Firenze, Italia

May 31 – June 1, 2019

Firenze is known for all things artistic expression from fashion to renaissance era art. This is a great city to relax, unwind and enjoy the natural beauty as well as the welcoming nature of the Florentine people.  Get ready to learn, see and do…

LEARN:

• Galleria Dell’ Accademia di Firenze:  This city is filled with picturesque views and beautiful churches.  But the highlight of my visit to this establishment was seeing the sculpture of David that was created by Michangelo.   I was in awe of the smooth details and couldn’t believe that this feat was achieved by one man who chiseled away at a large piece of marble.  Aside from sculptures there one of kind Florentine religious paintings depicting the life of Jesus. The unique fact about the gallery is that it is also serves an art school where students can come to study and practice their artistic endeavors.

Munch Tip:  The gallery is constantly crowded.  In order to skip the line book a group tour.

 

SEE:

• Misuri:  Shopping galore!  Firenze is known for their incredible leathers and 18 karat gold.  You can get anything from coin purses to an elaborate necklace. Make sure to  bargain get the most reasonable price for you. Nothing is off limits from negotiation.  I highly suggest that you do the majority of your souvenir shopping at this store because you can engrave all your leather goods by making them unique by having your initials embossed into the leather.

.  Munch Tip:  Make sure to ask the salesperson on the gold side of the store to show you the Cleopatra and Marc Anthony coin necklace.  This item is so rare that it’s locked up and not even for sale. It’s absolutely bella!

 

DO:

• Villa Machiavelli Tuscan Cooking Class:  My day started out with shopping in the local market at Galluzo, Italia.  The chef for our cooking class gave us a list of ingredients that we had to purchase for preparation for our meal.  After shopping we took a scenic drive up into the hills, to the home and now vineyard and hotel of Nicolo Machiavelli.  He is known for his literary work, The Prince.  During this class we took the opportunity to cook outside and make ravioli and spaghetti from scratch. However, the best part of the experience was tasting all of the different types of wines.  Of all the wines I tasted, the top of the list for me was the Blumond.  The flavors of the wine were unique, sweet and crisp and I ended up buying two bottles.

Munch Tip:  Don’t have enough room in your suitcase to carry the wine?  Villa Machiavelli will ship the wine to your for FREE if you buy six bottles or more.  The cost is only 120 Euros which is an amazing deal! Want to order the wine from the United States, click here.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• Ristorante Il Cantastorie:  This restaurant is in the middle of the beautiful Piazza Della Signoria.  Everything on the menu is economically priced and authentically Florentine.  For my starter I ordered a seafood platter that was filled with shrimp, mussels, clams and calamari which was enough to share among three people.  During this time of year, Florence is known for their fried artichokes, so you know I had to order a plate for the table. The artichokes were lightly battered and crunchy and definitely a great compliment to my meal.  My main course consisted of eggplant lasagna. The pasta was perfectly cooked and the cheese was carmelized to a point that made me want to scrap every little piece out of the bowl.

Munch Tip:  Ask to sit outside to take in the atmosphere of all that Firenze has to offer. If you did not have time to visit the Galleria Dell’ Accademia di Firenze to view David, this is a great place to see a replica of the sculpture while you are enjoying your meal.