BATROUNEYS COME TO TOWN

Monday morning we were up and excited as 3/5's of Anna's family (Bud, Daz and Will) were due to arrive in the evening.

We took the chance to get a big load of washing done and organise a big box of stuff to be sent back to Melbourne. 

Of course there was also time to have lunch at Pino's!

I reckon in the 3.5 months I have been in Florence, I have had a Pino's sandwich almost 40 times!

The Batrouney's arrived in the early evening and we were straight up to their hotel, right near the Duomo, to greet them.  It was great to see some friendly faces and especially for Anna who hadn't seen them since the start of February.

That night we took them to an aperitivo dinner as they were pretty tired after a solid 25 hours of travel and then re-convened the next morning for their first day in Florence.

I quickly gained the nickname "Guida" (tour guide) as we weaved in and out of the streets, checking out Anna's school and seeing sights such as the Santa Croce, ponte Vecchio, Arno River, Piazza Della Signoria and Oltrarno.
Anna also made us go and look at the leather jacket that she has been gawking at for the last 3 months and was still unsure about whether she wanted to fork out for it or not.  It was very funny listening to her speak to the lady there about any possible impending sales.

Ponte Vecchio

Florence rowing club down on the grass - Bud was hoping for reciprocal rights!

Our first lunch had to be Pino's!  It was great to have the Batrouney's meet him after we had mentioned his name so many times previously.

That afternoon was filled with more walking, shopping and then a well earned and then around 6pm Bud, Will, Anna and I climbed the 463 steps to the top of the Duomo for views that had them bedazzled!

That night Anna and I had planned dinner at the much talked about Trattoria Cibreo.  It is mentioned in every guide book going around, so we thought we would save it until right to the end.  After a few pre-dinner drinks and nibbles at a nearby bar, we sat down to eat a bit after 9pm. The service was horrible, 15 minutes passed and we were yet to be even offered water, let alone the fact that the menu was an disgrace and didn't have any pasta!  We made a collective decision to get up and leave, and ended up at Aqua al 2 where we knew Stefano would look after us, and that he did.

The next morning Guida had again planned a big day.  Daz, Will and I went straight to Marione' for the best coffee in town, whilst Anna and Bud had a look at the Salvatore Ferragamo museum.  After what seemed like an eternity, they finally showed up, had a quick coffee and then we were off to Il Bisonte.

Il Bisonte is an amazing leather shop, making literally everything you could think of from wallets to belts to bags to even deck chairs.  I finally pulled my card out and bought a great passport wallet, whilst  the Batrouney's also made a few purchases.

We then went to Mercato Centrale, the biggest and best food market in Florence.  Bud and Daz were amazed at all of the produce on hand and I couldn't help but take a photo of the bulls testicles, yummy!

We had a great traditional lunch at Nerbone, the family restaurant that has been in operation at Mercato Centrale since 1872.  Plenty of pasta and amazing roast pork rolls ended up on our table and they were thoroughly enjoyed.

Bud had organized a tour of the Uffizi Gallery and Vasari Corridor and that was next on our agenda.  Anna and I had both been to the Uffizi already, but it was interesting this time to have a properly guided tour and learn a few interesting things.

The Vasari Corridor however, we were super excited for as we have looked up at it so many times over the past few months.

The Corridor is an elevated passageway that connects the Palazzo Vecchio to the Uffizi Gallery and then runs over the top of the Ponte Vecchio, before snaking its way over rows of houses in the Oltrano district, becoming narrower and narrower as it reaches its end point at Palazzo Pitti.

Vasari Corridor from the Palazzo Vecchio (right) to the Uffizi (left)

The Corridor was built in 5 months by order of Grand Duke Cosimo I de' Medici in 1564, to the design of Giorgio Vasari who also painted the interior of the Cathedral's dome.  The idea of an enclosed passageway was motivated by the Grand Duke's desire to move freely between his residence and the government palace, as he felt insecure in public.  The meat market of Ponte Vecchio was moved to avoid its smell reaching into the passage, its place being taken by the goldsmith shops that still occupy the bridge today.

looking out the Uffizi Gallery at the Vasari Corridor ontop of the Ponte Vecchio

The inside of the Vasari Corridor is used to exhibit the Uffizi's famous collection of self-portraits.

no photo's allowed, pppffftttt yeah right

In the middle of the Ponte Vecchio part of the corridor, there are a series of panoramic windows looking out over the Arno River to the Ponte Santa Trinita.  Smaller ones were initially in place, but were ordered to be replaced by Adolf Hitler.  It is said that he loved the Ponte Vecchio so much that he could not bare to damage it, but that didn't stop him from bombing every other bridge in Florence!

looking out "Hitlers windows"

looking back down the Ponte Vecchio from the Oltrarno side

The Vasari Corridor comes out the other end in Oltrano at the monumental Pitti Palace.  The core of this palace dates from 1458 and was originally the town residence of Luca Pitti, an ambitious Florentine banker.  Unfortunately for Luca, he ran out of money before the building could be finished and in 1549 the palace was bought by the Medici family.  

Our tour guide told us that this is where the phrase "what a pity" comes from!

looking up at "Hitlers windows" from the Ponte Vecchio

Luckily we had an outside table at Trattoria Quattro Leoni that night and although it was still very hot and sticky, we were able to enjoy our Bistecca alla Fiorentina and delicious vino rosso without too much discomfort.

The next morning, the Batrouney's visited the Pitti palace whilst I stayed home to continue packing and run a few errands.  I met them for lunch in the Bardini Gardens which had a great little terrace cafe looking out over the Arno river and city of Florence.  Bud and Daz were super impressed with their meals...Guida had done his job well.

Whilst packing my bag that morning, I had a call from Twin Set (the shop where Anna had been drooling over the leather jacket for the past few months) to tell us that there was now a 30% discount available. When I told her at lunch, she was over the moon, so we were straight there after lunch for another purchase!

We all met up again at around 7pm and headed up to Piazzale Michelangelo for a few beers and to admire the sunset.  Not even Anna's alter-ego Erica could properly rear her ugly head in such a great setting!

                                                  

Despite the hot and sweaty conditions that had been present all week, we managed to walk from Piazzale Michelangelo to our favourite restaurant Borgo Antico in about 15-20 minutes.  We worked it out that this was our 10th visit, so it was a little sad to be eating there for the last time.

We wanted to wait for an outside table, so they gave us glasses of champagne while we waited and Will and I walked across to the other side of Piazza Santo Spirito to watch the Italy v Germany Euro Cup semi-final that was nearing half time.  Somehow I managed to end up with my glass of champagne all over me; maybe it was the evening beers and sun combo.

watching the Italy v Germany Euro Cup semi on the big screen (not that big really, but bigger than a tv)

I had been talking up Borgo Antico's pappardelle cinghale all week and Dazza was super keen to compare it to his favourite dish in Melbourne at Lamaro's.  We were both shattered when they told us that it had just been taken off the menu because it was a winter dish.  Nevertheless, we still all had a great meal.

As it was our last night in Florence, we took Will to Eby's bar which is right underneath our apartment. It is well known amongst locals because of the old guy who runs it and is there every single night making the most crazy shots you could ever dream of drinking. 

His most famous creation is a real event in itself and for 3.50 euro, it is worth every cent and more.  He makes a smiley face plate out of oranges, bananas dipped in sesame seeds, raw sugar and ground coffee.

He then yells at you in Italian and tells you to dip the orange piece one side in the sugar and one side in the coffee and "mangia, mangia, magia" (eat, eat, eat).

Meanwhile he pours a shot of kahlua and coca cola, slams on the bar so that it fizzes everywhere and starts yelling at the top of his voice something weird and then "vai, vai, vai, vai" (go, go, go, go).

You then top it off by eating the banana dipped in sesame seeds and that concludes the shot experience, one that I will never forget and laugh every time I watch the video of it.

CALCIO STORICO FIORENTINA 2012

Today was a day I had been looking forward to ever since I read about the Calcio Storico in the first week I was in Florence.  If there is one word to describe this sport, it would be adrenaline.

The tournament is played in Piazza Santa Croce, where for two weeks in June, the smooth stone gives way to a huge sand pit and grandstands and civic pride is played out through the four teams that represent Florence's oldest quarters: the Whites from Santo Spirito, the Greens from San Giovanni, the Reds from Santa Maria Novella and the Blues from Santa Croce.

As our apartment was situated in the Santa Croce district, it was logical that they would be our team and this worked out well because they made it to the final which was against the Whites from Santo Spirito.

The pre-game festivities were due to start at 5pm, but we got there at around 3pm to ensure a decent seat.  Luckily our seats were at the end where all the Santa Croce (Azzurri) fans were sitting, which made the atmosphere electric.

The game is preceded by an hour long procession of 400 or so men, women and horses all decked out in the city's colours, whilst the crowd chants and sings in readiness for the teams to arrive.

A loud bang sounds which signals the entrance of the teams balls, followed by the teams themselves.

As the Blue team arrives at our end, the crowd goes wild, with the main chant being "pica Azzurri, pica Azzurri, eyy eye" which means "fight Blues, fight Blues".

However, when the White team arrives at our end, theres plenty of booing and some hardcore death stares coming from the players.  These players are said to be mainly made up of current and ex nightclub bouncers and are all heavily covered in tattoo's and seriously well built.

We really had no idea what we were in for.  We had been told it was a mix of rugby, soccer, American football, boxing, martial arts, greco roman wrestling and even ice hockey.  Rules don't apply!

The field is 100m long by 50m wide and the game is played for 50 minutes and the teams of 27 men a side (all on the field at once!) swap ends each time a goal is scored.

The whistle blows and the ball is thrown up into the air.  Amazingly no one actually goes for the ball, instead going straight for an opposition player to try and weaken them by any means possible.  It was like nothing I had ever seen; punching, kicking, tackling, you name it, it was happening.

After about 5 minutes, the Blue team got the ball and tried to pick their way down the field to the end goal, but to no avail.  It felt like a chaotic rugby match in which kicks to the head and random tackling of players nowhere near the ball had replaced the familiar scrum.

The goals were as big as the width of the pitch, so you would think there would be plenty of scores, but it was a hard-fought road getting there.

In the end, the White team from Santo Spirito proved too strong and too quick and with a number of Blue players injured, they ran away easy 4-0 victors.

The fans from the White side were going crazy, whilst the fans from the Blue side were yelling profanities, throwing bottles onto the pitch and just generally behaving badly, it sure was a sight!

Although the match was over, the day wasn't. That night was the celebration of Florence's Saint Patron Giovanni Battista and there was an amazing fireworks display up on Piazzale Michelangelo.

We made the smart decision to watch them from Ponte Santa Trinita which meant we could see the Ponte Vecchio and behind it the beautiful fireworks reflecting in the Arno River.

If that wasn't enough, 10 minutes after the fireworks finished, Italy beat England in a penalty shootout in the Euro Cup to make it through to the semi final.  The city was going crazy, people honking their cars, yelling and screaming, it was a great time to be in Florence!