Ultimi giorni a Firenze
Last days in Florence
It seems surreal to be close to departure day. When the trip began, it lay before me like a never-ending adventure. Now, we are just days from home. Still, we have much to tell you of these last days in Florence.
We went back to school. This time, a much larger, award winning one called La Scuola Leonardo da Vinci. There are around ten students in the class and we are truly diverse. From the oldest, a 69 year old Brazilian woman, to the youngest three Palestinian boys from Southern Israel, aged 18. Their families haven’t traveled with them, but they tell me they are safe, which is good to hear. I’ve learnt a great deal this week and am sad I won’t get to try out my new language skills for longer here in Italy. There is always next time.
My friend arrived, but not before I had a coffee with the friends I’d made on the bus in the rain. We met in a coffee shop close to Santa Maria Novella train station and told our tales of love. Almost ten years separated each of us; Selena in her early 30s, Shagufta about to turn 40 and me, just turned 50. Despite the years that separated us, we could relate to each other’s stories. Be it marrying the love of our life, losing that love, or looking for it. We found strength and humour in our tales and, no doubt, vowed to carry forward new learnings because of our serendipitous meeting.
It wasn’t long before my oldest friend from university was due to arrive. Since my coffee had gone on longer than expected, it was time for an aperitif. I’d agreed to meet Amanda in a bar when the Grand Hotel Baglioni was suddenly in front of me. The roof top terrace was far too tempting to pass up. As quickly as Stan had clocked the snacks that went with the aperitif, I selected a table outside. Amanda was not disappointed and nor was Stan. As we strolled into the city after our drink, she shared that same perception I had - that Florence is far better by night than day.
Amanda and I have known each other a long time! On this trip, we go to school and eat dinner together, but we also do our own things. So, armed with renewed energy, I made my way to the Pitti Palace only to discover that on Mondays it is closed. In its place, I chose to visit the Duomo - which is one of the most impressive cathedrals I’ve seen for a very long time. It is amongst the largest in the world and, like many, its appearance has changed a great deal through history. The first stone was laid in 1296, but the current exterior decorated with intricate marble flowers and geometric shapes dates from the 19th century. Inside, its stained glass windows cast beautiful shards of light on to the intricate marble floors. The huge walls of the cathedral are relatively undecorated compared to the many churches I’ve visited in Italy so far. It’s hard to give you a sense of the scale of the place, it is both 90 metres wide and tall and 153 metres in length - it’s huge! The main part of the cathedral is free, but you can choose to visit the museum, dome, bell tower and the remains of the ancient basilica on which they built the current cathedral. The cathedral is known as the Santa Maria del Fiore (Our Lady of the Flower). Florence itself means the city of the flower. The Florentine lily is its emblem.
In the evenings, I’ve seen groups of girls dressed with floral head dresses having fun with their friends. At first, I assumed them to be on a hen night - in preparation for their forthcoming nuptials. Eventually, I plucked up the courage to ask one of the less inebriated women what it was all about. She laughed when I mentioned marriage and explained it was a celebration for graduation. The tradition started at the University of Padua almost two hundred years ago and has since spread across all of Italy. Further research unearthed they make the headdress from a laurel leaf - a symbol of success and achievement; the colour of the ribbon that goes with the leaves indicates the subject studied. It felt many years since Amanda and I had graduated from university; it was fun to reminisce about how we had celebrated that moment; I’m not sure it had many correlations with this ancient Italian tradition.
So, if I had learnt the meaning behind the naming of Florence, what of Florence itself? In my ignorance, my perception of Italy was that of a country with a significant unified history. I was wrong. The united Italy we think of today was created in 1861 - albeit that the inclusion of Rome and Venice occurred one decade later after the Franco-Prussian war. Learning this gave even more meaning to the map I had seen in the Uffizi illustrating the Tuscany that the Medicis ruled over.
After the Roman empire that ruled over a considerably larger territory than that of Italy today, both the Spanish, Hapsburg, French and even the British had ruling powers over parts of Italy at one time or another. Florence has its UNESCO status as a World Heritage Site as a result of its perfect depiction of a Renaissance city. Whilst it is no doubt a historical site, it is the continued commitment to that cultural and artistic past that sustains its special status. The arts and crafts that made it special historically remain present today in the winding back streets. Even the building techniques that built the city have been retained to preserve its historical significance and to contribute to its future.
Armed with that knowledge it was important that we achieved a Florentine eating and drinking experience on our trip. The night before we’d indulged in wine tasting at the Hotel Deglia Orafi in its rooftop bar. The wines were produced in the hotel’s own vineyards in the Chianti region. We learnt that for a wine to carry the Chianti label it has be predominantly made, 80% precisely, from the San Giovese grape. There are three quality tiers relating to the length of time the wine is aged. My favourite was the riserva. Whilst it had been a really fun evening, we got something else from that night - a recommendation for dinner.
Our waiter was clear that if we were to eat in Florence we had to try Florentine steak and that there was no better place to try in than at 4 Leoni. We’d actually tried to get a table there before but failed so when we went back again the waiter remembered us and we were in luck! I don’t think either Amanda or I had a great deal of confidence that we would be able to eat the minimim sized 1.3kg Florentine steak that we ordered. But having taken our seat we were committed. Fortunately we did not regret our choice as we savoured the delicious dinner. If you make it to Florence I’d recommend you give this place a try. What’s more it’s located close to Santo Spirito, a square that houses a church by the same name. Amanda loved this place since it is the location of a pivotal scene in one of her favourite books, Still Life. The area was renowned in the 14th century as a hotbed of political unrest. The church, whilst modest from the exterior, is a fine example of Renaissance architecture and well worth a visit.
Our plan for tomorrow is to visit the Pitti Palace and the Boboli Gardens and learn more about the most powerful of Florentine families, the Medicis. For now, Stan and I need to sleep!
Making new friends
Stan approved of the Grand Hotel Baglioni
Old friends reunited
The beautiful Duomo
The spectacular marble floor of the Duomo
Florentine steak at 4 Leoni
