One day in Florence looking for the "real" city

Arriving in Florence by train. The EuroStar and the FrecciaRossa trains provide a fast and comfortable connection to Florence from Naples, Rome, Bologna and Venice. Approacing the train station, Santa Maria Novella, Brunelleschi's dome appears.
I am meeting with a friend for lunch and we have a nice visit, then he suggests we go visit the current exhibition on the History of Astronomy which has been set up to celebrate Galileo's observations into the Solar System. The exhibit is huge and the objects on show and the installations are very beautiful, interesting and illuminating! (indeed I finally understand the graphic of apparent movement of planets which has always been a mistery for me)

After wondering for a while in the most popular area (it's incredible the number of people that crowd the downtown during the day!) I am looking for presents to give to the children of a friend of mine who I'll be meeting in the evening.

That is when I realize how difficult it is to get away from the tourist area. Around me only souvenir's shops, leather shops, gelato shops, pizza shops, pottery shops. So I need to venture further away.

I finally make a "right" turn and I find myself on Via dei Servi. Finally the place I was looking for.

First of all, this is not too far from the center (it is actually still in the center of the city, a few blocks away from Piazza della Signoria!) You can see important landmarks at each end of the street: Brunelleschi's dome on one end, and at the other end Giambologna's equestrian bronze of Ferdinando I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, on Piazza della Santissima Annunziata. So the perspective is unique!

[in the above picture the perspective of Via dei Servi from Piazza della Santissima Annunziata looking towards Brunelleschi's dome of St. Maria del Fiore]

Secondly, the variety of shops is Great! There is probably the most authentique ice-cream shop of Florence, definitely top quality gelato, a very nice Kebab restaurant, excellent Sushi-bar (also take away), book-shops, home tools and an art-store where I found very good quality sculpting tools (chesels and rasps) at very reasonable price! So I can finally put my hands on that piece of Italian Alabaster I was given a couple of years ago when visiting Volterra.

Lastly, on Via dei Servi you can find a permanent exhibition of wooden models of Leonardo's projects and machines! This exhibition is a great place to take your children to as they are allowed to play with and explore them!

I took some pictures of Florence yesterday, you can view them at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/scaggia.nerone.cc/Florence?feat=directlink
(copy and paste the above link in your browser)

Earthquake in Abruzzo, Italy

HOW TO HELP

NOT MONEY: for offers of other kind of help than donation of money you can call the PROTEZIONE CIVILE DI ROMA at the number: +39 06 68201

You can tell the operator the nature of the help you can offer and your name will be added to a specific list accordingly (lodging, professional assistance, provisions, etc...)

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DONATIONS: The Italian-American Museum is collecting donations to support the emerging relief effort in Italy. For information and donations call the museum at (212) 965-9000.

Also the National Italian American Foundation (NIAF) has set up a relief fund. Contact them directly for details.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER NOTE: we did not check how the Italian-American Museum and the National Italian American Foundation (NIAF) have organized the funds for help. We invite you to check directly with them how they intend to operate. Nerone Tours has no connections with these two organizations nor we are involved in any way with the collecting and managing of funds.

One "Shadow" of Wine (Un Ombra di Vino)

When in Rome do as the Romans do.. when in Venice, do as the Venetians do.
Just returned from a beautiful visit to Venice and, believe it or not, this time I did not had a chance to see the famous Piazza San Marco. I was there three days, staying at a little Pensione (Inn/Locanda) in one of the most charming areas of Venice: Castello. The Pensione (Locanda Santi Giovanni e Paolo) is located behind San Marco in a position that is between the popular Venice and the most quiet and typical Venice, where it's very rare to bump into a tourist.

I have been very busy visiting the city for three full days, walking every day for over eight hours, restless and always enchanted at the beauty of this City.

I was so busy discovering places that were new to me (I had been in Venice twice already) that by the end of my stay I have realized I did not get to see Piazza San Marco! I think I am probably one of the very few people who, visiting Venice as a tourist, missed that!

But what I did not miss at all this time were the many local hosterie, where it's possible to get a glass of wine at any time of the day, and eat bread, cheese, salami, or even a Lasagna in a charming, casual atmosphere, spending nothing more than 4 to 12 euros for a tasty lunch.

One of the things I have learned is that in Venice they call the glass of wine, measuring 100 milliliters (ten glasses of this kind full of wine make a liter), OMBRA. Ombra in Italian means "shade", so one OMBRA DI VINO literally translates "one shade of wine"!

Why one shade?

Well the story is well known but probably still worth been told again.. in the past, I assume until the early 1900, there were wine sellers in Piazza San Marco. Most people know that there is a tall belltower standing on this square. So, in the hot months of the year, the wine sellers in the square set their tables in the shade of the bell tower. As the shade moved around the square during the day, the wine sellers kept moving also, so they would always have their stand in the shade, keeping themselves (and the wine) cool.

That's why the name Shade, for a glass of wine.

At first, being an Italian, I did not feel too comfortable with asking for a shade of wine... but I quickly learned to do so, as I have had quite a few over these three days!

It is VERY hard to tell where to find the places I have visited, as in Venice it's hard to name a landmark in the maze of alleys that is one of the most confusing net of streets I have ever been into. And I got lost everyday! As someone says one thing one MUST do when in Venice is getting lost!

So, better than telling you where these places are, is to tell you how to find these places. To find these places you need to leave the flow of the crowd and venture alone in the side alleys. Don't need to be afraid of that, nor brave, just know that you can easily get lost but you can always find your way back! In other words, you need to make that extra effort and walk a little further off the beaten tracks :)

There are so many places of this kind that no way is the wrong way. It is typical to eat a half hard boiled egg with the wine. Some places make sandwiches with the arabic round type of bread, with cheese and different kind of typical Italian salami and prosciutto. Some places have one special dish for the day, like Lasagna. Some bars have the happy hour in the evening during which you can have one of Venice's most popular drink called the Spritzer (sp?) with a buffet.

Sitting at one of these places, relaxed, eating and drinking, it's one of Venice's best pleasures!