Update from September 27th

So Thursday night or should I say VERY early Friday morning (1am) Shelley finally arrived at the Florence train station after a delayed flight and missed train. It was so amazing to see her! We literally almost ran to when we first saw each other. It was so strange having her be in the city I now call home.
We got an early start Friday and I took her to the San Lorenzo market for a make-shift breakfast of bananas, nuts and dried fruit. We took our little meal into a piazza and enjoyed it on the steps. I then took her to the Accademia museum to see Michelangelo’s “David.” Luckily we got to borrow my friend’s museum pass so Shelley got in free with me to all the Florence museums. It had happened that I had been to see the “David” two days earlier with my Art History class. I was able to be an excellent tour guide, I actually impressed myself with all the facts that I had picked up from my Art History teacher. I told her all about the secrets and stories of Giambologna’s “Rape of the Sabines” and both Michelangelo’s “Prisoners” and “ David.” It was so neat to be able to share all the interesting knowledge and such beauty with someone who enjoys art (Shelley is an art minor). We next headed off to the Uffizi Museum and Piazza Signoria where the Rick Steeves Italy book gave us a great swift overview of the museum, highlighting only the “must-sees.”
We were starving after absorbing so much visual stimuli so we decided to try this restaurant called “Gusta Pizza” which is said to have the best pizza in Florence. It’s just a small place with super friendly staff and pizza that is to die for! Shelley said it may have been the best she’s ever had! It was cooked to perfection, with the perfect fresh ingredients and a splash of olive oil on top. DELICIOUS. On our way to the Pitti Palace after lunch we stumbled upon this great vintage store my friends told me about called Pitti Vintage and had fun looking through all the great clothes. We proceeded to go to the Pitti Palace and Boboli Gardens, the former palace of Florence’s historic rulers. It was crazy to see all the details and how lavishly they lived. It was definitely nothing compared to Versailles in France, but still was awesome to see. Our favorite part was the costume exhibit. They had some historic outfits on display as well as an amazing head-to-toe Chanel outfit—a black leather jacket, pink dress and their classic black quilted purse. We were in love.
Needing a break from a day on our feet, I took Shelley to the top of the Department store La Rinascente where there is an outdoor café with an incredible view of Florence and Piazza della Reppublica (where my school is). We enjoyed ourselves with great café lattes and conversation! Our next stop was the San Lorenzo outdoor market where we shopped around. Shelley got a few leather souvenirs, but the best part was the leather jacket I ended up buying! We met a salesman named Fredrico who was quite the charmer. He took us back to his family’s store and kept calling us “darling.” That is when I fell I love with this great cream colored side-zip leather jacket. After bargaining down the price more than half, I decided to splurge. I definitely have no buyer’s remorse!
We then ate dinner at this restaurant called Trattoria Zaza that I had heard about for dinner. It was fantastic! Great outdoor seating and big menu! I was thrilled to see chicken on the menu because supposedly Italians “don’t believe in poultry.” Nevertheless I ordered it and was in heaven! For dessert I of course took her to my favorite gelato shop La Carraria on the Arno. She loved it of course!
We went home, got ready while enjoying some wine then went with my friend Tyler who is a club owner/promoter in Florence for drinks. Shelley, Jillian and I ended up driving around with him all night going to different clubs. We went to a club Central Park then to some ALL Italian club that his cousin owns then to Twice to VIP (he started this club.) We had such a great night and I was so glad I could be a great hostess and show her a fun night out and about in Florence! We were out until 5am!
Therefore we woke up exhausted on Saturday morning. We got breakfast again at San Lorenzo then had a lot of fun going into all of the designer shops on Via Tournabouni, Florence’s equivalent of Rodeo Drive. For the rest of the day I showed her other sites around the city like Santa Maria Novella church, Santa Croce, Piazzale Michelangelo, etc. ALL my favorite places!
At 7pm we met up with Kelly and her Stanford friends for appertivos (Italian happy hour with included buffet) which was incredible! A drink and as much food as you can eat for only 8 euro! All of Kelly’s friends were so nice and I was glad I got to show Shelley another part of Italian culture!
Overall I think I was able to give Shelley a perfect impression of Florence! Since this is now my home, I obviously wanted her to love it…which I think she did!
I walked her to the train station early Sunday morning then slept until the afternoon! It’s tough playing hostess! That afternoon I went with a group of my girlfriends to the Piazza Pitti where the Florence Wine Event was taking place. For 8 euro you got a wine glass and a punch card that was good for 12 wine samplings! There were over 100 different booths with various wines from different vineyards. My favorite was a very sweet rosette (?) called Moscato. It was such a fun event, especially this time of year because this is when the grapes are being harvested and not to mention we are in ITALY!
Needless to say it was a great ending to a great weekend!!!
Xoxo
Kara