Ah, beautiful Firenze. I loved Florence. Well, as I'm sure you understand by now, I loved all of Italy. Florence was yet another city rich in history, art, culture, and stunning architecture. Our first day in Florence was sunny and hot and we spent the afternoon walking around the city taking in the gorgeous sights. We arrived in Florence ahead of schedule, so our first day there was really more about having a laid back adventure led by Miguel. We wouldn't have our guided tour of Florence until the following day, which I will talk more about in my next post.
For lunch we stopped at this tiny sandwich shop on the street. Here I had one of the several caprese sandwiches I had on my trip- tomato, basil, mozzarella, olive oil, and balsamic on some dangerously delicious bread. By this point in my trip I was completely amazed that I had not been symptomatic after all the wheat, tomatoes, sugar, etc, that I had been eating. It was such a liberating thought to have- "I'm eating whatever I want and I feel great." At the same time, I knew that my spirit was high off of everything happening around me- the art, the history, the people, the everything. I had every reason to feel amazing.
For lunch we stopped at this tiny sandwich shop on the street. Here I had one of the several caprese sandwiches I had on my trip- tomato, basil, mozzarella, olive oil, and balsamic on some dangerously delicious bread. By this point in my trip I was completely amazed that I had not been symptomatic after all the wheat, tomatoes, sugar, etc, that I had been eating. It was such a liberating thought to have- "I'm eating whatever I want and I feel great." At the same time, I knew that my spirit was high off of everything happening around me- the art, the history, the people, the everything. I had every reason to feel amazing.
After lunch and some free time walking around in Florence on our own, we met again in the piazza to head to Michelangelo's piazza as a group. We climbed what felt like thousands of stairs to get to the top. To be honest, the only thing that got me up the last stretch of steps was literally the faint sound of the Macarena playing at the top. I shit you not, someone was playing the Macarena and I had to get to the top in time to dance to it. Coincidentally the song stopped playing within seconds of my arrival. I refuse to consider that I may have imagined it. Anyway, the view that awaited us was worth the paralyzing burn I felt in my booty. We all spent a few minutes trying to catch our breath from the climb, but truly- looking down on the city of Florence was breathtaking. It made my heart flutter. I spent some time having a me moment overlooking the city away from the group. I really enjoyed some of the me moments I had in Italy. Each solitary second I spent looking at something beautiful, I would remind myself of how fucking awesome I am for getting myself to this place all on my own. There is no better feeling in the world than knowing you're in such a special moment or place because you've earned it and you've given that gift to yourself. Italy was my dream and I turned it into a reality. I made Italy happen because I needed to see the world through new eyes- to see my world as shiny and new, strong and filled with explosive amounts of passion and love. I needed to remind myself that I'm resilient all on my own. I'll always have that. I'll always have self-love. One thing I've learned about self-love is that it's always a work in progress- a lifelong commitment and journey. |
It wouldn't have been a day well spent in the beautiful country of Italy if we didn't enjoy some gelato. So, we enjoyed some gelato.
<--Una coppetta con due gusti- nocciola e caffe. SO GOOD.
<--Una coppetta con due gusti- nocciola e caffe. SO GOOD.
That night we went out for a delicious dinner as a group and then headed to a disco called Space. We had an absolute blast there. The music was great and the dancing was even better. We went ham. At one point, zi sexy Latin dancing machine shimmied his way over to a huge platform in the middle of the dance floor, jumped up onto it, and pulled us ladies up there with him. We felt like rockstars. Well, I did at least. It was some gangster shit. After a long day of walking and a long night of dancing in heels, my feet were 100% broken and screaming at me. It was a beautiful day in Firenze and it was most definitely time to turn in for the night. The following day would start early with a guided tour of Florence followed by a trip for a Tuscan wine tasting later in the afternoon. I can't wait to write all about that! :] Until then, arrivederci. |