Florence, Italy

We ended our Tuscan vacation with a stop in Florence. I found a B&B in the middle of town next to the Duomo. I figured it would be a convenient place for sightseeing. But I forgot how much Luke (and myself) loath big cities. Just getting in to Florence was a nightmare. Since we were staying in the old part of town we were allowed to drive in the "restricted" zone across the river and through the Port Romana:

Our hotel was right next to the Duomo so we wanted to visit it first, but by the time we got there it was closed

 I couldn't get over how big this cathedral was. It dominated the entire area

 Luke "city" (aka pissed off) face

 At least I got some smiles from Jack when I found a carousel

 We decided it was time for gelato. The first of the trip!

Walking back to our hotel I got a picture of the Ponte Vecchio. It is the only bridge in Florence that wasn't destroyed by Hitler during WWII

 A view of the buildings along the river front

 So many people!

 Jack's favorite thing is to throw himself on the floor in a fit of rage in the most inopportune places

 Sunday morning we had breakfast tickets for a nearby shop

 So many delicious things to choose from

 The chocolate croissants are not as good as the ones in Switzerland, but they are pretty good

 It rained all day Sunday. We tried to stop in at the Duomo, but it was closed all morning. 

 Most of the city was sectioned off for a bike race and marathon

 Another great place for Jack to throw a fit

 At lunch we stopped in to get some pizza. This shop had "french fry" pizza for sale. It doesn't look or sound good

 Jack was happy with his sandwich

 Luke and I were happy with some Italian beer

Since it was raining we hit up the Academy museum and saw David. No pictures were allowed but I think everyone knows what David looks like anyways. He was much larger than I expected, Luke's only comment was "those are the most famous pair of nuts in the world" haha. It's true.

After dragging Jack through another museum we told him we would take him to an indoor play area nearby. The tourist office assured us it was open. So we walked in the rain for 30 minutes. We got there at 12:45 and it had closed at 12:30. Jack was so sad...

 So instead we played in the rain at a nearby fountain

 Later that night we stopped in at the bakery and got some treats. The rum ball was my favorite!

Here is Jack eating his dinner in the shower. Spaghetti is so messy, shower dinners are the best option

 Monday morning we got some more treats, and coffee for breakfast

 Jack picked out his own donut with cream

 Monday morning we were finally able to visit the Doumo

After visiting the church, we got out of the city and started our 7 hour drive home. I think I might go back to Florence one day (without Jack). It was a neat city but it was not child friendly in the least bit. The smaller towns of Tuscany were truly the most amazing part of this trip.