La Bella Firenze

On June 22nd and 23rd the group visited my personal favorite city: Firenze! (yes, I am biased because I am from here) 

Florence is the city of art and Renaissance. A few days are required to fully see this beautiful city, however, the group was able to do a lot in the short timeframe of just over 24 hours. First off, the group went to the Uffizi museum. Each participant had been previously assigned to a painting of this museum, so during the walk through, participants each had the opportunity to talk about and describe one painting. It was nice to engage the students like this… but also to give the poor guide a break from talking so much. I was seriously impressed by how much participants knew about the various paintings and masterpieces. Following, the group went to the Accademia delle Belle Arti to see the original magnificent “David” by Michelangelo.

After an almost full day of museums and a quick nap, I, the PL from Florence, gave a quick walking tour of my favorite things of Florence. Walking from Piazza della Repubblica to the Porcellino fountain, to the unique Ponte Vecchio, Palazzo Pitti, Santo Spirito, and then finally pause on Ponte della Carraia to eat yet another delicious gelato! Then the group continued walking along the Arno river to then arrive in Piazza Santa Croce, where we had dinner at a tasty Florentine Taverna (restaurant).

The following day the participants were able to sleep in a bit to freshen up their brains and get ready for Cooking Class!!!!! Baldovino restaurant was the location for the wonderful cooking class where participants learned how to make gnocchi and proper pizza…. And then eating it all of course! Before the Florence getaway ended, participants had a couple hours to go shopping and see a little more of the city.

I can proudly say that they all enjoyed Florence a lot.

We Love  Firenze

And now, back to our beloved Domus Carmelitana in Rome, where a four meal course is waiting for us…