Before Avery arrived, I asked her to be considering things she wanted to see and do while in Florence.  The fact that I can walk around aimlessly for days, does not mean others care to.  With only four full days in the city, there were decisions to be made.

Her list consisted of a cooking class, vespa tour, seeing a few specific works of art, wine tasting, a possible day trip to Venice and simply enjoying Firenze.  A cooking class and the Vespa tour topped the list.  The day trip to Venice fell to the bottom.  Before she arrived, I secured a cooking class through Curious Appetite.  Il Mercato Centrale did not have classes that fit our schedule and I felt we could do better than the one I took through FlorenceTown (although I enjoyed it very much).  I was looking for a similar experience to Cooking in Rome with Chef Andrea…a bit more intimate. Our class was scheduled for Tuesday and the Vespa tour for Thursday.  I was surprised when I went to the site for the Vespa tour that the tours fill up quickly, so I am glad we are on their books.

Today, Monday, we simply plan to roam.  The major museums are closed on Mondays, so seeing the David and Botticelli’s Birth of Venus will have to arm wrestle with a day trip to Venezia for Wednesday’s itinerary.

I let Avery sleep as late as she liked then we start our day at Ditta Artiginale and  a seasonal Shakerato.  Ice coffee on a Florentine level.

We decide not to grab a bite to eat here as we intend to make our way over to Pugi, correcting yesterday’s disappointment.

After a jolt of caffeine, we are raring to go.

The street art scene has not changed much in the past two years.  Blub an Clet are ubiquitous, but I am disappointed not to see much new on the scene.  Then roaming the Santa Croce area I see this.

At first I think the MALE at the bottom translates to “bad”… this piece moves up to my favorite yet.  Love the color, movement, space and graceful use of line.

We pop in to a book store searching for more Great Gatsby.

I find comfort and intrigue in the ordered chaos of many Italian book stores.  When we asked the owner for Great Gatsby, he walked right to a shelf and started handing Avery book after book saying, “Fitzgerald, Fitzgerald, Fitzgerald…”

And then finally, a hard back copy of Il Grande Gatsby.  I think this is such a cool thing to collect.  A friend of ours also just added to the collection, giving Avery a copy from the high school library…where it all began.

Time for a bite to eat and this time, Pugi is aperto!

I know I’ve probably already given this advice during this trip as well as previous ones, but if you are in Firenze…a stop in Pugi (the original across from Saint Mark’s) is a must. Danita named it one of the best bites of the trip and now Avery is a major fan as well.

For less than 3 euro, you can enjoy as much or as little of any topped flatbread style pizza you would like.  Our go-to’s?  pomodori, cipolla, salsiccia and peperoni.  This time Avery also tried a zucchine topping.  The girl loves her zucchine!

We stopped into Zara, although July is not the best time for a visit.  July is the month of Saldi in Italy and during a major sale, it is like Zara removes all the good stuff and brings in everything that hasn’t sold in the last 10 years or so….although I did snag my “molto elegante, molto chic” pantaloni last week.

I think roaming the streets of Firenze late, late in the night and early, early in the morning would be an adventure.  As much walking around as I have done, I have yet to see any street artist (besides the chalk artists) in the act.  I would love to see the process and speed at which they work.

Later, Avery gives her overall trip an 8.5 out of 10 rating.  The heat of July is the culprit for losing an entire point.  No matter what the temperature reads, the fact that you are surrounded by radiating concrete, adds to it.

To combat the heat in Firenze, you have due choices…gelato or cocktail…

You know I have been a major fan of Eduardo’s by the Duomo.  Elisa first brought me to it in 2015, and I had never been disappointed.  But after talking to several Foodies in Firenze, the two Gelaterias that come up are Il Procopio and Perque No!  Only the best of the best for my figlia.  We find Il Procopio in the Santa Croce area and Avery chooses Limone e Basil…refreshing, tart and light.  We decide trying to recreate this for guest would certainly wow!  Avery wants to take it a bit further by making a prosecco float with it.  That’s my girl!

Gelato…check…

Next stop…Aperitivo…

Enjoying the Aperitivo Crawl with Curious Appetite gave me insight to places I had not been before.  Now, I get to share that “research” with others.  And the most impressive Aperitivo to date? The Fusion Negroni at Fusion Bar, Vicolo dell’Oro, 3, Firenze.

I will admit, the presentation of this classic Florentine cocktail is a big part of the fun, but the libation itself is worthy of all praise…Well, confession…this is the only Negroni I have ever had…so I really can’t compare to others…but now, others WILL be compared to it.

I want Avery’s first Negroni experience to be as memorable as mine and if that means I must endure another…I’m just that kind of a mom.

Salute to Firenze, to Count Camillo Negroni, to ice spheres, to Mother/Daughter adventures, to Italy, to Aperitivo, and to all that is good and special in our world.

Cin!Cin!

Fortified by rest, munchies and gin we begin our walk to Piazzale Michelangelo to catch the setting sun.  Once we are Oltrarno, I just start heading left and up, “knowing” this will get us to our desired destination.

A bit in to the trek, I think, “gee…this is a bit steeper than I remember…oh well, no matter, we’re headed in the rightish directions.”

A little bit further, a girl who had been walking ahead of us stops, turns and asks, “Is this the way to the fountain at Santo Spirito?”  uuuhhhmmm….no…not at all.  I give her rough directions and she retraces her steep climb.

A bit later, I see a sign for Forte di Belvedere.  I “know” Fort Belvedere and Piazzale Michelangelo are both high and to the left…so again, I think we’re good.  Avery questions me a bit, I answer leaning into the slope but not slowing my pace.  I tell her (now that I am starting to wonder) that no matter what, we’ll figure it out.  Luckily there was still much light in the sky, because if it had been dusk, I too would have been a bit worried.  There were very few people about.  The two separate people we did see were crashed among the olive trees along the medieval walls of the Fort.

What goes up…must go down.  Turns out Forte di Belvedere is quite a bit higher than Piazzale Michelangelo, so we get a bit more of exercise in for the day.

We end up being spit out at the arch in the wall along the passage I “usually” take to our destination.  So, a bit more of a hike…up the long stairway…and we arrive…easy as that…

The crowd is huge, everyone vying for a spot along the wall to get a couple of hundred shots.  Each time I visit, I am thankful Mike and Joann told me about this place…another MUST on any visit to Firenze.

Avery and I, like everyone else, took many shots of the setting sun with its rays dancing through the clouds.  Each moment brought another ooohhh or aaahhh.  To be honest, I don’t know if these are our best shots, I’m just choosing a couple to share.  I know I will never get a better one than the one from 2013.

On our way down, we decide we’d like a nice, light dinner and a nice, bicchiere di vino freddo.  We stop in the San Niccolo area and enjoy just that.

We are seated next to a young guy and girl who exert so much energy being negative.  I can’t decide if they are American toying with English accents or actually English.  Either way they are a reminder of one of my favorite aspects of traveling in Italy…Ignorance is Bliss…what I can’t understand, doesn’t bug me…what I can….does.