wedding photographer based in Southern California. You can follow her work and latest adventures on her blog, This Modern Romance. Stephanie was listed as one of the top 20 Destination Wedding Photographers in the world by Destination Weddings and Honeymoons, and she has been honored as one of PDN’s Rising Stars in Wedding Photography. Her work has been featured in numerous publications. Stephanie lives with her husband Isaac and their three dogs.