Florence

Today we spent the day in Florence checking out the major attractions. We started the morning at the Uffizi Gallery which is the main gallery of which there are several in Florence but as they say, if you only get to one gallery then that is the one and so it would seem did everybody else as the queues were already long and it was not even 830am. We had pre-booked our tickets prior to leaving home so we didn't have to wait too long .

 

The two masterpieces below have a few similarities to Gabriella and l. Can you tell what they are? They're both stunning pieces.

 
 
Now there is a story to these two art works above, one is a masterpiece and the other was described by an employee as rubbish. His comment was that  it should be burnt, stolen or thrown in the bin as it wasn't worthy of hanging next to the painting. He was disgusted that they hung it next to the painting.
 
A couple of works of art that could fit right in here at the gallery.

Gabriella's new friend pumba.

The gallery is full of masterpieces and, it's like everything, far too much to take in. Unfortunately l'm all galleried out and l have seen to many doumos.

Florence

Today we farewelled Venice and are now on our way to Florence by train. These trains are not like our Metro trains that jugg along like the little red engine but they are very fast as you can see by the photo. The journey from Venice to Florence took two hours, a distance of 255ks.

Having arrived we met our host Francesa, who is a smart good looking business woman as she has the two Airbnbs next door to each other so doing alright I would say. The apartment is the best one we have stayed in and quite spacious and well located being very close to the main attractions.

We took a stroll along the Ponte Vecchio which is the oldest bridge in Florence over the Arno river and did some general sightseeing before heading off again in the evening  to do some more exploring. All in all a great first day as Florence is full of charm and antiquity.

A couple of interesting street art images that have been constructed out of their no entry signs.

Venice

Our last day in Venice started out wet and only got worse. We headed out and did some washing as did many others but we were the lucky ones who got to the laundromat first and didn't have to wait.
After packing all the washing away, we decided to head out to see some sights for the last time. Well that was a mistake, we got drenched. The streets were full of people trying to get out of the rain by having to walk in the rain as you can only fit so many people under the awnings and covered walkways.
It's funny how one day the hawkers are selling selfie sticks and drawings, and the next selling umbrellas, ponchos and plastic booties. We chose none of the above and ended up soaked from knee to toes. On the end we got back to the room after first going to buy some venitian masks from a man and his daughter which we met on the first day.

 

Then it was back to the room to dry off.

Venice

We decided that we would go across to Murano and Burano, two islands known for their production of glass (Murano) and lace ((Burano). Both these islands are typical of Venice in terms of architecture except that Burano is also known for its brightly coloured houses.

We first went to Murano mainly because it is closest. We came across, yes, you guessed it, a glass manufacturer, what an unusual event ! Anyway, it was interesting watching the glass blower master provide a demonstration of his art. We then wandered through to the rest of the town which has countless shops that sell all sorts of glass objects. As with all things, one glass shop starts to look like all the others and you soon lose interest.  In the end we headed back to the first place we visited and purchased a couple of things from there. At least their products were made on the premises and therefore is genuine Murano glass. We then went across to Burano and had a look around the shops but lace wasn't of much interest except for a nice little lace top that caught Rodney's eye which he thought would look nice on his beautiful wife. Gabriella used her Italian and asked the shop owner  how much does this cost, his reply was € 160 . That's right we walked away, back on the bus and back to Venice.

We popped into the coffee shop that we had been to in the morning where we  were served the cheapest coffee that we have had to date and thought that we were on a winner only to find out that we had been under charged in the morning because  we had been charged standing up at the counter drinking coffee rates  versus sitting down and occupying a table and chair drinking coffee price, hence, the price went up by 40%. For those of you who don't know this, in Italy you are charged extra if you sit and drink your coffee rather than standing. We did actually know this but were of the impression that if you ordered something to eat that the coffee price would not be increased. Wrong!

Gabby got some joy out of this as the same cute waiter from the morning served us in the afternoon so she was happy anyway.

Venice

Well Venice started off with us catching the train this morning from Milano Central . We had two nuns sitting opposite us so maybe our sins have been absolved.

We arrived at Venezia station and made are our way to the grand canal to get a water bus to our accommodation. Simple! But alas we mucked up and ended out too far and had to take another trip back to where we should have gotten off. The stress of being on holidays, ah, it's all too much!

Finally we arrived and our Airbnb host Marco came to meet us . I think that was his original intention but after our earlier endeavours I' m sure he thought it imperative that he was there to direct us to the accommodation. It is quite easy to get lost in Venice due to the streets, canals and bridges that all seem to look the same. Google Maps can't always be relied on.

Anyway, as usual, we plunged into the unknown walkways to wander around.

We came across a man and his daughter who make beautiful Venetian masks, all handmade and individually designed. He told us that has had been in the business for 45 years . I think we might just go back and buy some masks from him,that is, if we manage to find him again.

We then came across a small cafe being run by one man who somehow manages to keep on top of the busy times.It was interesting watching him juggle the demands of customers while keeping up a great sense of humour. He told us that he thinks the Aussie tourists are great, he thinks that we are always friendly and bring it brings him joy. It's always great to meet local people and to hear their stories. It's not just about how many things you see in a day.

No Condola rides for us, at between €80 to € 100 euro for 30 mins it ain't worth it.

We made our way to St Mark's Square which was very nice and had a nice meal at a local Osteria which was very nice and that's day one in Venice .