Travelling to the Port of Civitavecchia

 

We are up bright and early to catch the train at 8 am. Even on a Saturday the train station is busy.

We check the main board to see what platform the train arrives on.  Note it is usually only posted a few minutes before arrival.  Once it is posted we are able to proceed to the platform.

Today we are taking the high speed train to Rome from Florence.  Just 1.5 hours to get there, boy it goes fast! Bring gum because your ears will pop.

Arrive in Rome and we have only 15 minutes until our next train departs, but that is sufficient time as we only have to change platforms.

Again we find our platform and make our way there.  This train is a regular train but it is express (doesn't stop at all the stops like the local train.  But it does stop at the Vatican City stop.

When we get on the train it is busy.  Lots of cruisers.  Lots of bags but we are all happy and friendly and helpful.  We all manage to store our bags easily and enjoy the short ride (just under an hour) and for a very low price.

If you are interested in learning more about taking the train to the port read my blog from last year that explains the whole process. 

Now if you are wanting to take the train you must be able to handle your own bags.  You do have to carry them off the train, and down a flight of stairs, the up a flight of stairs to get to the station.  For some this is not a problem for others they would never even consider it.  For us we can easily manage  our bags (each big one weighs 40lbs and that is a bit of a struggle).

Once we exit the station there are taxis, shuttles and buses that get you easily to the port.  

The day is lovely and we decide to just walk as the shuttle is not there and there is a queue for taxis.  One person said the shuttle doesn't start for another hour - but I doubt that is true.  If people are willing to pay that shuttle will probably operate.

We walk very easily along the sidewalk.  I recommend you stay on the sidewalk right from the station.  Don't cross the street and walk along the water as you just have to cross back over.  Exit the station and turn right and walk on that same side following the beach.  Follow it until you get near the fort then you head along a main street still parallel to the water.  

Very easy walk, relatively flat half hour walk but not practical if you have lots of bags or have mobility issues.

Once at the entrance to the port there are lines for shuttles to the ship.  There a few ships in port so make sure you get in the right line.  Here they take your bags and place them in the cargo hold of the buses.  It is then a short ride to the ship.

Check in was busier than last year.  A lot of people arrived at the pier early like we did (around noon).   There is no preferred check in or at least not at this time.  Really don't think it would of been a preferred line anyhow as many seasoned cruisers on this voyage and the age of the passengers is much higher at check in.  

In all the check in process took around a half hour from drop off to walking on the ship.

Second Day in Florence

We take our time this morning as our plans are much more fluid today.  Our goals are the Galileo Museum and exploring areas we have not seen.  So after breakfast in the apartment we are off to explore.

Our place is located a block from the city market.  If you haven't been here make sure to stop in. Upstairs are restaurants that are very affordable and casual and open later than the market is (which closes at 1500). Downstairs are various vendors selling every imaginable food.

It is fun just to walk around and feel the vibe.  This is a great place to buy wine, fruit, cheese, and souvenirs.

We seek our favorite Coffee/Pastry place that we found last year.  Cantinetta Verrazzano (here is their TripAdvisor page) is just off the main street and is so beautiful and I am not even talking about the pastries.

Here you order your espresso and then pick up a pastry and enjoy at the wooden bench and people watch.

We get two cappuccinos and two pastries for around 4 E.  I would love to try them out for lunch or dinner if we had more time.

We head to the Galileo Museum (which is right next to the Uffizi Gallery).  The cost to enter is 9E for adults. 

The best thing I found about this museum is their interactive App that you download prior to arrival (though you could download on arrival with their free wifi).  Once you arrive just connect to their wifi and use the app to navigate around the museum.  Gee I wish the Uffizi had something like this.

As you enter each room just locate it on the app and then click on the particular display to read more about it, see videos on how it was used, listen to a full description of the item, and so much more.

Bernie is really into all this astronomy stuff and is keen on all the science related items too. But for me it really isn't my thing but thankfully because of the app I am able to learn and it helped me find the museum very interesting.

here are his fingers

You even get to see Galileo's fingers on display - weird I know.

So if science, astronomy, geography are of interest to you check out the Galileo Museum.

We walk along the Arno River to check out the Santa Croce Church and area.  We contemplated going in but the line is long so we pass.  We need to sit and have lunch as it is now 1330 and we have been going strong all morning. 

We find a lovely restaurant called Ristorante Sant Ambrogio right across from the Synagogue - here is their facebook page.

As we sit at the window we watch the locals come and go and rest our weary feet.

I order the menu of the day for 14E which included linguine with lemon and mint, chicken and sausage with vegetables as my second and dessert the traditional Cantucinni Biscuits with the dipping fortified wine.  

We are stuffed and we walk to the lovely square called Annunziata which is right behind the Academia.  We saw the Statue of David last year (read about it here).  Remember if you go reserve your tickets ahead of time.  See the line for people with no tickets.

We head back to the apartment.  It is 4 pm and Bernie decides to stay in while I go visit the Medici Chapel.

It takes me a bit to find the entrance but after two other museums that I believe are it I am directed to the correct place.

The cost is 8 E to enter and it is relatively quiet.  The site is not huge but quite impressive.  I guess if you are extremely rich you can afford to build your own chapel and crypt and adorn it with every monument and gold as the highlights.

This chapel is the burial site of the Midici family.

The real highlight here is the Sacristy.  It features master architecture and Michelangelo sculpted the final commissions for the family who supported him as a young man.

In all it took maybe a half hour to tour the entire chapel.

I decide to walk thru the outside market (located around the indoor market) to head back home.  Here you find all kinds of leather goods, scarves, sweaters, bags, t shirts and nick nacks.

I do need a new wallet and have been looking at them.  I take this time to find one from a vendor.  He is asking 35 E for it.  Too much and I just keep walking.  I find the same wallet a bit further down and ask the price, he says 30 E.  I just looked at it for a bit and he says 25 E.  I say will you take 20 and he responds, cash?  I say yes.  Deal!  I am happy.

As I walk thru the streets I see this restaurant sign.  Now this is the kind of places we try and avoid.  Not that it will be horrible but it caters to tourists. When we travel we want as close an authentic experience as possible.  So we avoid signs that say "tourist menu" or are entirely in English or have pictures of dishes.  

Tonight we agree that dinner should be back at the same place we went the first night.  Il Vezzo is so close and we loved it so why not.

As soon as we arrive (note we made reservations this time as it is a Friday night).

Tonight we decide to share each course again.  We have the same salad called Spelt Salad.  Then a pasta course of Ravioli in sage butter.  Then main course is cod with wine.

The server gave us each a glass of complimentary prosecco and the whole meal including wine came to 40 E.

We are off on our evening stroll as we reflect on the great time we had in Florence.  We are glad we got to spend three nights here.  We agree we would like to come back but again it would have to be in the off season and we think we would like to stay further away from the heart of the city.  Maybe on the other side of the Arno.  But this place we are staying at is perfect and close to everything and fit our needs this trip.

Tomorrow is a big day as we have to catch the train to the port and board the beautiful Royal Princess.

Second Evening in Florence

At around 8:30 we head out again after resting after a full day.

Neither of us is very hungry.  Not sure where to go and how much we want to eat we decide to walk and see what happens.

We head back over the Arno river where we were today with our guide.  Things over here are much quieter and more locals.  We both comment that next time we visit Florence this would be a good location to stay in.

As we are strolling we stop at a local bar which reminds us a bit of the a local pub you would find in the UK.  Also similar to the wine bars we experienced in Venice last year.

It is a small place, the owner tends the bar. The place isn't busy but a few tables are occupied with locals who are enjoying a drink and conversation.

We order the house wine and charcuterie plate made up of cheese, meat and bread.  It hits the spot.

For dessert we get the Florence biscuit and the Santo Spirito Liqueur that they are known for.  You dip the biscuit in the liqueur, let the hard biscuit soak up the liquid then eat.  Strong but so good!  

The whole meal was 16 E!

We start strolling - yes that was what I have to call it.  We walked hand in hand down the streets of Florence in the cool night air and experienced the ambiance. Really it was like a movie!

Bernie suggest gelato for dessert.  Who am I to argue.  A large place right near the bridge looks good and we both indulge in some gelato which seems to taste even better in Italy.

It is a bit cooler tonight.  Since we arrived in Italy it has been hot during the day and lovely at night.  Tonight the wind has kicked up and a jacket is require and I even bring a scarf to wrap over my shoulders.  Perfect Fall weather.

As we stroll back to the apartment we watch the crowds gathering in restaurants, bars and on the street. The ambiance is perfect and we are both very happy. Thankfully we have one more full day here.

A Full Day in Florence

Today we have a full day, which is surprising for us as we try not to fill our days with too much but with only two days in Florence we have had to reserve a few things and today is one of those days.

The alarm goes off at 745!  But we take our time waking up. First I am wondering "where the heck am I".  Four different beds in six days!  But as I wake and realize I am in Florence Italy!

Bernie makes tea and we enjoy some orange juice, cereal and tea with some fruit.  It is nice to have the space and time this morning to have some normal comforts.

We leave around 9:15 and we have a few things planned.

We are early for our tour so we stop at a coffee shop and enjoy our espresso at the counter.  Okay we are fuelled up for the day.

First thing planned is a walking tour that we booked thru Viator.  This is the first time I have ever used them. It is a great site that acts as a middleman for tour providers and the tourists. It is easy to navigate, book, pay for and receive tickets. 

This walking tour is 2.5 hours and is reasonably priced and we see a lot.  Here is a link to the tour we booked.  There was around 16 in our group and we were given earphones and receivers so we can hear our guide easily.  I really like this as we don't have to bunch around her to hear but can stand back at a site and hear her and take in the whole area.

We visit Orsanmichele Church first

Piazza della Republica

hmm a segway tour could be fun

Then to the Baptistry and doors and The Duomo

top of the Duomo which you can climb

Medici Palace

San Lorenzo Church

Santa Maria Novella Church and Piazza (we didn't go in the church)

Then across the Ponte Santa Trinta to Santo Spirito Church

A quick gelato stop that is included in the tour.

Pitti Palace

Ponte Vecchio

see the crowds trying to get on the bridge

Piazza della Signoria

Okay we are done!  The Piazza is busy (again we find it crazy but everyone keeps saying this is nothing you should see it in the summer).

We want to get away from the crowds and we stroll down a narrow street (Borgo dei Greci) for a few blocks till the crowds are minimal.  We spot a small family run restaurant - perfect.

Lunch is good, simple, inexpensive and just what we needed. 

We had pre reserved our Uffizi tickets for 1430.  If you haven't read my blog about reserving your tickets for major sites check it out here. 

Thank goodness we did pre reserve because the line for tickets is long (again not so bad compared to peak season). We go to the booth to pick up our tickets and then to the next door to gain access to the museum.

We have our Rick Steve's audio guides (which are free) downloaded on our phones.  A blog I wrote just about travelling thru Europe with Rick Steves can be found here.


The Rick Steve's audio guide starts out great but then some of the exhibits have moved because of restoration so we had to keep looking for the right spot on the guide to the right art piece.  Patience was in order.

Considering it wasn't very busy we thought it was busy.  Tour groups caused bottle necks.

Crazy how some people just go around taking picture after picture of the art pieces without really looking at the pieces. Why not buy a book with professional pictures of the art then.  Enjoy the art! Don't look at it through a lense.

Personally I found the photographers to be very annoying. People wanted pictures of themselves with the art, this caused more crowds! Also people had a hard time getting around as you had to keep dodging photographers.  Really wish the gallery would just ban photography completely. At least I didn't see too many selfie sticks!

Overall I loved the Ufizzi. The fact I got to see art pieces I have only heard about or read about in person blows me away.  I feel very fortunate that I got to visit.

After two hours in the gallery we are tired. It has been a long day and I need some peace and quiet away from all the people.  Thankfully our apartment is close by.

Bernie naps while I catch up on my blog, read and enjoy some wine.