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The train landed in Florence, Italy and the city looked as indistinct as any other…but that was just the train station – hefting my backpack and setting out into the city had me quickly surrounded by a low-built city with gorgeous buildings and a impossibly small-town vibe.

Somehow I missed Florence on my first trip through Italy so this time the  fabled art and architecture and all around beauty were mine to consume for a week (and by beauty I mean the sheer and inexplicable exquisiteness that is Michelangelo’s David)

Huffing in the heat I couldn’t help but just continually stop to look around; the streets are bikeable (as much as any Italian city) and everything that you could possibly want is walking distance – the key perks of living in a big city, but Florence just didn’t feel like a nameless and soulless major European city.

Florence, Italy’s Boboli Gardens: Worth Half a Day!

My first full day in the city was spent getting lost in the lush and expansive Boboli Gardens just  on the other side of the darkly flowing Arno River. These manicured gardens did require an entrance fee that I begrudgingly paid. It’s hard for me to part with my pricey Euros after paying in fractions of dollars for five months but Jenn and Cousin H gave me a withering look that clearly told me to “stop being cheap and pony up the dough.”

With buddies at my side for this part of the RTW trip we spent several hours wandering up and down the lanes and finding the nooks and crannies of gardens. The gardens are incredibly expansive so it’s entirely possible to find those hidden gardens that other tourists haven’t yet discovered. The Boboli Gardens showcase a pretty spectacular view of the city with the Duomo (the largest and most ornate cathedral in the city and one of Florence’s iconic images) in the distance and the burnt orange roofs flame in the mid-afternoon sun, a glowing spiral of housing spinning out prettily from the cathedral and into the far distance.

One thing that the three of us agreed on was the fact that the last thing that we needed over the next three weeks was 300 pictures of us primly posing in front of major sites and attractions –with that in mind we found a long canopied aisle of trees and spent 45 minutes taking leaping shots with the camera set on continuous mode and then propped up on a ledge. Some of them were hideous but the ones that worked were amazingly awesome. The trio leaping shots were tricky because we all had to time ourselves together and with the camera taking the shots at five second intervals. We left finished the leaping shots sweaty, hot, and with smiles plastered all over our faces – we were thoroughly pleased with ourselves!

The rest of the Boboli Gardens hides a pirates treasure trove of beautiful fountains and statues framed by the endlessly green pristine gardens. A museum is also located within the complex and a fun history of fashion exhibit was on display. Photos were not allowed, so I can’t show highlight of the really flowingly gorgeous period dresses; there were quite a few gaudy ones too…sequined bedazzled looking vests belonging to the 80s that were intricate and elaborate and definite cornerstone of the 80′s fashion I remember deeply envying as my mother left for parties as a child decked out and complete with the pink lipstick and teased hair.

Park-side Lunch Near Boboli Gardens

Hours of meandering took a toll and the best part of the day was upon me – lunch! Italy’s food is out of this world delicious and I honor every meal in the country as an opportunity to really treat my taste buds to some new and well loved flavors. My group is moderately pretending to travel on a tight RTW budget right now (we only remember that fact when it suits us) so we ventured into a neighborhood area and found a small and quaint sandwich shop with bright-red juicy tomatoes, fresh cheese and a huge selection of freshly ground sauce spreads. Though we were all ravenous, I think that fact only played a minor role in the fact that these sandwiches were simply amazing. While I went a tad traditional on my sandwich choice, and Jenn went meaty, Cousin H actually branched out and sampled the truffle sauce; she really enjoyed the truffles but they were a bit salty/olivey-esque for my taste buds to handle…but as they are an authentic Italian staple I am glad that I had a small taste but was happy to smother my mouth in the flavor of fresh tomatoes and mayo.

You Can’t Miss the Duomo

Fortified by the food and gelato and no longer feeling mutinous (hey, that happens when three girls are hungry and are forced to make joint decisions!) we grabbed some shots of the Duomo. It’s really beautiful with the pastel green and pinks laid into the marble and because of the position of the Duomo we were able to gaze at it dozens of times on our way to the various other museums and sites around the city.