Florence

I will cover the details of our departure from the ship & train ride to
Florence in another post. Long story!

Our hotel in Florence is about 1 1/2 blocks from the train station in one direction & the Duomo in the other direction. We had a small balcony overlooking the Duomo & deMedici chapel. Beautiful view! There were at least 7 gelato shops within a block of our hotel.

On Tuesday we went to Galleria dell'Accademia to see Michelangeo's David. For some reason, it had a bigger impact on me this time than the first time. We went next to tour the Duomo & Baptistry. We walked over Pont Vecchio (bridge filled with jewelry shops on both sides). Took pictures from the river overlooking the town & also Pitti Palace. After a hot lunch to warm us up, we went to the Leonardo DiVinci museum. It is incredible that so many things he drew/designed happened in the future....military tanks, escalators, parachutes, winged machines that could fly. There was a movie about his life & many reproductions of things he designed

On Wednesday morning we went to the deMedici Chapel. It is undergoing restoration but is still amazing! There are at least 7 statutes by Michaelangelo in one room! The granite/marble floors & walls in the main chapel were amazing.

Afterwards we walked through the market and enjoyed a Panini for lunch. We caught a train to Venice around 3:30. It was interesting as probably the first 45 minutes was in various tunnels going through mountains. I was hoping we would see some of the Tuscan countryside.

We knew were one bridge away from the train station....but what a bridge! Was built since we last visited.  We were starting to carry our luggage across the bridge & a porter asked to help. As there were 52 steps going up & 51 going down, it was definitely worth his fee.  We are staying at a hotel near the train station & on the Grand Canal if I stick my head out far enough, I can get some great pictures of Venice.