Florence 2
4.6
Architecture:
5.0
Food:
4.2
Location:
4.0
Art:
5.0
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Florence, Tuscany

As one of my favourite Italian cities, Florence (or Firenze in Italian) is abundant with Renaissance history and art, boasting one of the most famous art galleries in the world. The Uffizi has some highly revered paintings such as The Birth of Venus by Sando Botticelli and the Annunciation, which was a collaboration between Leonardo Da Vinci and Andrea del Verrochio. While Florence has so many attractions and places to visit that comes with being a UNCESCO World Heritage Site, this Tuscan city is rather small in comparison to the more hectic Rome and Milan, making it a great place just to walk around and explore.

Named by Forbes as one of the most beautiful cities in the world, Florence has many iconic buildings, streets and bridges. One of my most vivid memories of this city as a teenager was of me and my dad climbing up all 463 steps to the top of the Duomo. This cathedral took nearly 150 years to complete construction from 1296 to 1436 and boasts amazing views of the city nested between the hills. Another must see in Florence is the Ponte Vecchio, a bridge over the Arno river and is famous for the various shops built on it, selling jewellery, art and souvenirs. I remember overlooking the river watching people feed the humongous catfish from the bridge. The Ponte Vecchio is the oldest bridge in the city, having been first documented in the year 996.

 

Culinary specialties

It is a well-known fact that Italian ice cream is arguably the best. There are many places to find gelato, and we’d suggest looking for a place with that states that their gelato is ‘artigianale’, meaning that the ice cream is made by hand to traditional recipes, you may also notice some of the more obscure flavours on the menu due to seasonal rotation, with watermelon being available in the summer, to just completely random flavours such as ricotta cheese for the more adventurous.

Obviously Tuscan cuisine isn’t just limited to gelato, while known for its simplicity in comparison to other regions of Italy there’s a lot of food on offer, especially game dishes centred around deer, wild boar and pheasant. The local pasta here is called pici, which looks like a thicker spaghetti, you can make your own and try it for yourself with this recipe for spinach pici from Jamie Oliver.

 

Other Tuscan cities to explore

Tuscany has no shortage of places to visit and enjoy outside of Florence, and some of my fondest memories of my holidays to Italy have been in this beautiful region. For a day trip, Vinci the birthplace of Leonardo da (of) Vinci is takes only one hour to drive to from Florence. There you can visit the museum devoted to the inventor, artist, and scientist. He created the first prototypes of many objects that we’d consider to be more modern inventions, such as the helicopter, tank and parachute, which just highlights that this magnificent innovator was way ahead of his time.

Another must see is Pisa which has one of the most recognisable landmarks on the planet, the Torre Pedente, or more famously known as the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Of course, there’s much more to this city that meets the eye such as the Gothic churches and Piazzas that offer many cafes and bars.

Finally, the other town I’d recommend is Arezzo. This little city is walled, not too dissimilar to the cities of York and Lincoln back home and is known for the Piazza Grande, the main square of the city. This Piazza has other noteworthy landmarks such as the Fraternita dei Laici, a museum with a clock tower and various paintings and sculptures.

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