The Uffizi gallery houses one of the world's best art collections, arguably the best collections of Renaissance art on the planet. So it's the place to visit when visiting Florence, though it's not the obvious stop for a young family.
First of all, lineups for the Uffizi are legendary, snaking to a seven-hour wait in peak season - not exactly kid-friendly. Next is the sheer volume of world-famous and instantly recognizable art; if one wished to visit each room, it could take all day to admire the works. And we obviously don't have all day to spend looking at art. We knew we had two hours, at most.
To clear the two biggest hurdles, we woke up early and queued up at the Uffizi at 7:45 (it opens at 8:15). While we waited in line, Derek showed the girls the major works we were going to see on his iPhone (Uffizi app, of course). Not only were they not bored during the wait, but they were well prepared for all the great art they were about to see.
Not that there wasn't any whining and complaining of all the standing, but it was bearable and at some points actually fun.
Maia and Solanne are defintely Botticelli fans. They loved The Birth of Venus and The Spring. They also enjoyed some of the Medieval art ("pre-Renaissance," as they call it here). They noticed that all of that art was about Jesus as a baby with his mother Mary. They liked the fact that the paintings were made with real gold and even some of the Renaissance paintings were made with ground up lapis lazuli for the bright blues.
After the visit, including a visit of the gift shop, it was time for lunch. I Fratellini is a famous sandwich counter that serves the best panini we've ever had. It is literally a counter just off the sidewalk; no tables, no chairs. You can order up a glass of Chianti that you leave on a shelf when you're done. Derek, the girls and I enjoyed our sandwiches standing on the sidewalk just outside the 150-year-old establishment.
Our next stop was a jewelry shop, after all, what's a visit to Florence without buying some Italian gold? Maia chose gold lady bug earrings; Solanne picked out white gold puppy earrings; and Derek bought me a beautiful lapis and gold bracelet and matching earrings.
I guess all the art and jewels tired us out because we spent the rest of the afternoon in the room, playing. The weather was miserable with the rain falling in sheets at some points and merely slowing to a drizzle at others. Derek ran out to buy us some groceries and we enjoyed sandwiches on crusty bread for supper.
The rain has dampened my spirits a bit. It hasn't been much of a problem in terms of touring the cities, but it will completely change our plans for our next stop, which is Monterosso on the Ligurian coast. We are booked into a hotel there Wednesday and Thursday nights, and the forecast for the next three days is calling for rain and temperatures around 18 degrees - not exactly beach weather.
Monterosso is part of a group of small towns perched atop the cliffs along the Ligurian coast named Cinqueterre (five towns). Last time I visited, it was a day trip and the weather had been gorgeous: clear skies and hot sun. About mid-May, too. This time, we'll have to content ourselves with hiking along the trails between the towns and hope that it won't rain so much that we won't get a view of the sea. I'm trying very hard not to let this all get me down. I'll let you know how it goes.
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