Day 14 - I Left My Heart in...Florence?

Oh Florence.

You've stolen my heart...this is the Italy I've dreamed of.  We got up this morning and caught the train from Venice to Florence, and met up with the local guide who took us on a bit of a walking tour through the city to orient ourselves and then took us to the Accademia to see David.  The museum is not that big, and I've seen a lot of legendary works of art this trip like the Mona Lisa, works by Monet and the Rosetta Stone...but my breath was absolutely taken away by the statue of David.  When you round the corner, he is at the end of a long corridor and I just stood there in awe for a minute.  So lifelike, and so absolutely beautiful, he looked like he was going to just start walking.  Standing at an incredible 17 feet, he was by far the most amazing thing I've seen this trip, bar none.

After David, we took a look at the Duomo and then headed up to this lookout area called Piazzale Michelangelo to take in a panoramic view of Florence.  Seriously, I love this place.  A perfect mix of big city with culture and beauty, I could see myself returning here again and exploring more of the Tuscan area.

After a brief stop off at home, we headed our for dinner with the group.  We sat with two gals who are also avid foodies, so we sat all night watching all the amazing dishes coming out of the kitchen.  Pizza and Florentine steak are in our future tomorrow, along with a day of exploring Florence.

After dinner we headed out to a place that played live music, according to our travel director...turned out to be a karaoke bar, which was so much fun.  We have a mixed group of many ages and pretty much everyone went, which was awesome.  I sang at the top of my lungs particularly to a little Sweet Caroline, and shook my booty to a bit of Spice Girls.  Group is a lot of fun, I gotta say.

Florence, io amo.